In NY this weekend...

Roman Moser
Bob Clouser

Tomorrow the Fly Fishing Hall of Fame induction at the Catskills Fly Fishing Museum at 3 p.m. in Livingston Manor, N.Y. The inductees include Fredrick Halford, George Skues, Bob Clouser, Dan Blanton, Roman Moser and Gardner Grant.

Central New York sportsmen take to the fields this Saturday for the opener of the fall pheasant hunting season.

Some — including those who participated last weekend in the special state-sponsored youth hunt (ages 10-11), along with a ladies hunt hosted by the Central New York Pheasants Forever Chapter on private property in Mexico — got an early start on the action.

The future of one of the state’s most popular game bird seasons looked dark late last year after plans were announced by Gov. Patterson’s office to close the Reynold’s Game Farm in Ithaca, the state’s sole pheasant rearing facility. Outrage and strong lobbying by sportsmen and women across the state resulted in Patterson reversing his decision.

However, concern over the farm’s finances resulted in the state Department of Environmental Conservation increasing sportsmen’s fees nearly across the board for the 2009-2010 hunting/fishing trapping seasons — money that will help keep the pheasant-rearing facility open, along with reducing the deficit of the state’s Conservation Fund, which pays for hunting and fishing programs, among other things.