(Credit: Michael Penn, Juneau Empire)
Trout Unlimited is leading efforts in Alaska to ban felt-sole wading shoes to cut down on communicable fish diseases from spreading into the state’s largely pristine waters. A ban in Southeast Alaska takes effect next year and TU is encouraging the Alaska Board of Fisheries to extend it statewide at its next meeting in March. Read more:
By Ray February 20, 2010 - 6:17 pm
I am all for protecting fisheries from invasive fisheries. However, when looking into replacing my daughter’s boots I learned that no one makes a child sized wading boot with sticky rubber and studs. Due to the moss conditions she has to have studded felt soles on her boots or she will spend half the day falling and swimming. Swimming and falling into piles of rotting salmon quickly turns her off of fishing.
I had to make her the felted studded soles she wears now since I could not find a pair small enough in a local (Anchorage) store. Now I will either have to McGyver another pair of hard rubber soled boots with rock climbing shoe repair materials and screws, or she will have to wait three or four more years to grow into a men’s size 6 before she can safely go fishing with me again. The Korker guide boots with inserts are the best option for our fishing conditions, and mens 6 is as small as I can find them in.
You guys will probably be successful in getting proposal 184 passed in 2010, but you will be keeping generations of Alaskan children from safely fishing rivers and streams until someone comes up with a safe child’s boot that does not cost an arm and a leg.
By pdobbyn March 3, 2010 - 3:12 am
Ray,
Here’s a response from Mark Kaelke, TU’s Southeast Alaska/Tongass Project Director.
Paula Dobbyn
Having two girls who fish I’m well aware of how hard it is to find ANY decent wading boots in youth sizes (or waders, or coats, or rods), let alone studded, non-felt options. After reading your message I checked in with a TU colleague who works with kids fishing programs. He has spoken to manufacturers in the past about the general lack of boot options for youth and was told the market was too small to warrant producing them. However, this same colleague knows some folks at Simms and said he will revisit the issue with them. Apparently Simms now has a non-felt boot in women’s size 5 (men’s 4) so maybe it wouldn’t be that hard for them to step down a few more sizes.
I appreciate your concern about kids having the ability to get on streams; there’s no doubt it’s in the best interest of the sport, the resource, TU, wader manufacturers, etc., but I also feel protecting fisheries is another way we preserve opportunities for our kids. Fisheries devastated by invasive species are not going to provide incentives for kids to get on streams either. Given a choice between having to “McGyver” boots and safe-guarding Alaska fisheries from the impacts of invasive species like Whirling Disease, which I witnessed firsthand in Montana, I’ll opt for the shoe glue and hardware store studs every time. That said, TU can and should press manufacturers to produce safe, affordable non-felt boots for kids and I’ll do what I can to help make sure that happens.
In the meantime, I found that with the addition of drain holes, cut-off Xtra-tuf boots, which are soft and have good traction, worked really well for my kids. I didn’t put studs in them but am guessing you could or that strap-on studs or cleats would work well with them.
Mark Kaelke
By Dave Kpumlien March 17, 2010 - 9:24 pm
Mark and I finished two days of hearings, testimony, and committee work with the Alaska Board of Fisheries regarding Proposal 184, a statewide ban on the use of felt soled waders and boots by anglers. There was a lot of interest in this proposal which was supported by a number of the regional Advisory Councils, and there was a lot of informed testimony by supporters and some who opposed the ban. Interestingly, even the opponents recognized the threat aquatic invasive species pose to Alaska’s unparalleled cold water fisheries, and most of the opposition centered around their belief that the ban on felt did not do enough to address this threat. The next step in this process in Board of Fisheries deliberation, and then a vote which may take place as early as Friday.
By Louis DeNolfo May 7, 2010 - 12:11 pm
Make your old felt sole boots legal!!
There are plenty of studies that show felt sole pick up stuff. Felt soles are basically sponges attached to our boots, and of course will pick up sediment and bugs. The point I am interested in is weather or not there is an actual proven threat looming,, in the USA, threatening enough to justify this risk to anglers well-being by a ban of felt sole wading boots, and being forced into using useless unsafe boots. From what I can gather, we have all those nasties in the USA, but they are not in epidemic or threatening amounts. The only really nasty stuff introduced lately was the Zebra mussel and the leaping carp, and no one carried those around in their boots. I fear that the move to ban felt soles is mostly generated buy a move to shift sales to rubber sole boots.
I want alternatives that work. Folks down under, New Zealand and Oz, have already had a long experience with all the new rubber soles, and have unanimously rejected them. As far as them selling like crazy, pet rocks went the same way, and my hula hoop and slinky work a lot better than these expensive rubber boots.
The best thing I can see available now are Korkers. For $ 25 you can buy extra felt bottoms, and have them for different rivers, plus once removed, they are much easier to clean, boil, dissinfect, etc. Hopefully the NZ Fish & Game sanctioned method of transforming your felt sole boots into “rubber” boots, will eventually become commercially produced, but you can do this at home. Dont chuck out those felt soles. Just mix 1 part rubber cement with 2 parts solvent, saturate the felt, dry, mix a 1 to 1 part mix, saturate, dry, apply straight rubber cement to the sides and bottom, add silicone carbide grit, studs if you like, then a final coat of rubber cement. Voila! You now have rubber sole boots that cling to rocks just like felt, because small hairs protrude on the bottoms as you wear them, but they are solid, so wont soak up invasives! Do it yourself! Lets see what Alaska says when we all show up with these home made, eco-friendly boots!!
Louie the Fish!
By infinityxxi September 24, 2010 - 11:00 pm
that ban is so stupid
By Louie the Fish! October 28, 2010 - 10:58 pm
As a long time TU member and secretary of our local chapter here in Hawaii, I am thoroughly embarrassed that TU would be so naive as to lend any credibilty to this felt sole witch hunt ban. Exactly WHAT invasives are you worried about. Didymo is native to Alaska, whirling desease has run its course, NZ mud snails are trout food. Are you expecting an invasion of alien species from space?
Take a clue from New Zealand, where they actually had a valid reason to ban felt, etc.. They have moved on. The NZ Fish & Game realized that a ban was non productive and put anglers safety at risk, and they are they ones who came up with the glue method to make felt soles into eco friendly, totally functional, safe wading boots. Some Trout fishers seem to think that whatever certain high end tackle manufacturers tell them is gospil! Its total BS, designed to sell useless rubber sole boots that a number of companies now find themselves heavily invested in. Dont be duped by marketing double speak. Alaska will be very sorry that it listened to these morons!
By Louie DeNolfo June 8, 2011 - 1:48 pm
Once again, show me the money!! Show me the scientific evidence that there is an invasive native or exotic species in North American streams that can harm our fisheries, and has been proven to be transported by felt sole boots!
Such evidence has not been presented by TU, or any Alaska or any other scientist that I have seen. After asking this question on this blog so often, so many times, I can only assume that the felt sole ban folks are CHICKEN!!
They are covering up their obvious intention, to promote the sale of dangerous rubber sole boots. I don’t want to hear about how great rubber sole boots are from some young, fit anglers, who can race up rivers at breakneck speed, with good balance, etc. Most of us fly fishers are older, a bit wobbly, and at greater risk. I also dont want to hear rave reviews about rubber sole boots from guides or shop owners heavily invested in trying to push certain brands. I feel sorry for these shop keepers who are now worried about unloading this rubber sole stock, but you should have gone by your gut feelings when you first tried them and fell on your ass!.
If you have kids who fish, dont by them rubber sole boots. Big rivers drown people easily. One slip is all it takes. (considering the dangers of Alaska rivers, why would they do such a stupid ban???).
If you wish to make yourself feel eco-friendly by not wearing felt soles, and dont want to try my rubber cement preparation on your felt soles, then go out and buy the only safe boot bottom yet to surface in the commercial arena…..Korkers with the Svelte bottoms. a sand paper like surface that actually is as good as felt! Hats off to Korkers !!