TU duo wins prestigious Leopold Awards

Dave Sweet, left, and Joe McGurrin—two of TU’s finest. Long-time Trout Unl imited Director of Resources Joe McGurrin and David Sweet, a volunteer leader with TU’s East Yellowstone Chapter were awarded the two most prestigious awards at the Wild Trout Symposium in West Yellowstone, Mont., this week. The Aldo Starker Leopold Wild Trout Award is…

Native Trout Odyssey Team

Native Trout Odyssey team to make final stop in Washington D.C. Five college students; 10 weeks; 10 states; 18 native trout species. The Native Odyssey crew (left to right): Brett Winchel, Matt Crockett, Jacob Lacy, Heather Harkavy, Austin Burroughs. This Summer, TU, in partnership with U.S. Forest Service, Costa Sunglasses, Simms Fishing Products, and Fishpond,…

30 Great Places: Clearwater

Region: Northern RockiesActivity: FishingSpecies: Cutthroat trout Where: The Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests encompass more than four million acres in north central Idaho. Three renowned white water rivers – the Selway, Lochsa and Salmon – course through the mountainous terrain. Many of the region’s streams hold healthy populations of westslope cutthroat. Why: Excellent top-water angling for…

30 Great Places: Browns Canyon

Region: Southern RockiesActivities: Fishing; Hunting; RaftingSpecies: Brown, rainbow and cutthroat trout; bighorn sheep; elk; mule deer Where: Browns Canyon National Monument rests in south central Colorado, between the communities of Buena Vista and Salida in Chaffee County. Its 21,586 acres encompass rugged lands along the upper Arkansas River; here, spectacular granite walls rise from the…

Voices from the River: Goodbye Gibbon River brook trout

By Chris Hunt I first fished the upper Gibbon River some 20 years ago. In its quiet, high reaches above Virginia Cascades, it is perhaps the prettiest stretch of meadow stream in all of Yellowstone. It snakes, cold and deep, through a picturesque mountain valley below a couple of high-country lakes that source it. Its…

30 Great Places: Ninemile Valley

Region: Northern RockiesActivities: Hiking, Sightseeing, FishingSpecies: Rainbow, brook and cutthroat trout Where: Ninemile Valley is 20 miles west of Missoula, in west central Montana. The valley bottom consists mostly of private property; the upper lands are part of the Lolo National Forest. Ninemile Creek is a major tributary of the Clark Fork, Montana’s largest river.…