OUTPOST.

Byline: Daily News

Outdoors indoors: The Fred Hall Western Fishing Tackle and Boat Show opens Wednesday and runs through March 3 at the Long Beach Convention Center, with more than 700 tackle, travel, boat and truck booths and displays.

Show hours are 2 to 10 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.

Admission is $8 for adults; children 12 and under are free. For more information, call [phone].

Fishing class: If you've ever wanted to fish from the beach, you can learn how through the Conejo Valley Adult School's "Fly Fishing the Surf."

The class begins Saturday, from 9 a.m. to noon in Room C, 1025 Old Farm Road, Thousand Oaks, and will continue over the following three Saturdays.

Richard Schwalm, a licensed California fishing guide, will cover the basics of modern casting, tidal fish behavior, aquatic food sources, fly patterns, fly line systems, and reading tide and beach characteristics.

No equipment or fishing experience is required. An optional field trip will be arranged.

The cost is $45, plus a $3 lab fee. For additional details, call [phone].

Add class: "Offshore and Big Game Fishing," a course taught by spin-tackle pioneer Al Zapanta, will begin Monday from 7 p.m.-9 p.m. at Valley College, 5800 Fulton Ave., Van Nuys.

A comprehensive study of productive techniques for tackling fish in the coastal waters of California and Mexico, the course will continue on consecutive Mondays through April 1.

Guest lecturers, field trips and film and slide presentations will be offered. Students will learn to work and land trophies.

For registration details, call the college's Community Services division at [phone].

Fly-tying course: A 10-week course in beginning and intermediate fly tying will be offered by the Sierra Pacific Flyfishers beginning Wednesday, from 7 p.m.-9 p.m., at the Van Nuys-Sherman Oaks Senior Citizens Center, 5040 Van Nuys Blvd., Sherman Oaks. The class will be conducted by award-winning flytier Steve Fernandez and will be offered at the same time on the following Wednesdays.

Students will learn how to wrap a dry, wet, streamer and nymph patterns.

Registration for the course is free with a $45 membership into the club, and $40 kits containing beginning materials - feathers, furs and threads - will be available. Students will also need their own basic tools, including a vice, bobbin and spool, which are sold at fishing outfitters.

Spots are limited. Call Erwin Goldbloom at [phone] for advance registration.

Add flyfishers: Dick Sharon, a former outfielder for the Detroit Tigers and San Diego Padres who gave up catching flies to fish with them, will speak tonight at a dinner meeting of the Sierra Pacific Flyfishers.

The San Fernando Valley fishing and conservation group meets at Encino Glen, 16821 Burbank Blvd., Encino. The meeting is open to the public. A reception begins at 6:30 p.m., dinner is at 7:30 p.m. and the lecture will speak at 8:30 p.m.

Now a professional fishing guide in Dillon, Mont., Sharon will present slides and video footage to illustrate the best ways to fish small streams.

Dinner is $22 for nonmembers and reservations can be made by calling Encino Glen at [phone]. Those interested only in the presentation should plan to arrive by 8:30 p.m.

Tourney results: Top honors at Saturday's Western Outdoor News bass tournament at Pyramid Lake went to the father and son team of Don and Ron Smith of Moorpark and Castaic, respectively, who earned a cash prize of $2,490.

Another father and son duo, Harvey and Greg Stump of Newbury Park, placed second for a $1,915 prize. The third spot went to Jim Markham of Castaic and Jim Stovall of Hawthorne, who walked away with $975.

All 257 bass caught were released alive.

The next WON BASS team contest will be held March 16 at Lake Casitas. For details, call Ron or Pat Cervenka at [phone].

Tortoise counts: Spring tortoise season is approaching in the desert and volunteers are needed to count the reptiles for research purposes.

Interested parties should attend an organizational meeting Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Black Rock Canyon Visitor Center in Joshua Tree National Park.

For further information, call Chris Collins at [phone].

Shooting contests: Long-range handgun, hunter's pistol and cowboy rifle silhouette matches will be held Saturday and Sunday at the Inland Fish and Game Conservation Association range, 8207 N. Orange St., Redlands. For details, contact match director Tom Morris at [phone].

Hunter's pistol and .22-caliber short-range silhouette matches will take place March 3. Call match director Marty Rosetti at [phone] for further information.

Snow woes: The Bud Light Pro Snowboard Tour stop slated Friday through Sunday at Snow Summit has been canceled due to lack of snow. There are no plans to reschedule the event.

The circuit will continue March 1-2 at Mammoth Mountain and March 3 at June Mountain.

Ski report: Bear Mountain - wet, packed snow, 12- to 24-inch base, 29 trails, seven lifts, 86 percent open; Mountain High - machine-groomed, 24-inch base, six lifts; Mt. Baldy - machine-groomed, 6- to 12-inch base, three lifts, 50 percent open; Snow Summit - spring snow, 8- to 28-inch base, 11 lifts; Snow Valley - hard-packed, 18- to 36-inch base, 15 trails, seven lifts; Alpine Meadows - loose granular, 72- to 132-inch base, 12 lifts; Bear Valley - 21 inches new powder, 48- to 76-inch base, nine lifts, 90 percent open; Heavenly - 18 to 22 inches new, packed powder, 60- to 108-inch base, 79 trails, 23 lifts, 100 percent open; Kirkwood - 18 to 28 inches new powder, 80- to 135-inch base, eight lifts, 80 percent open; Mammoth Mountain - 24 to 30 inches new powder, 90- to 144-inch base, 150 trails, 18 lifts, 100 percent open; Squaw Valley - 6 to 17 inches new powder, 60- to 138-inch base, 19 lifts, 100 percent open.