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The best guides
Pete Wood, who after interning with TU became a lawyer in Idaho, taught me to tie my first bread fly (from an old kitchen sponge, and it was deadly on Potomac River carp). I caught my largest native rainbow in Alaska last year with Brian Bowe at the Alaska Sportsman’s Lodge. Pat Berry, who now leads…
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A ‘grand bargain’ on mining
Meeting America’s clean energy needs & reforming outdated mining laws American Fork Creek, located about halfway between Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah, harbors populations of a rare native trout called the Bonneville cutthroat. Twenty years ago, I stood on its banks looking out over the dirt bike paths and all-terrain vehicle trails crisscrossing mining…
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Not giving up on natives
Southeast volunteers of all ages offer brook trout a hand
Southeast volunteers of all ages offer brook trout a hand With all due respect to all the legendary trout states in America, perhaps my favorite Trout Unlimited trip was to my home state of New Jersey. A few TU legendary volunteers, such as Agust Gudmundsson, Rick Axt, Rich Thomas, and the late Rick Ege, offered…
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The Power of Native.
Like your first kiss, no one ever forgets their first native trout. The memory is as searing as the sun's reflection off snow through a windshield. My friend and fishing mentor, Bill Sargent had pointed me to a small and little-known stream in the Green Mountains to fish for native brook trout. Bill explained to…
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A National Network of Priority Waters
Tom Sawyer was made to whitewash the fence as a punishment for being mischievous, but he appeared to be having such a good time with the chore that soon all his friends were bribing him with apples, feathers and other trinkets so they could paint, too. There’s a lesson in Mark Twain’s story that speaks…
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Bully for the Forest
Last week, the Forest Service proposed a new policy that is protective of old growth forests on our publicly owned 191 million acres of national forests. This is welcome news as old growth forests are important for their role in storing carbon and providing healthy habitat for fish and wildlife (among many other things). Importantly,…
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Faith, Hope and Love Sustains TU
Perhaps the most widely used biblical passage at weddings is 1 Corinthians 13. Even if you are not particularly religious, I bet you know it. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud...” The short chapter concludes, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and…
Author
Chris Wood
Chris has worked at TU for 22 years, and is not the best angler, but he is among the most earnest.