Saint Joseph River Valley Fly Fishers Club

2023 Club Auction: March 15th
2023-03-15 18:00 - 20:00 UTC
Please see LOOP for more details.

2023 ANNUAL AUCTION: March 15th!
2023-03-15 18:00 - 20:30 UTC
Join us March 15th for our clubs annual meeting. This is the largest fundraiser of the year, so please make an effort show up and support our club!
Doors Open at 6:00PM
Location: Finnie’s Next Door, downtown South Bend.
RSVP Due 3-13-23, Please RSVP to Don Reber (donreber@gmail.com). Meal will be $20 if you plan on eating

2023 Tie-a-Thon: April 15th
2023-04-15 08:00 - 17:00 UTC | Elkhart Conservation Club, 55515 Riviera Drive, Elkhart, IN, 46514
More Details to Come

General Membership Meeting: April 19th (Al Ritt)
2023-04-19 18:30 - 21:00 UTC
Meeting details:
Date: April 19, 2023
Location – Finnies Next Door 223 S. Main St. South Bend, IN 46601
Time – Doors open at 6:30, meal at 7:00 and speaker at 7:30

Casting Clinic: June 10th
2023-06-10 11:00 - 13:00 UTC
CASTING CLINIC June 10
The Saint Joseph River Valley Fly Fishers will conduct a casting clinic on June 10 from 11:00 a.m.
to 1:00 p.m. on the Gridiron Plaza in downtown South Bend. The clinic is free and open to anyone
aged 10 years and older.
Club members will be on hand to teach newcomers the basics of fly casting and offer advanced
techniques to experienced anglers.
“The importance of learning how to fly cast is of great benefit to fly fishers of all ability levels,”
SJRVFF President Todd Ezzell said. “It is at the heart of fly fishing and can make a great
difference in catching or not catching fish.”
A handful of local fishermen founded the SJRVFF in 1978 along the banks of the Saint Joseph
River. The club is committed to public education programs and conservation projects that promote
stewardship of environmental resources.

Summer Fishing: Wednesday June 14th
2023-06-14 18:00 - 20:00 UTC
Location to be announced

Summer Fishing: Monday June 26th (Island Park, Elkhart)
2023-06-26 18:00 - 20:00 UTC
Fishing Monday Night, June 26th at 6:00 pm.

We will be fishing in Elkhart on Monday Night at Island Park. Parking is at Beardsley Park on the south east corner of Main St & Beardsley Ave.

Summer Fishing: Thursday July 6th
2023-07-06 18:00 - 20:00 UTC

Small Mouth Outing: July 15th
2023-07-15
The club’s Small Mouth Outing will be held at Pinhook Park in South Bend!
2801 Riverside Dr. South Bend, IN.
Lunch at 1:00PM!

Summer Fishing: Wednesday July 19th
2023-07-19 18:00 - 20:00 UTC
Location to be announced.

Club Event: June 24th (Elkhart Conservation Club)
2023-07-24 08:00 - 10:00 UTC | Elkhart Conservation Club, 55515 Riviera Drive, Elkhart, IN, 46514
SJRVFF will be getting together at the Elkhart Conservation Club to clean up and repair the club’s trailer.

Stream Clean Up Event: July 29th
2023-07-29 08:00 - 12:00 UTC | Elkhart Conservation Club, 55515 Riviera Drive, Elkhart, IN, 46514
Elkhart Conservation Club

Conservation Trailer Clean Up: July 29th
2023-07-29 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | Elkhart Conservation Club, 55515 Riviera Drive, Elkhart, IN, 46514
Elkhart Conservation Club:
9:00am-12:00PM

Summer Fishing: Tuesday August 1st
2023-08-01 18:00 - 20:00 UTC

Stream Clean Up Event : August 12th
2023-08-12 08:00 - 12:00 UTC

Summer Fishing: Wednesday August 16th
2023-08-16 18:00 - 20:00 UTC

Stream Clean Up Event: September 9th
2023-09-09 08:00 - 12:00 UTC

Fly-Tying with Tim Flagler - September 21st
2023-09-21 18:00 - 22:00 UTC | Elkhart Conservation Club, 55515 Riviera Drive, Elkhart, IN, 46514
Fly Tyers,

This is a reminder to sign up for the Tim Flagler tying session. Spots are filling quickly please let Don know ASAP if you plan to attend.

SJRVFF is hosting a tying event on Thursday, September 21st at Elkhart Conservation Club from 6 PM EDT to 10 PM EDT. (We will be in the big cabin: 55515 Riviera Dr, Elkhart, IN 46514)

Our instructor will be Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions. Tim is featured regularly in Midcurrent and has two fly tying websites: www.tightlinevideo.com and
www.practicalpatterns.com He also appears monthly in a tie-off with Tom Rosenbauer on the Orvis Channel and has been a presenter at the Warren Fly Show the past two years.

Class will be limited to 20 tyers and is for intermediate skill tyers. Cost per participant will be $75, which will be paid at the time of the event, and will include pizza. Bring your tying tools, and lamp plus thread. Here’s the list of flies that Tim will be tying at the Thurs class and his suggested threads/colors:

October Caddis Soft Hackle – burn orange UTC 70 denier
Parachute Isonychia – white UTC 70 denier
Bugger (Squirrel & Herl or an Adams Bugger) – black UTC 140 denier
Uke’s Brown Bug (Perdigon jig) – rusty brown UTC 140 denier.

All other material will be supplied.

For planning purposes, please make your reservation by Monday, August 28th so that Tim will have time to assemble the materials. Send RSVP to Don Reber (donreber@gmail.com)

2023 SJRVFF Salmon/Steelhead Outing: Saturday October 21st!
2023-10-21 08:00 - 17:00 UTC
This year’s SJRVFF Salmon/Steelhead outing will be held on Saturday, October 21st on the Dowagiac River at the Pucker Street landing in Niles, MI. Lunch will be ready at noon and is open to all. If you are new to fishing for salmon and/or steelhead, there will be club members on hand to help with any questions that you may have from set up to what flies to use. Fish in the morning and join us for lunch, join us for lunch and fish in the afternoon, or fish all day and take a break for lunch. It does not matter just so long as you join in.

Directions:
Take M-51 North out of Niles, MI. to Pucker Street. Turn west onto Pucker Street and cross the Dowagiac River. The landing is on your left after you cross the river.

I look forward to seeing you there.
Todd Ezzell

November Membership Meeting: 11-15-23 (Finnies Next Door)
2023-11-15 18:30 - 20:30 UTC
Fellow club members,
Please remember to make your reservation for the upcoming membership meeting
The speaker for November is Pat Ehlers from The Fly Fishers Fly Shop. His topic will be “Fly Fishing for Largemouth” Here is what Pat Says: “I started The Fly Fishers in 1988 with little more than a passion for fly fishing and a stubborn mindset to make the shop succeed. All of these years later the shop is still going and the passion for fly fishing is still there. A passion that is shared by all of the crew here at The Fly Fishers.
The fly-fishing business is just that, a business. As a business, it demands we remain passionate about the sport in order to help you enjoy the world of fly fishing. Whether you’re joining us on a shop trip to the Caribbean to go flyfishing for Bonefish or just hitting the local pond for some bluegills, we’re here to help you enjoy this great sport in any way we can.
We feel an obligation to support some great conservation organizations including Trout Unlimited, the Smallmouth Alliance, the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust and the Ruffed Grouse Society. These organizations help ensure the great outdoor sports we enjoy will be there for us and our kids for years to come. We ask you to get behind organizations like these wherever you live.”

Meeting details:
Date: November 15, 2023
Location – Finnies Next Door 223 S. Main St. South Bend, IN 46601
Time – Doors open at 6:30, meal at 7:00 and speaker at 7:30
Cost – $20.00 for dinner * Please note: the increase cost for dinner due to an increase in food cost.
Dinner: TBD
Reservations only required for dinner and can be made by emailing donreber@gmail.com
Or by texting/ calling Don at (574) 286-0157
We must have your reservation by noon on November 12, 2023

ANNUAL AUCTION: MARCH 20TH!
2024-03-14 08:00 - 17:00 UTC
Please Join us for our clubs largest annual fundraiser. This auctions funds our clubs conservation and education efforts, and a great way to sure support. We look forward to seeing you on the 20th at Finnie’s Next Door.

Opening Day Club Outing: April 27th!!!
2024-04-27 | Bobbi Labar Farm
The Annual SJRVFF Opening Day Outing may not be the official start of Spring, but it sure feels like it.
Nothing seems to let you know its time to start fishing like getting together with a bunch of guys and gals
and telling fish stories. Many of the SJRVFF members have been getting together on the Trout Season
Opening Day for decades. Many more have joined them over the years. Everyone is welcome. If you’re not
familiar with trout fishing, this is a great time and place to get started. There is always someone available to
offer assistance, answer questions and show you some great places to fish.
The SJRVFF Opening Day Outing will be at Bobbie Labar’s farm in Cassopolis, Michigan. Lunch will be
ready at noon. There is no fee for the outing and drinks will be available followed by the Opening Day raffle
at 1:00.
To get to the Labar farm, take either M-60 or M-62 to Cassopolis, MI. Then take Okeefe Rd north out of
town to Engle St. (approx. 3.5 miles). Turn left on Engle St. Labar’s farm is about 1/2 mile west of Okeefe
Rd. The address is 23683 Engle St. Cassopolis, MI.

February Meeting
2026-02-18 18:30 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | Finnies Next Door – 223 S. Main St. South Bend, IN, 223 S. Main St., South Bend, IN, United States
Finnies Next Door – 223 S. Main St. South Bend, IN.
Doors open at 6:30 Meal at 7:00 Meeting about 7:30
Parking is free meal cost $25.00/person We need you to RSVP for dinner or we cannot provide a meal for you. Get your name in or you will go hungry!

March Meeting
2026-03-18 18:30 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | Finnies Next Door – 223 S. Main St. South Bend, IN, 223 S. Main St., South Bend, IN, United States

April Meeting
2026-04-15 18:30 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | Finnies Next Door – 223 S. Main St. South Bend, IN, 223 S. Main St., South Bend, IN, United States

May Meeting
2026-05-20 17:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | Elkhart Conservation Club, 55515 Riviera Drive, Elkhart, IN, 46514
Doors open at 5:00 Meal at 7:00 Meeting about 7:30
We need you to RSVP for dinner or we cannot provide a meal for you. Get your name in or you will go hungry!
