Anglers All: 3 Tips for Staying Warm on the Water (Other Than Whiskey)

By: Ryan McSparran, Anglers All Content Writer and Shop Sales Winter fly fishing opportunities abound for those brave enough to seize them. Here at Anglers All, we’re fortunate to have some of those opportunities right here in our backyard. Thanks to the help of TU and others, improvement projects continue to make the South Platte a better fishery every year. The South Platte from Littleton on to the north offers year-round excitement for trout, carp and the occasional smallmouth or walleye.

Tailwaters in Colorado and neighboring states like Wyoming offer excellent winter fishing and very light crowds when compared to the warmer months. For the adventurous souls willing to meet the challenges of cold weather, there are good things to be found.

I recently took a poll among the associates here at the shop. Most of them fish regularly throughout the winter. I asked for their best tips for staying warm on the water. How do they stay comfortable and have fun, even on the coldest days? Here’s what I heard.

“Get a big, tall glass,” manager Greg Garcia began with a grin on his face. “Shake up a nice martini until it’s really cold. Then stay inside and enjoy tying flies.”

In fact several of my conversations began that way. “Tie flies” and “Go tarpon fishing” were among the most popular opening answers.  But as we drilled into the realities of winter fishing in Colorado, the tips were consistent across the board. In fact, the advice really boiled down into three points.

1. Layer Properly

First and perhaps most obviously, it begins with what you’re wearing. But don’t just “dress in layers.” Be sure you’re layering property.

“No cotton!” several associates said emphatically. If you’re wearing cotton, that Gore-Tex won’t do you any good. Don’t wear cotton socks or anything else. Cotton absorbs moisture and holds it next to your skin.

“Wear a liner and wool sock combo,” Greg told me after we got back on track. “The liner will wick moisture into the second layer. Dry skin equals warmer feet.”

But be sure not to overdo it on the socks.

“Wearing too many socks that constrict your circulation will have the opposite effect,” warned Anglers All travel coordinator, Doug Garvey. “You want some dead air space to trap heat.”

For long underwear, consider synthetic base layers or merino wool. Over that you’ll wear insulation layers like fleece or down, depending on temperatures. Then finally, apply your outerwear, including waders and jacket.

“It’s important to wear something that’s breathable and wind proof,” said shop associate, Courtney Despos. “A good wading jacket is essential. It does more than protect you from flurries. It’s stops wind and allows moisture to escape.”

Convective heat loss from wind can take a serious toll. Having a jacket with a waterproof, breathable membrane will totally block wind while still allowing natural vapor to escape, keeping you dry from the inside.

2. It’s the Little Things

For many seasoned anglers, a solid pair of waders and warm clothes may be obvious. But don’t overlook the little things. Losing heat in your head, neck and hands can quickly end your day.

“I carry two pair of gloves,” Doug told me. “I fish with a half-finger glove or foldover mit. Then I keep a pair of full-finger gloves in an inside pocket. If my hands get cold, I can pull out those warm gloves.”

Several other associates said almost exactly the same thing. Fishing with a backup pair of gloves can extend your time and comfort on the water. Just as importantly, do whatever you can to keep your gloves dry.

“Pinch your barbs and have your hemostats in a spot that’s easy to grab,” Doug continued. “If you’re prepared, you can quickly release the fish with your net without submerging your hands.

Inside your gloves, your wader pockets or even your boots, you might consider bringing a few hand-warmers. Next, consider what you will need in terms of headwear.

“I like to bring two hats with me,” said shop associate, Ben Baxter. “I carry a warm beanie and a regular cap. If I feel myself getting too warm, I quickly take off the beanie. The last thing you want is for your head to get sweaty.”

Ben also suggested a wool Buff or neck gaiter. Keeping the back of your neck warm is something that’s easy to forget about until it’s cold. Being able to cover your neck and ears can make a tremendous difference.

3. Drink Something Hot

When you’re properly layered and have all your bases covered, there’s not much left to do but get out there and enjoy the solitude of a winter day on the water! But when you get back to the truck or when it’s time to take a break, there’s nothing better than having something hot to drink.

“Don’t forget to bring your Yeti with some coffee or hot tea,” Ben concluded.

Doug echoed Ben’s remark. “A thermos of hot chili or soup will never taste better,” he said.

And of course, I couldn’t forget to pass along the one piece of advice that every one of these trout bums repeated.

“Don’t forget the whiskey!”*

Since 1969, Anglers All  has provided anglers with with the best information and equipment no matter the year, the water conditions, or the species of fish. Based out of Littleton along the South Platte River, Anglers All works with Trout Unlimited on restoring the S. Platte back to a healthy fishery. Anglers All offers classes and clinics on fly tying and much more!

* Please note that whiskey does not make you warmer and instead can actually make you colder. Alcohol causes your blood vessels to dilate, moving warm blood closer to the surface of your skin, making you feel warmer temporarily. However, at the same time, those same veins pumping blood closer to the skin's surface cause you to lose core body heat .

Thinking Big on the Colorado River

By Paul Bruchez Paul Bruchez is a rancher who lives near Kremmling and is a partner on TU's effort to restore the Upper Colorado River

The Colorado River runs through the heart of my family’s ranch near Kremmling, where I live and work, so we have firsthand knowledge of the importance of water. Our family’s irrigated meadows and livestock operation depend on it.

I’m also a passionate angler and fly-fishing guide here in the valley—recreation is another important foundation of our local economy.

That’s why, over the years, it’s been so hard for me to see the river in sharp decline. For decades, Front Range water utilities have been pumping water from the Upper Colorado, with devastating impacts on river health: Lower flows spiked water temperature and silted in the river bottom, smothering bug life and damaging the river ecosystem and this world-class trout fishery.

Agriculture suffered, too: as river levels dropped, my family and other ranchers in the valley saw our irrigation pumps left high and dry and our operations unsustainable.

And as a fly-fishing guide, it became clear to me that a restored river could be a much more valuable recreation asset for our community and state.

In short, our future here in the valley depends on a healthy Colorado River.

A few years ago, I saw an opportunity to fix the irrigation problems while also improving river and wildlife habitat. Our ranching neighbors came together and agreed on the need for action.

Paul Bruchez on Reeder Creek Ranch. Photos: Russ Schnitzer

We worked with a variety of partners—Trout Unlimited, American Rivers, the Colorado Basin Roundtable, the Colorado Water Conservation Board, Grand County Government, Northern Water, Denver Water, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the Upper Colorado River Alliance, the Colorado River District, and other river stakeholders—to put together an ambitious proposal for restoring a significant stretch of the Upper Colorado River.

Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service recognized that big vision, awarding our rancher group and our partners $7.75 million under the Regional Conservation Partnership Program to improve irrigation systems and reverse the decline in water quality and fish habitat in the headwaters of the Colorado River.

This funding is an amazing win for all Coloradans, because a healthy Colorado River sustains all of our lives.

The Colorado River Headwaters Project will install several innovative instream structures designed to improve water levels for irrigation while enhancing critical river habitat by rebuilding riffles and pool structure.  A crucial piece will be restoring approximately one mile of the Colorado River’s former channel currently inundated by Windy Gap Reservoir. This ambitious bypass project will reconnect the river—for the first time in decades—and improve river habitat in the headwaters area.

When fully implemented, the Headwaters Project will directly benefit more than 30 miles of the Colorado River and 4,500 acres of irrigated lands and make available up to 11,000 acre-feet of water to improve the river during low-flow conditions.

That means the stellar fishing here on the upper Colorado is only going to get better.

What have I learned from this project? That the interests of agriculture producers can align with the interests of conservation groups, state agencies, water providers and other river users. It’s not just the waters of the Colorado River that are connected—so are the people who depend on it.

The Colorado River flows through all of our lives.  By working together, we can find smart, creative solutions that keep the Colorado healthy and working for all of us.

2017 River Stewardship Gala

Visit the 2017 River Stewardship Gala page for more information including tickets, sponsorship, auction items and more!

The CTU River Stewardship Gala is a celebration of Colorado’s rivers and world-class fishing opportunities. The Gala is the largest conservation and fishing-oriented auction in Colorado with over 350 guests in attendance in 2016 that helped raise over $60,000 for conservation efforts throughout the state. Funds from the River Stewardship Gala go towards CTU’s work in youth education, protecting statewide instream flows and temperature, reintroducing and protecting native trout, and preserving and restoring the state’s fisheries and their watersheds.

CTU will present its 2017 River Stewardship Award to the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) in recognition of their leadership in promoting river and watershed health statewide. In the past year, the CWCB spearheaded development and initial implementation of the Colorado Water Plan, including a strong emphasis on healthy rivers, collaborative multi-purpose projects that include environmental benefits, and funding for Stream Management Plans. In addition, for more than 40 years, the CWCB has grown its instream flow program to expand streamflow protection in basins across the state. Collectively these actions are providing the state leadership to build an enhanced Colorado culture of river and watershed stewardship.

We also want to thank Denver Water for being this year's River Champion title sponsor at the event!

Prizes will be available ranging from fishing trips, fishing gear, nights out on the town, art, and much more! There will even be great trips around the state and even a trip to fish in Argentina!

Click here for more information about the Gala including a few of the featured prizes!

Rocky Mountain National Park Sees Record Visitation

Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) set a record attendance in 2016 with over 4.5 million visits to the park. An 8.7 percent increase from 2015. Within 2016, all months except December set monthly visitation records. These final numbers represent a 32 percent increase since 2014, and a 40 percent increase since 2012. RMNP was the third most visited National Park behind Great Smoky Mountain and Grand Canyon. Many other national parks in the Rocky Mountain West also had increases in visitation last year as the National Park Service celebrated its Centennial in 2016.

According to Kyle Patterson with the Park, "Determining visitation is a difficult and imprecise effort. Visitation statistics are reliably accurate estimates and help park managers see overall trends. Fall visitation, particularly on weekends, continues to increase at Rocky Mountain National Park. Winter weekend visitation also continues to increase. The top ten busiest days in 2016 in order from first to tenth were: September 24, July 3, September 4, September 17, July 24, July 10, July 17, September 5, July 23 and July 30."

The park is 415 square miles with over 300 miles of hiking trails that venture into the back country. RMNP also has over 450 miles of fishable water including the headwaters of the Colorado River, Big Thompson River, and the Cache La Poudre. Anglers can find native cutthroat trout (Greenback on the East side and Colorado on the West), brown trout and brook trout.

Plentiful fishing opportunities and wildlife sightings are a big reason why so many people visit this public lands haven every year.

Traditions: Tenkara in America

By Randy Scholfield, southwest region communications director for Trout Unlimited.  

Boulder, Colorado, thinks differently. While at times mocked for its free-range ideas and hemp-fueled lifestyles, there’s no doubt the “People’s Republic” is booming as a hub for creative entrepreneurs and independent thinkers. Oh yeah—it doesn’t hurt that Boulder is surrounded by world-class outdoor opportunities, from rock climbing to trail running to fly-fishing.

So it’s no surprise, perhaps, that Boulder has proved to be fertile ground for planting tenkara, the traditional Japanese fly-fishing method centered around a simple telescopic fly rod and attached line.

Tenkara gets back to basics: Think cane pole with fly. No reel. No multiple fly boxes. No split shot or floatant or strike indicators or other assorted accessories and gewgaws that, in the eyes of some, clutter up the sport while draining our wallets.

Tenkara’s “one pole, one line, one fly” vision of angling simplicity is drawing an increasing number of American adherents. Initially dismissed by some in the fly-fishing community as a “fad,” tenkara has experienced slow and steady growth to take its place as a viable alternative to Western style fly-fishing.

But transplanting a Japanese tradition to American soil has sparked a fascinating and (mostly) friendly debate about the role of tradition and innovation in fly-fishing.

Daniel Galhardo, a soft-spoken 30-something who looks younger than his years, is credited with introducing tenkara to the American angler. On a trip to Japan in 2008, he wanted to fly-fish and discovered tenkara—and soon ditched his international banking ambitions to become a missionary for tenkara in America.

“Tenkara showed me that there was a different way to think about fly-fishing,” he said recently. Under the tutelage of tenkara masters such as Dr. Hisao Ishigaki, Daniel learned to think more in terms of simplicity and technique, rather than hardware and technical advantages.

The rods were simple, elegant, easy to transport and quick to set up. In 2009, he started a company, TenkaraUSA, with the aim of introducing tenkara fishing to the U.S. market.

It didn’t catch fire right away. Using one fly “is a hard concept for Americans,” Galhardo admits. “We’re trained to match the hatch and constantly change flies. But if you know how to present properly, you might not need to do that,” he learned.

In 2010, Daniel (then living in the Bay Area) paid a visit to the Boulder area to fish tenkara with fly-fishing authors John Gierach and Ed Engle. They took to tenkara—and Daniel took to the Boulder area, in a big way.

“I immediately called my wife and said, ‘We have to move here.’” They made the move in 2012, helping put Boulder (and Colorado) on the map as a hub for tenkara enthusiasts, guides and businesses.

Why Boulder? He points out that the area offers world-class climbing as well as excellent fishing—the best of both worlds for someone like him who is passionate about both pursuits. Tenkara, with its light line and extended reach for drag-free drifts, “is hands-down the best way to fish the kind of mountain streams found in Colorado and throughout the Rockies.” (He notes that it’s perfect for the Sierras and Appalachian Mountain streams, too.)

He liked that Boulder attracts people who are open-minded and interested in exploring different alternatives. Moreover, Boulder was home to a growing number of outdoor companies and had a thriving start-up scene. He’s enjoyed a “big-time dialogue” with like-minded entrepreneurs in the area.

Galhardo sees his role as transmitting a distinct tradition. “I’m a storyteller,” he says. He wants to introduce American anglers to tenkara fishing as it has been practiced for ages in Japan.

“I’m not interested in reinventing the wheel,” he says. “Tenkara is simple and effective—it’s the way it’s been done for hundreds of years in Japan. It works.”

Galhardo insists he’s not a traditionalist for tradition’s sake. He is not wedded, for instance, to using Japanese terms and names. He acknowledges that there are different ways to interpret “true” tenkara. And he welcomes the competition from the growing number of American tenkara businesses—a sign of health in the emerging market.

That said, “Somebody should really know what tenkara is before making adaptations to it,” he says, a bit of impatience in his voice. “I get a little frustrated with people who use the tenkara name without understanding the tradition.”

For instance, he notes, a key feature of tenkara rods is their light and elegant touch, allowing for easy casting. At some point, if the rod design is too heavy, “you cast 20 times and your arm gets tired. Can you call that tenkara?”

Taking tenkara for a spin

Others are not shy about giving tenkara a decidedly American spin.

Karin Miller is the blonde dynamo behind Zen Tenkara, a company based in nearby Loveland. She discovered Tenkara in 2010 and has never looked back. “The fixed-line system just struck a chord for me—it was just so simple,” she told me.

In 2012, she and her then-husband started Zen Tenkara with the idea of “selling a few rods out of the back of our car.” She took Galhardo’s move that same year to Boulder as an encouraging sign of momentum for tenkara.

Miller admits she’s less of a purist on tradition than Daniel, who is deeply interested in Japanese culture and the tenkara tradition as practiced in Japan. She has never been to Japan, and doesn’t have much interest in going there.

Early on, she ran into a buzzsaw of criticism from some tenkara purists over Zen’s unorthodox rod offerings. Her Baichi rod (which Zen no longer offers) was, in her own words, “stiff and thick.” That wasn’t an accident—the idea was to offer it as a Czech-style nymphing rod. Because—why not?

“We angered a lot of people in the beginning,” she admits, smiling. “I got into a lot of heated dialogue with people. They were just close-minded. We’ve been doing our own thing—our philosophy is, ‘Look, we’re not in Japan, we have in America diverse specs and diverse waters.”

She pauses.  “I just trusted that, at some point, the tenkara community would catch up and see the potential.”

The community is changing, she said.  “A few years ago, there were a lot of purists attracted to Japanese culture.”  Today, a lot of her customers just want a new fishing experience or want the convenience of tenkara for mountain biking and backpacking.

Miller says she has a great respect for tenkara tradition, but she’s also intent on adapting it to American soil. That’s a very American impulse: borrow, innovate—and make it our own. Think pizza, she says.

But how far to go in pushing the envelope on tradition? At what point does it stop being tenkara?

“There’s an evolutionary process to everything we use,” she told me. “We learn a lot from tradition. If there’s something that’s survived a long period of time—it’s for a reason and you have to respect that. But if you close your eyes to other options, you can miss a lot of opportunities. What else can be done? How can we make it even better? It’s about making it your own.”

She added, “We’ve been trying to push limits and build rods to our specs that will work on our waters and conditions here in the States.”

Miller is now working on what will be the first American-designed and built Tenkara rod. Still in research and development, the rod will be, she predicts, a “game-changer.” She and fellow Tenkara enthusiast and guide Paul Vertrees have been tweaking the design for more than a year.  At present, Zen’s rods are all carbon-fiber. But after testing materials for the American rod project, they decided to go back to the future with fiberglass, which she found “lighter, stronger, faster” and more in line with her vision of a 12- to 13-foot Tenkara rod that is “an extension of your hand—you feel everything on that line.”

She seconds Daniel about how Tenkara is a perfect fit for Colorado’s mountain streams. But she’s all about experimenting and pushing Tenkara rods to the limit in places like the Florida Keys—where, on a recent trip, she was landing small sharks and tarpon on a heavier tenkara rod tricked out with a 35-foot line and big streamers. To her surprise, the rods were up to the challenge. And it was a hoot.

It’s about having fun, she insists—and trying something new.

How tenkara will evolve in America is anyone’s guess. But it’s firmly taken root here in Colorado, with a mixture of tradition and ingenuity that’s created a new experience in fly-fishing.

Five tips for tenkara fly-fishing

Daniel Galhardo, founder/CEO of TenkaraUSA, offers these tips for simple fly-fishing with tenkara:

1. Keep it simple. “Simple” is the buzzword nowadays,  but it’s often not taken literally. You can make the most of tenkara when you use only what you need: rod, line, tippet and fly. Leave behind what isn’t absolutely necessary.
2. Fish it like tenkara. Anglers will often use a tenkara rod in the same way they fly-fish with a reel, but to utilize the best of tenkara, take a look at how it is done by anglers in Japan. For example, rather than laying line on the water (and thus having to mend), keep the rod tip pointed up and the line off the water to completely eliminate drag. Visit tenkarausa.com/videos for other examples.
3. Keep the fly in the water. The fly must be in the water to catch fish. Reducing your fly changes and the amount of false casting you do will result in the fly spending longer in the water and giving fish a better chance of grabbing it. If you change your fly 20 times over the course of a day of fishing, and every time it takes 3 minutes, that’s one entire hour when the fly was not in the water.
4. Believe in the fly you have tied on. Within reason, fish are looking for any chance of eating, and second-guessing fly choices can be counterproductive. Tenkara anglers don’t change flies very often (some never do!). Choose a reasonably sized fly, present it in different ways and work on enticing fish with that fly or finding fish willing to eat it.
5. Move, move, move. At least when fishing a mountain stream, fish will most often take the fly in the first couple of casts. While some pools may deserve more time, in most places I advocate casting the fly between 3 to 6 times. If no fish has taken the fly, move. Sometimes by stepping upstream just a couple of feet, you can present your fly differently enough to entice fish, or put it in front of a fish more willing to take it.

Fly Fishing Film Tour Premieres in Denver

The 2017 Fly Fishing Film Tour (F3T) Premieres in Denver this Saturday, January 21 City Hall Amphitheater! The tickets for admissions are $18. A portion of the funds raised at F3T go towards conservation efforts. In 2015, the film tour helped raise over $300,000 that was donated to conservation groups such as Trout Unlimited, Wild Steelhead Coalition, Bonefish Tarpon Trust, Utah Stream Access Coalition, Stop Pebble Mine and many more.

Along with many awesome videos, this year's event will feature a TU sponsored film: Old Friends New Fish. According to the F3T site, the film features "Three women who return to the rivers of Montana where they met and became friends twenty years earlier. Much has changed in their lives, but fishing still unites them and serves as a metaphor for much of the joy and challenge along the way."

Other films feature Tarpon fishing, fly fishing in Russia and Siberia, a film that focuses on the relationships with our favorite waters as well as the importance of family and friends as well as our responsibility to share healthy landscapes with future generations. Check out the F3T site for information on more films as well as the descriptions and trailers!

This weekend the Greenbacks of Colorado TU will be there with chances to win a Surface Film photograph! Stop by and say hi to the Greenbacks and learn more about their upcoming projects and events. There will also be some chances to win other prizes at the event!

Current Snowpack Above Average

After a slow start to the snowy weather, the mountains are experiencing a pattern of snow storm after snow storm. This recent storm has even left snow resorts closing because of too much snow. As a result, the state's snowpack is well above the average levels of where it typically is for middle January. The Colorado River Basin is currently 146-percent (137-percent in the headwaters) and the South Platte watershed is at 146-percent. The southwest corner of the state- the Gunnison, Animas, and San Juan watershed is around 160-percent. While the Yampa and White river is around 133-percent. The Arkansas and Rio Grande basins are hovering around 150-percent.

But what does this mean for our rivers?

If the snow melts too rapidly, it could cause severe flooding in places of the state and, something that Colorado rarely sees, our reservoirs may be filled up too soon from too much water, according to an article by 9news. "Our goal is to be at 100-percent full for our reservoirs, once runoff season is over,” Travis Thompson, spokesperson for Denver Water said. “So, we're always adjusting levels to try and make sure that happens. Sometimes if you  do see too much, we may have to do some releases earlier in the year to try, whether it's preventing too much water at that time."

However, if we have a cooler spring and the snow is able to melt at a slower rate, it could mean great things for our rivers and fish as the dissolved oxygen increases and in return, increasing the quality of our aquatic ecosystems.

The total amount of snowpack is essential to Colorado’s freshwater ecosystems because it serves as frozen water storage. Trout species, as well as the bug life and standing stock in every ecosystem, require watersheds to be at normal levels in order to flourish. Dissolved oxygen (DO) is fundamental to aquatic life. With higher levels of snowpack, there is more capability for dissolved oxygen in water due to higher water levels and colder temperatures. Cold water can hold more DO than warm water. Higher DO levels are achieved when water levels and flow rates are high and where the water is aerated in the rapids.

Most species of trout requires 5-6 times more DO when water temperatures reach 75 degrees compared to when they are at 41 degrees. “Species that cannot tolerate low levels of DO – mayfly nymphs, stonefly nymphs, and beetle larvae – will be replaced by a few kinds of pollution-tolerant organisms, such as worms and fly larvae. Nuisance algae and anaerobic organisms (that live without oxygen) may also become abundant in waters with low levels of DO,” according to Brian Oram with the Water Research Center. Fish reproduction can also be hampered if there is not sufficient snowpack because eggs and fish in immature stages require much higher DO content in water.

The current levels of snowpack could be great for our rivers and trout this summer, but that would require a slower runoff to avoid possible floods in the case of a fast melting period.

For more information about how snowpack affects Colorado's rivers, check out the article Snowpack and Our Rivers by Danielle Adams.

Trout Unlimited Trout Tips

Trout Unlimited Vice President of Trout Media and Editor of Trout Magazine, Kirk Deeter, brings us Trout Tips- a video series with basic tips to help make everyone a better fly angler. Not only is Deeter a fantastic writer and magazine editor, he's a guide and a fly fisher with more than 30 years of experience with the long rod.

"Whenever I'm fortunate enough to fish with Kirk, I pay attention. I watch him cast. I watch what he's looking at when he fishes. I watch how he reads water. I almost always pick up a tip or two. Fishing with Kirk makes me a better angler," says Chris Hunt, TU Director of Communications.

Trout Tips has produced over 10 short videos, each offering a unique tips or advice that can help anglers of every skill level catch more fish.

Visit TU.org or visit the Trout Tips YouTube Playlist for a complete list of all videos.

An Increase in Fishing License Fees? .... If so, Why?

By Jon P. Weimer, Colorado TU Director-At-Large, Communications Committee This article was originally published in the 2017 Winter Edition of High Country Angler

Let us know your thoughts about the potential fishing increase with this short survey!

In the summer of 2016, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) conducted a series of 18 public meetings across the State, entitled Funding the Future.  CPW anticipates budget shortfalls, and the meetings were conducted to get feedback from hunters and anglers on how best to stop the financial hemorrhaging and perhaps even enhance its coffers.  Increasing hunting and fishing license fees for State residents has been proffered by the Agency as one possible option.

For more information from Colorado Parks and Wildlife, visit:

History of License Revenue

CPW Financial Sustainability

Funding the Future

Background

In 2011, the Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation merged with the Division of Wildlife.  Ostensibly, the merger would allow the new Agency—CPW—to capture some efficiencies through sharing resources, such as accounting and marketing, and position it to connect with the general public as a single organization.  A prevalent rumor at the time was that the merger was enacted to bail out the Parks Division using Wildlife funds.  This view, apparently, was a misconception.  There are very specific Federal and State laws that require that Wildlife funds---which include hunting and fishing license fees-- be spent only for Wildlife purposes, while Park funds were to be spent only for Park purposes.  It is important to note that although these two Divisions merged, each retains its own budget.  It is also important to note the irony that Parks currently is in relatively good shape financially.  It is Wildlife that is hurting financially, and providing the impetus for CPW to plead for more revenue.

Current Status

CPW has a user-pay, user-benefit funding mode; it does not receive General Fund revenue (i.e., taxpayer money).  So, fish and wildlife conservation programs, as well as management of recreational lands, are primarily funded by hunters, anglers and park visitors, through sales of hunting and fishing licenses, habitat stamps, and park passes.  More specifically, about 62 percent of the revenue generated by CPW comes from hunting and fishing license fees.  Federal excise taxes levied on hunting and fishing equipment comprise 16 percent of the budget, and grants from Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) make up 12 percent of the revenue.  Those Federal excise taxes are collected from makers of outdoor equipment which are returned to the State based on license numbers and geographic size.  Any proposed increase in license fees must be approved through the Colorado legislature before they are finalized by the governor’s signature.

Presently, resident fishing licenses for adults (age 16 to 64) cost $26.  A $10 habitat stamp is also required from adults (18 to 64 years).  Licenses for seniors (age 65 and over) are provided free, although they must pay a $1 charge, $.25 of which goes for a search and rescue fee, and $.75 of which reflects a  Public Education Advisory Council (CPEAC) fee.

Reasons for Budget Deficits

CPW’s Wildlife Management Division claims that, in recent years, it has faced substantial budget shortfalls which have resulted in the elimination of over 50 positions and $40 million from Wildlife budgets.  Without increasing revenues, CPW states that Wildlife Management will have to cut additional staff and core services, which could include reductions to wildlife and property management, biological research, access for hunting and fishing, as well as the closure of some reservoirs and fish hatcheries.  CPW avers that, basically, for the past decade, its incoming revenue has been relatively stagnant while faced with increased costs, a larger mission, and more complex issues to manage.

CPW is the largest owner of dams in Colorado and oversees 19 hatcheries in the State, where it raises 90 million fish annually for stocking rivers and lakes, and with limited funds it says it is falling behind on dam and hatchery maintenance.  As examples of rising costs since 2005 – the last time resident fishing license fees were increased – CPW points to some specific examples:  leasing water for hatcheries has increased 344 percent; fish food has risen 92 percent; and the cost of a fisheries work boat has increased 24 percent.  CPW personnel indicate that there have been some major investments out of their control such as information technology and new Statewide accounting systems.  They also point to new wildlife challenges with which they’ve had to contend such as whirling disease and invasion of aquatic nuisance species that have imposed unexpected costs. Then, of course, costs such as those associated with personnel, health care, and utilities have consistently increased during this time span as well.

Possible Solutions for Reducing Budget Deficit

Resident  License Fee Increase:  During the course of CPW’s Funding for Wildlife series of public meetings, the Agency discussed, and received from participants, a number of proposed solutions to remedy the budget deficit but invariably, possible license fee increases loomed large.  At these meetings, CPW personnel attempted to explain the Agency’s budget situation, detailing what it had done recently to address shortfalls in revenue, and providing a forecast of how CPW might address its programs.  CPW indicated that in order to maintain the current wildlife programs and restore or add a slate of new programs requested by stakeholders would, essentially, require doubling the price of most State hunting and fishing licenses.  This calculation, as might be expected, received emphasis from the media and stakeholders, although CPW insisted that the Agency had NOT proposed such an increase. However, even CPW Director, Bob Broscheid, admitted that a license increase must be considered.

Regarding fishing licenses, the price increment in resident fishing licenses that has been bandied about most often at these meetings was a hike for adults from $26 to $50, almost a 100 percent increase.  If such an increase was approved, CPW discussed whether or not it should be implemented in one year or, perhaps, in stages over a 4 to 5 year time span.  Whatever price increase instituted, if any, should have a sound rationale if it’s going to receive legislative approval.  CPW might look at the price increases that other states have adopted, or possibly the price increase could be based on some econometric modeling derived from results obtained in a “willingness to pay” survey.  In addition to holding 18 public meetings this past summer, CPW send post cards to 3,000 randomly chosen resident license holders (half hunters, half anglers) to ask if they supported increasing license prices.  CPW also gathered input from an online public comment form on its website regarding people’s willingness to pay more for a fishing/hunting license.

In economics, there’s a concept called price elasticity.  Price elasticity has many facets to it but, basically, it refers to determining what percent-increase in the price of a product or service will lead to optimal revenue, recognizing that as prices increase the numbers of customers willing to buy a product decreases.  Very simply, one is looking for that price “sweet spot” that will lead to the most revenue.  If your price falls below that sweet spot, you won’t obtain as much revenue as possible; however, if you overshoot that sweet spot, you could actually lose revenue because a large number of your previous customers decline to buy your product.  Retail outlets have the luxury and flexibility to continually change prices, looking for that sweet spot.  Government agencies don’t have that luxury---they make a decision that they have to live with for a while.

The $26 to $50 price hike in resident fishing license fees that has been discussed may be tolerable to a certain segment of the angling population, but not to another that may feel that such an increment is too steep a hike, and a number of anglers may simply stop purchasing a license. Obviously, it’s a complex and important decision that CPW has to make, requiring a great deal of deliberation.  CPW has also discussed at these public meetings the idea that, in order to avoid further price hikes that are perceived as too steep, the Agency may attempt to secure legislative approval to tie resident angling license fees to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), a price structure that would basically mirror that for out-of-State angling/hunting licenses which are indexed to the CPI, usually resulting in small annual increases to keep up with inflation.

In addition to possibly raising the resident fishing license fees for adults, CPW is also considering levying a license fee for seniors who, as mentioned earlier in this article, are currently charged $1.  Seniors account for approximately 20 percent of the State’s annual license purchases.  In 2015, CPW issued 85,510 senior fishing licenses.  None of these senior licenses count toward the license numbers that determine Colorado’s share of Federal excise taxes; reinstating a senior fishing license fee would thus increase Colorado’s Federal funds as well as generating dollars directly from sales.  Further, it costs about $1.5 million annually just to print the licenses – making the status quo a net financial loss.  Thus, the Agency sees an opportunity to further enhance revenue by requiring seniors to buy fishing licenses, although no specific price structure has been discussed in any detail for this demographic group.

CPW considers an increase in both hunting and fishing licenses to be a feasible means of offsetting, at least in part, its financial difficulties.  CPW claims that if the current fee structure remains, and no other fund-raising and/or cost cutting measures are instituted, the Agency will need approximately $15-20 million additional each year to maintain current operations, and up to $36 million to implement additional programs that hunters and anglers have indicated are important to wildlife management and conservation in the State – such as expanded access or restoring “Fishing is Fun” grants to historic levels.  As mentioned earlier, after public comments are received and analyzed, the Agency must approach the legislature to ask for a bill approving any resident license fee increase.  Undoubtedly, CPW hopes to get a vote of confidence from the hunting and angling public that would help persuade legislators.

Other Possible Solutions:  In addition to, or in lieu of, raising resident license fees, the Agency has sought to broaden its sources of funding, looking for opportunities to bring in new revenue.  For example, in the series of public meetings sponsored by CPW, participants suggested that there is a much larger pool of public land users that exist beyond hunters and anglers that might be able to help fund CPW.  Why, they ask, are hunters and anglers being asked to pay more while others who use public land, such as hikers, birdwatchers, and photographers are exempt?

It was also suggested at these public meetings that the general public can purchase a Habitat Stamp and/or contribute money via the Non-Game and Endangered Wildlife Fund income box checkoff on their Colorado tax form to raise money for wildlife conservation—but that these venues may not be generally known and could use a massive publicity push.

Further questions were raised at these meetings about whether CPW in general, or Wildlife Management in particular, could initiate additional cost-cutting measures.  CPW, as you might expect, indicates that it has already initiated a number of efficiencies to offset declines in revenue, along with implementing significant reductions in program and operation expenses.  More cuts in funding, according to CPW, would lead to further reduction to popular and important “Fishing is Fun”, Wetland, Boating and Habitat Protection grants, the Aquatic Nuisance Species Program and, as mentioned earlier, a reduction in capital improvement projects such as repairing hatchery runways and maintenance of CPW-owned dams.

A possible ray of hope for additional funding is the proposed “Recovering America’s Wildlife Act” (H.R. 5650), which would direct approximately $1.3 billion in federal revenue from energy and mineral development toward wildlife conservation efforts across the nation.  If this legislation were to pass at the Federal level, it should bring significant additional revenue for meeting Colorado’s fish and wildlife needs.  At the time this writing, no Congressional action had been taken on this proposed legislation.

In short: CPW states that the basic problem is that revenue is essentially fixed at 2005 levels, while operating costs have continued to rise, so that budget cuts and program elimination are the only tools available to balance the budget.  Colorado’s natural resources, according to CPW, are experiencing the pressure of population growth and increasingly fragmented habitat.  A key factor in maintaining financial sustainability in the long run, they argue, will be the ability to increase license fees and continue to adjust them on a regular basis to offset inflation – a step they believe will be needed if Colorado is to remain a premiere destination for outdoor activities.

Behind the Fin: Mark Hanson

How long have you been a TU member? I joined TU when I first moved to Colorado, about 10 years ago.

Why did you become a member and what chapter are you involved with?

I became a member of TU because of their strong conservation effort, responsible use of funds, and there are just some of the nicest people you can meet at a TU meeting.

I am currently a member of Purgatoire River Anglers, Chapter 100, in Trinidad, Colorado.

What made you want to become involved with TU?

As stated above, I love improving cold water fisheries and especially at the local level.

What is your favorite activity or project that you have done with TU?

That's a tough one!  My favorite activities have been working with youth: as a counselor for the CTU Youth Conservation and Fly Fishing Camp and with our local youth here in Trindad, through our Fly Tying Knot and Boy Scouts.

I know you won’t tell me your top spot, so what is your second favorite fishing spot or favorite fishing story?

One of my favorite fishing spots is Rifle Creek, from Rifle Falls State Park to the State Access just below the dam at Rifle Gap Reservoir.  I had the privilege of taking a young U.S. Marine lieutenant on a fishing trip to Rifle Falls State Park after his return from the middle east.  Watching this young veteran catching trout at the falls is a great memory for me.

What does being a part of TU mean to you?

It means I get to partner with wonderful people who care about preserving not only our cold water fisheries, but the surrounding watersheds as well.  I have been involved with many conservation groups and am pleased to see how careful TU is with the monies it receives. But who am I kidding: I get to meet and fish with some great people!

What else do you do in your spare time or for work?

Mainly I switch from being semi-self-unemployed and a trophy husband.  I also am a camp cook for a hunting outfitter and a substitute teacher.