On May 14th we met with potential bidders to discuss improvements to upper South Boulder Creek. There were approximately 10 potential bidders along with representatives from Colorado DOW, U.S. Forest Service, Denver Water Board and Boulder Flycasters. We spent about 1.5 hours on bid details and over two hours looking at the improvement sites. Next steps are:
Proposals due 6/14
Contractor selection – 7/1
Begin Construction – 8/1
For the past several years, Trout Unlimited has sponsored a Special Award for River Conservation at the Colorado Science and Engineering Fair. Colorado Trout Unlimited and Boulder Flycasters jointly contribute and provide judges for the Award.
This year’s winners were:
First Place went to Rachel Rossi from Durango for her project “Endocrine Disruptor Remediation in Water: Exploration of Mycoremediation Capabilities of Fungi”
The TU award for First place was a Scholarship to CTU’s River Conservation and Fly Fishing Youth Camp plus a check for $100. Rachel also finished in 1st Place in the CSEF Senior Division Environmental Sciences. Also at the CSEF, Rachel won scholarships to University of Colorado, Colorado State University and Colorado School of Mines. She also won Special Awards from five other organizations. At the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, she placed second in the Environmental Management category and won a full tuition scholarship ($150,000) from Drexel University.
Second Place went to Tayler Rocha, from Monte Vista, for her project “Sucessional Sequence of Water Quality and Macroinvertebrates in a Playa Wetland System”
The TU award for 1st Runner up was a check for $75 and serve as an alternate to attend the CTU Summer Camp if the First Place winner cannot attend. Tayler also finished 3rd in the CSEF Senior Division Environmental Sciences and won three Special Awards. At the ISEF, she won 2nd Place from the American Geosciences Institute and a full tuition scholarship ($150,000) from Drexel University.
Third Place went to Sarah Stalcup, from Delta, for her project “Riparian Area Multiple Indicator Monitoring
The TU award for 2nd Runner up was a check for $50 and serve as an alternate to attend the CTU Summer Camp if the First Place and 1st Runner up winners cannot attend. At the ISEF Sarah won a full tuition scholarship ($150,000) from Drexel University.
Congratulations to these students for their fine projects!
Boulder Flycasters is participating in many local and regional youth fishing clinics this spring and we need volunteers to help with the youth presentations. We partner with the Colorado Parks and Wildlife to man various stations educating children from ages 3 to 16 in areas such as fish habitat, game species, fish anatomy, regulations and more. No one needs to be an expert, Parks & Wildlife provides large education easel board presentations that are easy to use. In addition to the clinic presentations, we also help with casting and fishing at many of the clinics as well.
Please volunteer today to help with one or more of the clinics listed below. The clinics typically last only 2-3 hours and it is very rewarding time spent teaching our fishing and conservation skills to the next generation.
Please contact Larry Quilling for more information or if you’d like to volunteer.
Larry QuillingBFC Youth Coordinator
303-579-0656
FREE Seminars & Special Deals, Public Invited! April 27, 2013
Boulder Orvis Store
Table Mesa Shopping Center
629B S. Broadway
Boulder, CO 80305
303-554-0122
11:00 AM
Salt Water Tech
Thomas Schneider – Owner of Sunrise Anglers
2011 Orvis Endorsed Guide Service of the Year
12:00 PM
Appetizers by Southern Sun Brewery
12:45 PM
Fly Fishing the Eagle & Colorado Rivers
John Packer owner of Fly Fishing Outfitters
2007 Orvis Endorsed Outfitter of the Year
1:30 PM
Discover North Park
Scott Graham of North Park Anglers
2:15 PM
Fly Fishing High Mountain Lakes
Flat Tops Wilderness Specialty
Bob Terwilliger of Winterhawk Outfitters
3:00 PM
Fly Fishing Tenkara
Daniel Galhardo – Founder of Tenkara USA
History, Technique, Casting and Fly-Tying
April 13, 2013, 9:00am to 5:00pm, at 2344 Pearl St, Boulder.
Join Front Range Anglers for a free appreciation day! We’re thankful for each and every one of you that have supported our shop over our 31 year history, and we want to have a day just for you! We’ll have all kinds of great food, sales, hourly prizes, and representatives on hand from all of our premium brands! This will be the day to try out some new gear, tell some fish tales, and meet some special guests!
For more details, see: http://frontrangeanglers.com/customer-appreciation-day
by Mark Riley
FYI: Orvis is having their Orvis Days (a customer appreciation day) at the Boulder store on April 27. It will include speakers and light lunch provided by Southern Sun Brewery.
Click this link to the Orvis Boulder Store website for more details.
Fly Fishing the Four Seasons at Deckers
WHEN: Wednesday, May 1, 2013, 6:30 PM-8:00 PM
WHERE: REI ~ Boulder @ 28th & Walnut
Reid Baker of Freestone Outfitters will present the “Fly Fishing the Four Seasons at Deckers.” He will be offering tips and techniques for this renowned stretch of the South Platte from a 365 day a year perspective. Flies and entomology, finding fish, avoiding crowds, equipment and more will all be covered on this presentation. It is not to be missed by anyone looking to have effective days on this notorious and recovering section of the South Platte.
Reid is the Guide Manager for Freestone Outfitters, Denver’s Orvis Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide Service. They specialize in the public waters of The South Platte and Colorado River drainages and have access to private water throughout the state including exclusive property on the North Fork of the South Platte and Lower Blue River.
Front Range Anglers March 30, 2013 10:00am to 12:00pm
On March 30, 2013 you will have a unique opportunity to hear from two sides of the same coin. On one is Gordon Wickstrom the steward of Boulder’s fly fishing history. A man who grew up in a sleepy little college town and entered the sport via a 1939 Christmas gift – a restored, eight-foot bamboo and a new South Bend Orenomatic automatic fly reel. On the other side is his great friend Rob Kolanda, a leading edge enthusiast of the sport using techniques that reflect an international flavor. He aggressively pursues any species of fish that might be inclined to take a fly. Both were born and raised here and share an abiding love of fly fishing and the wonders that surround it.
Gordon Wickstrom
Gordon Wickstrom is a WWII Navy veteran, a graduate of Stanford with a Ph.D., a college professor, and a serious student of Shakespeare. For more than sixty years, when asked about his occupation, he has stated “I’m fisherman that teaches schools and stages plays”. But Gordon is far more than these things. He’s a voice to be heard on the sport of fly fishing through is writings, a resource about the our fly fishing history, considered about where things are headed, and reflective about where they have been. His books, Notes from an Old Fly Book and Late in an Anglers Life are classics about why we do what we do.
On Saturday he will share with you his thoughts on writing about this wonderful sport.
Rob Kolanda
Members of the Fly Fishing Industry, our customers, and Colorado fly fisherman in general either know or have heard about Rob Kolanda and his prowess as a fisherman and fly designer. He grew up in Colorado and currently resides with is wife and family in Longmont. Rob has made a living guiding, instructing, and managing a variety of fly fishing operations for 18 years. He has been a member of Fly Fishing Team USA and part of Front Range Anglers Management Team for some years.
When Rob is not a working his personal days out are often spent on still waters where he enjoys chasing warm-water fish such as wipers, stripers, and pike in addition to trout. His time not spent on the water or in the shop is often spent behind the vice designing new patterns for Solitude Fly Company, who currently produce over twenty trout, warm water and saltwater fly patterns of his design.
Rob’s competitive angling successes include numerous medals and high place finishes in competitions across the US.
On March 30, 2013 the Program by both of these men is something you will not want to miss. We would suggest an early arrival to get reasonable seating.
Well, its happening again, we are short of water. The Coyotte Gulch blog does a good job of summing up the current situation. A quick synapses: The next couple of weeks are very important to front range water plans. Plans are created and implemented locally, based upon water storage information from NCWC or Denver Water in the northern front range. Some cities have already started water management plans. Boulder is asking we don’t water lawns until May. Here is the link to more details: http://coyotegulch.wordpress.com/2013/03/21/drought-news-st-charles-mesa-water-district-on-voluntary-watering-restrictions-codrought/
Some bad news has come to fisherman over the weekend. Antero Reservior will be depleted of its water this year. The catch and keep limit was changed on Wednesday 3/20/13 from 2 fish to 8 fish with hopes to clear-out the lake of trout. The Colorado Springs Gazette has a good article: http://www.gazette.com/articles/dry-152376-reservoir-colorado.html
If this tells you anything, it should be to get out early in the season while water temperatures are low and fish are healthy. I have recently fished the S Platte, the Blue River, the Big Thompson and Boulder Creek in town. Fishing has been fantastic everywhere, but be careful where you walk because the rainbows are starting to spawn. The Big Thompson is experiencing fantastic mid-day dry fly midge fishing. The Blue and S Platte continue to be technical as ussual, but fish are starting to key-in on small mayflies more than midge.
Purchasing a temperature gage is of great importance as temperatures warm, most experienced fisherman will restrain from fishing if the water temperature goes above 68 degrees. Last season the Big Thompson canyon reached temperatures up to 72 degrees, and there were too many people still fishing it. As a guide I have to put people on fish, but when water temps are high, I can always move to higher altitude areas which are normally fishing fantastic on hot days. Get out and explore!
Chad Pettrone [email protected]
Come join us in April to hear a very interesting and provocative presentation.
An Entirely Synthetic Fish
WHEN: Wednesday, April 3, 2013, 6:30 PM-8:00 PM
WHERE: REI ~ Boulder @ 28th & Walnut
Anders Halverson will talk about his book “An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How Rainbow Trout Beguiled America and Overran the World,” He is an award-winning writer with a Ph.D. in ecology from Yale University. He wrote this book as a research associate at the University of Colorado’s Center of the American West with a grant from the National Science Foundation. http://andershalverson.com/