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ENLARGE
A fly fisherman casts his line while fishing on the North Umpqua River. This photo is one of many taken by Dan Callaghan and featured in ‘The Creel: North Umpqua Edition.’
So you know...
The hardback editions of “The Creel: North Umpqua Edition” are available at the Blue Heron Fly Shop and Steamboat Inn or online through Amato Publications. They’ll also be available at two upcoming book signings.
• 1-3 p.m. Nov. 22 at Granger Book Company, 111 Second Ave., Myrtle Creek;
• 1-3 p.m. Nov. 23 at While Away Books, 932 W. Harvard Ave., Roseburg.
• 1-3 p.m. Nov. 22 at Granger Book Company, 111 Second Ave., Myrtle Creek;
• 1-3 p.m. Nov. 23 at While Away Books, 932 W. Harvard Ave., Roseburg.
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ENLARGE
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‘The Creel: North Umpqua River Edition’ is a book that tells the fishing history of the river through the stories of local anglers and visitors who came to fish the water.
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“It’s a rare river that has a storied past such as the North Umpqua’s. In “The Creel: North Umpqua Edition” many voices share what it is about this magical river that makes it so compelling and unforgettable.”
— Statement announcing the release of the book “The Creel: North Umpqua Edition”
The North Umpqua River is famous for its salmon, steelhead and trout fisheries. Those fish, how to fish for them, what to use and where to fish have been featured in numerous books over the past 50 years.
But now a new book about the river — “The Creel: North Umpqua Edition” — brings a new perspective to readers. This book focuses on the angling history of the river as told through short stories and articles by people who have developed relationships with the North Umpqua through fishing, either as residents or visitors.
The coffee table styled book was released in September by Frank Amato Publications, Inc., of Portland after six years of compiling, writing and editing information. The articles spread throughout the 175 slick page book are graced by photos — black and white from years past to add to the historical value to color for the more modern era.
The first printing of the book consisted of 3,000 hardbacks, priced at $60 a book, and 300 limited editions that are bound in leather with a leather case. Those books cost $200 each. There are only a few of the limited editions left.
The book is dedicated to Dan Callaghan, a Northwest photographer who specialized in taking scenery and fly angling photos of the North Umpqua. Most of the photos in the book are courtesy of the Callaghan estate.
Bob Wethern, the editor of the book, was pleased with the finished product. Wethern is 87 and is a veteran of the book business.
“I’ve helped a lot of people with a lot of other books,” he said. “This was a labor of love for six years. I’d call it the highest scratch on the wall of my cave.”
Dale Greenley of Myrtle Creek was the senior field editor for the book, interviewing many of the people featured in the book, then compiling and writing information.
“I love it,” he said. “It’s got some wonderful stories, some wonderful photos. You get a sense of who and how the river has been used over time.”
The book is the latest in a series of publications that originated with the forming of the Fly Fishers Club of Oregon in 1961. The club developed “The Creel,” idea — semi-annual 32-page publications “recording the angling accomplishments, adventures and speculations of members and other fly fishing devotees.
After the 30th anniversary issue was published in 1991, there was some down time in the series before it was decided to resume in book format with both soft and hard covers. The “McKenzie River Edition” was the first in the Rivers of Oregon series that was authorized and funded by the club’s Flyfisher Foundation.
The Umpqua River system was next, but as information was gathered, it was so overwhelming that it was decided to narrow this book to just the North Umpqua and follow with a book on the South Umpqua and main Umpqua rivers.
“I tend to over-research,” Wethern said. “There’s an awful lot of stories to tell and I wanted to tell the story of the river through as many people as I possibly could. There are the marquee people, but we also went into the field to find others … little people who weren’t as well known.”
Chapter 2 is entitled “The Press Core” and includes a section on author Zane Grey and his family, and their love for fishing the North Umpqua. Zane Grey regarded the river as the finest steelhead and game fish river in the North America. He wrote more about the Rogue River, but it was generally known he favored the North Umpqua, was jealous about it and didn’t write about it because he didn’t want publicity to draw more people to it.
Chapter 3, “The Locals,“ includes entries from the Krogel family of Dixonville, and Joe Howell and Greenley of Roseburg. Members of the Krogel family have fished the river for close to 100 years now and Howell and Greenley have fished it for 50 years.
Chapter 4, “The Sojourners,” covers 30 pages and is the book’s longest chapter. There are short entries from visitors who fished the river for a day or who made numerous trips back to fish it over and over. Included are stories about President Jimmy Carter, actress Jane Wyatt, Oregon governors Tom McCall and Bob Straub, and classical guitarist Chris Parkening.
The book wraps up with Chapter 10 — “The Moores and Their Many Hats.” Frank Moore has been a serious fishermen for all of his 80-plus years, most of them on the Umpqua. He and his wife Jeanne built the Steamboat Inn and operated it for many years.
“The stories are highly personalized,” said Howell who has the book for sale at his Blue Heron Fly Shop in Idleyld Park. “The stories are those of who fished the river for the past 110 years … their feelings and observations of the river. As far as fly fisher publications, this is the pinnacle. It’s not going to be matched. This is the story of the North Umpqua.”
• You can reach Features Editor Craig Reed at 957-4210 or by e-mail to creed@nrtoday.com.
— Statement announcing the release of the book “The Creel: North Umpqua Edition”
The North Umpqua River is famous for its salmon, steelhead and trout fisheries. Those fish, how to fish for them, what to use and where to fish have been featured in numerous books over the past 50 years.
But now a new book about the river — “The Creel: North Umpqua Edition” — brings a new perspective to readers. This book focuses on the angling history of the river as told through short stories and articles by people who have developed relationships with the North Umpqua through fishing, either as residents or visitors.
The coffee table styled book was released in September by Frank Amato Publications, Inc., of Portland after six years of compiling, writing and editing information. The articles spread throughout the 175 slick page book are graced by photos — black and white from years past to add to the historical value to color for the more modern era.
The first printing of the book consisted of 3,000 hardbacks, priced at $60 a book, and 300 limited editions that are bound in leather with a leather case. Those books cost $200 each. There are only a few of the limited editions left.
The book is dedicated to Dan Callaghan, a Northwest photographer who specialized in taking scenery and fly angling photos of the North Umpqua. Most of the photos in the book are courtesy of the Callaghan estate.
Bob Wethern, the editor of the book, was pleased with the finished product. Wethern is 87 and is a veteran of the book business.
“I’ve helped a lot of people with a lot of other books,” he said. “This was a labor of love for six years. I’d call it the highest scratch on the wall of my cave.”
Dale Greenley of Myrtle Creek was the senior field editor for the book, interviewing many of the people featured in the book, then compiling and writing information.
“I love it,” he said. “It’s got some wonderful stories, some wonderful photos. You get a sense of who and how the river has been used over time.”
The book is the latest in a series of publications that originated with the forming of the Fly Fishers Club of Oregon in 1961. The club developed “The Creel,” idea — semi-annual 32-page publications “recording the angling accomplishments, adventures and speculations of members and other fly fishing devotees.
After the 30th anniversary issue was published in 1991, there was some down time in the series before it was decided to resume in book format with both soft and hard covers. The “McKenzie River Edition” was the first in the Rivers of Oregon series that was authorized and funded by the club’s Flyfisher Foundation.
The Umpqua River system was next, but as information was gathered, it was so overwhelming that it was decided to narrow this book to just the North Umpqua and follow with a book on the South Umpqua and main Umpqua rivers.
“I tend to over-research,” Wethern said. “There’s an awful lot of stories to tell and I wanted to tell the story of the river through as many people as I possibly could. There are the marquee people, but we also went into the field to find others … little people who weren’t as well known.”
Chapter 2 is entitled “The Press Core” and includes a section on author Zane Grey and his family, and their love for fishing the North Umpqua. Zane Grey regarded the river as the finest steelhead and game fish river in the North America. He wrote more about the Rogue River, but it was generally known he favored the North Umpqua, was jealous about it and didn’t write about it because he didn’t want publicity to draw more people to it.
Chapter 3, “The Locals,“ includes entries from the Krogel family of Dixonville, and Joe Howell and Greenley of Roseburg. Members of the Krogel family have fished the river for close to 100 years now and Howell and Greenley have fished it for 50 years.
Chapter 4, “The Sojourners,” covers 30 pages and is the book’s longest chapter. There are short entries from visitors who fished the river for a day or who made numerous trips back to fish it over and over. Included are stories about President Jimmy Carter, actress Jane Wyatt, Oregon governors Tom McCall and Bob Straub, and classical guitarist Chris Parkening.
The book wraps up with Chapter 10 — “The Moores and Their Many Hats.” Frank Moore has been a serious fishermen for all of his 80-plus years, most of them on the Umpqua. He and his wife Jeanne built the Steamboat Inn and operated it for many years.
“The stories are highly personalized,” said Howell who has the book for sale at his Blue Heron Fly Shop in Idleyld Park. “The stories are those of who fished the river for the past 110 years … their feelings and observations of the river. As far as fly fisher publications, this is the pinnacle. It’s not going to be matched. This is the story of the North Umpqua.”
• You can reach Features Editor Craig Reed at 957-4210 or by e-mail to creed@nrtoday.com.
