For the past several years, I’ve been singing the praises of Dan Legere, the personable proprietor of Greenville’s Maine Guide Fly Shop.

Legere hosts the annual drift boat trip we give away to a lucky angler, and the day I get to spend on the water with the knowledgeable guide is among my favorites each year.

Today I’m happy to let you know that you’ve got another chance to fish with Legere, thanks to the folks at FlyfishijnginMaine.com.

The fly-fishing Web site has announced a fund-raising auction that it’s running in conjunction with the Moosehead Area Chamber of Commerce and Legere’s Maine Guide Fly Shop.

Up for grabs in the auction is a grand prize that features a two-night stay at Kokadjo Camps on First Roach Pond, dinner for two at area restaurants and a guided drift trip on the East Outlet of the Kennebec with Legere. In addition, FFIM will throw in five dozen flies that will come in handy.

The proceeds from the auction will go to FFIM’s Grassroots Grant Program.

In case I haven’t mentioned it yet, FFIM is much more than a place for fly-fishing fools to gather on the Internet. Its founders have grander goals than that, and have supported conservation and education efforts that are worth noticing.

The Grassroots Grants program offers small grants to Maine-based fly-fishing organizations. Past recipients, according to a FFIM press release, have included Phillips Elementary School, which organized a youth fly-tying program; the Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust, which carried out a stream-bank conservation project; and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife, which conducted a trout-tagging study.

Bidding opened on the trip this week, and on Wednesday afternoon an eager angler had bid $600 for the experience.

Bidding will remain open until midnight on Dec. 20.

The trip will take place on Oct. 7-8, 2009.

If you’re interested in making a bid, or want to learn more, check the Web site at www.flyfishinginmaine.com.

Holiday update

While we’re on the topic of guides and guiding, I’ll make another suggestion that could help frantic Christmas shoppers in their efforts to provide a lifelong memory this holiday season.

You may know an angler who loves Maine’s outdoors, and seems to own more fly rods than can possibly be necessary.

You want to buy an outdoor-related gift they don’t already have … but since they’ve got 17 fly rods stashed in various closets and crannies, you’re not sure exactly how to go about doing that.

I’ve got your solution … thanks, again, to Dan Legere.

Legere sent out his annual holiday newsletter this week, and one of his gift suggestions really rang true with me.

Why not book your favorite fisher a drift boat trip with Legere or one of his guides?

Legere and the guides who work out of his shop are an entertaining bunch who know plenty about the East Outlet and the West Branch of the Penobscot.

And while many fly fishers spend most of their time wading in flowing water, spending a day drifting past various productive spots gives an angler a chance to fish plenty of otherwise unreachable water.

Your favorite angler might already have every fly-fishing doo-dad they can imagine, I haven’t met many who would turn down a chance to drift one of Maine’s classic fishing rivers with a guide who spends most of his spring and summer months providing memorable fishing adventures for others.

If you’re interested, call 695-2266 or check out the Web at www.maineguideflyshop.com for information.

In fairness to the scores of other top-notch guides out there, it’s important to note that there are plenty of options when it comes to hiring one for a day or week afield.

Perhaps your favorite sport likes to hunt grouse or woodcock or ducks. Perhaps he’d just as soon go ice-fishing or open-water trolling on a lake he’s never visited.

A registered Maine guide can help … and they’re just a phone call away.

The best guides I’ve met all have one thing in common: They’re phenomenal teachers and communicators.

Some are serious. Some are funny. Most will tell you stories that you just won’t believe.

But all of the best guides will help you fish better, hunt better, or more fully enjoy your time in the woods and on the water.

That, I figure, is a rare gift indeed … and one that’s worth sharing with others.

jholyoke@bangordailynews.net

990-8214