By Topf Wells

The Jim/Justin double team produced a good workday for us and Willow Creek.

With Jim and Justin having devoted hours to preparation, about a dozen SWTU members with some help from the Nohr and Coulee Chapters planted and fenced 60 swamp white and pin oak trees along Willow Creek at the site of Justin’s COLOSSAL, SUPERB, OUT OF THIS WORLD restoration of over 1/2 mile of stream below the confluence of Willow and Smith Hollow.

I’ve never seen a restoration make a bigger difference in the stream. At one point Justin was standing on a bank and said that pre-project he would have been standing on a sheer, vertical, eroding stream bank 15 feet above water level. The site is an encyclopedia of current DNR practices and to this uneducated but appreciative eye, it looks as though everything is where it should be. SWTU and BFF can be happy and  proud of our financial support of this project.

Justin had holes pre-drilled; the stock from the DNR nursery in Boscobel was in excellent shape with strong roots. We had the work completed by 12;30. The stream and trout will enjoy the shade and the trout the dozens of different caterpillar species which inhabit oaks.

Again, we had a diverse turnout of older and younger members. The two young fellows had not had a chance to fish much this year but were fishing in the afternoon. The fish gods should have sent them heaps o’ trout. Carol Murphy, the new Nohr president, reported they had a great fundraiser last Friday. Congratulations!  The Coulee member had some interesting advice on seeking permission to fish in the Driftless. One constant question is whether one should always ask a landowner for permission to fish if he or she has granted it once. (The answer is yes).  The Coulee member’s advice is when he asks the first time, he asks where he should park and points out his vehicle. He then promises if it’s okay to fish in the future, he’ll always drive that vehicle and always park in that spot. Pat has a friend who assumed he could always fish a stream for which he had permission once. He fished it again and the landowner tracked him down and told him he could never fish the property again. The landowner  had just put a new bull in the pasture and wanted to warn any angler about the new addition.

Speaking of landowners, the husband and wife on this property helped all morning with a tank and pump to soak the holes and water the trees. They’ll keep an eye on the trees and water them as needed.  They have a magnificent wetland restored on their property.  It’s spring fed and carefully supervised by nesting bald eagles.  Both have been members of SWTU.  They were so impressed and grateful for our turnout, I think they’ll rejoin.

The trout signaled their approval of our work. Just above the Smith Hollow bridge, a bunch of us stared upstream hoping to spot trout.  My goodness did we. A large (yes really) brown was idling just off the west bank.  Maybe he was nymphing or maybe guarding his pool but he gave us a good luck. No, he was not broodstock.

This great day ended with more fabulous news. Justin gave credit to Vince Schmitz, DNR tech when the project was planned, for much of the design. Vince’s name might ring a bell. He was a vital member of the DNR team that restored the Neperud stretch. The DNR just re-hired Vince to be the project coordinator/biologist for Dan Oele. HOORAY! With Scott Harpold and Vince as the project biologists, the Southern District has the all-star team. All the more reason for SWTU to support their restorations however we can.

A perfect day until a wood tick crawled out of my hairline 15 minutes ago. Huge thanks to Jim and Justin. The tree planting was so simple only because of all the work they did with the landowner, prepping the site, and insuring we had all the equipment.

Enjoy some photos courtesy Carol Murphy!