Loveland Fishing Club Blog

Matt Snider, the executive editor of Fish Explorer, joined us at Wednesday's derby and posted the following writeup on the website.  http://fishexplorer.com LFC Senior Fishing Derby Blog by: Matt Snider 9/26/2019 When the time comes I am no longer able to physically or mentally get out and go fishing on my own, the only thing I ask is that you come take me fishing now and again. Since my earliest memories, I have spent nearly every day wanting to be fishing.  I can't imagine that'll ever go away. Which brings me to this. Yesterday was the  Loveland Fishing Club's  11th Annual Senior Fishing Derby, which  Bill Prater wrote about in August.   I had a moment to visit with Bill at the event held at  Flatiron Reservoir , and I wanted to share some photos with you all. So much kudos goes out to the LFC for putting this event on.  62 men and women from about 8 senior living centers from various locations (mostly around Loveland) took sh...

The following news release about reducing hours for inspection is from Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Note the boat ramp will be closed on Wednesdays. Colorado Parks and Wildlife thanks boaters as boating season winds down at Jumbo Reservoir Thus far during the 2019 season, watercraft inspectors at Jumbo Reservoir have inspected just shy of 9,000 boats for the presence of aquatic nuisance species and 165 were decontaminated prior to launch. “Reservoir usage has increased annually and with this increased usage comes an increased risk of introduction,” said Robert Walters, CPW Invasive Species Specialist. With increased usage comes an increase in demand for water access. To meet this public demand CPW has expanded the inspection season at Jumbo Reservoir through the end of October. Hours of operation during the month of October will remain a half-hour before sunrise to a-halfhour after sunset Thursday – Tuesday. The boat ramp will be closed on Wednesdays due to decreased staffing le...

While most of the club chose to fish closer to where they'd be eating hot dogs, Bill and Rick huddled in a far corner of Flatiron Reservoir Thursday and emerged with a one-two finish in the annual Club Tournament. Using a mysterious secret bait, Bill put together a legal limit string of two 14-inch rainbows and two 13 1/2 inchers for a total of 55 inches, in a contest determined by combined length. Rick's string totaled 50 inches. The winner walked off with a $50 cash prize and assurance that his name will be placed alongside past winners on on the club's rotating Grand Champion trophy. If you want to see it, it'll be at his house until at least next year's tournament. Photo by Dan Barker

First, the Correction:  we originally told you 8 a.m. it's 9. Sorry about that. Hey, I'm old.  Also, the rules of combat for the 8th annual event have changed from last year, when we fished Swift Ponds. Here they are: No Wading No Boating (park rules)  One - Pole One - Hook or Lure or Fly Limit - 4 Trout Stringer = 4 Trout measured (kept or released alive) Time Limit – 9:00am to 12:00 noon. Finally, All Kept or Released fish meant to enter the derby must be officially measured and witnessed by another club member  who needs to legibly write the length of the fish on a card along with their initial.  The First Prize Winner, the angler with the longest total string of 4 fish, gets $50 cash and her or his name on a handsome 19 1/4-inch revolving trophy, and you keep it until it's presented to the 2020 winner. Second prize is $25. Larimer Count Parks and Open Space levies an admission fee at Flatiron. A few of us with annual passes will me...

Rick Golz was actually out fishing in the Poudre west of Fort Collins this week. As you can tell by these photos, it was a gorgeous day to be out on the water. And he reports catching about 20 trout, mostly browns.

 Bright sunny skies and a brisk wind greeted 2019 guests of the Loveland Fishing Club's Senior Derby at Flatiron Reservoir. About 70 anglers, most from area assisted living centers, enjoyed the day, and we cleaned and iced about 50 freshly stocked trout for take-home. To see more photos, follow this link.  (You can download any or all of them to your own computer, or print a copy).   Prize winners for 2019 include Jim Bair, 93, a World War II veteran of the Army Air Corps, for biggest fish, a 16 1/2 inch trout. Bernie Chin, smallest fish Jane McAfee, 93, oldest female angler Floyd Schweiter, 98, oldest male angler Marilyn Beavin, best fishing hat Jim Bair (center in blue hat), who caught the day's biggest fish, hauls it in under the close eye of LFC's Norm Engelbrecht, who had nothing to do with the catch. Bernie Chin, left, earned a medal for smallest fish of the day, presented by Karol Stroschein    After a slow st...

Please make every effort to help the club make this annual event at Flatiron Reservoir a success. We’re expecting about a hundred guests, most from area assisted living centers. The event runs 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. but plan to be there about 7:30 to help with setup. There’s no charge for admittance to the property, and there are rumors there will be donuts.

Jim Baxter at Boyd Lake Photo by ?? Jim in the Flat Top Wilderness Photo by Steve Jetter or Roger Smith

Just in from Wyoming:  John Gwinnup displaying a fat Cody area brown trout.

After a good day of fishing at Boyd Lake, with at least a few fish on board, the club broke for lunch and entertainment from this legendary crew.

Mark your calendar for an overnight fishing trip to the Delaneys around Oct. 30. And in the meantime, who wants to blast over for a quick day of prime fall fishing? Wayne Baranczyk and Bill Prater are looking at a trip around Tuesday, Oct. 8, leaving here around 5:30 and coming home victorious in the evening.Interested? Give me a call or text at 970-988-9174. South Delaney rainbow and Dave's hand. It's about a 3-hour trip to the lakes west of Walden. Dave Johnson and others were there a few weeks ago. He reports the mosquitoes have left the vicinity for the season, leaving us alone with a bunch of gullible trout.

The club is covering entrance fees for next Wednesday’s senior derby, but Larimer County Park fees will be in effect for Thursday’s annual club tourney. Let’s carpool. The tourney begins at 8 a.m. Meet at the southeast corner of the K-Mart parking lot to carpool. We’ll leave for Flatiron no later than 7:30, so don’t be late! If you have a pass, please stop by and help.

Make no mistake: one of these days I may be writing about some of you like this. As that old saying goes, "I should live so long..." Bill  Since learning about the passing of boyhood buddy Billy Grable, I have moped around in a sadness offset by slow smiles as I recall the way we used to be. I am thinking back on the Summer of ’66, when our intertwined lives were one damned crazy adventure after another. Whatever we did that summer almost inevitably involved me, Billy, brother Paulie, our other inseparable best friend Jim, and a revolving collection of girlfriends who went on to collectively become our ex-girlfriends, wives and ex-wives. (Sadly, only Linda and my relationship has survived the intervening half century). Time, distance and changing life circumstances combined to drag us apart, in ways that seemed impossible in 1966. To my great regret, I haven’t seen Billy since a Granite City Senior High Class of ’66 reunion back in the ‘80s. Aw man, now I really miss t...

Seems like this is another one of those problems that keeps getting worse. The Colorado Springs Gazette just posted the following article on how the blue green algae situation is cropping up down there. To me, it's not just the toxic algae that's annoying; algae growth in general is out of hand. I think the aerators at the Loveland Recycle Pond have been very effective, and wonder whether they might be something to look at for River's Edge. Dragonfly in particular has been pea soup this summer. Bill https://gazette.com/cheyenneedition/colorado-springs-seeks-new-solutions-to-toxic-blue-green-algae/article_62d845c6-d27d-11e9-ad54-bf0f9931c6a7.html

Hi, Jim Visger sent a message that the October Board meeting date is 14 Oct and the club meeting is on 15 Oct.

The Loveland Fishing Club's annual club tournament will be held on Thursday, Sept. 26 at Flatiron Reservoir, the day after the Senior Fishing Derby. Rules will be announced later; at last year's tournament at Swift Ponds the top prize went to David Koon for a 17 1/2-inch largemouth, which would be a really good trick at Flatiron, stocked only with trout. David Koon, left, and Dan Barker with the traveling trophy. Cooking chores for the event will be handled by Koon and Dan Barker, who won the prize for biggest non-bass of the day last year. If the menu looks a bit familiar, it may be because we'll be having food left over from the Senior Derby.

Pat Weller and I went fishing at Long Draw and Peterson reservoirs on Wednesday. We had the lake to ourselves but fish weren't biting. One fish was caught at Paterson. The last time we were there was July 31st, when a large group were camping and fishing at N. Michigan reservoir and Ranger Lakes. Five weeks ago Long Draw was full to the brim, now the water level has dropped considerably and continues to empty out into the South Fork which eventually leads to the Poudre River. Pat Weller at Long Draw with Rocky Mountain National Park behind him. Photo by Rick Palmieri Long Draw, five weeks ago these stumps were all under water. Water was up to the treeline on the other side. Photo by Rick Palmieri The dam on the north side of Long Draw Reservoir. Photo Rick Palmieri Peterson Reservoir water levels have dropped too. Both of these lakes look like a great place for float tubes or kayaks. Photo by Rick Palmieri Evidence that there are fish in Paterson. this g...