By Eric Booton The image of each fish gently swimming from hand is rapidly blurring into an abstract collage of electric sail fins and speckled red bands graced by the hues of the rainbow. All tallies have been abandoned. I have lost track of the number of fish I have caught, a sure sign of
The Yakima Basin Integrated Plan: A response to climate change
Trout Unlimited has joined NOAA and other groups to look at long-term water supply resiliency for irrigators, fisheries and local communities in the Yakima Basin. The Yakima Basin is projected to lose a significant portion of its snow pack as a result of changing climate conditions. The Yakima Basin Integrated Plan (YBIP) is a 30-year
30 Great Places: The Methow
Area: Pacific NorthwestActivity: FishingSpecies: Cutthroat Trout (or Westslope Cutthroat Trout), Rainbow trout Where: The picturesque Methow Valley rests in north central Washington’s Okanogan Country, roughly four hours northeast of Seattle amongst the 4 million acre-Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. The valley, which rests in the rain shadow east of the North Cascades, is home to Winthrop, a
30 Great Places: Little Mountain
Region: RockiesActivities: Fishing, huntingSpecies: Colorado River cutthroat; Mule deer; Elk Where: The Greater Little Mountain Area (GLMA) is a magical high desert region of over 500,000 acres in southwestern Wyoming’s Sweetwater County. This habitat of badlands, aspen groves and pine forests – simultaneously rugged and fragile – is one of Wyoming’s most sought after hunting
Commission moves to formalize fracking prohibition in Delaware River basin
By Keith Curley The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) has begun a rulemaking process to protect one of our most valuable fisheries from the impacts of hydraulic fracturing, formalizing a de facto moratorium in place since 2010. Across the country, Trout Unlimited advocates for responsible energy development, which involves protecting the highest quality habitats and
Short casts: Protecting a river in Albania; Dams coming out in MT and NC
The Vjosa is the “last big, wild river in Europe,” outside of Russia, and recently, an Albanian court struck down a government effort to construct a hydropower dam on the river that would have flooded an inhabited valley, bisected important fish habitat and interrupted migratory spawning routes. The decision itself is remarkable, given that the
30 Great Places: North Umpqua
Region: Pacific NorthwestActivities: FishingSpecies: Steelhead Where: The North Umpqua flows 110 miles from its headwaters in the Cascade Mountains (near Crater Lake National Park) to its confluence with the mainstem Umpqua west of Roseburg, in southwest Oregon. Of particular interest is the river’s fly-fishing-only water, beginning near Rock Creek and continuing 31 miles upstream. Why: