Southern Wisconsin Chapter of Trout Unlimited, along with Wisconsin Smallmouth Bass Alliance, the Badger Fly Fishers, and the Harry and Laura Nohr Chapter of TU are addressing the decline of trout and smallmouth bass streams in SW Wisconsin. Specifically, the catastrophic loss of trout and smallmouth bass fisheries in the Martin Branch in Grant County and Otter Creek in Lafayette County. Up until five years ago the Martin Branch was an excellent Class II trout stream, but now the trout are gone, not diminished they are gone. And Otter Creek was at one time was an excellent smallmouth bass stream. The smallmouth bass were so abundant that the DNR restocked the Yellowstone River with Otter Creek bass. But after several fish kills from manure runoffs, the bass are gone.

To attest to the quality of these two streams, DNR had purchased miles of public fishing easements on these two streams. After seeing a report which stated the DNR was in the process of declassifying these streams, SWTU Vice President, Topf Wells, decided it was time to take action. He drafted a letter in January 2021 to be sent to the DNR Secretary, DNR Board, and department staff addressing our concerns not only for these two streams, but for all the streams and rivers in SW Wisconsin. After reviewing this letter, the SWTU Board decided we should be including other like-minded groups and reached to Badger Flyfishers, the Nohr TU Chapter, and Wisconsin Smallmouth Alliance, which were eager to join us.

After correspondence back forth with the DNR, it was decided we should work with David Rowe, WI DNR Fisheries Supervisor Southern District, which we have been doing.

One course of action we agreed upon is to work with Producer-Led Watershed Groups and conservation-minded farmers. Producer-Led Watershed Groups are organized by local farmers that submit grant requests to DATCP, which are funneled to local farmers for conservation projects. Since 2016, DATCP has provided $4.5 million in grant money for these groups. So far, Jim Hess, SWTU Board member and Conservation Chair has attended two producer-led field day events where he discussed our concerns with the watershed groups and their attendees.

Otter Creek is within the Pecatonica Watershed, which is represented by LASA (Lafayette Ag Stewardship Alliance) in Lafayette County. At a recent LASA Field Day on the Wilson Organic Farm, Hess talked with Jim Winn, President of LASA, about our concerns and the response was very positive.

Jim has worked really hard to establish communication with the farmer led groups in Lafayette County. Stay tuned for updates. And a similar  request, if any of know landowners near Otter Creek who might be interested in improving the creek, contact Jim.

Martin Branch does not have any producer led organizations. With some suggestions from the DNR we are trying to reach out to some of the farmers who own land along the creek to start a conversation about the creek’s history and, we hope, its future. If anyone in the Chapter knows folks who live on or near Martin Branch and who might be interested in the creek, please let Topf or Jim know.

We have a long way to go, but as the proverb says, “a trip of a thousand miles begins with the first step.”