The 24th Annual North Toledo Bend Rendezvous at North Toledo Bend State Park, Zwolle, LA, begins Friday around 3PM, November 1th and continues through Sunday morning the 3th.


What is the North Toledo Bend Rendezvous? Well, almost 25 years ago, a group of fly fishers from Louisiana and Texas were fishing and "conclaving" together in early October at the FFF Southern Council Conclave in Mt. Home, Arkansas. While there, we realized that it was ridiculous for such good friends to only gather once a year in northern Arkansas, when we all lived "relatively close" to each other in Louisiana and Texas. So, we agreed to meet at a "central point" several weeks later. The site agreed to was the North Toledo Bend State Park outside of Zwolle, Louisiana.
Early that November, they met on the shores of Toledo Bend Reservoir. Some of us rented cabins, some camped, and several brought travel trailers. There were several wives and even a girlfriend or two in tow. We tied flies, cast rods, played in boats, and even caught a few fish. Yeah, they had a great time!! They had such a good time that we decided to make it an annual affair.


The second year, while "exploring", we found a Group Facility with a lodge and commercial kitchen, 5 bunkhouses, and a central bath/shower facility that could be rented at a very reasonable cost. So, we made reservations for that facility for that next fall and every fall ever since!
We decided to call this annual event the "North Toledo Bend Rendezvous" or just "Rendezvous", and tyers from Federation clubs from throughout the mid-South (TX, LA, OK, AR, MO, MS, and TN) have been attending this top fly tying events in the mid-South for all these years. If you like to tie, or just think that you'd like to learn to tie, this is the one of the very best opportunities that you'll ever get to improve your skills.


While North Toledo Bend Rendezvous has always been a low key event with a very heavy emphasis on "hands on" teaching and learning fly tying, other than gathering for food, there are no scheduled events, no fund raising, and no awards, i.e. no pressure. We don't do "demo" tying; instead, we ?tie with friends."
Rendezvous is this coming Friday/weekend. There is a reason that these folks have been getting together for 20+ years!

As of now, a few of the tyers whom I believe will be attending include:


Bill Heugal (2010 GCC Tyer of the Year) - http://www.flyfishvideo.com/Shake%20...d%20Hookup.pdf , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erXE9m8XAXY and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvTL7FVUTX0 ;

Bruce Sublet (http://www.goflies.com/) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxObTZh_YkE ;


Diane and Richard Blaire (2009 GCC Co-Tyers of the Year/Whiting Proteam) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhQlO9Rt2t0 ;


Marc Pinsel (Fly Dressers Guild UK, Whiting Proteam & Co-Founder Classic Atlantic Bream Fly Society) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlb_qnBq46Y ; http://www.saltwaterflytyers.com/b-fly-tying-patterns-b


Ron "Stippled Popper" Braud - http://www.flytyingbug.com/threads/t...direction.637/ or http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?showtopic=62424 ;


Dirk ?Tussel Bug" Burton - http://warmwaterflyfisher.com/jarsof...Tussle_Bug.htm


Fred Hannie ? award winning realistic tyer - Recently his frog was featured on the cover of Fly Tyer magazine


Frd Dupre? ? Whiting Farms Tying Team tyer - http://www.warmwaterflytyer.com/corner.asp


Kelly ?Kelkay? Love ? Oh you?ve got to see her streamers! - http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?showtopic=73561


Plus: Walter McLendon, Jay Rankin, Harold Ray Emerson, Rusty Dunn, John Maddux, Kyle Moppert, Peter Allen, Jim Simpson, Russell Husted and host of other regulars


For much more information please go to: http://pages.suddenlink.net/w/Rendez/indexR.html


Or contact:

Walter & Linda McLendon - 936-634-3290; Pineywoods Fly Fishers waltermcl@suddenlink.net