Bull Creek March Update

• The 2010 Valley Trap League schedule will be out soon. We'll post it here when available. The big news this year is the return of two clubs to the league, Frazier Sportsmen and Ford City Sportsmen. This will return the league to 20 weeks long from the 18 weeks that it's been. The first shoots will be Tuesday April 13th. See the link at the top of this page for more details.

• April Meeting Reminder: The next Bull creek monthly meeting will be Thursday April 1st at 7:00PM. The Board of Directors met last week and will have a number of updates to bring up at the meeting including an update of the restroom remodel. Plus, final results from the March Gun Bash will be reported. Hint: Best Ever!

• Reminder: to reserve the club for a private event like a graduation or birthday party you MUST see the club treasurer first to check availability and pay the rental fee. Do not write on the calender yourself!

• Volunteers will be needed to help with this year's Youth Rifle Tournament to be held in August.

News Items of Interest...

Pennsylvania deer hunt total lowest since 1987 Wednesday, March 24, 2010 The Associated Press Deer hunters in Pennsylvania bagged the lowest number of deer in the state since 1987. The Pennsylvania Game Commission says hunters killed an estimated 308,920 deer during the 2009-10 deer season, an 8 percent drop from the season before. The record low was 300,014 deer taken in 1986-87. The agency's chief deer biologist, Chris Rosenberry, declined to speculate on the reason for the low total. But Stephen Mohr, president of Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania, called the current deer management program "fatally flawed." His group has filed suit accusing the commission of mismanaging the deer population. Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10083/1045230-100.stm Increasing funds for pheasant hunting a conundrum for commission Buzz up!By Bob Frye, TRIBUNE-REVIEW Sunday, March 21, 2010 How to put a stamp on it? Might the answer to funding the state's pheasant program be requiring pheasant hunters to buy a stamp, but make the price of it high enough to support pheasant propagation on its own? That's what New Jersey does. It charges hunters $40 annually for a pheasant stamp, but only allows those who possess one to hunt birds. None of the groups pushing for a hunting license fee increase in Pennsylvania has suggested going that high. But half measures -- like calling for a stamp that raises just half the money needed to pay for the program -- isn't winning much agreement Who should pay for the state's pheasant hunting program? Just the hunters who hunt pheasants? Or all hunters? Agreement on an answer has been hazy at best. The Pennsylvania Game Commission's pheasant management plan calls for annually stocking 250,000 farm-raised birds -- or two-and-a-half times the 100,000 it is raising now -- when finances allow. See the rest by clicking here. State hatchery's open house offers behind-the-scenes peek Sunday, March 21, 2010 By Deborah Weisberg, Special to the Post-Gazette Andy Starne/Post-GazetteCarp feeding at the spillway of Pymatuning State Park near Linesville, Pa.Leave it to the experts to tell your kids where babies come from -- babies with fins and tails, at least. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission demonstrates the fish spawning process at its annual open house at the Linesville State Fish Hatchery, in Crawford County near Pymatuning Reservoir from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. April 3. Plenty of activities are planned, including a show-and-tell on how biologists "age" fish, bluegill printing on T-shirts, and casting practice for kids. But walleye reproduction is the main event, said Larry Hines, the commission's production manager for northern hatcheries. Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10080/1044171-358.stm

How-to trout seminars teach fly fishing skills

From the Post Gazette:

How-to trout seminars teach fly fishing skills Sunday, March 14, 2010 By Deborah Weisberg With trout season just around the bend, anglers may want to catch two seminars next weekend aimed at helping them land fish. L.L. Bean is sponsoring a trout-fishing expo at its Ross Park Mall store Friday through Sunday, while Penn's Woods West Trout Unlimited will hold its annual "how-to" day from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at St. Bede Church in Point Breeze. Both events are free and open to the public and will cover tackle selection, knot-tying and "reading" water to find fish. They also will offer hands-on casting instruction. Although L.L. Bean will include some spin-fishing activities in its kids-only program, the focus of both venues is fly fishing, beginning with insect life or entomology. "Fly selection is one area that novices, in particular, find challenging. When do I select an emerger instead of a dry fly? When do I fish a nymph?" said L.L. Bean casting instructor and seminar organizer Bill Nagle. "So we talk about what trout eat, the life cycle of bugs and the different rise forms of fish when they take a certain fly." Nagle will use a "match the hatch" storyboard and slides of stream anatomy to explain how fly patterns correspond to aquatic insects by color, size, profile and presentation on the water. "I tell people if you put 10 seasoned anglers in a room and ask what fly they use, generally the top three are Pheasant Tail nymphs, Parachute Adams, and olive Woolly Buggers. Then they name other basic attractor patterns, like Elk Hair Caddis, Royal Wulff, and Hare's Ear nymph," Nagle said. "Those six flies are all you really need to do well on a stream. Of course, a perfectly tied fly won't catch a fish unless it's properly presented. "You shorten the learning curve considerably if you put in time on the stream with an angler-friend or a guide," he said. "My money's on the guide, because he's a pro." L.L. Bean will use its 10-foot smallmouth bass aquarium to demonstrate how fish forage. "The fish can get aggressive, so we hand out raincoats," Nagle said. Partnering in the L.L. Bean weekend are Venture Outdoors, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, Family Ties the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau and Reel Recovery, which sponsors free fishing retreats for men with cancer and will be accepting applications for the June 7-9 retreat on Yellow Breeches Creek at Boiling Springs. Reel Recovery is also asking folks to donate flies during the seminars -- L.L. Bean will match each one with a similar fly. The St. Bede's seminar is a smaller-scale event, which allows for plenty of one-on-one attention from regional anglers including Scott Loughner of Rilton, a casting disciple of Lefty Kreh. Most of the after-lunch hours will be devoted to casting practice on the church lawn, while the morning's focus will be tackle and knot-tying techniques with demonstrations on a giant hook and thick strands of yarn. "The knot you use to tie on a fly is often the difference between landing or losing a big fish," said seminar organizer Bob Bukk. "Finding a knot you can tie with ease on the stream, especially as you get older -- whether it's the clinch knot, the Orvis knot or any of half a dozen others -- is like finding your soul mate. It's something you know you can count on." Saturday's St. Bede event, which includes a free lunch, has grown every year and is open to adults and kids, veteran anglers and novices. Cultivating an interest in fly fishing is in keeping with the Trout Unlimited mission of protecting coldwater resources, in that anglers make good fisheries stewards, Bukk said. "People shouldn't be intimidated about fly fishing. If you stick to basics, at least to start, you can add to your tackle gradually." As a follow-up to the seminar, the Penn's Woods West bus trip to Spring Creek in Centre County is slated for June 10. Cost is $45 per person, $50 after May Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10073/1042410-358.stm

Gun Bash a Huge Success!

Thanks to all the members who came out to help. Around 700 people had a great time. We set a record for the number of prizes given out!

Bull Creek Spring Gun Bash Tomorrow at Laube Hall in Freeport!

From all accounts tickets are sold out for the gun bash tomorrow. With the weather greatly improved from past weeks we expect a large turnout.

If you are a Bull Creek member please come out and help. Doors open to the public at noon with the first ticket item being drawn at 1PM. typically the Spring event is the largest of the year!

March Meeting Reminder

Meeting time 7:00PM, March 4th. March is typically the biggest meeting of the year. This year is no exception. 2010 dues not in and paid by this Thursday's meeting will result in loss of membership. We expect over 100 members on hand. Parking will be an issue. With our Spring Gun Bash coming this Saturday, all sold and unsold tickets must be turned in. Dozens of people are looking to buy tickets and can't find any. We'll need lots of help Saturday at Laube hall in Freeport so please sign up. Details on the restroom remodeling with be released. Construction has already started and should be finished in 3 or 4 weeks. This is the biggest improvement we have made to the club since the new addition was built 4 years ago. The March Hunter's Safety Course is filling up fast. See details and register online by visiting the link listed below.

John Arway of North Huntington Takes Over At PA Fish and Boat Commission

From the Pittsburgh Post Gazette: By John Hayes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

After months of talking up a nationwide head hunt for a new executive director, members of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission have promoted a 30-year employee of the agency to fill the top job. Commissioners announced Tuesday that John Arway of North Huntington will replace former director Doug Austen, who was pushed from the executive director role last summer and officially left the agency in January. Interim director Brian Barner will retain his position as the agency's deputy director for administration, boating and engineering. Arway, 57, is a lifelong angler, boater and hunter who, like Austen, endorses a "resource first" wildlife management philosophy. For more than two decades he has been the commission's environmental advisor to the executive director. His most recent position was head of the agency's Environmental Services Division. He has served on several boards and committees including the Pennsylvania Biological Survey's Steering Committee, the Pennsylvania Council of Trout Unlimited's Environmental Committee and Gov. Ed Rendell's Pesticide Advisory Board and Green Government Council. Arway has a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Pittsburgh and a master's in biology from Tennessee Technological University. "I am grateful to the board for providing me the opportunity to lead the agency where I have devoted most of my professional life," Arway said in a written statement. "Our agency has a tremendous responsibility to the resource and to the anglers and boaters who enjoy and benefit from the resource." In a conference call yesterday, Arway hinted of an interest in looking inward at ongoing Fish and Boat Commission conflicts including boosting employee moral, settling a new contract for waterways conservation officers and acquiring alternative sources of funding. Unlike most state agencies, Fish and Boat receives no revenue from the state's general fund. About 67 percent of its $61 million 2009-10 operating budget comes from license fees, 15 percent comes from a federal sales tax on fishing equipment and an additional $1.2 million per year comes from federal wildlife grants linked to specific projects. "We have a very dedicated staff that I am looking forward to working with on the many challenges ahead of us including the protection of water quality from future pollution events, the threat of aquatic invasive species, the increasing loss of habitat and the restoration of American shad to the Susquehanna River," Arway said. "I am also looking forward to working with our staff and the anglers and boaters on improving recreational fishing and boating opportunities throughout the commonwealth." Arway's appointment as executive director must be confirmed by the governor before he is sworn in by commission members. Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10061/1039715-100.stm