Currently browsing… Montana

• From the field

  Smith River win: We’re one step closer to protection

  

  Celebrating a major court ruling in favor of the Smith River Montana’s Smith River is one big step closer to protection from the development of a large-scale industrial copper mine. This week, Trout Unlimited won our court challenge against Canadian-owned Sandfire Resources’ Black Butte Copper Mine. On every count, the court sided TU and our…

• From the field Conservation

  Update from the Madison River: Anglers rally to save trout

  In the early hours of November 30th Hebgen Dam (the source of the Upper Madison) had malfunctioned, resulting a 70% drop in flows.

  

  Long-term effects of dam failure still TBD When my colleague Bill Pfeiffer and I pulled into Ennis, we were met with some familiar sights. The grocery store parking lot was overflowing with people grabbing a couple of sandwiches to take with them to the river. As we drove upriver 287 nearly every pullout, boat ramp,…

• Home Rivers Initiative

  Connor Parrish lands his dream job on the Gallatin

  

  Simms funds position for conservation work on the company's home river Most people would not consider counting rotting chinook salmon carcasses as the basis for starting a romantic relationship, but Connor Parrish was even more interested when he realized the woman working on the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife survey crew with him already…

• Community

  Guide Relief Program up and running in Montana

  

  Having worked for Trout Unlimited for 16 years and been an active part of the fly-fishing world for almost twice that long, I’m never surprised when good people in the industry step up when their friends and neighbors are in need. A little more than a year ago, as the pandemic truly set in and…

• Fishing Featured Trout Tips Voices from the river

  Finding ‘lake mode’ out of angling necessity

  

  I'm not much of a lake guy. Don't misunderstand that statement. I like lakes as an idea. Fishing them, though, is problematic, mostly because the lakes I would relish fishing are well off the beaten track — I'm only willing to tote a float tube so far before I lose interest, and I'm only willing…

• Dam Removal Featured From the field Restoration Western Water and Habitat Program

  Faces of Restoration: Aqua Terra Restoration helps remove Rattlesnake Dam

  Thanks to Arlin Grimes and his Aqua Terra Restoration business, the Rattlesnake Dam near Missoula, Mont., is now down

  

  TU works with some extremely talented characters while developing and completing projects in the field that help make fishing better. We are excited to bring you a series highlighting these Contractors. We hire equipment operators, truck drivers, laborers, material suppliers, engineers, technicians, and water testing labs. They are unique, talented, humble and some are downright wild, but…

• Voices from the river

  Calm advice

  

  Monday At 3 p.m., my iPad dings with a message from the Calm app. “Your inner peace is a gift that keeps on giving,” says the app. It's tailor made for this audience of one, downloaded in the early days of the pandemic, back when we were all trying to figure out how to be a…