It's one-fly time

Staff photo by Dave Sherwood
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Picking the right fly isn't easy. Tim Marcoulier's hat proves why. "It's not a hat, it's a tackle box," he said last week at the annual One-Fly Tournament in Fairfield.

For the serious fly fisherman, limiting yourself to a single fly is like playing 18 holes of golf with just one club. But for the good-natured crew that fished the Kennebec Chapter of Trout Unlimited's annual One-Fly Tournament last Sunday, it's part of the fun.

"Guys get very inventive with their flies," said Mike Holt, owner of the Fairfield fly shop, Fly Fishing Only. "And competitive, too."

The tournament, held annually since 1997 (possibly earlier, but no one seemed to remember), tests a fisherman's patience, and creativity. Fishermen are allowed one fly for the duration; the tournament runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The object? To catch as many fish as possible using that one fly -- and only one fly. Break it off on a tree limb, a shoreside bush, or a fish, and you return to go, re-pay your entrance dues of $10, and start over.

Each angler is bound by the honor system -- particularly since all fish caught are released immediately. There is also some strategy required.

Each fish species is awarded points. For example, a brown trout over 16 inches is worth 50 points. Likewise for rainbow trout. A landlocked salmon over 12 inches-- a relative rarity in this stretch of river -- is worth 100 points. Any fish over 20 inches receives an additional 10 points per inch. Bass over 16 inches, while more numerous than any of the other species, are worth only 30 points (this is Trout Unlimited, not Bass Unlimited).

"We might even make them minus 5 points," joked Jim Thibodeau, of Waterville, one of Sunday's impromptu judges.

Because the judges are fishermen, and fishermen are opinionated and rarely tell the truth, judges reserve the right to change the rules at will, even during or immediately after the contest.

The weather last Sunday was less than cooperative: A stiff south wind whistled up the river, rustling fall leaves and rippling the surface. Storm clouds lurked in the distance; rain showers threatened. Even so, a dozen fishermen were motivated to try their luck and compete for the illustrious One-Fly Tournament trophy: A moose antler adorned with each season's winning fly and plaques, all afixed with epoxy.

The tournament began in the mid-1990s to raise awareness of Edwards Dam in Augusta, the value of the Kennebec River, and the need to remove the dam.

Because it was held in the fall, and because striped bass ran thick below the dam at that time, the one fly was most often a big streamer pattern that imitated the large baitfish that stripers covet.

This year, the tournament was relocated again, this time, to Shawmut Dam, where rainbow trout, brown trout and smallmouth bass are the most common gamefish.

"We figured, this is Trout Unlimited, we should hold the tournament somewhere you can fish for trout," said Greg Ponte, of West Gardiner, board member of Kennebec Valley of Trout Unlimited.

Choosing the right fly became slightly more difficult at Shawmut. This time, there were finicky rainbow and brown trout to contend with, as well as bass. Bass are easier to catch, but trout are worth more points.

Strategy became paramount. Tournament organizers also had another goal in mind -- to thwart the defending champions Tim and Marcoulier and Jim Elsaesser of Massachussets. They'd won the tournament the previous four years in a row by catching one species -- bass.

"How many years does it take a group dedicated to the welfare of Maine's trout and salmon and coldwater fisheries to realize that they are giving a trophy year after year to two bass fishermen from Massachussets who have won each time without catching a single trout?" joked newsletter editor Dave Hedrick of Waterville.

But Marcoulier and Elsaesser didn't buckle under the pressure. Once again, they pursued their bass strategy.

Elsaesser's fly of choice was a concoction he'd tied himself years ago, a white and red deer hair fly that had garnered two first-place entries in the One-Fly Tournament.

"I wanted something that would work for smallmouths. This fly floats, it's got a bit of red to imitate gills, and in a pinch, you can trim it down, put weight on it and fish it deep. I've lost track of how many smallmouth I've caught on it," he said. He caught 3 fish -- all bass -- on his one fly.

Marcoulier, fishing the same fly, caught 5 bass, at 15 points each, for a total of 75.

Local guide and fisherman Sean McCormick and daughter Christine, of Whitefield, chose dry flies, No. 20 olive sparkle duns -- hoping to hit a blue-winged olive hatch on the river.

Unfortunately, strong winds put off the hatch, and once a fisherman (or woman) has chosen his or her fly, there's no going back.

"If it hadn't been blowing so hard, we would have had a dozen trout today," he said.

Instead, he wound up with three rainbow trout, all under 16 inches, at 25 points a piece, also for a total of 75.

"The guys from Massachussets tied with the McCormicks for first place," revealed presiding judge Ponte in a suspenseful moment near the end of the tournament.

Fortunately for father and daughter, the judges decided to invoke the clause that allowed for a sudden, and immediate, rule change the day of the tournament.

"Trout take precedent over bass. This is a Trout Unlimited tournament, right?" said Ponte.

The tie was broken; the McCormicks won. And since daughter Christine had done the actual netting of the fish that father Sean had hooked -- then took care of the ever-so-important job of releasing it, she was awarded the entire point total for the team and the honorary moose horn trophy.

"These guys have a great sense of humor up here. We'll be back next year," said Elsaesser.

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