
The author spent a lot of time in August catching largemouth bass, primarily on subsurface flies.
Patrick L. Sullivan
The author spent a lot of time in August catching largemouth bass, primarily on subsurface flies.
I spent August at the old farmhouse on Mt. Riga. Most of the time it was just me. The cousins came and went weekends, and Mom pretty much stayed down at base.
Because I tend to drop things in the morning until I ship some coffee aboard, I took to making it the night before and putting it in one of those big Thermos jugs with a dispenser thingy. If you prime the jug ahead of time with boiling water it really works well. Coffee that goes in the jug at 9 p.m. is piping hot at 6 a.m. This is much better than stumbling around waiting for the ancient percolator to do its thing.
I was somewhat handicapped in the fishing department by two nagging injuries. My right bicep/tricep seems to be permanently sore, as if I decided to bench press 300 pounds all of a sudden, and my right knee hurts when I go up or down stairs, or the equivalent of stairs.
So I did not go out for extended sessions. I confined myself to about half of the lake, simply because I didn’t want to get way the hell out there and have an arm or knee problem.
The Housatonic River is chock full of brown trout, and soon it will be cool enough to target them.Patrick L. Sullivan
I caught numerous fat largemouth bass, and not quite as many and quite as fat smallmouth. Also some surprisingly large perch and two pickerel. No panfish at all, although they were certainly there. And no crappies for the third year in a row.
There was very little surface action. I generally brought two rods, Western and/or Tenkara, one rigged for surface and one for sinking. After I got bored heaving the heavy Bass Vampire around underwater, I’d switch and try a popper or gurgler and some such. Very occasionally it brought something to the surface, such as the time I chucked a big dragonfly pattern and a smallie boiled up from under a lily pad and caught it before it landed.
But for the most part the action was subsurface.
I did not keep anything this year. There is a lady on the mountain who loves any sort of fish and eats them right down to the eyeballs, and I like to indulge her if possible. But her schedule and mine never coincided to the point where a bass could go from net to cooler to kitchen in a matter of hours, and I am not going to try to refrigerate a lunker in our small propane fridge. It wouldn’t work very well and there would be no room for important dietary staples, such as the half dozen bottles of different kinds of mustard, all with less than an ounce remaining, that always accumulate in this setting, by federal law.
I began the month throwing pike flies with a 10 weight, experimenting with wire leaders and different types of short sinking heads, and so on.
But the arm got so sore I dialed down to a six weight Western rod and the lighter side of the fixed-line arsenal, and cheesed the heavy pike flies in favor of standard items such as size 6 conehead Woolies with rubber legs. (Always get the rubber legs.)
Various infirmities meant that the author only made one trip in August into "Snodgrass Gulch," a code name for a favorite brook trout stream.Patrick L. Sullivan
Lake angling was leavened a few times by brook trout hunting in the Riga brook and, more significantly, one trip into Snodgrass Gulch (not its real name).
The latter requires a pretty hefty hike and involves a lot of the motion that hurts the knee, so I was antsy about it.
But the knee didn’t trouble me much, which I attribute to pressing down on dirt instead of something hard like a wooden stair.
So all in all it was a decent month, a little subpar but by no means terrible or disappointing. I’d say the highlight was the improvement in the smallmouth population and the low point was the evening a storm blew up out of nowhere. I went from bobbing around peacefully in the gloaming to getting drenched as the air temperature dropped 15 degrees in as many minutes and fighting a nasty chop in a pontoon boat singularly ill-suited for the purpose.
LAKEVILLE — The Hotchkiss School opened the girls varsity lacrosse season with a big win in the snow against Kingswood Oxford School.
The Bearcats won 19-0 in a decisive performance March 26. Twelve different players scored for Hotchkiss, led by Coco Sheronas with four goals.
Coco Sheronas scored four goals for Hotchkiss in the snowy 2025 season opener.Photo by Riley Klein
Kingswood Oxford is in the process of rebuilding its girls lacrosse program after some time without a team. The first game of the season gave the Kingswood coaches a chance to see their team play and rework position assignments.
At gametime, Downing Field became enshrouded in a veil of snow flurries. Players kept moving to stay warm with the temperature around 39 degrees.
The mercy rule kicked in during the second quarter when the lead entered double digits, causing a running clock to tick for the rest of the game.
Eleanor Helm scored once against Kingswood Oxford.Photo by Riley Klein
In addition to four goals by Sheronas, MaryHelen Cooey and Charlotte Dorman scored three each and the following players scored once: Eleanor Helm, Lily Lavigne, Lilah Crispino, Kailyn Willa, Marygrace Lawry, Lila Snow, Harper Semlies, Allison Wick and Emma Ohler.
Hotchkiss will play the next two games on the road before hosting Canterbury School April 9 at 3 p.m.
Allison Wick, left, and Kailyn Willa rejoice after a goal March 26.Photo by Riley Klein
FALLS VILLAGE — Principal Ian Strever announces the second quarter marking period Honor Roll at Housatonic Valley Regional High School for the 2024-2025 school year.
Grade 9: Parker Beach (Cornwall), Mia Belter (Salisbury), Lucas Bryant (Cornwall), Addison Green (Kent), Eliana Lang (Salisbury), Alison McCarron (Kent), Katherine Money (Kent), Mira Norbet (Sharon), Abigail Perotti (North Canaan), Karmela Quinion (North Canaan), Owen Schnepf (Wassaic), Federico Vargas Tobon (Salisbury), Emery Wisell (Kent).
Grade 10: Sophia Camphouse (Sharon), John DeDonato (Salisbury), Adelyn Diorio (North Canaan), Sydney Howe (North Canaan), Daniel Lesch (Cornwall), Finian Malone (Sharon), Meadow Moerschell (Kent), Jackson Olson (Salisbury), Logan Padelli (North Canaan), Ishaan Tantri (Salisbury), Ivy Zheng (North Canaan).
Grade 11: Lily Beurket (Cornwall), Olivia Brooks (Salisbury), Mollie Ford (Falls Village), Anna Gillette (Salisbury), Neve Kline (Salisbury), Alexa Meach (North Canaan), Ibby Sadeh (Falls Village), Celeste Trabucco (Kent) Silas Tripp (Falls Village), Alex Woodworth (Salisbury).
Grade 12:Tyler Anderson (Sharon), Zachary Bezerra (Kent), Bernice Boyden (Sharon), Daniela Brennan (North Canaan), Amelia Dodge (North Canaan), Madison Gulotta (Sheffield), Harper Howe (North Canaan), Tess Marks (Salisbury), Manasseh Matsudaira (Cornwall), Lola Moerschell (Kent), Diana Portillo (North Canaan), Olivia Robson (Salisbury), Gabriela Titone (Salisbury).
Grade 9: Krystin Ackerman (North Canaan), Travis Barber (Cornwall), Max Bochnovich (Salisbury), Nico Bochnovich (Salisbury), Logan Bronson (Cornwall), Zaira Celso-Cristobal (Sharon), Sadie Chapell (Salisbury), Tess Churchill (Salisbury), Niki Clark (Salisbury), Caitlin Devino (North Canaan), Louise Faveau (Salisbury), Celestia Galvin (Sharon), Samuel Garcia Pulido (North Canaan), Beatrice Gifford (Kent), Madeline Johnson (Salisbury), Marlow LaPointe (Falls Village), Ayden Lemmy (Falls Village), Paul Losh (Falls Village), Chase Lowell (North Canaan), Lily McCabe (Salisbury), Logan Miller (Falls Village), Bridger Rinehart (Salisbury), Vilija Salazar (Salisbury), Camila Sanchez Guerrero (Cornwall), Camdyn Tallon (North Canaan), Schuyler Thompson (Falls Village), Juliette Trabucco (Kent), Payton Wagner (North Canaan), Jessica Watkins (Kent), Olivia Whitney (North Canaan).
Grade 10: Bennett Wyatt Bayer (Salisbury), Selena Black (Cornwall), Georgie Clayton (Salisbury), Christian DeDonato (Salisbury), Natasha Dennis (North Canaan), Layla DiDomenico (Kent), Carmela Egan (Salisbury), Kellie Eisermann (Salisbury), Levi Elliott (Millerton), Lydia Fleming (North Canaan), Grace Graney (Falls Village), Alexa Hoadley (Kent), Jonas Johnson (North Canaan), Aiden Krupa (Torrington), Makenzie Lidstone (Salisbury), Francisco Mendoza Ratzan (North Canaan), Daniel Moran (Norfolk), David Nam (Sharon), Gustavo Portillo (North Canaan), Rivers Richard (North Canaan), Darwin Wolfe (Falls Village), Nathan Zani (Ashley Falls).
Grade 11: Elizabeth Allyn (Salisbury), Steven Barber (Cornwall), Victoria Brooks (Salisbury), Katherine Crane (North Canaan), Richard Crane (North Canaan), Arianna Danforth Gold (Cornwall), Mia DiRocco (Cornwall), Shanaya Duprey (North Canaan), Allegra Ferri (North Canaan), Elizabeth Forbes (Wassaic), Maureen Graney (Falls Village), Taylor Green (Kent), Chloe Hill (Salisbury), Adam Hock (Kent), Hannah Johnson (North Canaan), Madelyn Johnson (North Canaan), Delanie Keeley (New Marlboro), Madison Melino (Austerlitz), Ayden Wheeler (Amenia).
Grade 12: Lucas Caranci (North Canaan), Sidney Crouch (Cornwall), Dylan Deane (North Canaan), Tessa Dekker (Falls Village), Cole Dennis (North Canaan), Leah Drislane (North Canaan), Sara Huber (Salisbury), Dustin Kayser (North Canaan), Rosemary Koller (North Canaan), Kylie Leonard (North Canaan), Katelin Lopes (Falls Village), Khyra McClennon (Amenia), Jassim Mohydin (Salisbury), Patrick Money (Kent), Mason O’Niel (Salisbury), Tristan Oyanadel (Falls Village), Wendy Santiago-Leyva (Salisbury), Elinor Wolgemuth (Salisbury).
Grade 9: Edwin Alonzo Alonzo (North Canaan), Robert Boyden (Sharon), Peyton Bushnell (Falls Village), Winter Cheney (Cornwall), Ayva Fenn (Torrington), Luca Floridis (Salisbury), Angel Gonzalez (Salisbury), Kogan Lawrence (Amenia), McKenzie Lotz (Ashley Falls), Dany Martinez (North Canaan), Wyatt Merwin (Salisbury), Nathan Young (Cornwall).
Grade 10: Byron Bell (Cornwall), Sofia Bindley (Cornwall), Karen Chavez-Sanchez (Salisbury), Braeden Duncan (Salisbury), Wiley Fails (Salisbury), James Flores (Kent), Jasper Oyanadel (Falls Village), Marlene Perez (North Canaan), Carson Riva (North Canaan), Ryan Segalla (Salisbury), Alanna Tatro (North Canaan).
Grade 11: Peter Austin (Kent), Everet Belancik (Cornwall), Carlos Castellanos Cruz (Falls Village), Ashton Cooper (Salisbury), Christopher Crane (North Canaan), Nicholas Gonzalez (Cornwall), Kierra Greene (North Canaan), Marc Hafner (Falls Village), Abram Kirshner (Kent), Riley Mahaffey (Amenia), Simon Markow (Cornwall), Isabella Pugo Dominguez (North Canaan), Deiby Romero Gualan (North Canaan), Gabriele Rooney (Falls Village), Melanie Rundall (Kent), Ava Segalla (Salisbury), Lauren Sorrell (North Canaan).
Grade 12: Brandt Bosio (Salisbury), Jake Bosio (North Canaan), Madeline Collingwood (South Egremont), Ian Crowell (North Canaan), Madison DeWitt (North Canaan), Rose Fitch (Cornwall), Ava Gandarillas (North Canaan), Abigail Hogan (North Canaan), Antonis Karampasis (North Canaan), Ellanor Karcheski (North Canaan), Jonathan Leal-Santiago (North Canaan), Kyle McCarron (Kent), Ledvia Orellana-Lemus (North Canaan), Olivia Peterson (Sharon), Taylor Terwilliger (North Canaan), Emil Urbanowicz (Cornwall), Jayme Walsh (Salisbury), Abigail White (North Canaan), Junxin Zhang (Kent).
ANCRAMDALE — Thomas Ditto of Ancramdale, born Thomas David DeWitt Aug. 11, 1944 in New York City changing his surname to Ditto at marriage, passed peacefully on Pi Day, March 14, 2025. He was a husband, father, artist, scientist, Shakespeare scholar, visionary, inventor, actor, mime, filmmaker, clown, teacher, lecturer, colleague, and friend. Recipient of numerous grants, awards and honors in both the arts and sciences, a Guggenheim and NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts fellow, he was a creative genius beyond his time. In addition to authoring scores of papers, he held several patents and invented the first motion capture system and the Ditto-scope, a radically new kind of telescope. He was a pioneer in computer generated video, film, and performance.
When not hard at work, he was always there to help when needed and he knew how to bring smiles to faces. He loved his family and pets and was supportive of his wife’s cat rescue work.
He is survived by wife Beverly (Botto), son David, sister Alice Pero and nieces and nephews in the extended family. He was predeceased by his parents David and Madlyn Dewitt and sister Peggy.
Memorial contributions may be made to any of the following non-profits.
Collaborative Cats Inc. PO Box 88, Ancramdale, NY 12503 www.collaborativecats.org
eba inc. dance theatre company, PO Box 145, Albany, NY 12201 www.eba-arts.org
Wave Farm transmission arts WGXC 90.7 FM PO Box 13 Acra, NY 12405 www.wavefarm.org
American Astronomical Society 1667 K Street NW, Suite 800 Washington DC 20006 www.aas.org
American Cancer Society 2678 South Road, Suite 103, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. www.cancer.org
A Celebration of Life memorial service will take place at a future date and will be announced on the funeral home website.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Scott D. Conklin Funeral Home, 37 Park Ave., Millerton, NY 12546. To send an online condolence visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com
SHARON — Winifred Anne Carriere passed away on March 6, 2025, at the age of 87. A resident of Sharon for many years, she later retired to Ancramdale, New York.
Born in New Haven to writers Albert Carriere and Winifred Osborn, Anne grew up in New York City. Raised in a Quaker family, she attended Friends Seminary, and The University of Wisconsin. Anne studied American Architectural History through Bard College’s University Without Walls. For her degree, she wrote a comprehensive history of the architecture of Sharon during its first hundred years.
Anne worked as an editor for her mother’s publication Professional Florist Magazine. She also served as Public Relations Director for South Street Seaport Museum, and later, as a legal secretary at the firms Paul Weiss and Coudert Brothers.
A writer throughout her life, Anne produced numerous short stories and poems. Her work was published in The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Herald Tribune. Best known is Anne’s children’s book “Jennifer’s Walk” published by Golden Books in 1973, and illustrated by her then-husband New Yorker magazine cover artist Arthur Getz. The book was inspired by the outdoor adventures of their young daughter.
Anne was an activist. She participated in the anti-nuclear movement, volunteering for the campaign Ground Zero. Upon retirement she founded the non-profit community service organization Ancramdale Neighbors Helping Neighbors. She helped develop the somatic nonviolence method, Aiki-AVP, editing its first training manual. Anne served as a Trustee for Fifteenth Street Quaker Meeting in New York City, and later served on various committees of the Bulls Head-Oswego Quaker Meeting in Clinton Corners, New York.
Anne was passionate about nature, and always preferred to be outdoors. She was an avid hiker, long-distance swimmer, cross-country skier, canoeist, and flower gardener.
She also was a voracious reader, and loved poetry, classical music, and humorous wordplay.
Anne is survived by her husband, William “Bill” Leicht of Great Barrington, Massachusetts, her son, Kurt Gubrud of Canaan, and her daughter, Sarah Getz of Sharon.
The family wishes to thank the staff of The Meadows, the memory care division of Brookmeade in Rhinebeck, for their compassionate care of Anne during her final years.
A memorial gathering will take place this spring at the Bulls Head–Oswego Quaker Meetinghouse with a date to be announced.