The North Fork of the Smith River. Dean Finnerty knows good steelhead water when he sees it. Finnerty, a lifelong resident of Oregon and longtime fishing guide, says the headwaters of the fabled Smith River are “some of the best habitat for wild steelhead, anywhere.” Indeed, the remarkably lucid green waters of the Kalmiopsis region…
2/13/2004 Important Tributary to be Reconnected to the Yellowstone Important Tributary to be Reconnected to the Yellowstone Contact: Laura Ziemer Director, Montana Water Project Trout Unlimited Western Water Project 406.522.7291 x. 100 2/13/2004 — Bozeman, Mont. — A project that will reconnect an important tributary to the Yellowstone River has received funding from the National…
For immediate release Sept. 20, 2019 Contact: Eric Crawford Trout Unlimited (208) 596-5866, ecrawford@tu.org Shauna Stephenson Trout Unlimited (307) 757-7861, sstephenson@tu.org Clearwater closed to steelhead anglers: Time to address dwindling salmon and steelhead populations With dismal fish returns, Idaho places stringent restrictions on steelhead seasons (Sept. 20, 2019) BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Fish and Game Commission announced today that they would be…
In our last post we explored how the management of water in the West has changed over the past few decades from a climate of conflict to one of collaboration and innovation. In this quest for increased water security, improved fish and wildlife habitat and the inclusion of diverse stakeholders in the decision-making process, TU’s…
Finding refuge from the heat, Stanislaus National Forest. By Sam Davidson Across the country, summer is prime time for trout fishing in the mountains . At higher elevations you typically get relief from sweltering lowland temperatures and find the kind of small water-wild fish opportunities that are, in some ways, the heart and soul of…
Why you don’t want to wade onto icy river edges during the thaw.
Squaw Creek restoration area, Truckee River watershed. Recently Trout Unlimited’s California Program received major grant awards for eight projects that improve fish passage or dry season streamflows in steelhead, Coho, and trout streams around the state. The Fisheries Restoration Grant Program (FRGP), administered by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife), and the California Wildlife…
Beverly Smith is TU’s vice president of volunteer operations, and she’s a heck of an angler who spends a lot of time on waters like the South Fork, the Henry’s Fork and the Snake River through Jackson, Wyo. Her tip in TU’s latest book, “Trout Tips” is spot on. You’d be wise to heed the…
By Scott Willoughby In a landlocked rise of rock and ice, Thompson Divide flows like a vein of Colorado gold. Within its bounds lies a vast sweep of lustrous aspen groves and lush conifer forests surrounded by the iconic sentinel of Mount Sopris to the east, the towering Ragged Wilderness to the south and the…
There are more women guiding than ever before and many of these women have inspirational stories. Finatical Flyfishing was created to feature them and offer hosted travel with the outfitters who support them. For example, Patty Reilly has guided all over the western United States; from Jackson Hole and Yellowstone to Alaska and many rivers…
Sometimes the bugs that make Mother’s Day famous for fly fishers don’t adhere to the calendar, but it’s generally pretty close. From the Arkansas the Yakima to the Henry’s Fork, the first couple weeks of May typically mean it’s time for caddis flies. I had an epic caddis day on the Warm River, a tributary…
Baseball players have a “walk-up” song as they step toward the plate. So, what’s going through your head once you’ve climbed into the waders, strung up your rod and are ready to fish?
Spey casting is becoming a much more mainstream angling method for big-river fishing, and not just for steelhead and salmon. I’m starting to see spey casters on the South Fork and the Henry’s Fork of the Snake with regularity, chasing rainbows, cutthroats and browns in sweeping runs and throwing 100-foot casts with so little effort…
Construction phase, Jack of Hearts Creek Coho habitat restoration project The rarest species of salmon in California is getting some help in a legendary coastal river system, thanks to Trout Unlimited’s North Coast Coho Project (NCCP) and partners. Recently, the NCCP finished the construction phase of a major fish passage and water quality improvement project…
More than 1 million acres of public lands in California would be better protected under a trio of bills introduced on April 10. Trout Unlimited has worked for years to better protect the habitat values and sporting opportunities found on some of these lands. The legislative package would strengthen protections for upland and aquatic habitat…
Process-Based Restoration Process-Based Restoration (PBR) is an approach to stream and river restoration that mimics sediment transport, wood recruitment and transport, beaver dam building, and other natural processes to achieve restoration goals. For example, beaver dam analogs may be used to trap sediment and raise the elevation of the streambed, which can increase water table…
An angler soaks up the moment at the end of a day fishing the Henry’s Fork in eastern Idaho. Steve Schmidt photo. Editor’s Note – Wednesday morning the bill was dropped from consideration during the 2018 Idaho Legislative Session. Here’s a reaction from Trout Unlimited’s Micha el Gibson, who serves as the Idaho Field Director…
by Chris Hunt There’s a great little run on the South Fork of the Snake that’s only wadable when water managers lower the river in the fall, after harvest is all but done and the demand for downstream water subsides a bit. During high summer, with the river literally the potential energy for Snake River…
