Bill Smith Rewarded For Volunteer Efforts

He came to Spokane 15 years ago and he’s been up to his gills in fishing ever since.

Sometimes he even finds time to cast a line.

Bill Smith is one of three 1997 recipients of the national Abel Rockroller Award, which honors volunteers who work for clean waters, bright streams and improved fly-fishing conditions.

Smith, who owns a commercial laundry equipment service, has headed the Spokane Fly Fishers annual angling school for five years. He dons his waders for virtually any trout conservation project area biologists might dream up.

He’s active in Trout Unlimited and the Inland Empire Fly Fishing Club.

If there’s an aerator that needs fixing to keep oxygen levels up in icecovered lakes, he’s been there to help. Smith’s been at Bailey and McDowell lakes to pass out questionnaires on fisheries management, and he’s a regular at meetings that might turn the course toward better trout fishing.

He even took a few evening college courses to become more knowledgable about fisheries management.

“I’d like to write a proposal for bringing Eagle Lake rainbows to this region,” he said. The California strain has evolved to survive in waters too alkaline for most trout species. “They’re like the Lahontan cutthroat,” he said, “But they live longer and fight way better.

“I don’t expect any awards for doing any of this,” he said. “I’m anxious to try the Abel reel, but I do the volunteer work because it’s fun.”

Perhaps piscatorial passions are in Smith’s genes.

“I’ve been a fly fisher since I can remember,” he said. “That’s the way my father taught me in the Sierra Nevada. He never told me there was any other way to fish.”

The sport isn’t nearly as complicated as some people make it sound, Smith said, noting, “I absolutely refuse to learn any Latin names for bugs.”

Smith understands that most anglers can barely find enough time to go fishing, much less do volunteer work. But introducing new people to fishing is bound to scratch up new fish conservationists.

“I work 8-10 hours a day, sometimes 7 days a week,” he said. “But that still leaves a little free time. If you don’t waste it watching TV, you have time to write letters to the right people and do a few volunteer projects. A few hours a week add up to quite a lot after a while.”

Washington skeet shooters don’t see anything childish about Justin Miller of Spokane.

The 16-year-old Shadle High School student recently became the Washington state 12-gauge skeet champ for the second year in a row by icing older, more experienced competitors in an unnerving shootoff.

The three-day tournament was held at the Spokane Gun Club July 25-27.

“He shot 100 straight to go into a shootoff with six other shooters,” said his father, Bob A. Miller. “They shot sudden death doubles at three stations. Justin went 12 shots before the last guy dropped out.”

Justin also won the state junior overall championship for his shooting with .410, 28, 20 and 12 gauge.

But his progression to the championships puzzles his dad.

“He’s still rated a B-class shooter because his season average isn’t consistent enough to put him into A or double A,” Bob said. “Justin seems to have it all backwards. I do pretty well until the pressure is on, then I fall apart. But Justin seems to rise to the occasion when it counts the most.”

Dan Dallas, staff officer in charge of range, watershed, wildlife and fisheries for the Beaverhead-Deerlodge national forests in Sheridan, Mont., has taken over as district ranger of the Newport Ranger District of the Colville National Forest.

A 1984 University of Idaho graduate, Dallas has worked as a range technician for the Yakama Indian Nation, as a range and soil conservationist for the National Resource Convervation Service and for the Mountain City Ranger District of the Humboldt National Forest in Nevada. , DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo