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Congress must act to reform ancient mining laws
Abandoned hard-rock mines create some of the most significant water quality problems facing our country, but in Congress we have an opportunity to invest in cleaning up pollution of the past, while modernizing our mining laws so we don’t face the same issues in the future. With an estimated $54 billion in cleanup costs and tens of thousands of abandoned mines polluting our lands and waters, action is long…
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Choosing a rod is about the flies, not the fish
I had always assumed that an angler chooses a fly rod based on the type of fish they wanted to chase. Turns out, that’s not exactly true. Sure, a 5-weight is probably still the gold standard “trout rod,” but that has less to do with fighting the fish, and more to do with the range of…
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Is ‘destination marketing’ bad for our fishy resources?
Oh, those innocent little hashtags. I’m in Vermont at the annual Outdoor Writers Association of America’s annual conference, and I just stepped out of a session about how writers, communicators and influencers can work with destinations to promote the activities at those destinations to encourage readers and viewers to take the plunge and take a…
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Everything you wanted to know: westslope cutthroat trout
Westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi) Species Summary & Status: Officially designated as Montana’s state fish, the westslope cutthroat’s historical range included all of Montana west of the Continental Divide, as well as the upper Missouri River drainage. The average size of these fish is 6 to 16 inches, depending on habitat. It is often…
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Mourning loss and ascending the Lochsa
Catching westslope cutthroat trout and seeing the forest through the trees in north-central Idaho Editor’s note: Daniel Ritz is fishing across the Western United States this summer in an attempt to accomplish the Master Caster class of the Western Native Trout Challenge. He will attempt to land each of the 20 native trout species in their historical ranges of the 12…
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Every week can be Trout Week
The inaugural Flylords/Trout Unlimited Trout Week is wrapping up, but we can all keep it going in the weeks and months to come. From committing ourselves to increasing our personal conservation efforts on local waters, to connecting more with TU opportunities and initiatives online and across the country, every week can be Trout Week. Here's…
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Slideshow: An homage to fall
Admit it, fall boating is better. I mean, yeah... the rivers are low but that's about the only negative I can think of. The fishing can be obscenely good, the raft hatch is starting to thin out, and you get to sleep in just a bit longer than usual. There's steelhead and salmon to catch.…