Getting Kids Outdoors

The second ever Outdoor Mentors Festival hosted by Colorado Trout Unlimited took place at Chatfield State Park on May 3rd. Fly fishing, bait fishing, canoeing, rock climbing, nature walk, laser shot, air rifle and archery activities were all available for kids to experience at no cost to participants. These activities were provided by our partners at Colorado Bow Hunters Association, Pheasants Forever, Colorado Trout Unlimited, American Canoe Association, Avid4 Adventure and Colorado Parks & Wildlife. In an effort to provide experience in outdoor activities to children who may not have that chance in other settings, the event focused on local mentoring groups. There were over 100 participants from Big Brothers Big Sisters, Denver Kids, Inc., and Denver Sports Buddies, along with other organizations. It was often the case during the May 3rd event that it was a child and mentors first time fishing, shooting, canoeing, or rock climbing. Not only was the event at Chatfield a success in that the children had a great time, the mentors also saw how easy and fun it is to take part in some of the activities. Colorado’s great outdoors, and locations such as Chatfield State Park, are meant to be shared by all. We hope events such as this will get more youth outside and caring about our natural resources.

The Colorado Outdoor Mentors are a coalition of conservation organizations, state agencies, youth development organizations, and other key outdoor recreation stakeholders engaged in a sustainable, coordinated effort to expand opportunities for non-traditional audiences to participate in traditional outdoor recreational activities and learn the importance of preserving our conservation heritage.

Whatever outdoor pursuit interests a child, there are organizations providing an outlet for that activity. The Colorado Outdoor Mentors and CTU hope to make those connections and provide those opportunities. By encouraging mentors to share their enjoyment of the outdoors with a child on a regular basis, we can make a significant impact on that child’s perception of the outdoors.

Check in to the events section of www.coloradotu.org to stay up to date on upcoming youth education events throughout the summer.

***Let’s Fish! Day Camp - July 12th, July 19th, and a night of camping on August 3rd - 4th

Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s Angler Outreach Program and Colorado Trout Unlimited are offering a special youth family fishing program for Denver and the surrounding areas. These fishing clinics are designed to recruit and encourage youth participation in fishing and camping. Fishing activities will build upon the skills learned the previous weekend and include: •    Warm Water and Fly Fishing Techniques •    Wildlife Management and Fish Ecology •    “Leave no trace” Camping in Golden Gate Canyon State Park Apply for the Let's Fish Day Camp here.

***Fall Outdoor Mentors Festival - August 16th at Barr Lake State Park

Contact Garrett Hanks at ghanks@tu.org for more information about Colorado Outdoor Mentors and how to participate in future events.

Time to seal the deal on protecting Hermosa Creek

Hermosa Creek in Southwest Colorado is beautiful in many ways. To anglers, it is trout heaven. To mountain bikers, it is an awesome place to ride. To miners, it is a limited but valuable source of minerals. In some circumstances, these constituencies would fight over the future of this wild piece of U.S. Forest Service land just outside Durango.

But that's not the story that has played out.

No, these interests came together in 2007 and began talking and compromising until they had a plan everybody could live with.

And now they're asking Congress to pass the watershed protection bill that is the result of their work. And it needs to happen soon, before elections become the sole focus of Washington, D.C., and a lame-duck Congress presides.

"All the concessions were made in the community," said Ty Churchwell, a Durango resident who is backcountry coordinator for Trout Unlimited. "There's nothing for them to do in D.C. but vote it forward."

Read the rest of the article in The Denver Post.

11,000 and growing!

It's time to celebrate!  Trout Unlimited now has over 11,000 members in Colorado! We are thrilled to have reached this milestone and see it as a testament to the great work of our Chapters and staff all across our beautiful state.  From the Upper Colorado to the Dolores, the South Platte to the Rio Grande, the Blue and beyond, Trout Unlimited works hard to protect our rivers and fish!

Thank you to all of our members for your continuing support of TU in Colorado!

Vote for TU's Own Rebel Melinda Kassen

Rebel With a Cause is an evening full of celebration, laughter, drinking and honoring conservation heroes, hosted by Conservation Colorado - who Trout Unlimited has worked with on a variety of conservation issues throughout the years. Every year they honor a "Rebel" who has in some way been a hero to the environment. This year they are changing it up a bit and YOU can help choose this year's "Rebel with a Cause". They have selected five different Rebel nominees this year and opened up voting from the public to allow all of us to chose the 2014 honoree. While all of the nominees for the award are truly conservation heroes, we are proud to support one of Trout Unlimited's own Rebels, Melinda Kassen. Melinda has devoted her whole career to becoming a "Water Wonk" (self proclaimed) and has fought some of the biggest fights to protect our streams.  At the Environmental Defense Fund, Melinda served as the legal counsel for the conservation opponents of Two Forks Dam.  After a stint on Congressional committee staff in Washington, DC, Melinda returned to Colorado in 1998, to launch the Colorado Water Project program for Trout Unlimited.  She directed that program until 2010, working to improve stream flows and protect fish habitat. Read more about Melinda here.

Because of all she has done for Trout Unlimited and for Colorado's rivers we hope that you will support Melinda and vote for her to be this years' Rebel With A Cause.

Go to this page to vote: http://conservationco.org/rebelvoting/

Patagonia presents DamNation at the Mayan Theater

Please join us on May 14th for the Denver premiere of DamNation at The Mayan Theater.  Produced by 2014 Colorado TU River Steward Award winners, Felt Soul Media, this powerful film odyssey across America explores the sea change in our national attitude from pride in big dams as engineering wonders to the growing awareness that our own future is bound to the life and health of our rivers. Q&A with the filmmakers following the film.

Check DamNationFilm.com for more information.

Purchase tickets: The Mayan Box Office.

The Mayan 110 Broadway Denver, CO 80203 303-744-6799