OUTPOST.Byline: - Daily News and Wire Services `Olympics of fly-fishing': Simi Valley's Ken Holder will compete with the team representing the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. during the 19th annual World Flyfishing Championships. This year's event is staged Sunday through Dec. 3 in Jindabyne, New South Wales Jindabyne () is a town in New South Wales, Australia that overlooks Lake Jindabyne near the Snowy Mountains, in Snowy River Shire. , Australia. The countryside surrounding the Snowy Mountains Snowy Mountains, range of the Australian Alps, SE Australia. It is the site of the Snowy Mts. Hydroelectric Scheme, Australia's most extensive hydroelectricity and irrigation complex. The scheme was begun in 1949 and completed in 1972. serves as the site for the catch-and-release angling. Holder will be remembered by fellow competitors for falling in the Dunajec River Dunajec River River, southern Poland. Rising in the Tatra Mountains near the Slovakia border, it flows about 156 mi (251 km) northeast into the Vistula River. It was the scene of heavy fighting during World War I in the Austro-German offensive. during last year's event in Poland, where Team USA Flyfishing placed 12th out of 22 teams, its best finish in the international fishing derby. He is joined by Walter Ungermann from Massachusetts, Carter Andrews of Idaho and Wyoming anglers Jack Dennis, Gary Willmott, Jay Buchner and Jeff Currier. No cash prizes are awarded. All participants are amateurs competing to raise awareness for the event and for fly-fishing as a conservation-oriented sport. England will host the 2000 championships. Rockfish rockfish, member of the large family Scorpaenidae (rockfishes and scorpionfishes), carnivorous fish inhabiting all seas and especially abundant in the temperate waters of the Pacific. Rockfishes are found among rocks and reefs. reminder: The state Fish and Game Commission is expected to vote Dec. 3 in Sacramento on recommendations to issue a two-month moratorium and other restrictions on recreational rockfishing in Southern California. The issue of curtailing such sport-fishing stems from a federal agenda designed to restore depleted de·plete tr.v. de·plet·ed, de·plet·ing, de·pletes To decrease the fullness of; use up or empty out. [Latin d stocks of rockfish and other related species. Officials note the state and the feds hope to be on the same page when the new regulations are expected to go into effect Jan. 1, in accordance with the Pacific Fishery Management Council's mandate. Among the suggestions is a ban on all sport-angling for rockfish in January and February in Southern California and to eliminate it in March and April in the northern half of the state. Information: Fish and Game Commission, (916) 653-4899. Saltwater seminar: A free angling program is to be held Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Taylor Tackle, 21813 Sherman Way in Canoga Park. Dan Dunlap of Jax Jigs discusses methods for shallow-water fishing and answers questions concerning the aforementioned rockfishing regulations. Party boat skipper Rick Craddick offers tips for targeting local and outer islands. Call (818) 992-3474 for reservations as seating is limited. New deal: Congressional negotiators have hammered out an agreement to begin preserving nearly a half-million acres of California desert described as ``spectacular scenery'' in the largest land acquisition in state history. The $56 million deal involves 487,000 acres of former railroad property between Needles and Barstow, much of it within Mojave National Preserve Mojave National Preserve: see Mojave Desert; National Parks and Monuments (table). and Joshua Tree National Park Joshua Tree National Park, 1,022,703 acres (414,050 hectares), S California. Lying between the high Mojave Desert and the low Colorado Desert, this park has a unique ecosystem in which are preserved rare Joshua trees (Yucca brevifolia . The deal that negotiators reached last week was brokered by the private Wildlands Conservancy with the federal government providing much of the funding. The land includes 200,000 acres of habitat critical for the endangered desert tortoise desert tortoise see gopherus agassizii. , 150,000 acres for bighorn sheep Bighorn sheep a tall (up to 3 ft), heavy (up to 300 lb body weight) wild sheep that lives in inaccessible mountain country where it exercises its principal achievement of prodigious leaping and climbing. Called also Ovis canadensis. Several regional varieties, e.g. O. c. and gardens of native Bigelow cholla cholla Any cactus of the genus Opuntia, native to North and South America, having needlelike spines partly enclosed in a papery sheath. Chollas vary greatly in size and have small flowers, sometimes chartreuse and inconspicuous, but usually of more striking colors. O. cactus. The land also includes rights-of-way for 165 jeep trails and dirt access roads leading to 3.7 million acres of land used for hunting, hiking and camping. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who worked to preserve the land, called it ``a marvelous gift for the future that we cannot afford to lose.'' She had warned that if the deal wasn't approved, roads could be blocked to land that 2.8 million people visit each year. The Interior Department appropriations bill includes $15 million for the project and another $15 million next year. In addition, the Wildlands Conservancy is contributing more than $21 million of private donations. All of the land will go to either the Bureau of Land Management or the National Park Service. Bikers unite: The 34th annual Southern California Cycle World International Motorcycle Show is Friday through Sunday at the Long Beach Convention Center, Exhibit Halls A and B, 300 E. Ocean Blvd. The event is billed as ``the largest and most complete showcase of Y2K See Y2K problem and Y2K compliant. Y2K - Year 2000 model motorcycles, ATVs, personal watercraft and accessories displayed by original equipment manufacturers.'' Show hours: noon to 10 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission: $8, $4 for ages 6 to 11 and free for ages 5 and younger. Information: (800) 331-5706 and the www.motocycleshows.com Web site. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1 -- color) HOLDER (2 -- color) About 487,000 acres of desert near Barstow and its cholla cactus will be protected under a new federal deal. Wade Byars/The Desert Sun |
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