Connecticut Arts of the Angler Show has plenty to offer

When the snow flies, some anglers travel to the Caribbean, some bundle up and fish for trout on year-round streams and some get their kicks at fly-fishing shows. (The luckiest, heartiest and smartest do all three.)

The fly-show season kicks off one week from Saturday in Danbury, Conn., with the Arts of the Angler Show, sponsored by the Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum. It’s more low-key than the big shows in New Jersey, but it’s got all the seminars, demonstrations and goodies for sale that turn grown anglers into kids in a candy store.

More than 40 fly-tiers will demonstrate their craft, including the Capital Region’s own Bob Mead, Rich Bogardus, Bill Newcomb and Jay “Fishy” Fullum.

Dave Brandt of Oneonta will be on hand with a talk on reading water (that is, figuring out which spots are likely to hold fish) and tying his exquisite Catskill-style dry flies. Mead will demonstrate how to make his famous Lady Bug fly (hint: the chassis is a navy bean.)

Other big-name fly-tiers who will be on hand include Mike Martinek and Keith Fulsher, who may be best known for inventing the really effective Thunder Creek style of streamer fly, but who is among the world’s top authorities on hairwing salmon flies. Fulsher has a new book coming out and will introduce it Sunday, according to the Catskill Center.

There’s even a free “Fly Tier’s Garage” on Sunday morning, where you bring your vise, tools and materials and let some of the world’s best fly-tiers help you correct flaws in your technique that lead to things like crowded heads, twisted wings, droopy tails, etc.

Along with fly-tying, there will be bamboo rod-making and leader-furling demonstrations and antique tackle appraisal, including an Antique Fishing Tackle Roadshow Saturday evening.

There will be lots of free, practical fishing advice. If you’re one of the above-referenced anglers who bundles up to fish for wintertime steelhead and domestic trout, you’ll want to hear the presentation by Fran Verdoliva, former guide and current Salmon River program coordinator for the Department of Environmental Conservation. Verdoliva knows what it takes to make those big, powerful rainbows bite a fly.

Ever daydreamed about fishing South America? Jerry Stercho will explain where to fish, how to get there and what to expect when you do. John Klemm Jr. will lead a session on making the transition from freshwater fly-fishing to saltwater. And having taught you how to read water, Brandt will share his 20 years’ experience fishing the Minipi Lakes of Labrador and their big, wild brook trout.

And here’s a first: You can actually make money at Arts of the Angler. Bring along fly-fishing or fly-tying books you’d like to sell, with your name and the sale price penciled in the upper right-hand corner of the inside right-hand front page, and drop them off at the Catskill Center’s table. When you leave, stop at the table and collect your proceeds, minus 10 percent for the Catskill Center.

I personally won’t part with any of my fishing books, but maybe I’ll end up buying a few of yours.

The show runs from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Nov. 15 and from 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Nov. 16. Danbury is an easy two-hour drive from the Capital

Region, and admission to Arts of the Angler is an extremely reasonably $10 — which directly benefits the Catskill Center, one of our sport’s most important institutions.

If you’d like to make a weekend of it, the hotel is offering a special rate and there’s a buffet dinner Saturday. You could even get in a little fishing — the East Branch of the Croton River in Brewster, which is open all winter, is just 16 miles away.

For more information, visit the Catskill Center’s Web site at www.cffcm.net.