Thursday, October 09, 2014

Down The Hatch Fly Fishing Film Festival

Good Morning Folks!
Orvis Atlanta
  I just wanted to write up a quick post to tell you guys about the fantastic time I had yesterday!  I was able to secure the day off from work, so as soon as I got home from my morning class (Calc II, bleh) the Little Girl and I hopped in the car and headed to the Buckhead area of Atlanta.  At 12:30, the voice of Orvis fly fishing (and fly fishing in general) himself, Tom Rosenbauer, was giving his Small Stream presentation at the Orvis Atlanta store.  I got there a bit early to double check the start time and see how big the crowd was going to be.  To my surprise, I was immediately introduced to Tom and had the opportunity to talk to him about suburban bluegill fishing and small stream trout fishing in the North Georgia mountains.  It was such an honor for me to get to speak with him one-on-one, he is such an incredibly nice man, very generous with his knowledge, just as you would expect from listening to the Orvis Fly Fishing Guide Podcast.  I really regret that I never thought to have my picture taken with him, but I do hope to get to meet with him again someday soon!  His presentation was excellent, just like listening to the podcast, but with pictures, and he was able to answer questions as they came up, instead of waiting for the next podcast to be released!  I don't want to give away all his secrets here, but if you ever get the opportunity to attend one of his lectures, you won't regret it!  
  After the presentation, we had to kill a few hours in Atlanta, which seems to be becoming increasingly harder for us to do!  We had to head over to Terminal West at the King Plow Arts Center for the Down the Hatch Film Tour presented by Orvis Atlanta and Sweetwater Brewery.  The doors opened at 6;30 for a Social Hour with free beer from Sweetwater and some passed appetizers and finger foods.  There was a guitar trio playing some great classic country music to set the mood and some shirts and jackets being handed out to the ladies in the crowd.  The proceeds of the event went to support the Chattahoochee River Keepers, they had a booth set up and were giving out some goodies in exchange for signing up for their newsletter.  
The entrance of the Terminal West facility at the King Plow Arts Center.
There were 300 tickets sold, which meant a packed house!
  The films that we got to watch were just awesome!  The videography was incredible and the scenery and fish were amazing.  I was hoping to find a list of the films, but was unable to by the time I wrote this post.  If I can find it, I'll try to get it posted.  One of the films showed clips from vintage fly fishing movies.  If you know me, you know that I tend to love anything old, and the old footage was right up my alley!  I'm pretty sure I recognized Joan Wulff and Lefty Krey in some of the vintage scenes.  I'm going to have to start digging around and see if I can find those old videos to post here on The Suburban Angler.  The last film shown was a hilarious dramatization of what we all feel when we're out fishing with a buddy who catches every fish in the stream, while we're left empty handed for the day and almost ready to snap a rod in frustration!
  While the films were my favorite part (partly because I didn't win anything), I think the raffles are what really brought the crowds out.  The price of the admission ticket also included one raffle ticket for each guest.  During the intermission of the films they drew numbers to give away several guided fishing trips that covered just about every fresh and saltwater fish species in the Southeast and a great looking wooden Sweetwater Brewery sign.  But, the grand prize for the raffle was a brand new Sweetwater Brewery logo'd Orvis Helios H2 fly rod.  You had to be present to win the raffles, and it took 3 or 4 tries before they gave away the rod.  I think every one in the room was on the edge of their seat, clutching their ticket!  If the gentleman that won the rod happens to read this and decides that it's not for him, I'd be happy to take it off his hands!!!!!
  In case you can't tell from the post, we really had a great time.  Orvis Atlanta and Sweetwater Brewery put on an excellent event and I can't wait for the next one!  They announced during the intro that the Down the Hatch event raised over $5000 for the Chattahoochee River Keepers!  I'm so glad that I got to be a part of it!  If one of these film tours comes to your neck of the woods, you should really try to go.  I promise, you won't regret it!
  I hope you're all doing well,
    Tight lines, cold beers and great films!
        -Nick
Our swag! Who doesn't love free stuff?

7 comments:

  1. Thanks for the great post! Glad you had a good time.

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    1. You're very welcome, thank you! We had a wonderful time and look forward to the next one!

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  2. Nick, it was great to meet you and talk about bluegills. Thanks for coming and for your support

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    1. Thank you Tom! It was an honor to meet you and I look forward to talking to you again! We had a great time and I'm always happy to support anything fly fishing related!

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  3. It was a great show! Orvis does so much for the fishing community. Was cool to see that most of the group were young folks. The resource needs that generation now more than ever. Thanks for the report, Nick.
    Jimmy Harris
    Unicoi Outfitters

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  4. Totally agree, Jimmy! Glad to make the report! I'll be up your way in the next few weeks, I hope to catch you at the store so we can meet! Thanks!

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