GRAYLING -- Northern Michigan lost an iconic conservationist and legendary fly-fishing outdoorsman.
Calvin Hugh "Rusty" Gates Jr., 54, of Grayling, died Saturday at his home along the banks of his beloved Au Sable River after a long battle with lung cancer. He was founder and president of the Anglers of the Au Sable conservation group from its inception in 1987 until his death, and was among the most trusted voices on fly-fishing techniques in the northwoods.
Fellow conservationists, fly-fishers and environmental law advocates spoke of his abundant influence on the region.
"We've lost a giant. We've lost somebody I consider a legend," said Lance Weyeneth, an Anglers board member who fished with Gates on the Au Sable.
Gates is the reason Weyeneth fly-fishes today, and imparted not only skills, but also a love for the river and its ecosystem, he said.
"I really can't imagine that during my lifetime I'm ever going to know somebody like him. He was so studious of the river. The river was such a big part of who he was," Weyeneth said. "And you've never seen a prettier cast. Rusty made it look easy."
Not only was Gates a behemoth in the fly-fishing world, but he also was integral in local conservation and environmental justice issues.
"He was the kind of person who comes along once in a while, the type of person who stands for himself and things that are valued by so many others," said Jim Olson, a Traverse City attorney who worked with Gates on environmental legal battles.
Olson came to know Gates well when they worked to fight an oil company's plans to clean up pollution and dump treated waste water into Kolke Creek, part of the Au Sable's headwaters.
"He gave us a beacon by which to stand up for what's right. I think he was more than an environmental leader. He stood for the values of nature itself, the lakes and streams and woods," Olson said.
Gates' business, the Gates Au Sable Lodge east of Grayling, is a fly-fishing mecca, where thousands of anglers flock during the April-through-autumn trout season. That's a tradition that's not expected to change in Gates' absence, said Josh Greenberg, manager.
"I'm going to continue to manage it like I did this summer, while he was ill," Greenberg said. "There will be no name change. No way."
Gates is survived by his wife of 21 years, Julie, along with a daughter, sons and a large extended family.
"We're hurting. We're thankful he's not suffering anymore, but he will be missed very strongly," Julie Gates said.
She said her husband's legacy will be "his ability to speak for the river and keep it as pristine as possible for generations to come," Julie Gates said.
Visitation will be held today at Sorenson-Lockwood Funeral Home in Grayling, with the funeral at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Grayling on Wednesday at 1 p.m.
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