Redrawing the map on native cutthroats

A new study just released from the University of Colorado, published in the peer-reviewed journal Molecular Ecology and funded in part by Trout Unlimited, will redraw the map on Colorado's native cutthroat trout and has shone a spotlight on a small tributary of the Arkansas River near Colorado Springs. The study, conducted using historic fish samples from the 19th Century, attempted to shed light on what native trout lineages were found in Colorado - and where they were found.  Among the most notable findings:  the fish generally believed to be greenback cutthroat trout and native to the Front Range are in reality from native trout lineages west of the Contintental Divide, while one remaining greenback population remains in Bear Creek on the flanks of Pikes Peak.  Trout Unlimited is actively working to protect habitat and address issues with trail impacts and sedimentation in Bear Creek.

The Denver Post has reported on the study and its implications for cutthroats and for Bear Creek.  Trout Unlimited also issued a press release on the study.

Does this mean that the work done to date on greenback restoration is for naught?  Fortunately, that is not the case. First - the restored populations are still valuable native Colorado trout albeit of a different lineage and their conservation is important, just as is that of the greenbacks themselves. Moreover, work that has been done in preparing sites for successful relocations (such as planning efforts in the Poudre headwaters for large-scale greenback restoration) as well as general TU efforts in improving habitat and watershed health, will help create a better home for the greenbacks in those locations where they are reestablished going forward. Our work to date provides a solid foundation for our future restoration efforts with the greenback.

Of course having to push the "reset" button on our native trout restoration strategies is a disappointment, but the flip side of any disappointment is opportunity. It has been said that "extinction means it is too late."  The good news for greenbacks is that we are not too late and our efforts in the years to come will help ensure that our children and grandchildren can have the opportunity to fish for this unique Colorado native. 

Q&A about the new genetics study on Colorado’s native cutthroat trout

What are the key findings from the new University of Colorado genetics study?

By looking at DNA from historic fish samples as well as stocking records, the study’s authors – led by principal investigator Dr Jessica Metcalf – have identified six different genetic lineages of native trout for Colorado (compared to the four previously identified) and have in some cases suggested that the lineages have a different historic range than was previously thought.  Specifically, they identify lineages for the Arkansas drainage (Yellowfin – now believed extinct), the South Platte drainage (Greenback – now found in one small stream in the Arkansas basin, Bear Creek), the Rio Grande drainage (Rio Grande), the Green/Yampa basins (Colorado River), the Colorado/Gunnison basins (previously unnamed), and the San Juan basin (previously unnamed – now believed extinct).

So if there’s only one population left in the Arkansas basin, then what are the “greenbacks” I’ve caught in places like Rocky Mountain National Park?

Based on the genetic markers identified by Dr. Metcalf and her colleagues, it appears that most such populations are likely a different Colorado native trout – from either the Green/Yampa lineage or the Colorado/Gunnison lineage.  So you have caught a real Colorado native – just not a greenback.

Can I catch a true greenback in Bear Creek?

No.  Because the population is small and susceptible to hooking mortality, it has been – for several years – closed to fishing.  We hope that as new sites are restored with these fish that anglers will again have the opportunity to fish for native greenback cutthroat trout.

Does this mean that the fish previously thought to be greenbacks are no longer protected under the Endangered Species Act?

No.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be initiating a review of cutthroat trout in Colorado to examine the genetic results as well as results from an ongoing study looking at physical characteristics of the different fish and any other relevant science.  To assist in that process, they will convene a group of leading experts in the field to help advise them on proper classification among the different cutthroats – and on the question of which lineages are imperiled and warrant continued Endangered Species Act protection.  From those results, they will then begin a formal rulemaking process to make any changes.  Until that rulemaking takes place, all populations previously protected as “greenbacks” will remain protected under the Endangered Species Act.

What is TU doing to protect the one remaining greenback population in Bear Creek?

The one population of greenbacks still known to exist are found in Bear Creek near Colorado Springs – ironically, the result of an early stocking effort by a local hotelier that believed that cutthroat fishing would help draw tourists.  The Bear Creek watershed is suffering from sedimentation and the impacts of both motorized and non-motorized trails, as well as from an existing gravel road (High Drive) that parallels the lower part of the stream.  Trout Unlimited, with leadership from our local Cheyenne Mountain Chapter and in partnership with federal, state, and municipal agencies and local stakeholders, is working on volunteer projects to help address sediment impacts and to rehabilitate unauthorized user-created trails that are impacting the stream.  At the same time, Trout Unlimited has reached out to mountain bikers and motorbike users to collaborate on assessing and relocating sections of trail that are creating impacts on the stream.  With support from this diverse group of stakeholders, the Forest Service is currently completing a trails assessment that will clearly identify problem sections of trail and options for relocating those sections away from Bear Creek to eliminate those impacts.  We anticipate work will begin on trail relocation in 2013.  We also applaud CH2MHill, which is donating its services for a road assessment on High Drive to help guide efforts to modify the road so as to reduce its significant impacts on sedimentation in the lower reaches of the cutthroat habitat.  We are working with the Forest Service and other partners to seek funding for road improvements as well.

So what will be the future for greenback restoration?  Will populations of the Colorado/Gunnison fish be removed and replaced?

That decision will rest with the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with their agency partners on the Greenback Recovery Team.  Fish from the Bear Creek lineage are now being raised in multiple hatcheries for restocking into appropriate waters, and we expect that efforts to establish new populations using those fish will take place fairly soon.  There are locations that have been identified as potential restoration sites that could be used in this effort without removing cutthroats from previously “restored” waters, and those may be the logical first places to move with restoration.  That will provide the agencies with more time to come up with answers for the long-term question of what to do with cutthroats that have been re-established in waters outside their native range.

More good news for Hermosa Creek

A long-planned move to re-establish the Colorado River cutthroat trout in the Hermosa Creek watershed occurred Wednesday when the headwaters stretch of the drainage was stocked with the native fish. Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologists and volunteers, including Trout Unlimited, planted 11,000 fingerlings about 3 inches long and 200 10-inchers in the main stem of Hermosa Creek upstream from Hotel Draw.

Fish were carried in bags from trucks and emptied into Hermosa Creek at various points. If the fish had to be carried any distance, they were transported in super-oxygenated water to ensure they arrived in good condition...

Preparation for the stocking Wednesday began in August 2011, when about nine miles of Hermosa Creek above Hotel Draw was treated with Rotenone to kill non-native fish, mostly brook trout...

Native cutthroat trout don’t compete well with other species, so efforts to increase their population – they occupy only 14 percent of their historic habitat – focus on giving them exclusive use of certain waters.

“Some fishermen just want to catch a fish and eat it,” said Buck Skillen, a member of the 5 Rivers Chapter of Trout Unlimited and a volunteer with Parks and Wildlife. “But there are a lot of us who think it’s pretty important to have a native fish."

To read this article in its entirety, please visit The Durango Herald.

New Hope for Roan Cutthroats

The Roan Plateau near Rifle is one of Colorado’s gems – a scenic backcountry area supporting some of Colorado’s best big game habitat and providing a home for populations of native cutthroat trout that have a unique local adaptation – the ability to withstand warmer water temperatures than most other cutthroats.

The Roan’s outstanding fish and wildlife values led Field & Stream magazine to name it one of their “Best Wild Places.” The Colorado Water Quality Control Commission has designated several key streams on the Roan as “Outstanding Waters,” deserving of unique water quality standards. And the Colorado Natural Heritage Program at Colorado State University – a source of information on the state’s rarest and most threatened species and plant communities – has recognized the Roan as one of Colorado’s top four locations for biologic diversity. Of those four places, only the Roan does not benefit from the protective management of the National Park Service.

It’s clear that there is broad recognition that the Roan is a special place. But over the past decade it has become an island of quality habitat in the vast sea of energy development taking place throughout the Piecance basin.

In the final months of the Bush administration, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approved a wide-ranging plan for oil and gas drilling atop the Roan Plateau that seemed indifferent to appropriate protections for fish and wildlife. And in short order, leases for energy development were auctioned off.

Remarkably, even BLM acknowledged dire impacts on fish and wildlife. Its own analysis projected that the agency’s drilling plan would result in a 33% decline in mule deer herds and could even eliminate rare native trout populations. And as troubling as these projections might have been, it’s likely the study grossly understated the real impacts. While BLM worked under the assumption that 300 wells would be drilled on the plateau, the Bill Barrett Company, which holds the leases atop the Roan, plans to drill 3,000 wells - more than ten times the BLM estimate.

Trout Unlimited is no “Johnny-come-lately” when it comes to protecting the important resource values of the Roan Plateau. The Grand Valley TU Chapter has been engaged in on-the-ground efforts to protect and restore habitat atop the Roan since the 1990s, constructing fence to keep cattle off of important stream reaches, installing in-stream habitat features, planting riparian vegetation, and monitoring water quality.

Trout Unlimited accepts the need for responsible development of natural gas resources. In fact, Colorado TU supported an alternative drilling plan for the Roan that would have allowed development of the vast majority of its natural gas without having to disturb key fish and wildlife habitats. Unfortunately, drilling on the scale approved by BLM threatens to wipe out native trout populations and habitat that TU volunteers and professional staff have worked for decades to preserve, and defies any interpretation of “responsible.”

And so, with the future of the Roan’s trout on the line, Colorado TU joined other conservation-minded groups to challenge BLM’s ill-conceived plan in federal court. TU and its partners were represented in that effort by an outstanding legal team from the environmental legal group, Earthjustice.

There has been some recent good news for the Roan campaign: First, the presiding federal district court judge ruled in favor of our challenge to the BLM plan, by directing the agency to revisit its environmental analysis and decision. The very same afternoon, TU was approved for a foundation grant of more than $100,000 to support restoration work atop the Roan Plateau – improving stream crossings, fencing riparian habitat, and restoring cutthroats into new waters. In less than 24 hours, we went from facing the prospect of losing the Roan’s native trout to the opportunity to protect and restore their habitat on a larger scale than ever before.

The legal ruling favored TU and its partners on three key issues. The first two related to the need for improved air quality and ozone analysis. The third, and perhaps most significant, was a finding that BLM erred when it neglected to consider alternatives such as those supported by Colorado TU, which would have allowed for gas development while preserving key habitats on the Roan.

The judge’s decision is an important victory for the Roan Plateau and those who care about its future. It gives the BLM a second chance to “get it right” for the Roan, by coming up with a plan that allows responsible development while protecting the unique and valuable habitats both atop the Roan and along its base. But it is only a chance – the ruling does not assure that BLM will adopt an improved plan, only that it properly consider alternatives and analyze impacts. It will be up to Coloradoans to weigh in with BLM to ensure that the agency does adopt a new and better plan for the Roan. Colorado TU and other sportsmen’s groups will be a key part of these efforts.

Doing right by the Roan is about more than just advocating for responsible development. TU is also working on-the-ground to help protect and improve habitat for native trout. This year, we are working to complete a fish barrier on the East Fork of Parachute Creek that will help protect cutthroat habitat from invasion by brook trout, which can displace the native populations. We are also completing habitat improvements on Trapper Creek, home to a unique population of cutthroats that have managed to adapt to the somewhat warmer water temperatures found on the plateau. These improvements will help create new pools - holding water - that provides a safe haven for the fish during times of low streamflows.

TU’s habitat restoration work is carried out through the generosity of many key funding partners, including Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. But oil and gas companies have also been important supporters of on-the-ground restoration through the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s “Supplemental Environmental Project” (SEP). SEP allows companies facing fines for pollution violations to invest that money to improve habitat and environmental quality.

Besides engaging our established members in habitat protection and restoration in one of Colorado’s best wild places, the Roan also represents an opportunity for Colorado TU to connect with young people and help them develop their own “conservation ethic.” We have teamed up with the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps to deploy a youth conservation corps atop the Roan. One recent project involved planting cottonwood trees and willows along Trapper Creek to help improve riparian conditions in the watershed.

The efforts of the Youth Corps are supported The Greenbacks, a recently formed group of Denver area TUers in their 20s and 30s. In addition to fund raising efforts, the Greenbacks organized their own volunteer day to plant willows along another Roan cutthroat stream, Northwater Creek. And the Grand Valley Anglers chapter continues its decades-long commitment to the Roan by participating as funding partners and volunteers in virtually all the work taking place on the Roan’s native trout streams.

Of course, it can be argued that there are plenty of so-called special places, and that our need for jobs and new sources of energy require trade-offs. We can’t preserve everything. Sacrifices have to be made.

To be sure, there’s truth in that argument, especially in light of a growing population and struggling economy. But there is also a profound truth in the fable of the goose that laid the golden egg. Wouldn’t it be much more prudent to enjoy some economic benefit from the resources beneath the Roan without being so greedy as to kill it?

Over the past 50 years, TU has built a reputation for advocacy based on sound science and successful restoration projects build with the sweat equity of a hundred thousand volunteers. Protecting and restoring places is why we exist as an organization, even if it’s not always the perfect fit for the faint of heart. Sometimes, there’s no choice but to put up a fight. In the case of the Roan, more than ever, it is looking like a fight we can win.

Background on the Roan Plan

On June 8, 2007, the Bureau of Land Management issued its Record of Decision for the Roan Plateau management plan, giving approval to move forward with oil and gas development atop the Roan. CTU had numerous concerns with the plan - including the BLM's own conclusion that their proposal could result in elimination of rare native cutthroat trout populations atop the Roan. An overview of CTU's concerns with the BLM plan appears on a separate page on this site.

Giving Back to the Watershed

In June, Rocky Mountain Flycasters (RMF), the Fort Collins area Chapter of TU, began discussing the restoration process in the areas burned by both the High Park and Hewlett Gulch fires.Those two fires burned close to 100,000 acres of forest in the Poudre and Big Thompson watersheds. RMF was gravely concerned what impacts the fires would have on the watersheds. Using recent Colorado and Western US fires as examples, the chapter knew that restoration costs of those burned areas couldn't be done solely through agency response. The US Forest Service, National Resource Conservation Service, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Colorado State Forest Service and Larimer County are all first rate organizations, but all these agencies combined lack the resources necessary to address the ecological damage caused this year by our two local fires, Colorado's other wildlifres, and the numerous fires burning throughout the Western US.

Rocky Mountain Flycasters has teamed with, in a leadership capacity, approximately 40 current member, agency or stakeholder organizations throughout Northern Colorado to collectively fund, organize and support restoration needs for the High Park and Hewlett Gulch fire areas through the High Park Restoration Committee (HPRC).

Restoration funds collected for the benefit and use by the coalition will be deposited with the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado. Project proposals will reviewed and approved by a HPRC Project Review Committee and funding will only be released to those projects that are approved by the committee.

To get "boots on the ground" and working on restorative projects, trained project leaders will be required to manage the on-site work. Project leaders will be volunteers and can receive training certification through programs provided by Wildlands Restoration Volunteers.

Details of volunteer and cooperative HPRC projects will be posted in the Rocky Mountain Flycasters newsletter and on the RMF website.

This is a tremendous opportunity for all anglers and those who support angling to 'give back' to the community and more importantly to give back to the rivers. Nothing can be done to eliminate the devastating effects fires have caused to the watershed, but together we can minimize the time it takes for the watershed to begin to recover and regain a sense of normalcy.

For more information about volunteering or donating to the HPRC, please visit the RMF website at http://www.rockymtnflycasters.org or contact Dick Jefferies, President of the Rocky Mountain Flycasters chapter, at djefferies@q.com.

Protecting CO Backcountry

Colorado’s backcountry fish and wildlife habitats will enjoy strong protections for the future thanks to a new federal rule that was shaped significantly by anglers and hunters.

The July 2012 release of the final US Forest Service plan for conservation and management of Colorado’s roadless areas was the culmination of a process that spanned the terms of three governors. From the beginning, TU was there, taking part in Governor Owens’ initial roadless task force, periodically meeting with Forest Services officials, and working to secure enhancements right through the final days before the rule was issued.

Why is “roadless” so important to TU? Because roadless areas support prime wildlife habitat that is critical to the survival and recovery of Colorado’s remaining populations of native cutthroat trout. The numbers tell the story about what roadless areas encompass:

• More than 75% of the remaining habitat for Greenback cutthroats
• Nearly 60% of the remaining habitat for Rio Grande cutthroats
• More than 70% of the remaining habitat for Colorado River cutthroats

Native trout and dirt roads are not good partners. Backcountry streams that support native trout are often narrow, not very deep and can experience very low seasonal flows. A single severe thunderstorm can flush so much sediment into a stream that spawning areas are smothered and fish suffocated.

Of course, TU wasn’t alone in its support of a beefed-up backcountry plan. Colorado hunters supported roadless protections because they harbor some of the state’s best big game habitat: More than 50% of elk summer concentration and production areas are in roadless areas, and the 15 most hunted Game Management Units in Colorado all have more than 66,000 acres of roadless lands.

Development of a state-specific Colorado Roadless Rule began during the Bush Administration as an alternative approach to the Clinton administration’s 2001 rule, at a time when the 2001 rule was the subject of multiple lawsuits. Even though the ensuing legal battles ultimately resulted in the affirmation of the Clinton-era rule, Colorado continued to develop its own plan, focusing on local interests and issues. TU participated throughout, always reiterating a simple standard: we would support a Colorado rule only if it was, on balance, as strong as or stronger than the 2001 rule in protecting Colorado’s backcountry.

It was a fruitful strategy. TU’s most notable success was to secure special protection for drainages supporting native cutthroat trout. And while the final rule allows for a range of activities within those drainages, it also requires the Forest Service to ensure that those activities would not result in any long-term declines in cutthroat trout habitat, or in the extent of streams and lakes occupied by the native cutthroat. These protections help ensure that roadless areas continue to serve as an essential and effective refuge for Colorado’s native trout heritage.

The final rule that emerged from the decade-long process contains additional, important protections:

• Establishing an “upper tier” category of roadless lands with protections stronger than those in the 2001 federal rule, including a requirement that oil and gas reserves be accessed through directional drilling, with drill sites sited outside the roadless boundaries. This upper tier includes more than 1.2 million acres of Colorado’s total of 4.2 million roadless acres.
• Closing a loophole in the federal rule that allowed for “linear construction zones” – temporary roads in all but name. Under the new rule, these “LCZs” are greatly restricted.
• Adjusting the federally designated “roadless areas” to reflect more accurate inventories, effectively extending roadless protection to more than 400,000 acres not included under the 2001 rule.

The final Colorado rule does contains some exemptions from the road-building and logging limitations of the 2001 rule, designed to accommodate specific community and economic interests. Most notably, the rule allows for temporary roads and logging to address wildfire risks by conducting fuel treatments in roadless areas adjacent to communities in the so-called “wildland-urban interface.” The Colorado rule also exempts certain areas within the boundaries of existing ski areas, as well as areas overlying some existing coal mining areas within the North Fork of the Gunnison watershed. Another exemption allowing for construction and maintenance of water conveyances with existing water rights was also included.

Colorado TU Executive Director, David Nickum, praised the new rule for its balance between strong protections for key habitats and flexibility when it comes to community protection and economic development. “We recognize the need to deal with issues like fuel reduction around communities,” said Nickum. “But the new rule pairs that flexibility with stronger protections for Colorado’s native trout heritage and its best backcountry lands. It strikes the right balance.”

Trout Unlimited was a central voice in pushing for some of the final changes that helped the Colorado rule meet our standard of being, on balance, as strong as the national rule.

Those changes included strengthened provisions for native trout protection, limitations on the location of water development facilities, and the concept of “upper tier” areas, which were modeled after a state-specific plan created by in Idaho.

There is no question that without the steady and effective involvement of sportsmen throughout the rulemaking process, we would not have achieved the success that we see in the final rule today.

“Colorado’s anglers and hunters understand the connection between healthy fish and game habitat and their ability to fish and hunt successfully on land that belongs to all Americans,” said Chris Wood, President and CEO of Trout Unlimited. “That’s why our volunteer members were engaged in the Colorado rule-making process. This rule, while not perfect, sets the bar pretty high and proves that sportsmen are a force to be reckoned with when it comes to protecting public lands and how they’re managed today, and in the future.”

For more on the importance of backcountry areas, visit Trout Unlimited's report on Colorado roadless areas, Where the Wildlands Are: Colorado

Riverfest! 8/11 at State Bridge

The celebration begins at the State Bridge at 2:00pm. You'll raft - or paddleboard to the new Two Bridges access point, then be whisked back to State Bridge to enjoy dinner, good music from the Olora Brothers and good friends!  Moe's is making a delicious Surf & Turf dinner and Mississippi Mud Pie dessert.  Crazy Mountain Brewing Company is providing ERWC's brew, the Lava Like Wit. There will be wine too! (I've read enough - take me to the tickets page!)

The Eagle River Watershed Council is proud to announce Colorado RiverFest is presented by B&B Excavating and honoring Eagle County Open Space.

We will be celebrating two of the County’s new public access points along the Colorado River, join us! These new acquisitions will improve the diversity of trips along the Colorado River and spread out recreational use of this beautiful river for more enjoyable experiences.

We have Silent Auction items from Karats, SteamMaster, Woody's Bar and Grill, EcoTransit, KEEN, Glenwood Caverns, J.Scott Jewlers, Holy Toledo, Maximum Comfort Pool & Spa, Organic Housekeepers, Grappa Fine Wines, and a 5 bedroom house in Los Cabos, Mexico for 1 week!

All of the funds raised will support the Eagle River Watershed Council and our river advocacy programs in Eagle County. Click here to go to the sign up page.

More Fishing is Even More Fun

Through the "Fishing is Fun" program, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) has selected 11 projects to improve fishing around the state that will share in nearly a million dollars in matching funds as part of the 2012 grant cycle. Our own Southern Greenback and Cheyenne Mountain Chapters have teamed up with CPW, the City of Pueblo, Xcel Energy, and the Packard Foundation on one such project designed to improve aquatic habitat on a seven-mile section of the Arkansas River through Pueblo.

"This is an important project for a section of river that has been recognized as one of the Top 10 trout fisheries in the United States," said Doug Krieger, Colorado Parks and Wildlife Senior Aquatic Biologist for the Southeast Region, in a July 31, 2012 press release.

Other projects receiving funding include habitat work on the South Platte River in Denver, expansion of a community fishing pond in Kiowa County, aeration of Waneka Lake in Lafayette, an effort to build an ADA-accessible fishing platform on the Arkansas River at Canon City and projects to improve angler access to Clear Creek, the Swan River, Upper South Boulder Creek, Idaho Creek, the inlet to Lake San Cristobal in Lake City and three ponds in Loveland.

To read more about the "Fishing is Fun" program and these projects, please visit the CPW website here.

Hero for a Day: See the Movie

When Field and Stream chose The Trail Creek Restoration Project, a joint effort by the Cutthroat Chapter, the Coalition for the Upper South Platte (CUSP) and the National Forest Foundation as one of its Hero for a Day Conservation Projects they sent a video crew along to tell the story. The result is a nice little story featuring some people you may know. Take a look:

http://www.fieldandstream.com/hero-for-a-day/videos

Native Trout Grants Available

The Western Native Trout Initiative announces 2012 Small Grants Program request for proposals.

The Western Native Trout Initiative is a nationally recognized Fish Habitat Partnership that seeks to cooperatively restore and recover 19 western native trout and char species across their historic range by funding efforts to raise awareness for the importance of native trout and focusing limited financial and human resources toward the highest-impact, locally-led, on-the-ground projects.

>>Click here to apply.

WNTI covers an area of 1.75 M square miles and includes representation by 12 western states, 5 federal agencies, sovereign tribes, and private conservation groups. Since 2006, the Western Native Trout Initiative (WNTI) has helped to invest over $16 million of private and public funding toward 78 projects that have reconnected, restored and enhanced over 430 stream miles, and helped complete over 500 native trout population assessments to guide collaborative watershed planning and management.

In addition to directing and leveraging approximately $600,000 in federal funding annually toward large, on-the-ground native trout conservation projects, each summer WNTI accepts proposals to help ‘jump start’ or complete smaller, high-impact efforts by community groups to restore or recover western native trout in the rivers, lakes and watersheds where they remain.

Projects considered for funding under the Small Grants Program may include riparian or in-stream habitat restoration, barrier removal or construction, population or watershed assessments needed for prioritization and planning, water leases or acquisitions to improve in-stream flows, and native trout community outreach and education. Individual projects will be funded at a maximum of $3,000.

In order to help applicants put forward the best possible projects, WNTI has a set of criteria by which projects are evaluated for funding. Applicants should address these criteria in their project applications.

>>Please click here to review the grant selection criteria and application instructions.

We would like to thank the National Fish Habitat Partnership, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, state agencies, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and our private sector partners like Orvis and Patagonia for contributing funds and resources toward the Small Grants Program.

The deadline to submit a project under the Small Grants Program is August 25, 2012. Questions? Contact Robin Knox at rknox@westernnativetrout.org.

It's Why We Still Like Ike

On July 14th, a stretch of the Fraser River was dedicated as the Eisenhower Reach.

Named after President Dwight D. (I like Ike!) Eisenhower, a frequent visitor to the area and fishermen of the Fraser River, this dedication helps to keep the history of the Fraser alive.

However, the river's future continues to be in jeopardy. Colorado TU's David Nickum summed it up this way - "I would rather see a healthy Fraser Creek than a dead Fraser River."

Read more about the Fraser and TU's ongoing involvement in the Sky High Daily News.