Downeast TU is a chapter of Trout Unlimited, a national non-profit organization dedicated to protect and conserve North American cold-water fish species and habitat. Membership is open to all, go to www.tu.org/join305Downeast and use chapter code 305 Downeast TU.
Monthly meetings are the Fourth Wednesday of the month from October to May at the Moore Center, 125 State Street, Ellsworth, ME
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gmail.com (joeyrizzoart[at]gmail[dot]com). Rizzo’s art can be seen at https://fineartamerica.com/#ChanceSculpture #JoeyRizzoArt #BangorPublicLibrary #Downeast TU #Trout Unlimited #DowntownBangor #ArtoberBangor
https://downtownbangor.com/
A lot has happened over the summer and we are looking forward to gathering with our DETU members and supporters once again. Included in this newsletter are upcoming events and a summer recap. Please send any news items you would like to share with our chapter to Tammy Packie tpackiegmail.com (tpackie[at]gmail[dot]com). Please like our Facebook page Downeast TU and check out our website www.downeasttu.org
Penobscot River Trip October 18: Hosted by the Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company this trip on the Friendship V combines fun, photography, and environmental education, leaving Bar Harbor at 8:30am and returning at 6:00pm, with stops at 10 lighthouses and lunch on the Bangor Waterfront. Join members from the founding organizations of the Penobscot River Restoration Trust: American Rivers, Atlantic Salmon Federation, Maine Audubon, Natural Resources Council of Maine, The Nature Conservancy, the Penobscot Nation and Trout Unlimited to learn about past and current conservation efforts on Maine’s largest river.
Naturalist Zack Klyver and Bob Trapani Jr., President of the American Lighthouse Foundation, will host the tour. Photographer Michael Leonard will be onboard along with B&H Photo to discuss your photography and demonstrate equipment. Cost is $229, but if you are an active TU member or member of one of the organizations representing the Penobscot River Restoration Trust, you can receive a 25% discount of $57.25. Contact Tammy Packie tpackiegmail.com (tpackie[at]gmail[dot]com) to confirm your TU membership status and receive the discount code. Purchase tickets on the BHWW website, go to Oct. 18 Light house tour on their calendar. Only 40 tickets left!
Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing Now two locations in Downeast Maine to get together for activities and camaraderie. Meet at the Cherryfield American Legion on Oct. 9, the 2nd Thursday of the month from 6-8pm, Mike Elkavitch will be teaching variations on the caddis theme. On Oct. 15, the 3rd Wednesday of the month, meet at the Ellsworth VFW from 6-8pm. Outings to Grand Lake Stream and Echo Lake are in the planning stages.
PHWFF is dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled active and veteran military personnel through fly fishing projecthealingwaters.org (mike.manning@
October 22 Meeting "Water quality study of brook trout streams in Hancock County" by Mark Whiting and Medea Steinman. After 200 years of intensive forestry and 100 years of acid rain, the water quality of eastern Maine streams is often poor. Maine Outdoor Heritage Foundation and the John Sage Foundation have provided funding and Hancock County Soil & Water Conservation District, DETU, DSF, and the Friends of Taunton Bay have collaborated to collect water quality data from trout streams in Hancock County and for a few streams in Washington County that are tributaries to Cobscook Bay. Maine DEP, DIFW and DMR provided input on priorities. DIFW did some of the fieldwork in Washington County. The results so far are that the water looks clean and clear, but has been stripped of the nutrients that sustain aquatic life, especially calcium. Calcium in needed for cell division and is critical for eggs and fry.
Moore Community Center 125 State St. Ellsworth and via Zoom. Register at https://us02web.zoom.us/
Oct. 4-Union River Community Paddle Harbor Park Marina, Ellsworth 12:30-Led by Registered Maine Guide Ant Blasi to explore the beauty, wildlife and history of the river. Pre-registration is required contact Green Ellsworth at blackstonemuregina.ca (blackstonem[at]uregina[dot]ca) or 207-667-8878. Tandem kayaks available.
Oct. 5 MDIFW Outdoor Skills Day at Camp Beech Cliff MDI 8:30-4:30
Build confidence and learn new outdoor skills at our Fall Outdoor Skills Days brought to you by Maine Outdoor Programs. Open to adults ages 18+. Choose two sessions that most interest you, from learning to fish or hunt, to foraging, paddling, and more. Chelsea Lathrop at chelsea.lathropmaine.gov
(2nd event at UMaine 4-H Camp at Bryant Pond Oct. 19) Pre-Register at https://lnks.gd/2/33tpNM7
Oct. 5 Flies & Lies Returns DETU is once again hosting Flies & Lies starting Oct. 5 on the first and third Sundays of the month from 5-8pm. Open to individuals interested in sharing the art of fly tying and the sport of fly fishing. We plan to Meetings twice per month from November to April. Location: Machias Savings Bank 96 Cottage Street, Bar Harbor, ME.
For information contact Bob Bechtold at rtbechtoldgmail.com (rtbechtold[at]gmail[dot]com) or 207-288-4957
Oct. 6 Party for the Headwaters Bluff Preserve Fogtown Brewing Company in Ellsworth. Frenchman Bay Conservancy has an opportunity to conserve 5,700 acres in Amherst at the headwaters of the Union River. It includes the vast, unbroken forests along the Upper Union River that are critical to our fight against climate change. Tickets $35, learn more at https://frenchmanbay.org/
Oct. 14 Georges River TU meeting Geoff Day, executive director of the Sea-Run Brook Trout Coalition and DETU member, will describe efforts to protect and restore populations of “salters” and their coastal watersheds in Maine and New England. Maine Sport Outfitters Route 1 in Rockport at 6pm.
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https://nature.org/KennebecConservation News: Sale of four dams on the Kennebec River is good news for Atlantic Salmon Restoration. The Nature Conservancy and Brookfield signed a purchase and sale agreement for the four lower dams on the Kennebec River on September 15. These include the Lockwood, Hydro-Kennebec, Shawmut, and Weston dams. The intent to remove the structures and restore the waterway for native sea-run fish. TNC and its partners, including Trout Unlimited, are 100% committed to developing a solution with Sappi that addresses the Somerset Mill’s long-term water system needs. Maine’s legacy of bringing rivers back to life has proven that effective fish passage is a win for wildlife, outdoor recreation, and local economies. Read more at Maine Public.
https://themainemonitor.org/
Downeast Salmon Federation is working with the Town of Orland to address an aging dam and insufficient fishway on the Orland River. DSF will be serving as the project manager and has assisted the town with project development. The Town of Orland received a grant from the Greenfield Penobscot Estuary Project Trust to plan and complete an engineering evaluation and feasibility study of the Orland Village Dam and fishway. The dam is located at head-of-tide on the Orland River, separating the tidal Orland River from the Narramissic River.
Northeast Regional Rendezvous April 10-12 2026 Attending a TU Regional Rendezvous is one of the best ways to get your chapter going and growing - fueled by a weekend packed with idea sharing with volunteers like you, learning best practices in community-based conservation and hanging out with the most passionate champions for cold, clean rivers and streams.
Tickets are on sale now and early birds who register before Nov.1 will get a special 20% discount code to snag TU logo swag in the online store at shop.tu.org.
TroutSpotter: Your Fish Photos Can Power Science - Oct 9 at 8 p.m. Eastern
TroutSpotter is an angler science tool developed by Trout Unlimited, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), WildME, and onWater Fish, that uses artificial intelligence to identify individual fish from angler-submitted photos. By logging fish caught with TroutSpotter, users contribute valuable data that supports conservation while connecting more deeply with their home waters.
Fall Fishing During the fall months there are special fishing regulations in place as some species are spawning and many waters do close to fishing starting October 1, but there are still hundreds of lakes, rivers, streams, and ponds open for fishing.
To find a place near you to fish, check out the MDIFW October Fishing Report.
Holiday Gathering & Raffle Dec 10-NO Nov. meeting Join DETU for a holiday gathering together with PHWFF at the Moore Community Center in Ellsworth. Details to be finalized but this fun holiday event will include a potluck, raffle drawing, book signing and talk with Maine Guide Carroll Ware. In 2020 Carroll received the MDIFW Wiggie Robinson Legendary Maine Guide Award. Carroll holds 53 world fly-fishing records and in 2021 was the first fisherman inducted into the Maine Sports Hall of Fame. He and his wife Lila operated Fins and Furs Adventures for over 30 years, providing adventures in Maine throughout the world.
We hope to make this an annual event. If you would like to help out with our planning and preparations please contact any board member.
Holiday Raffle Tickets $10 for 3 Chances to Win! Prizes An antique 1935 Montague Sunbeam Bamboo Fly Rod, 3 piece 8 1/2’ in excellent condition, a $250 LL Bean Gift Card or a Two Box Collection of Trout Flies tied by DETU members. Contact any board member to purchase. Drawing will be at the Holiday Gathering on December 10.
Summer Recap: The first Eastern Maine Fly Casting Competition, hosted by DETU & the Pleasant River Fish and Game Conservation Association was held on June 8. Winners in the Men’s and Women’s Competitions were Tom Daley and Diane West. We hope to expand this event next year.
At the end of July the National Park Trust sponsored an outing for Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc. Participants from around New England spent several days camping at Blackwoods and fly fishing in Acadia and surrounding waters. Low water conditions led to slow fishing but the trip offered a restorative connection to nature and community. DETU members volunteered their skills; Rob & Tammy Packie were local guides and Andy Kauffmann of PHWFF took people to Toddy Pond. Al West, Mike Elkavitch and Bob Bechtold also assisted. Rob gave a presentation on sea-run brook trout and Tammy was asked to be the official photographer. Project Healing Waters recognized Mike Manning local Program Lead, and Rob and Tammy Packie with Certificates of Appreciation for their efforts to make this event a success. Check out their adventures: https://ow.ly/nMgV50WAgNx
National Hunting and Fishing Day in 2025 was Saturday, September 27. This federally recognized holiday honors the contributions of hunters and anglers to conservation efforts. Last year Maine's sportsmen and women contributed $33,178,472 to conservation efforts of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and 580,810 hunters and anglers supported Maine’s economy by spending $3.3 billion on outdoor activities. Funds generated from licenses and stamps are reinvested into wildlife conservation, habitat restoration and public access projects.
Current DETU Officers: We have no President at this time.
Vice President Al West aldimegmail.com (aldime[at]gmail[dot]com)
Secretary Karen Svenson granitefarmroadrunner.com (granitefarm[at]roadrunner[dot]com)
Treasurer Arthur Benson ajbrxyahoo.com (ajbrx[at]yahoo[dot]com)
Past President and Conservation Chair Rob Packie
Fundraising Chair George Marnik
Membership and Communications Chair, Maine TU NLC Rep Tammy Packie
Program Coordinator Mark Whiting
Trout Camp Representative Cody Leighton
Youth Education Coordinator & Webmaster Mike Elkavitch
Current Board members: George Leinbaugh, George Marnik, Dana Hunter, Thomas Daley, Vincent Messer, Casey Shannon, David Klausmeyer. Tom Hansen and Peter Colson have stepped down. We thank them for their contributions to DETU.
Downeast Trout Unlimited Gear: Hats $25, Brook Trout pins $20, Brook Trout Earrings $16.
Downeast Trout Unlimited (DETU) is dedicated to conserving, protecting, and restoring Maine's cold water fisheries and their watersheds. New memberships are half price. For NEW memberships only go to www.tu.org/join305Downeast.
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