By Jim Hess, SWTU Conservation Chair
Make some new friends, learn some new very fishable waters and, of course, make a big difference for our precious coldwater resource. Please mark these dates and plan to attend. There is something for everyone. All are Saturdays, start at 9 and are done by noon.
Sept 17 – Sugar River – looking at one of two locations, just south of Verona. The exact location will be determined in the next week and shared via email.
Oct 8 – Smith-Conley – Joint Workday with Nohr Chapter – 2800 Cty Rd H, Barneveld (same easement we have been working at)
Oct. 29 – Hefty Creek (Rudd Easement) – Meadow Valley Rd & Disch Rd (south of New Glarus) – this section of Hefty just recently had a major DNR stream restoration, which this chapter helped to finance. This workday will give you a chance to see this work and help complete a few details. There will be lunch following this workday at the Rudd’s house.
Nov 12 – Sugar River – (same as above)
Dec 3 – Smith-Conley – Joint Workday with Nohr Chapter (same as above)
Be sure to attend our September 13 Chapter Meeting at Schwoegler’s Entertainment Center, when we will draw 5 winners that have participated in our work days for the last year and half. Five $50 gift cards will be given out from the following businesses: D&S Bait and Tackle, Musky Fool Fly Shop, and Cabelas.
Newscasts – September 2022
Last Updated: October 5, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
This issue is filled with great information, including:
How are Wisconsin Trout Doing?
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
It’s an interesting question! We’ll see you at Schwoegler’s on Tuesday, Sept. 13
By Topf Wells
SWTU’s September meeting will provide some answers. Our speaker is Bradd Sims, of the WI DNR. Bradd has just completed his first year as the DNR’s Coordinator of Fish Management on streams and rivers, including all the trout streams. This position was formerly the Inland Trout Coordinator; the DNR has expanded it to include cool and warm water streams. Bradd will discuss how trout are faring across the state and will be happy to answer questions after his presentation.
Bradd was the fish biologist for Grant and Lafayette Counties and the Lower Wisconsin River. In addition, he was the fish biologist for or filled in as fish biologist for many other Driftless Counties including Dane, Green, Iowa, and Richland. We fish on his easements and restorations all the time including Gordon, KIttleson, Big Spring, Six Mile, the Blue, and the Big Green. He’s also responsible for the thriving brook trout of the Steiner Branch, where he hosted a great SWTU workday.
A REMINDER: The September Meeting is Tuesday, September 13, at Schwoegler’s Bowling on Grand Canyon Drive on Madison’s West Side. Dinner and drinks are available starting at 5:30, with Bradd’s presentation at 7.
We hope to see many members for this great presentation, especially new members. New members receive a warm welcome and free flies. Read More
Save the Date: Fall 2022 Workdays
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
By Jim Hess, SWTU Conservation Chair
Make some new friends, learn some new very fishable waters and, of course, make a big difference for our precious coldwater resource. Please mark these dates and plan to attend. There is something for everyone. All are Saturdays, start at 9 and are done by noon.
Sept 17 – Sugar River – looking at one of two locations, just south of Verona. The exact location will be determined in the next week and shared via email.
Oct 8 – Smith-Conley – Joint Workday with Nohr Chapter – 2800 Cty Rd H, Barneveld (same easement we have been working at)
Oct. 29 – Hefty Creek (Rudd Easement) – Meadow Valley Rd & Disch Rd (south of New Glarus) – this section of Hefty just recently had a major DNR stream restoration, which this chapter helped to finance. This workday will give you a chance to see this work and help complete a few details. There will be lunch following this workday at the Rudd’s house.
Nov 12 – Sugar River – (same as above)
Dec 3 – Smith-Conley – Joint Workday with Nohr Chapter (same as above)
Be sure to attend our September 13 Chapter Meeting at Schwoegler’s Entertainment Center, when we will draw 5 winners that have participated in our work days for the last year and half. Five $50 gift cards will be given out from the following businesses: D&S Bait and Tackle, Musky Fool Fly Shop, and Cabelas.
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
Hefty Creek Done and Looking Great
By Topf Wells
Jim Hess and I just walked the completed Hefty Creek restoration (look for it in Green County at the intersection of Disch and Meadowbrook Rds) with Bob Rudd. Bob and Nan own the land, sold the easement to the DNR, and supported the restoration.
It looks fabulous. The stream banks are shaped with lots of on site wood and some rock providing fish habitat. Thanks to Bunny, Bob’s friendly Lab, we got a good sense of the creek’s depth as she bounded in and out. Some nice deep spots and some gravel is already being scoured out. Bunny also spooked some trout for us to watch. Anglers now have great access to either side of the stream. Bob is going to mow paths on both sides so the access will stay good. Read More
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
News About Trout Streams With an SWTU Connection
By Topf Wells
Justin Haglund, Fish Biologist for Iowa and Richland Counties, and Nate Nye, the Biologist for Sauk and Columbia Counties, just released watershed assessments of particular interest to SWTU. We’ve spent time and money supporting the trout fisheries in both. Results are heartening. Justin’s report is on the trout streams of the Upper East Branch of the Pecatonica River. DNR’s COVID restrictions prevented him from surveying the main stems of the Dodge and East Pec Branches but he reached all the numerous tributaries. Brown trout are faring well in several, most notably the Williams Barneveld Branch. SWTU conducted a workday on the best stretch of the WB last spring with the Nohr Chapter and The Prairie Enthusiasts, who own the land and had restored much of the stream. It’s permanently open to public fishing. He also found strong populations of wild brook trout in several of the headwater tributaries.
Brook trout are the star of the show in Nate’s assessment of the Dell Creek Watershed. You might remember SWTU rallied with the Aldo Leopold TU Chapter, Badger Fly Fishers, State Council, and Groundswell Conservancy to rescue the purchase of 40 acres with a long stretch of double bank frontage on Dell Creek and a tributary. Dell has been managed and stocked for years with the general aim of supporting a fair to middling brown trout fishery. Nate showed that the watershed is tending toward brook trout with several tributaries, most unnamed and never or very rarely surveyed, holding strong populations of wild brook trout, some of whom are finding a happy home in Dell Creek. Nate ends his study with recommendations for changes in regulations, stocking, land and easements purchases, and stream classification to manage the watershed for brook trout.
The assessments are linked above. You can also find them and so MUCH more by Googling WI DNR trout stream assessments or use this link.
Falk Wells Wildlife Area: A Birds Eye View
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
Article by Marci Hess; Drone photos by Jim Hess (see larger versions in the article at swtu.org)
Falk Wells Wildlife Area, south of Verona, is situated in rolling farmland with a mixture of hay and row crops. It is a 379 acre property with 3 miles along the Sugar River. The pictured wetland restoration is one of the most ambitious of the projects undertaken in this ecological system. It includes 33 acres of previous row crop farming; the drainage tiles making this possible will be removed, returning the land to a healthy wetland. Read More
Improving Streams and Rivers in SW Wisconsin
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
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. Read More
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
Learn What Your Board’s Been Up To
Minutes from SWTU Board of Director meetings can be viewed in this Google Drive. If you have questions on what you read in them, reach out to one of the Board members listed on the last page of each newsletter. (Note that you may need to click the “Last Modified” header at the top to sort the list with the latest minutes at the top.)
And also … in addition to the article on Improving Streams and Rivers in SW Wisconsin, your Board also took steps to sponsor Grayson Yerges and Tristram Morris at this year’s State TU Youth Camp, the first camp since the onset of COVID. By all accounts the kids and instructors enjoyed the experience. We hope Grayson and Tristram continue to enjoy trout fishing and TU activities. If you know a child who’d enjoy the TU Youth Camp experience, keep an eye out for the notice next spring. SWTU tries to sponsor two kids every summer and we want to hear from anyone who wants to attend.
Two Great Women’s Flyfishing Updates
Posted: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
(Building on the success shared in last month’s Newscasts)
Featured in Trout Magazine
Check out page 72 of your latest issue of Trout Magazine, the quarterly publication of Trout Unlimited. It features an impressive two-page writeup of last year’s Women’s Leadership Institute. Many congratulations to Tina Murray for her leadership and everyone who is involved in this impressive initiative.
Introducing Women to Fly Fishing
Jim Hess donated an introduction to fly fishing for women to a silent auction for sustainable farming. On Sunday Jim and Marci, assisted by several SWTU Board Members, welcomed four women from the Blanchardville area to the Lake Belleville/Sugar River Park in Belleville. A spectacular thunderstorm ended 30 minutes before starting time, clearly a sign this was going to be a fun and worthwhile day.
The instruction included an introduction to many aspects of fly fishing; the casting clinic featured individual coaching. The afternoon concluded with cheese, crackers, brownies, watermelon, beer, and fishing for smallmouth bass in the Sugar. The food bit better than the bass but all enjoyed the afternoon. The women appreciated the clinic and are planning expeditions to gear up and fish. One of them announced she has a nice spring pond loaded with brown trout that haven’t seen a hook for years. The next fishing trip is going to be a success.
Thanks to Jim, Marci, Henry, Tom, Don, and Topf.
(click to see picture) Read More
Sawyer Pheasant Tail Nymph
Last Updated: September 6, 2022 by Drew Kasel Leave a Comment
by Rusty Dunn
Have your children ever been so completely costumed that you no longer recognized them? Frank Sawyer, originator of the legendary Pheasant Tail Nymph, probably wouldn’t recognize many of his “children” today. Sawyer’s original Pheasant Tail is a model of simplicity, but the modified, substituted, customized, and dolled-up variants today often bear little resemblance to their stately ancestor. Read More
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