www.tu.org

Angling Publications - Index

Angling Publications - Fly Fish America - September 2007 Issue - Index

From atop Tri-basin
Divide, high in the Wyoming
Range south of Jackson Hole,
the fl y fi sher can stand at the
intersection of three distinct
western river drainages. Geologically,
it's unique-snowfall
atop the divide can drain
west into the Columbia River
drainage via the Greys River,
south into the Great Basin
and eventually the Great
Salt Lake, or east into the
Colorado River drainage via
the storied Green. But from
a fi sherman's perspective,
this location offers quite the
dilemma. To the south, along
the Smith's Fork, the angler
can catch the Great Basin's
native cutthroat trout-the
Bonneville. West, down the
Greys River, anglers can tangle
with Snake River cutthroats.
And east, in LaBarge Creek,
fl y fi shers can catch Colorado
River cutts.
It's possible to catch all
three subspecies within just
a few miles of the Tri-basin
Divide summit, and doing so
would put the adventurous
angler three quarters of the
way to a famed Wyoming
Cutt-Slam. Wyoming's fourth
native cutthroat trout subspecies-and
the fi nal ingredient
to the Cutt-Slam-is the
Yellowstone cutthroat, which
38
TROUT UNLIMITED
Chris Hunt
Saving The Wyoming Range
ranges a bit north of the Wyoming
Range in the Greater
Yellowstone Ecosystem.
The Wyoming Range is
more than just native trout,
however. It's also a hunter's
paradise, boasting healthy
herds of elk, mule deer and
pronghorns. It's also home
to the largest population of
Shiras moose in the country.
(Shiras moose, also known
as Wyoming moose, are the
smallest of North America's
moose. They are also found
in Montana, Idaho, British
Columbia, and in isolated
areas of Utah, Colorado, and
Washington.) At its base, the
range is home to hearty sage
grouse, and along its many
creek bottoms and spring
seeps, ruffed and blue grouse
thrive. Black bears wander
the entire length of the
range, and wolves and grizzly
bears frequent the mountains
during parts of the year.
In short, it's a sportsmen's
paradise-a relatively intact
stretch of wildlife habitat that
offers plentiful access to some
of the richest, most remote
country in the United States.
But it also sits upon proven
deposits of natural gas, and
in recent years, this has pitted
the average sportsmen against
an ever-encroaching energy
industry that continually
thirsts for new sources of precious
fossil fuels.
"This is one of those
places we simply ought to
leave alone,? says Tom Reed,
a Trout Unlimited fi eld coordinator
and an avid sportsman
who hunts and fi shes
the Wyoming Range every
summer and fall. "Much of
the range has already been
leased-some of it has already
been developed. That's
unfortunate, because there
aren't many places like this
left any more.?
Reed and TU worked to
form a coalition of hunting
and angling groups seeking
to put the rest of the
Wyoming Range off limits to
further oil and gas drilling.
Today, Sportsmen for the
Wyoming Range boasts more
than 25 member groups
and is working with the
Wyoming Congressional
delegation to draft legislation
that would set aside land in
the Wyoming Range that
hasn't been leased yet, while
allowing for "buy-backs? of
existing leases.
"We certainly don't want
to impede energy development
or short the companies
that have already paid for
leases,? Reed says, "but the
"This is simply one of those
places we ought to leave alone.?
-Tom Reed, TU Field Coordinator
pace of this development is
threatening resources that,
left alone, could benefi t local
communities for generations.
These fi sh and wildlife
resources are irreplaceable,
and their value can't be overestimated.?
What's more, Reed said,
there are literally millions
of acres of public land in
the West that have already
been leased. Developing
those existing leases should
be the priority, not leasing
new lands that have proven
resources for sportsmen
and others who value intact
landscapes.
"Thankfully,? Reed says,
"sportsmen are coming to
the rescue of the Wyoming
Range, and we're working
closely with Congress to
draft legislation to protect
it forever. We can't sacrifi ce
all of our public land in the
West to the drill bit and
expect to have the same
quality of hunting and
fi shing we enjoy today.?
Chris Hunt is the communications
director for Trout
Unlimited's Public Lands
Initiative. Learn more about
this issue at www.tu.org
GROSSENBACHERPHOTO.COM (RIGHT) CHRIS HUNT PHOTOS (LEFT)