Howdy y’all! My name is Zach DeWolfe and I am currently wrapping up my senior year at Metropolitan State University of Denver studying Political Science and Water Studies. I am originally from Austin, Texas, but have been in Colorado for the past four years. Living here has allowed me to fully explore my passion for the outdoors, whether through fishing, climbing, hiking or mountain biking. Through these experiences I have developed an appreciation for these places and a sense to protect and preserve them. I am thrilled to join CTU this summer in addressing such key water policy issues as the ongoing development of the Colorado State Water Plan, and ensuring that our goals and values are well represented.
Volunteer Opportunity in San Luis Valley!!
Hidden Mile Volunteer Information The project dates are May 16th to May 24, 2015. You are welcome to work any or all days of the project. Even if you can only come for part of a day it will be greatly appreciated.
The project will be at the Hidden Mile section of the Conejos River. The work will be building and repairing fence to protect the riparian area.
To reach the Hidden Mile go west from Antonito on highway 17
about 21 miles to the Platoro Road (rd 250). Turn right on the on Platoro Road and go about 4 miles until you see a sign and balloons at the work site.
Please wear work clothes, work gloves and sturdy boots. If you have fencing tools please bring them. For those who don’t have tools they will be provided on site. Some work may involve crossing the river so waders would be helpful if you have them.
Please bring lunch and water.
Work will begin at 9am due to the long travel time to the project.
Free camping will be available for all volunteers at Conejos campground located several miles above the Hidden Mile site. The site will have a vault bathroom but no electricity or water.
Volunteer time tracking sheets will be available at the site- please fill in hours and sign out at the end of each day you work and include travel time as part of your total hours.
To sign up for the project please email David Kenvin at slvdrifter@gmail.com or call 719-657-0724 or cell 970-214-4221.
You can also call Marty Jones at 719-589-4327 or cell 719-937-3634.
"State of CTU" Video
At the Colorado TU Rendezvous, prior to passing the gavel on to new President Marshall Pendergrass, Past President Rick Matsumoto shared a video highlighting the "State of Colorado Trout Unlimited" over the past year - it has been a great several months for trout and watersheds in Colorado. Check it out!
Five Rivers TU/Hermosa Win National FS Award
The Five Rivers Chapter and its partners have been selected for a US Forest Service Rise to the Future Award for their Hermosa Creek project efforts. The award will be presented by Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell at a formal ceremony in Washington, DC in May. Chapter President Buck Skillen will be on hand to accept the award. The Chapter, based in Durango, will receive the US Forest Service's national “Rise to the Future Award for Collaborative/Integrated Aquatic Stewardship." According to the Forest Service, the Chapter, along with partners at Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the San Juan National Forest, and the Mountain Studies Institute, are being “recognized for their commitment to restore native Colorado River cutthroat trout to a portion of their historic range and share that with students.”
Work toward restoration of cutthroat trout has been taking place since the 1990s in the Hermosa Creek drainage – which was also recently protected as a first-of-its-kind federally designated Watershed Protection Area through legislation sponsored by Senator Bennet and Congressman Tipton. The Five Rivers Chapter has assisted with funding and volunteers for stream improvement and riparian planting projects, helping the agencies as more than 17 miles of Hermosa Creek have been secured for genetically pure cutthroat trout populations. The Mountain Studies Institute has also partnered in providing volunteer support and in using the projects as a working stream laboratory to hold field classes for students Fort Lewis College.
Hermosa Creek is an amazing example of TU working at all levels as both advocates and as on-the-ground restorers. The Rise to the Future award is the latest success story for Five Rivers and its long-term efforts on behalf of Hermosa Creek. And the chapter and its partners are certainly not sitting on their laurels - work continues toward connecting separate recovered habitats into a combined “metapopulation” above a downstream barrier point on Hermosa Creek.
Congratulations, Five Rivers TU - and keep up the great work!
President Obama Steps Up for Browns Canyon!!
Trout Unlimited praises creation of Browns Canyon National Monument Calls monument designation ‘historic victory’ for Colorado conservation
SALIDA (Feb. 18)—Trout Unlimited today praised President Obama’s designation of Browns Canyon as a new national monument, the culmination of years of effort to protect a Colorado backcountry treasure beloved by generations of anglers, hunters, rafters, and other recreational users.
Gov. John Hickenlooper and Sen. Michael Bennet recently asked President Obama to use his authority under the Antiquities Act to establish the 22,000-acre Browns Canyon National Monument, after legislation sponsored by Sen. Mark Udall stalled in Congress despite broad local support.
Trout Unlimited leaders called the monument action a “historic victory” for public lands conservation.
“TU members are proud to have played a leading role in protecting this Colorado crown jewel and preserving fishing and hunting opportunity for future generations,” said Chris Wood, CEO and president of Trout Unlimited. “This is a big bipartisan win for our outdoors heritage, and it sends a strong and clear message that hunters and anglers want to keep our public lands public.”
“I’m thrilled,” said Jim Impara, vice president of the Collegiate Peaks Chapter of Trout Unlimited in Salida. “Browns Canyon is one of those special places that draws rafters, hunters and anglers from all over the world. This action ensures that Browns’ wildness and rare beauty will be there for our children and grandchildren to enjoy.”
For years, sportsmen’s groups have been pushing for monument status for Browns Canyon, which includes prime backcountry habitat for mule deer, elk, bighorn sheep as well as miles of outstanding Gold Medal wild trout waters in the Arkansas River.
TU and other sportsmen’s groups, including the National Wildlife Federation and Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, organized local anglers and hunters to voice their support and attend numerous local meetings and public forums. The groups cited Brown’s important fish and wildlife habitat, as well as its role as an economic driver for Colorado’s $1.2 billion fishing economy and $500 million hunting economy. Browns Canyon is also the single largest contributor to Colorado’s $140 million whitewater rafting industry.
“Sportsmen helped deliver this victory for Browns,” said David Nickum, executive director of Colorado Trout Unlimited. “Our local roots and deep knowledge of this place carried weight with lawmakers and federal officials. Hunters and anglers understand the value of our public lands and wild backcountry, and we’re committed to protecting these magnificent resources and our outdoor way of life.”
He added, “We especially thank Sen. Udall for his dedication and persistence in pushing for a Browns Canyon monument. He has been a valued voice for sportsmen and for commonsense conservation.”
For more information about Browns, go to www.sportsmenforbrowns.com.
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Additional resources for media:
High-res images of the Browns Canyon, available for download at Trout Unlimited Photoshelter site.
(Credit copyright holder if photo downloaded for use. If prompted for password, use “Browns Canyon”)
Trout Unlimited is a non-profit organization with 147,000 members nationwide dedicated to conserving, protecting and restoring North America’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds. Colorado Trout Unlimited has 24 chapters and more than 10,000 members in the state.
Small town turns out big for Browns Canyon
Public meeting in Salida with federal officials turns out hundreds in support of Browns Canyon National Monument By Kyle Perkins from www.sportsmenforbrowns.com
Hundreds of people turned out Saturday in Salida, Colorado, to show support for a Browns Canyon National Monument. The droves of green “I support a Browns Canyon National Monument” stickers were visible evidence of the overwhelming support, along with speaker after speaker urging administration officials to designate the canyon now.
Don’t let anyone tell you this is a top-down executive overreach. Local residents and stakeholders, frustrated by years of congressional fiddling, made it clear that this is a grassroots effort and that they want to get this special place protected.
The stretch of the Arkansas River that veers from the highway south of Buena Vista and rushes through a steep canyon full of Gold Medal Water fishing, amazing white water rafting, and a pristine backcountry habitat is truly a unique place. Floating and finding pocket water within the canyon can produce over 20” trout, and the population of elk, deer, bighorn sheep, mountain lion and black bear create a healthy habitat for hunting and wildlife in general. This 22,000-acre rugged canyon is a truly wild place that I have visited more times than I can remember.
For over 20 years, legislative efforts to protect this canyon have had local and state support, yet Congress has failed to act. From bills sponsored by former Colorado Senator Wayne Allard in 2006, and by current Senator Mark Udall in December of 2013, momentum has built—only to be thwarted by congressional inaction and gridlock. However, on November 25, an official letter from Sens. Mark Udall and Michael Bennet requesting President Obama to declare Browns a national monument under the Antiquities Act of 1906 became headline news in the state. Local and state word spread fast with articles from all major state newspapers.
Rep. Doug Lamborn, one of the few opponents of the measure, claimed in a recent piece that there were many local opponents of the Browns designation. If that’s true, they failed to show up Saturday– supporters vastly outnumbered the handful of nay-sayers in the crowd.
In addition to the Colorado Senators, the public meeting was attended by administration officials and included Deputy Director of BLM Steve Ellis and U.S. Forest Service Chief Thomas Tidwell.
What I saw were individuals and groups from across the valley and state come together to protect a place they love and to support our valued public lands, fish and wildlife habitat and recreation opportunities. Indeed, local stakeholders in the Arkansas Valley reminded the Colorado delegation that this is a local effort, with bipartisan support from local elected officials and overwhelming support from the local business community.
“I take tourists and residents whitewater rafting and fishing through Browns Canyon, exposing them to the natural beauty that is at the heart of Colorado’s outdoor heritage,” said Joe Greiner, owner of Wilderness Aware Rafting in Buena Vista. “A lot of people put national monuments on their bucket list. A national monument designation will put Browns Canyon on the map and have an even bigger impact on our local economy.
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“Americans love our public lands and the rich outdoor experiences they provide,” said Jim Impara, vice president of the Collegiate Peaks Chapter of Trout Unlimited. “We also understand that there are highly valued, iconic wild places that are not yet protected. Browns Canyon is one of those special places. Let’s keep it the way it is.”
“It was a true showing of the local community and the support we have to protect Browns,” said local resident Susan Mayfield. “It was a large theater of about 400, and an overfill room of many more in support of finally and permanently protecting one of our local pride and joys. The people in Chaffee County have spoken. It’s time.”
The public meeting sent a strong, unequivocal message to the White House: Coloradans want to protect Browns Canyon—and it’s time to get this done. This is our best chance to do that in a generation.
CTU, Partners Reach Settlement to Protect Roan
It has been a long road in a legal battle that has stretched back more than six years - and advocacy and conservation efforts that stretch back more than a decade beyond that. But on November 21, a settlement of the legal battle over energy development on the Roan Plateau was announced, laying a "win-win" path forward that protects the Roan's most valued fish and wildlife habitats while also allowing for responsible energy development.
The Roan Plateau supports remarkable natural values including habitat for rare native Colorado River cutthroat trout, scenic canyons and waterfalls, and outstanding big game habitat and hunting opportunities. TU's Grand Valley Anglers chapter has for nearly two decades worked on projects to benefit Trapper Creek and the unique native cutthroats it supports - Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologists found they are adapted to withstand warmer water temperatures than most cutthroats.
The settlement resolves litigation in which Colorado Trout Unlimited, the National Wildlife Federation and eight other conservation groups were represented by Earthjustice. Among the key provisions of the settlement:
- The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will cancel 17 of 19 leases held by Bill Barrett Corp. (BBC) atop the Roan within 60 days, and refund to BBC the money that was paid for those leases. These leases include about 90% of the acreage on top of the Plateau, including all of the native trout watersheds.
- BLM will prepare a new management plan for the Roan, and as part of their analysis will consider a "settlement alternative" with terms from the settlement agreement. While BLM legally cannot commit to adopting this alternative prior to completing their environmental analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act, all parties have agreed not to challenge the new plan so long as BLM adopts the settlement alternative.
- Under the settlement alternative the areas covered by the canceled leases atop the Roan Plateau will not be subject to oil and gas leasing. The two retained leases - located on Anvil Ridge in a portion of the Roan adjacent to existing drilling on private lands, outside of native cutthroat habitat, and lacking current public road access - will be allowed to develop responsibly with a limited number of carefully-sited well pads and management practices to minimize their impacts.
- The settlement alternative also allows for development under existing leases at the base of the Roan but strengthens "no surface occupancy" requirements, helping to secure important wildlife migration corridors, steep slopes, and other fragile resources.
The Roan Plateau is a great example of TU working together, with local volunteers from Grand Valley Anglers, Colorado TU staff and volunteer leaders, and National TU staff all helping contribute to our success. We've also benefited from great partners including our outstanding legal counsel with Earthjustice who have been a model of dedication and skill in guiding the legal challenge and settlement talks over several years.
The Roan could also be a model for balance on energy development. The oil and gas leaseholders - BBC, as well as Oxy, Ursa, and WPX (companies holding the leases at the Roan's base) - engaged with us in honest and constructive dialogue about a path for responsible energy development that includes strong protection for the Roan's unique fish and wildlife resources. Keeping disturbance out of the most important and sensitive habitats, while enabling responsible development to proceed on other portions of the Roan, is a great model for balance. We appreciate these companies working with us in good faith to achieve a responsible settlement for the Roan.
Our work isn't over -- we will continue our cutthroat protection and restoration projects on the Roan in the summer of 2015 and beyond, and we must work to ensure that the BLM adopts the "settlement alternative" in its planning process. Stay tuned for ways that you can get involved in the months ahead.
Sportsmen aim to put Browns Canyon on Denver Map
Preserve Browns Canyon as a national monument
Denver—On a beautiful October evening, a crowd gathered in downtown Denver to watch Browns Canyon come alive on the façade of the McNichols Building, in an eye-popping display of light and images. The Oct. 17 event, called “Browns Canyon Live,” was sponsored by Sportsmen for Browns Canyon, a grassroots coalition of hunters and anglers committed to preserving Browns Canyon as a national monument. Here’s a recap video of the event:
Click here to read the whole story
The group also paid for two billboards along I-70 through Denver from early September until the first week of November. One billboard features a striking image of an angler fishing in the canyon, and another shows the canyon awash in a starry nightscape, with the message: “Monumental: Protect Browns Canyon.” The billboard messages will reach an estimated 180,000 people a day who travel this major east-west corridor.
“We’re getting the word out: We have to protect this place or risk losing it,” said Kyle Perkins, Campaign Manager.
For more information, go to www.sportsmenforbrowns.com.
CTU Welcomes our new communications intern!!
Colorado Trout Unlimited is happy to introduce Rachel, our Fall Communications Intern. She comes to us with passion and experience uniquely suited to TU’s mission. An avid angler and river enthusiast, she guides for ArkAnglers on The Arkansas River and studies Communication at Regis University. “Besides the obvious need for clean water for our own survival, I regard rivers as magical places. Fishing allows me to really be a part of that magic.” Rachel recently took a leave from her position as a Lieutenant, Firefighter, and Paramedic at a large front-range fire department to follow her passions and complete her degree. She is excited to expand her stewardship for trout and their hiding places in this new role.
Tyler Baskfield, Colorado Field Coordinator, SCP
Family, wildlife and wild places drive Tyler Baskfield. These influences took effect on Baskfield at an early age in the woods and on the lakes of Northern Minnesota. “We had this little duck hunting cabin on a lake in Northern Minnesota that had been in my family for a couple of generations,” said Baskfield. “We would go up there on weekends and take walks in the woods, fish or hunt together. There weren’t any distractions when we spent time there. The cabin taught me how wonderful my family was and how fascinating nature could be. Even as a young kid, I couldn’t imagine a lifestyle that didn’t have outdoor recreation or nature as a significant focus. ” After graduating from the University of Colorado in Boulder, Baskfield worked at the Craig Daily Press in Craig Colorado as the Outdoor Editor and Staff Reporter. After working for the newspaper for a couple of years honing his writing skills, he went to work for the Colorado Division of Wildlife in the media relations department. He spent the next 10 years at the Division working to educate the public about Colorado’s wildlife resources and promoting outdoor recreation opportunities in the state. By the time left the agency he managed the Public Affairs Department. “It was a great experience working for the Division of Wildlife,” said Baskfield. “There were a lot of great people who worked at the agency by design in order to dedicate their professional lives to enhancing the wildlife resources and opportunities in this state.”
Baskfield left the Division to start his own company, but didn’t cut ties with the outdoors. “I had this idea for a motion duck decoy,” said Baskfield. “I was consumed by it. I had to take a shot at putting it in the hands of duck hunters and Duck Creek Decoy Works was built to help people have more enjoyable hunts.” Baskfield has spent the last year obtaining a patent and engineering the decoy. It is expected to hit the market sometime this fall. “We have created a product that will help hunters be more successful,” said Baskfield. “It will be extremely rewarding to help an inexperienced hunter have a better day in the marsh and perpetuate the great tradition of waterfowl hunting.”
Baskfield looks to take his entrepreneurial spirit to his new role at Trout Unlimited as Colorado Sportsman’s Coordinator. “Working with the sportsman’s community to protect areas of the state that are cherished by hunters and anglers is a mission that I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of and TU is an effective organization that I am thrilled to work for,” said Baskfield. Baskfield’s long track record of communicating with hunters and anglers will help him be effective in his new role. His passion for the wild places and the people who enjoy them provides the motivation for getting some big conservation wins. “Hunters and anglers all have certain places that have given us wonderful memories and experiences,” said Baskfield. “There is an inherent bond among the sportsman’s community derived from our knowledge of how critical it is to protect these great places and the experiences they provide.”
Baskfield lives in Denver with his wife Heidi, their two boys, Gray, 3 and Hank, 1, Lou, a high-strung mutt that loves riding shotgun in the family pickup and Dutch, a bird hunting black lab who has Baskfield almost completely trained. When Baskfield isn’t hunting or fishing he enjoys working on his farm located on the Platte River south of the town of Platteville. “My family’s duck hunting cabin in Minnesota taught me how important it was to have a place where my family could go to focus on enjoying each other and the outdoors,” said Baskfield. “Before I even had kids, I wanted to provide them with a place where I could teach them a good work ethic and about nature first hand. I want my boys to learn about wildlife by holding a frog or a turkey feather in their own hand or seeing a deer or an owl in the river bottom, Not by looking at a photo on an iPad.”
Tyler Baskfield can be reached at Tbaskfield@tu.org.
