The decade of recovery

I often think of my life in decade intervals. The first ten years was the goofball phase; 11-20 years old involved anything with a ball; 21-30 was consumed by conservation—you get the idea. If we are lucky, we will get eight or nine of these opportunities to think about the new decade in front of…

Resilient waters, hope for the future

Matteo Moretti, Dan Eiden, Dyer Benjovsky and Morgan Bradley spent last summer like most college anglers do—fishing. However, this was no ordinary fishing trip. Over the summer, the four college students involved in TU Costa 5 Rivers Programs across the country explored the Columbia River drainage for five weeks. Their mission: to gain a greater understanding of what has happened to worlds former salmon stronghold.   In…

Brown Bag: Bringing Back salmon and steelhead on the lower Snake River

Join us January 6 for a brown bag discussion about bringing back fishable and resilient populations of salmon and steelhead to the lower Snake River.  Presenters:  Rob Masonis, vice president western conservation, Trout Unlimited  Helen Neville, senior scientist, Trout Unlimited  When: Jan. 6, 12 pm PST Register in advance: Email sstephenson@tu.org for call in info For…

It’s about fish … and people

The Sawtooth Mountains above Stanley, Idaho.

Here in the West—particularly in its more fishy corners—it’s easy to see how trout and fly fishing impact the regional economy. In places like Livingston, Mont., where a giant trout crafted in rock graces the hill above town, or in Island Park, Idaho, where outfitters and lodges line the Henry’s Fork, it’s easy to grasp…

Northern California summer steelhead could be listed by 2020

We love all steelhead here at Wild Steelheaders United and Trout Unlimited, but some anadromous O. mykiss populations may deserve more love than others. Consider wild summer run steelhead in Northern California. The available data for wild summers between Redwood Creek and the Gualala River (including the legendary Eel River watershed) suggest their numbers are greatly…

Hope for Idaho’s Salmon

“I have concluded that I am going to stay alive long enough to see salmon return to healthy populations in Idaho.” Those words by U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) at a conference at the Andrus Center last week may do more to project the recovery of the imperiled Snake River salmon and steelhead than multiple…