Conservation

Friends of the Upper Delaware fights to maintain minimum water flows for trout habitat throughout the Delaware system. photo courtesy FUDR

In a little over a week, Friends of the Upper Delaware will kick off its fifth annual One Bug event in Hancock, New York. This is a competitive fundraiser that celebrates the sport and camaraderie of fly fishing and promotes “CPR”: Catch, Photograph, and Release. Under the rules, each two-person team. . .

Here’s an excellent trailer for a documentary called “Watershed,” executive-produced and narrated by Robert Redford, that explores the threats to the once-mighty Colorado River. A few weeks ago, we posted about water users demonstrating to stop water diversions from the Upper Colorado, and Redford’s film explores the entire watershed. It’s thought-provoking stuff. You’ll be able to stream the entire documentary in May as part of the Whole Foods Market Do Something Reel Film Festival.

Here are two great videos that describe projects focused on the destruction of the Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams on Washington’s Elwha River last fall. Above is the trailer for an upcoming documentary film that will show how the river recovers. Below is the teaser for an “interactive documentary” that explores the largest dam removal in U.S. history. Through video, audio, and photography, meet conservationists, researchers, fishermen and. . .

During my most recent trip to Washington, DC for the White House Conference on Conservation, I ran into Orvis Vice-Chairman, Dave Perkins. Dave was a speaker on the Restoring Rivers panel moderated by Interior Secretary. . .

Back in late December, we posted a gorgeous trailer for an upcoming film about fly fishing and conservation in the mountains of Patagonia. The video above is a second trailer for the same cause. At issue is a massive hydroelectric project that would dam some of the regions most pristine watersheds. Here’s a brief description of the struggle being waged in Chile: . . .

Four-year-old Sam Streb sits atop his dad’s shoulders at a recent rally to stop water diversions from the Upper Colorado River drainage. photo courtesy Bob Streb

From: Bob Streb

To: Gov. John Hickenlooper

Dear Governor Hickenlooper,

My name is Bob Streb, and my little family lives in Minturn, Colorado, on the banks of the Eagle River—just one of the incredible places we enjoy in the mountains we call home. One of the other places is the Upper Colorado River. I am a fly-fishing guide, and I spend many days showing friends, both new and old, this very special place. The Upper Colorado River has become part of me, and I often feel a deep need to be in a boat feeling her currents under me. The loss of this freedom is a very real possibility if any more of her water is diverted. I understand this situation has economic implications for everyone, but. . .

A growing number of anglers, concerned about the health of the upper Colorado River Basin, is putting pressure on legislators to stop diverting water to feed development on Colorado’s Front Range. A group of sportsmen, boaters, wildlife enthusiasts, and others rallied on the steps of the state capitol yesterday to draw attention to the problem and to show Governor Hickenlooper that there is broad-based opposition to the proposed water plan. The governor has gone on record claiming that the water diversion plan “comprehensively addresses impacts to Colorado’s fish and wildlife.”

As most people know, the mighty Colorado River is so dewatered in its lower reaches that it rarely makes it to the Sea of Cortez. So much water is sucked out to supply the needs of Southern California and cities such as Phoenix, Tucson, and Las Vegas. . .

Here’s a cool video from El Pescador Lodge on Ambergris Key in Belize, which features my friend Lori-Ann Murphy (with whom I once spent a fabulous week casting to big trout in New Zealand). As a way to get a read on fish populations in the area, El Pescador hosted a tournament in which all caught fish would be tagged for further study. Here are the details: . . .

Through matching grants, Orvis and its customers work together to protect nature, support communities, and advance canine well-being.

The Orvis Company has announced five new recipients of its annual Customer Matching Grant program, the cornerstone of Orvis’s perennial commitment of 5% of its pre-tax profits to protecting nature. This year’s grants include more than $200,000 in direct funding, as well as an aggressive promotional campaign designed to solicit an equal amount or more in customer donations to these programs.

My friend Todd Tanner is behind the launch of a new conservation organization which aims to bring hunters and anglers together “to pass on a healthy natural world to the next generation of sportsmen, to defend our sporting heritage and traditions, and to educate hunters and anglers on the challenges and threats we face in the future.” Here’s the press release that went out yesterday: . . .