Penobscot veterans can aid rookie fishermen

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Bright and early on Friday morning, anglers will begin wading the Penobscot River, fly rods in hand, during the first Atlantic salmon season since 1999.

The river, finally, is open … at least on a limited, experimental basis.

And the anglers will surely flock there, even though many told state officials they thought a traditional spring season would be best.

Salmon fishing is a time-honored tradition in these parts, albeit one that has been on hiatus for the past six years.

And while longtime salmon club members know exactly how to fish (and, more importantly, how not to fish) in the storied Penobscot’s pools, many others may not.

Here, then, are a few tips. These aren’t designed to help you catch fish. Instead, they’re offered in order to help keep you from catching grief from other anglers on what should be a celebratory morning.

The traditions were here before you were, you see. They have governed angler activity for more than a hundred years. And if you disobey the unwritten rules – even unknowingly – you may quickly learn the error of your ways.

Many of the area’s salmon club members understandably view themselves as serious stewards of the resource, and expect tradition to be upheld.

Not knowing is OK.

Not knowing and not caring is not.

Here are some things to remember:

. You may end up in a rotation situation.

Longtime salmon angler Gayland Hachey of Veazie, the proprietor of Hachey’s Fly Shop, says he doesn’t expect all that many anglers to show up. But Hachey said he has heard from more than a dozen fishermen from across the country who are heading to Bangor to take part in the season.

And Hachey’s advice on the river’s rotation pools is simple.

“All a guy’s got to do is introduce himself and do what [the others] are doing,” Hachey said. “Put your rod in the rack behind the last in line.”

Then sit back and wait.

The big key, according to Ralph Keef of Hermon, is that while you’re waiting, you’re expected to actually tend your own rod as it makes its way up the rack to the No. 1 position.

“You’re supposed to be there in person and keep moving your rod along,” said Keef, who is a director of the Eddington Salmon Club. “Some people used to try to come along at 4 a.m., put their rod in the rack, and if there were already 10 [rods] ahead of them, they’d figure they’d come back at a given time. You can’t do that.”

Keef said the rod rack merely tells anglers who’s next in line to fish. The anglers themselves then have to stick around and earn their spot in the rotation.

“You have to be there in person. You can’t make a reservation,” Keef said.

. Once in the river, don’t be a water hog.

Hachey said that some pools may be only large enough to hold one angler, while others may be big enough to hold a half dozen or more. But those in the water are expected to move more or less continuously as they fish.

“A good rule of thumb is to take a cast and take a step [down river],” Hachey said. “Take a cast and take a step. A couple [casts] is fine. But when the fishing got busy, [some fishermen] would sit there and beat on [the water] and take six, eight, 10 casts without moving.”

That was one sure way to raise the ire of those waiting on the riverbank, Hachey said.

“If a guy was too slow, they’d let him know,” he said. “They’d throw some jokes at him and get him going.”

And sometimes, Keef said, it wasn’t only jokes that were thrown in the direction of a slow-moving fisherman.

“Some people [move through the pool at a good pace] and others have to be encouraged by snapping a fly by their ear to move them along,” Keef said with a laugh.

. Boats are governed by a simple rule: First come, first served.

“You go find a place to fish and that’s it,” said Hachey, who expects to be fishing out of a canoe this weekend.

Hachey said there is a problem with that format: Boating fishermen can show up early, anchor over a pool, and essentially claim the spot as their own for as long as they want to stay.

Hachey said late-arriving boaters are expected to take up a station where there are no other anglers.

“They should rotate the pools [for boats], but they don’t,” Hachey said.

. Be prepared for a potential battle.

On the Penobscot, that means showing up with a rod that’s fit for the job at hand.

Your three-weight or five-weight rod may be fine for brook trout or landlocked salmon, but when it comes time to fight an Atlantic salmon, you’ll need something more substantial.

Keef opts for an eight-weight rod when he fishes for Atlantic salmon. Hachey said either an eight- or a nine-weight will do.

“Someone new getting into it, a nine-foot [rod], probably more people are fishing a nine-[weight] than anything,” Hachey said. “Either an eight or a nine, because it is a big river.”

. If you’ve got more questions, ask … and stop by your town office for a law book.

The Atlantic salmon fishermen you’ll encounter on the Penobscot over the next month are passionate about their sport, and eager to share their knowledge. If you have questions, you’ll find plenty of people with all the answers you’ll need.

And the Maine Atlantic Salmon Commission has just released its regulation and survey booklet for the Penobscot, which is also informative. Included in the book is a diagram of the river and the names of the salmon pools, as well as the mandatory angler survey forms.

The next month promises to be a great one for Atlantic salmon anglers in this area. It’s up to all of us to make sure the Penobscot’s experimental season is as fun and trouble-free as we can make it.

Have fun, and I’ll see you on the water.

John Holyoke can be reached at jholyoke@bangordailynews.net or by calling 990-8214 or 1-800-310-8600.