By V. Paul Reynolds
The big browns weren't where they were supposed to be. Or, if they were, they stayed down and sulked unceremoniously.The water was impossibly high and by day's end we had brought to the boat one small brown trout and a couple of scrappy smallmouths. But, nonetheless, when the sun is high in the sky, and breezes are gentle, a June day in a river drift boat is a day to write about.
For most of the morning, our driftboat guide Bob Mallard had Diane and I casting our heavy flies toward the river's banks and deep undercuts. "This is what we call ugly fishing, " smiled Bob. " Nothing delicate about these presentations. Just cast down stream aggressively toward the bank. If that Zuddler makes a big splash, all the better. Don't hesitate after the cast. Strip, strip, strip," he ordered.
The river was unusually high for mid-June, and, with two inexperienced fastwater flycasters aboard, it was no easy chore for Bob to manipulate the big Western drift boat in the fast current. His students did not start strong. Unaccustomed to casting heavy artificials in the required side-arm fling, Diane and I left more than one Conehead Zuddler attached to overhanging branches and assorted snags.
Nobody caught an errant hook in soft flesh, though, and Mallard kept his cool and his sense of humor throughout. In fact, he performed remarkably well. How he managed all at the same time to share fish tales, keep a large cigar going, maneuver the drift boat to our angling advantage while simultaneously holding forth on how much better the Upper Kennebec fishery could be still mystifies me. I suspect that Mallard is related to Harry Houdini.
Bob Mallard, a native Bay Stater with a life-long infatuation with fly fishing, left his successful software business a few years ago to launch a dream: his own Fly Shop. After fishing and exploring most of New England and the West, Mallard decided to set up shop in Madison. Located on Route 201 just north of Skowhegan, Kennebec River Outfitters is as advertised truly a "Premier Fly Shop."
If there is in Maine a more complete, well appointed Western-style fly shop, I haven't seen it. Mallard, clearly a guy with a
sixth sense about retailing and a broad-based knoweledge of fly fishing and equipment, offers an inventory that represents all price ranges.
Mallard's shop is one of those inviting places that makes a fly angler want to hang around. As Mallard observed in a regular column that he writes for the Northwoods Sporting Journal, "You can tell a real fly shop the moment you walk through the door. There are no aisles of casual clothing, hockey sticks, or purple kayaks suspended from the ceiling. Everywhere you look is flyfishing equipment. A fly shop is where like minds congregate."
Mallard is a man clearly taken with the Upper Kennebec River. And after spending a day sharing his driftboat and his unabashed enthusiasm for this wonderful state watershed, I can appreciate his zeal. The eight-mile stretch from Solon on down is spectacular. The water is free flowing and crystal clear. For an angler, there is a wide variety of angling opportunities including
some appealing wading areas that reminded me of some of the West's most vaunted riverine sport fisheries.
Mallard has some deeply held convictions about how Maine's sport fishery could be better managed, and he doesn't hold back. He wants tougher regulations, stricter size and bag limits and far more catch and release waters. He is convinced that with more leadership in Augusta, as well as more courageous and enlightened fisheries management, the Upper Kennebec could be the Madison River or the Snake River of the East.
"You know, former Commissioner Bucky Owen showed a lot of courage and vision when he pushed through his Quality Fishing Initiative, " said Mallard. " He bucked city hall on that one. But that was 10 years ago, and there hasn't been any real leadership on that front since Bucky."
Mallard isn't just talking the talk, either. He is taking his case to Augusta officials, jawboning biologists whenever he can get their ear, and is actively involved with the Fisheries Commmitte of the Sportsmen's Alliance of Maine (SAM). My guess is that in the months ahead, you'll be hearing more, not just about the Upper Kennebec, but more from Bob Mallard.
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The
author is editor of the Northwoods Sporting Journal.He is also a Maine Guide,
co-host of a weekly radio program "Maine Outdoors" heard Sundays at
7 p.m. on The Voice of Maine News-Talk Network (WVOM-FM 103.9, WCME-FM 96.7) and
former information officer for the Maine Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. His e-mail
address is paul@sportingjournal.com.