Fish Schtick Episode 27 – April Vokey

Would you believe April has never caught a brown trout?

LINK

Comments

[Fisky]

I don't quite know how I should sit on this. Yes Miss Vokey is quite attractive, yes this probably changed the way she made her living.(Good and Bad) On one hand it would interesting to say the least to fish with a lady who can really fish and looks like that. But with fishing clubs and pellet fed pet rainbows the sport seems to have less soul for me. I love 20" + bows, but 12" native is better. As for 90 grand to fish, I make about 45 a year with overtime if I'm lucky. I save up all year for a new Sage sooo screw you rich pricks. I guess selling out may be selling out, but I still have fly fishing soul so who cares. Enjoy the scenery.......

[hahahah]

http://www.tulsaworld.com/site/printerfriendlystory.aspx?articleid=20091101_29_B10_CathyB734788 sick stocker trout even better photo of april nd maris

[J.G]

as a response to hahaha's latest link. wowwee, did you know she's canada's TOP guide? We must have some pretty shitty guides if shes the best in the country after doing it for less then a decade. Un-freaking-real. hope you're reading this after getting your ego boosted, top guide

[BG]

Maris is in typical form in that video. He is a master of the overstatement. He didn't stumble upon Spavinaw Creek, he was a member of a previous loosely organized lease/club on that property that used to stock it. Additionally, while Spavinaw is largely spring fed, it gets pretty warm in the summer and must be "rested" to preserve their pet trout, especially in the lower reaches of the club water. While rainbows in upper Spavinaw Cr have had documented, albeit limited, natural reproduction in the past, the creek has frequently benefited from private stockings of rainbow, brown, and "albino" trout. You can watch the stocker clones chase each other around and push some gravel around in the tailouts, but show me a picture of a little trout with parr marks and I'll believe that any sort of appreciable reproduction is actually taking place. A San Juan River NM guide who shall remain nameless, and worked on the Spavinaw property with Maris early on, has told of buying hatchery trout, legaly stocking them in a pond near the property, only to catch them out and transport them in a big plastic stock tank in the back of a truck, into the river. Maris is a slick salesman, but this beautiful creek has been turned into a trout park and nothing more. While the merits of stocked and fed trout, or pay to play fishing are perhaps worthy of their own debate, running an operation like Spring Valley Anglers under the dishonest pretense of a wild, conservation minded fishery is weak sauce. And the other 150 miles of exclusive water all over the country he claims to have access to? That's another tall tale. I don't begrudge Vokey the ability to make money doing what she loves at all. I hope she sells lots of pink Flygal tank tops, and fishes all over the world on somebody elses dime. Nothing wrong with that. But call a spade a spade. This is the elephant in the room: Like Lefty and the Becks, if she wants to jump into bed with the Adam Marises and Donny Beavers of the world, she is selling out and going down a road that doesn't help fly fishing, wild fish, or fisheries conservation.

[Tiger Woods]

Did I mention I did BG's Mom!!!!!!!!

[BG]

It's true. I saw the text messages.

[Tiger Woods]

Sorry Dude I will send over a Million for your troubles

[deerhawk]

...anyone else want to reference Tom's mag??...anyone?

[Fisky]

Nice post BG

[flybug.pa.]

this young woman has caught more steelhead than i have and is much better looking than me. I don't get to grace the websites with my face. If she can do it ,and get paid than do it. Its nothing more than making a living. the girl can even cast better than i can. These days it seems if you can make a buck and be happy with what you are doing, you are lucky, she is smiling , looks like she is lucky. As far as pellet fed fish, i am against it completely, but i guess this is prevalent these days. I am not down with it, and who the hell needs a guide to fish pellet fed waters?
I am a professional fly tyer ,one of the managers of marketing told me, i"f it dont catch the anglers eye, we won't sell it".In other words,i dont care if you have been working on this pattern for 3 years and it catches the hell out of trout, its gotta catch WALLETS.

[salmotrutta]

What is this Drake everyone speaks of & why hate on Ape? She's cool. You'd fish that shit if you had a chance too.

[FP]

BG, didn't you post the following on Ape's blog? And didn't she respond below?:

You:
"I don’t begrudge you your “fame,” and I’m sure you work hard and fish well, but it sucks that like Lefty and the Becks, you’ve sold out to the Donny Beavers and Adam Maris’s of the world. I’ve seen the bags upon bags of pellets that Mar(r)is throws to his pets and the heard the constant line of bullshit and exaggerations he spouts to his members and industry folks. He’s mellow, polite, a good salesman and a great bullshit artist who illegally stocks and feeds his pet trout. I wish you’d share the proactive attitude you have toward BC anadromous fish with wild fish and public water everywhere, instead of becoming just another “pro” for sale to the highest bidder."
Jay S 11.26.09 @ 4:44 pm

Ape:
"Note: I tried to email you back privately, but was bounced back when it said that your email was invalid.
I Responded The Following To Your Arkansas / Highest Bidder Comment:

Hey Jay,
Got your comment and must apologize for not posting it….
I try to be honest with any blog viewers and allow all comments to fly, but this one moved me a little more than most so I thought I’d respectfully respond to you via a personal message (and a long one at that).
You see, I only wish that what you make mention of in your email was all that simple.

On a financial level, I can be more than honest in telling you that I make far more money in the comfort of my own home, even on a fishery of triploids and hatchery steelhead (when wild steel are out of season) than here (Arkansas) working whenever I can as a part-time guide.

Hell, I’d make three times the amount of money in Ontario, Alaska, Vancouver Island…. you name it. I can swear on my Grandfathers grave that I am certainly not here for the money.
: )
My bank account is chuckling quietly at the thought of that….

To be perfectly honest, it is my heart that has lead me here on a personal level that I couldn’t even begin to try to explain…..I’m sure you can at least understand that.

You see, when I first heard of Adam and his fishery, my reaction was the same as yours. “Hmmph, private water? Nope, not for this girl…. Where I come from, we don’t roll that way.”

You see, the difference between my proactive attitude for wild fish and the notoriously wild British Columbia truly cannot even begin to be compared to a fishery such as this.
For if there were no stocked trout in this river, it would likely be barren (please feel free to correct me if I’m wrong).
BC however, is an entirely different story, and yes, I will fight like hell to make sure it doesn’t have the misfortune of becoming barren. The thought of stocked, pellet-fed fish in the waters that should rightfully be owned by strong and wild fish makes me ill.

In regards to the aforemenioned “pros”, I don’t know how Lefty and the Becks handle their affairs though I can assure you that they are not involved with Mr. Maris in the same way that I am.
I circuit through Arkansas regularly and can say with a smile that the fishery is simply a bonus (a bonus with some pretty outstanding fish).

Now, I would like to take a second both to try to open your mind (if you’ll let me), as well as allow you the opportunity to open mine. If I’m ignorant, I invite you to help me to understand your debate (though a personal email this time is preferred please).

Here’s my take and I’ll even be honest with you about my initial argument (and believe me, I have expressed my views to Adam openly, as will probably come as no surprise). It was once similar to that of yours…:

1) Spring Valley has taken water that was once private and opened it up to others (this river was never public….Again, please feel free to correct me if I’m wrong). This group of others includes countless groups of troubled children, women of all ages, Reel Recovery cancer patients, disabled people, etc. SVA and myself have donated so much time, labor and money to these groups that it’s almost a joke to have to defend myself with this one……

You see Jay, this fishery could have remained closed to all (except for the greedy hands of fish retaining land owners), rather it is now open to others (members, non-members with a guide fee and these specialty groups mentioned above).

Do you have any idea how hard it can be to cater to a group of troubled children and not run into a group of rowdies who cause more damage by demonstrating bad influences of vulgar language, littering, alcoholism and poor fish handling? They are also a distraction and I quite personally am tired of fighting drunk morons on the river and risking being beat and raped in the bush….

Lastly, this fishery is still available for day trips to any angler who would like to fish it at a daily guide rate which I feel is more than reasonable.
You would be amazed just how many fisheries work on this basis…. yes, even in BC.
Hell, some of these BC fisheries have no access (again, all the land is private thus allowing no access) unless you hire a guide or own a $50,000 jet boat. It’s the same thing….

2) There are private fisheries everywhere that no one seems to complain about. I am sincere when I question why that is?
Iceland, Ireland, Scotland, England, certain lakes in BC, certain lakes/rivers all over Canada, Quebec!!, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, Montana, Texas…..I could go on.
The price it costs to visit one of these rivers for a week is the same or more as an annual membership fee…I would love to hear why these seem to bother no one in the way that private clubs do (and please don’t even get me started on Donnie Beaver. To compare the two simply reeks of ignorance.)

3) Pellet fed. So? (Again, please don’t make assumptions… I can assure you that there is more to the story than I care to write in this already annoyingly long response).
I know Jay, I would love nothing more than to see a wild strain of rainbows magically appear in the heart of Arkansas and I’d also love to believe that the White River is as wild as those in Alaska, but we both know that’s not the truth.
Essentially, isn’t all that matters that on a quiet Sunday afternoon, there is a peaceful angler, unbothered by life and it’s pains….for the moment solely concentrated on an unlittered and safe environment?
What about the sons and daughters who get to spend sincere and unbothered alone time with their fathers who would otherwise never have had the opportunity to share such an experience?

Well, if it takes hatchery fish (fed or otherwise) in a stream that once held nothing to bring this tranquility then I simply can’t complain about what these fish eat. To imply that it has been stocked illegally by Adam is sincerely false, and I apologize on his behalf for that confusion. To my understanding, historical records indicate that trout were stocked over 100 years ago in this creek….
Furthermore, watching these fish spawn (I’ve seen it with my own eyes) is a sight in itself so I wish not to speak any further on the stocking debate.

Finally Jay, #4 is the simple fact that I like it here (again, when the steelhead aren’t in at home). My dog loves to roam freely, I feel safe, the warm weather is unique and appreciated by me, and the company I keep is that of which I have searched for for 26 years.
Call me foolish, but for a girl who preaches that life is about being happy I feel like I am following exactly as I would hope others would; a “proactive” life in searching for happiness, not money or fame….just love, quality time and appreciation. If the “highest bidder” pays me in that, then I guess Adam wins afterall.

Happy Thanksgiving,
No hard feelings on this end,
Ape."

[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ‘0 which is not a hashcash value.
april 11.27.09 @ 12:59 pm

She did make mention of this in November.......

[FP]

One more for the rest of the immature fools:

"Just curious why you need to go out fishing with all that make up on and dressing like you do. It’s completely impractical. I know a lot more rugged better fishing chicks then you that would laugh you out of a room. Just call it what it is and quit pretending its all about the fishing.
John 12.28.09 @ 6:01 pm "

"Hi John!
Well, I am flattered that you feel mascara and blistex make me look ‘made up’, I will take that as a compliment ; )
And my clothing? You mean one old photo of a low cut top? Perhaps you mean my Simms, Patagonia and other old fleece tops….. Hilarious. I think I’ll laugh you out of a room instead.
I apologize for your ignorance and your desperate self-conviction that I am not the real deal,
Sincerely,
Ape."

[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ‘0 which is not a hashcash value.
april 12.30.09 @ 4:26 pm

[Reef Runner]

"April Vokey is the Reef Runner of Canada" - Wayne Gretzky

[okie fly]

Adam is and always will be a scam artist.....alot of us used to fish that area when a guy named Tom started a club that was cheap...just enough to pay for access and maybe his time...honest guy who could outfish me or any other member....well he ran him out....another story of rich taking the dreams of others for profit...but the browns are natural streambred...but he is stocking the rainbows....buddy caught one 31 inches...right when Tom opened it

[Joe]

I used to fish Spavinaw 10-15 years ago. We would catch mainly browns then. There were definetly more browns in the river back then than the rainbows SPA publicizes on its videos and wedpage. My question, how did all those rainbow get in the river if they were not illegally introduces in the last few years? I talked to a game warden (who lives in the area) a couple of years ago and he stated that SVA put these rainbows in the river illegally and they did not have approval from the Arkansas Fish and Game Commission. My assumptions is that SVA states these fish are wild and reproduce naturally so they do not get into trouble by the AFGC. It also sounds better that these fish are wild, despite this not being true. Also the monthly SVA club fee is outrageous. I think it is around $500 bucks a month or so. I grew up near the river and is saddens me that SVA would come in here and perform this kind of operation. It is not about preservation. It is about money. Also, Spanivaw creek would be a smallmouth fishery if trout were not being introduced to the river. It does not sound like to me that it is about preservation if another species of fish is being introduced to the system.

[of mysis and men]

I imagine it is hard to imitate fish pellets with a fly. Maybe she has not caught a brown trout due to their superior nature and inability to sustain themselves on a diet full of empty calories. In all of the places I've seen where people feed bread to fish at fish viewing areas the trout have always been those synthetic bows. Could be something here.

[brendan]

wow. you are a bunch of losers. my ex girlfreind took a course from her on casting, and loved it. april was a super great instructor, and really knows how to fish. she also has worked on conservations issues and putting pressure on oil to preserve rivers. check out flys for finns and some of her other work. fly gal ventures is a cool company. id like to see more women get into flyfishing. beats talking to a bunch of stuck up, fat, retarded, old men. go back to sucking your thumbs.

[okie]

Just curious as to why people are spending so much time criticizing Adam. He has started a business contributing society, providing a service. I am a member of SVA and take it for what is worth. It is a great place to get away from the everyday grind. It is the same as fishing the wilds of Montana, Alaska, Canada, heck no and not even close. But we are in NWA along the Oklahoma border. If people wanna pay for this then so beit, why chastise Adam for providing a service. Nothing more than paying for a country club membership.

You all need to get a life,,,