Newsletter Vol. 6:3

Summer 2001

Friends of the Grand River
P.O. Box 271
Fergus ON
N1M 2W7

(519) 843-3102 or (519) 843-3806

Grand Times is a publication of the Friends of the Grand River. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the policies of the organization and/or the Board of Directors.

Editorial committee: Larry McGratton and John Dadds

Grand Times is published three or four times a year as a means of communicating with members of Friends of the Grand River and various agencies or groups that it works with.

President's Corner

From the desk of Larry McGratton

The membership of FOGR is one of the most dedicated groups of individuals that I've ever had the pleasure of being acquainted with.

If you ask for their help to complete a project, volunteer their time to help at an event or just support the on going efforts of this group through membership and rod raffle tickets, they are there.

When I look back over the years since FOGR was formed and see all the improvements in the Grand River Tail Water Fishery of today, along with MNR and GRCA, I know we are heading in the right direction.

However it has been brought to my attention that there are a few people who feel the river would be better without Friends of the Grand Rivers influence and that FOGR is nothing more than a glorified "old boys club." Let me assure you that nothing could be further from the truth.

All I have to say to these individuals is that in today's society with government cutbacks and the lack of resources, if you are interested in a particular activity, you had better nurture it and get involved.

Become a member of whatever public group it is that takes it upon themselves to look out for the best interest of that resource,.

We all benefit from this type of action, rather than the negative criticism of a few people who lack the knowledge to make an educated decision.

If you chose not to be a member, that's your business. However, don't find fault with those who are trying to improve the resource.

Of course, membership would cost them a monetary commitment and therein lies the real problem.

I also know that FOGR gets a lot of praise, at the government level, the local community level and by those who use the resource not just for the wonderful fly fishing we have,. It comes also from the trail walkers, bird watchers, kayakers, campers, etc.

This is due to your ongoing commitment to improve the tailwater fishery and the environment of the Grand River valley.

I'd like to thank you for your support and look forward to the future of Friends of the Grand River.

Larry R McGratton
President

Our Next Meeting:

Fall Gathering Meeting

Sunday, October 14, 2001, 2 p.m. to 4.30 p.m.

Wellington Terrace Home for the Aged, Elora, Ontario

See "Fall Gathering " further along

Notice of Proposal to Amend By-Laws


Section 3 of By-Law Number One reads as follows:

Each director must be at the time of his/her election or within ten days thereafter and throughout his/her term of office a Member of the Corporation. Each such director shall be elected to hold office until the second annual meeting after he/she shall have been elected or until his/her successor shall have been duly elected and qualified. No director may hold office for more than three consecutive terms of two years. The members of the Corporation may, by resolution passed by at least two-thirds of the votes cast at a general meeting of which notice specifying the intention to pass such resolution has been given, remove any such director before the expiration of his/her term of office, and may, by a majority of the votes cast at that meeting, elect any person in his/her stead for the remainder of his/her term.

Board proposal

The board of directors proposes that Section 3 of By-Law Number One be amended as follows:

The sentence reading "No director may hold office for more than three consecutive terms of two years" be removed and not replaced.

Discussion

Elections for the directors’ current two-year terms were held at the annual general meeting this spring.

One member, Terry Ryckman, was elected as treasurer on the understanding that he would fill that position even though he would be going into a fourth two-year term.

Members present at the AGM elected Terry as treasurer conditional on a by-law amendment being proposed and accepted at a general meeting of the membership usually held in the fall.

Friends of the Grand is unique in that most members come from outside the area of immediate interest to the membership the coldwater reach of the Grand River between the Shand Dam and West Montrose.

Ongoing work is heavily dependent on the dedication of people who are Fergus residents, like Terry.

The intent of the three two-year term provision is to prevent an "old boys club" developing with few opportunities to introduce new blood. However, it also works to the detriment of the group when solid board members are discarded when they are willing to keep working in our best interests.

Prior to our last elections, two members indicated that they did not intend to run for election again, and two new members were elected at the AGM.

Technically, Terry is the only three-term member of the board at present. As the by-law stands, three board members would be unable to run again at the next election.

The by-law only requires one day's notice of a meeting, but the proposed measure is worthy of more consideration.

It will be considered at a general membership meeting to be held on Sunday, October 14, 2001 at 2 p.m. at the Wellington Terrace Home for the Aged, Elora.

Fall Gathering

On Sunday, October 14, 2001 the fall gathering meeting will take place at the Wellington Terrace Home for the Aged in Elora from 2 until 4:30.

It's located on Cuthbert Street just off of Colborne Street in Elora.

To find Colborne Street, drive down the main street of Elora, until you see the post office and municipal building. Colbourne Street is opposite those buildings,

Turn on to Colborne Street and head east about a kilometre to Cuthbert Street. Turn left, drive to the end of the street and you're there!

For more information contact Larry R. McGratton at 519-843-3102.

Bits and Bites

Recruitment Study

Twenty-two VEMCO temperature dataloggers have been placed in the Grand River drainage by FOGR.

This project is funded by MNR's Protection and Enhancement Fund project.

The locations are those arrived at after discussion with Art Timmerman of MNR, Guelph, and Mark Hartley of the GRCA.

Three loggers were placed around the controversial Beatty Dam in Fergus, two in Black Creek Drain below where residential development has been proposed, and the balance were split among Swan and Carroll Creeks.

We'll keep the loggers in through mid-summer high temperatures and retrieve them in November. (Submitted by Ian Martin)

Electrofishing

FOGR has six members who were trained in electrofishing this summer.

This training will be used in the fall to help volunteers look for young of the year. This will help with the evaluation of spawning success to this point in different areas of the river and the tributaries of the Grand.

Although we tried to use emergent traps in the spring to gather swim-up fry, the success rate was less than we anticipated. (Submitted by Larry McGratton)

Swan Creek

Part 2 of the Swan Creek rehab project proceeded on June 16 without a hitch. The rain held off and we had 16 volunteers out with gloves and boots to play in the stream.

About 20 meters of the side bank was stabilized with rock that was on location. Although this is hard work, it's well worth the effort. With the eagerness of the volunteers to help a stream recover, we where able to do another stretch of the stream that day as well.

It's remarkable how 16 committed people in 4 hours can have such a great, positive effect on a stream.

During lunch it was commented on how clear the stream was after some help from it's Friends. (Submitted by Terry Ryckman)

River Cleanup

Although June 23rd was a warm day, and the turnout was not that great, the six volunteers that showed up were more than willing to get down and dirty to make a difference and they did.

In a few short hours (four to five), we had removed a lot of trash from the area. How much? How does 20 cubic yards sound. That was the size of the roll-off dumpster that it took to haul it away.

One might wonder how this much trash could end up in a world-class trout fishery, I know I sure do. Yes, some of it does get washed downstream in the spring, but a lot of it winds up there the same way that it does everywhere else on this planet, people.

I'd ask you that whenever you are on the river and you notice garbage that you take a moment and pick it up. I'd like to thank the volunteers that helped out on that Saturday morning in June. (Submitted by Larry R McGratton)

Kiosk Report

By Terry Ryckman

Summer of 2001 has been a busy one in the life of a kiosk chairman.

It seems that there is always something to do on this project. From emptying the garbage that they collect to rebuilding them, there is never a dull moment.

An example of this was in June, the kiosk at the Trestle access was destroyed and thrown all over the parking lot.

However it was completely rebuilt and back in service the next day. (Try again, you noodle heads. Ha). Adventure number 2 took your president and I 10 miles up country to fish another kiosk out of a small country stream.

A tow truck was required to lift it out of the water and carry it back to it's proper location back on the river at the Second Line, West Garafraxa. (Do the noodle heads truly know who they are dealing with, I think not. Ha, ha.)

Three hours later, dripping water and weeds, it was back in service. This time, fastened down to the ground by post, chains and locks, it should stay in place and not want to wander.

Finally I could not do this alone and we all owe the volunteers who help maintain the kiosk's a big THANK YOU.

· President Larry (If I get my hands on them) McGratton

· Art (We better have a little drink and a pickled egg) Kropf

· Bob (Nice Trip) Whitney

· Ron of RPM Services (tow-truck owner) for the donation of his services in the recovery of the Gone Fishin' kiosk.

Tree Plant 2001

By Terry Ryckman

In Early May, the annual FOGR tree plant was held with the help of about 25 volunteers.

This year the chairman of the project along with the board of directors decided to get back to the basics of what the FOGR tree plant was when it was first started: that was to have a membership/family tree plant focusing on planting a couple hundred trees along the river or a tributary of the river. We used to plant eight to 10-inch seedlings every year, and in hindsight, we can see that this type of program was lacking success in terms of the number of trees that survived five per cent if we were lucky due to the size of the trees and the elements of Mother Nature.

So this year we purchased tall-stock trees (5' to 6') and with the cost of the larger trees, we just could not afford to purchase the numbers of trees needed to involve all the partners.

Day 1 Early May

This year we planted 200 native trees along a portion of Swan Creek in the valley just off County Road #7, south of Elora.

The property has changed hands in the last year or so and the new owners are more than willing to let the creek return to its natural state with a little help from FOGR.

Over the next three to four years we're hoping to re-establish Swan Creek and this beautiful little valley to its former self.

Maybe with a little help the once well-populated brook trout of this cold-water stream will return.

Day 2 Early June

Friends of the Grand River member Doug Eiche advised the board that some trees were available at a nursery, no charge. The only cost to FOGR was the price of picking them up, otherwise they were to be mulched in to wood chips.

These were native trees with small deformities and were eight to 10 feet in height. The only catch was that they were bare root and needed to be planted right away.

Thanks to Vaughan Norris, Derek Parks, Larry McGratton, Doug Eiche, Monice Eiche and myself who were willing to spend an evening digging holes enabling us to get 70 of these trees into the ground on short notice. Also thanks to Art Kropf who helped pick up the trees from the nursery.


Have you paid your dues? Just wondering...

A Grand Opportunity To Raise Money for the FOGR

by Sandy Hale

On June 2, 2001, at Belwood Lake Conservation area, FOGR hosted the Grand Opportunities Fly-fishing Forum. With a couple of hundred fly-fishing enthusiasts gathered, it seemed a grand opportunity to do some fund raising and so three different events were organized.

The Used Equipment Sale provided an opportunity for people to turn some of their old equipment into new cash and for others to pick up some really nice, gently used equipment at great prices. We had a good selection of items offered ranging from $2.00 to $500.00.

Most of the money went back to the vendors with FOGR taking 20% for our troubles. The result was almost $600.00 for FOGR and plenty of happy shoppers and sellers.

Many businesses (see list below) were keen to get behind the good work done by FOGR and donated some really nice items. We had both live and silent auctions, and moved a lot of stuff in short order, raising another $1,800 in the process.

There were some expenses and once those were taken care of, FOGR netted over $2,300 on the day.

I want to thank all our donors and encourage you to do the same when you see them. Without their support, I would have had nothing to auction. I also want to thank Bruce Wainman, who helped me all day long. There were several other FOGR members who lent a hand throughout the day and I thank them as well.

Many thanks to the wonderful selection of fly-fishing instructors who throughout the seminars were willing to share their knowledge and expertise in the sport. It's this component of Grand Opportunities that draws the fly fishing anglers to this one of a kind event. Although some may argue that it's Terry Ryckman's Barbecued Burgers that they come for, contrary to that belief, the majority comes for the seminars.


THANKS ALSO TO:

ONTARIO SAGE DEALERS
and
BOB MCKENZIE AGENCIES
FOR THEIR SUPPORT.

The winner of the Sage 489-5SP Rod draw for 2001 was Bob Speers of Fergus, Ontario.

Thank you for supporting the raffle. FOGR's success was to the tune of $3500.00, all proceeds go towards helping Friends of the Grand River in its efforts to improve the Grand River Brown Trout Tailwater Fishery for your enjoyment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
| John Dadds
| 139 The Country Way
| Kitchener ON N2E 2L1
| Voice: (519) 745-1475
| Fax: (519) 745-9879
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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