Boulder Daily Camera By Laura Snider (Contact) Tuesday, April 28, 2009

BOULDER, Colo. — As David Blauch stepped closer to the creek, he saw a couple of shadows dart under the eave of a big rock.

"That's exactly what you want," he said, pointing to the trout he'd just frightened into the shadows.

The massive rock now sitting in Boulder Creek, parting the frigid waters and creating an eddy of still water where a trout can hide, is new to the stream. Just a week ago, this section of the creek near the top of Boulder Canyon ran wide and shallow, with uniform ripples stretching for a half mile with barely a boulder in sight.

"All the larger rocks are placed to increase habitat," said Blauch, vice president and senior ecologist for Ecological Resource Consultants in Boulder.

The $234,000 restoration project is the result of three years of hard work by Boulder Flycasters, the local chapter of Trout Unlimited, to create a fish-friendly section of stream with stable banks, better recreational access and environmental education opportunities.

http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2009/apr/28/restoration-project-rogers-park-boulder-creek-fish/