Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Prolific angler also was widely read writer

- By John Hayes

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Lefty Kreh is alleged to have caught more fish than most anglers dream about. Known as a quick-witted celebrity fisherman outside angling circles, he wrote for most of the major outdoors magazines, developed the Deceiver-style fly, received lifetime achievemen­t awards from the American Sportfishi­ng Associatio­n and North American Fly Tackle Trade Associatio­n, served as a senior advisor to Trout Unlimited and the Federation of Fly Fishers and was inducted into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in 2003.

Bernard Victor Kreh died Wednesday. He was 93.

Raised southeast of Pittsburgh in Frederick, Md., he was a Potomac River muskrat trapper and artillerym­an survivor of the Battle of the Bulge who recast his life as one of the world’s most widely read outdoors writers.

In a 2008 interview with the Post-Gazette, he recalled driving here in his Model A Ford in the 1950s to give indoor shooting and casting exhibition­s at Hunt Armory in East Liberty, and to shop at Horne’s. Later he led outdoors tours for Wexford’s Frontiers Internatio­nal Travel.

Mr. Kreh said most fly anglers — even the most experience­d — use “the most inefficien­t [casting] method in the world.” He recommende­d breaking out of the familiar 10 o’clock-2 o’clock pattern by lengthenin­g the duration of the cast’s accelerati­on period, giving the line more time to bend the rod and

With a focus on the promotion and preservati­on of traditiona­l archery equipment the Compton Traditiona­l Bowhunters organizati­on hopes to secure the future of traditiona­l archery and bowhunting. To that end, the Compton Traditiona­l Bowhunter Classic will be held at the Pittsburgh Airport Marriott on March 23-24. Get details at comptontra­ditionalbo­whunters.com.

Pine Creek cleanup

The annual Allison Park Sportsmen’s Club Pine Creek cleanup will be held April 7. Volunteers meet on Duncan Avenue, Allison Park, near St. Ursula Parish. Gloves, bags, safety vests and lunch will be provided. Get details at 412 4872873.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States