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In the steelhead and western salmon fly-fishing world, two-handed rods of various kinds are all the rage.
Out west, where the rivers are big and the winds are perpetual, that's been the case for a while. Spey rods and two-handed casting have taken over the western steelhead fishing culture.
Here in the East, we have been much slower to make the leap in that direction. On New York's famed Salmon River in Pulaski, for example, while the occasional spey rod shows up, it's rare. That's about to change.
Mark June 21 on your fishing calendar.
Not a particularly auspicious time to be plodding along the banks of the Salmon River, though there might be a few early summer steelhead coming in and a few more landlocked salmon. Down in the lower pools, certainly a ton of smallmouth and football-shaped brown trout will be there but not the great runs of Chinook and kings and steelhead. Those come later.
So this makes the date and the occasion full-focused on casting -- and learning all about spey and two-handed rods -- from some of the best instructors in America. It's an amazing opportunity, and it is free.
Spey Nation's "The Experience 2008," as it is being billed, was concocted after a late-night Internet bulletin board chat between my colleague here at the newspaper, Geoff Schaake, who happens to be a former Alaskan fishing guide and very accomplished fisherman, and fellow enthusiast Zach Brooks, over their passion: spey and two-handed casting.
What they've come up with is nothing short of amazing. "The Experience 2008" will be held on a 75-acre field adjacent to the Salmon River on County Route 52 in Altmar, Oswego County, beginning at 8 a.m.
There'll be a day-long barbecue, sponsored by the Oak Orchard Fly Shop, and a two-handed rod demonstration by several experts. All proceeds will be donated either as cash or equipment to the state's Salmon River Hatchery nearby.
This opportunity is boundless for spey and two-handed rod enthusiasts -- and those attracted to it but inexperienced. Manufacturers representatives from all the biggest names will be there, as well as local guides and some of the more prominent names in the two-handed fishing industry.
Including rod designer Bob Meiser, who has created benchmark rods for Beulah and Temple Forks Outfitters in addition to his own company, the Meiser Rod Co. A West Coast guy, this will be Meiser's first trip to the Great Lakes steelhead fishery.
The range of demonstrators goes from Meiser, who will be showing off the newest technology, called switch rods, to representatives casting Beulah, CNA and Burkheimer. Guidelines, a Scandinavia-based company, will be on hand to show off its style of two-handed rods. This uses a compact, fast-action rod and a short, heavy shooting head to gain maximum distance with minimal back cast.
Great Lakes steelhead guide and author Rick Kustich will be among the celebrities tossing out those incredible figure-8 casts.
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