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South Branch Moose River reconnection project for brook trout
Oscar Wilde’s famous quote “No great deed goes unpunished” might be a bit more cynical of a philosophy than we like to believe here at Trout Unlimited. In fact, when replacing old culverts and removing barriers to fish passage, we’re far more likely to be blessed than cursed for the work. We smile brightly at the sight of a…
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Drought and native trout: Colorado and Rio Grande Rivers
Finding resilience in a summer of reckoning across the Rockies and Southwest We’ve all seen the headlines: fast growing wildfires, record low snowpack, drying reservoirs, heat waves, hoot owl restrictions, mandatory fishing closures and other worrisome conditions for our favorite coldwater critters. But for humans, too, these challenges remain stubborn after 25+ years of drought in a lot of the West. Across the Colorado…
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Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument, Cast and Blast: Part Two
Where does the time go? Just last March, I wrote the first installment of this two-part blog series about my inaugural fishing and hunting excursions into the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument. Part one of the series chronicled a successful chukar and quail hunt in a remote part of the monument. So, to round out the fishing part of this monument cast and blast, I…
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Restoring Fish Passage on Prince of Wales Island
On Prince of Wales Island, nearly 450 culverts and bridges along Forest Service roads do not meet state or federal standards and restrict fish migration to important spawning and rearing habitat upstream. There are likely many more barriers to fish migration along roads on non-federal lands. These barriers reduce salmon and trout populations in affected…
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Free Fly x TU: Protecting an iconic trout
Yellowstone cutthroat trout are among the West's most iconic native fish, but today they occupy just 43% of their historic stream habitat, with only a small fraction of those remaining populations considered secure. Unlike introduced rainbow and brown trout, Yellowstone cutthroat evolved over thousands of years in the headwaters of the Yellowstone River Basin, perfectly…
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Video of the Week – A Beautiful Mess
Complexity is part of what creates a great trout stream. Varying depths and flows and structure in the form of rocks and trees create that intricacy and add hiding places. For that reason alone, crews are cutting down trees and adding them to streams to improve habitat for brook trout. Watch “A Beautiful Mess” to learn more. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__TJa_lKJRg&t=3s
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Video of the Week – A River’s Reckoning
Along the Colorado River, years of drought have placed enormous pressure on communities, agriculture and fisheries that depend on its waters. But stories like this remind us that solutions are possible. Recently, Trout Unlimited’s communications team visited the Bruchez Ranch to see firsthand how investments in modern irrigation practices are improving water efficiency while benefiting both agricultural…
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