John Eastman, the Arapahoe District Director for the Boy Scouts of America would like to partner with the Cutthroat Chapter in order to organize a Venturing Program. Venturing is a youth development program for young men and women who are 14 through 20 years of age. This partnership would focus on educating young people on coldwater conservation and share with them the rewards of fly fishing. In order for this program to be successful, four to five mentors from the Cutthroat Chapter would be needed to get this project up and running. Mentors would be required to facilitate meetings with the youth and make sure the young people are on the right track and stay organized. For more information contact John Eastman by email at john.eastman@scouting.org or your chapter vice president, Jim Long at jel@longrangesucccess.com
July Meeting All About Streamer Fishing with Reid Baker, July 17th at 7pm
Join us for the July meeting at South Metro Denver Realtors Association building at 7pm featuring Reid Baker, owner and guide manager of Freestone Outfitters out of Littleton, CO. Freestone Outfitters supply guides for many of the Front Range shops. Reid is a consistent contributor and supporter of TU and our mission. Some of you may have taken advantage of the discount he offered to TU members who booked a guided trip on private water this spring. For his presentation, he will be sharing some of his hard-earned experience on streamer fishing in Colorado.Growing up on the trout and steelhead waters of Oregon, many of Reid’s earliest memories revolve around fly fishing trips with his father. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado, where he was president of the University of Colorado Fly-Fishing Club and earned a degree in English and Creative Writing. It was during his college career that his love for teaching, fly-fishing, nature and writing came together and he decided to dedicate his life to sharing these collective passions. Since becoming a professional guide, he has come to understand how much he truly lives to watch his infectious excitement for the sport rub off on others.Reid is an Owner and Guide Manager for Freestone Outfitters. He is an avid writer and his work has been featured in The Flyfish Journal. When not guiding, he travels the world, fly rod in hand, constantly amazed by the remarkable people and places fishing has shown him.I hope you can drop by!
South Platte Clean up 2012
Join the Cutthroat Chapter of Trout Unlimited and the Coalition for the Upper South Platte on Saturday, July 14th to pick up trash, and anything else that does not belong along a river, in the Deckers area of the South Platte.We have been performing this cleanup for many years. Lunch will be provided. Please let Jim know if you are going to attend so that we determine how many lunches to provide.We will start about 9 AM behind Flies and Lies in Deckers, work till noon and finish with lunch. If you want to car pool meet me at the RTD parking lot West of University Blvd., South of C-470 and accessed from Dad Clark Drive. We will be departing the parking lot at 7:30 AM. We will also be taking along our big bug net to see what is living in the river this year.Contact Jim Rasmussen via phone (303) 773-2772 or e-mail jiber2@msn.com to sign up.
Field and Stream Hero-for-a-Day Video
Field and Stream has posted a Hero for a Day video on their website documenting our work on Trail Creek. It is titled 'Planting an Erosion Barrier on the South Platte Watershed" and can be viewed at http://www.fieldandstream.com/hero-for-a-day/videos . Please take a moment to check it out! And thanks again to all the volunteers who made it a successful project. 
Cutthroat Chapter to host Project Healing Waters veterans
Cutthroat Chapter will host 8 veterans from the Project Healing Waters program for a day of fishing at Crystal Lake, which is located near Leadville. Chapter members will be able to fish with the veterans on Monday, July 9th. This will be a chapter fishing trip and all participants will gather at the South Suburban Board of Realtors parking lot for a departure at 7:00 AM. It is about a two hour drive to the lake.Crystal Lake is located at 9860 feet in elevation and has excellent wading conditions and shore access. A trail leads from the parking lot all around the lake. The lake has an excellent callibaetis mayfly hatch and also a good number of damsels. It provides excellent dry fly fishing and is ideal for beginners and intermediate fly fishers.For information on the trip, call Richard Pilatzke at 303-979-8425 or Kent Higgins at 303-791-1163.
Chapter fishing trip to Crystal Lake June 23
Richard Pilatzke will lead a chapter fishing trip to Crystal Lake on June 23. Crystal lake is located about five miles from Leadville on the upper Arkansas drainage. It is an easily accessible lake with good shore access, but float tubes and pontoon boats are allowed. The elevation of the lake is just over 9000 feet. It has great callibaetis mayfly and damsel hatches and we expect lots of dry fly action. It is a great lake for beginning and intermediate fly fishers. Richard will tie several fly patterns for Crystal Lake at June's Chapter Meeting this Tuesday, June 19th at 6:30pm (meeting details).
June Speaker: Robert Younghanz aka, The Bug Guy
Join us at 6:30pm on June 19th at the South Metro Denver Realtor's Association for a presentation by Robert Younghanz on aquatic entomology. Robert will give us just a small portion of his vast knowledge on the water-borne and stream-side insects that inhabit our home water system of the South Platte River.
Robert Younghanz, a.k.a The Bug Guy, is an internationally known Fly Fishing Guide and instructor. Robert has been involved in the Fly Fishing industry for close to 20 years. Having traveled to over 60 countries, he is an accomplished angler, teacher and guide for fresh, salt, tropical and warm water species. His passion and expertise in the field of Aquatic Entomology ( the study of insects) has enabled him to travel the world collecting Insects, as well as studying, researching, curating and teaching at Colorado State University, and Front Range Community College. In addition, Robert is a published researcher and has described several new species of aquatic insects in Colorado and Oklahoma. Robert has been a guest lecturer across the Western United States on the topic of Aquatic Entomology.As a contributing writer to Field and Stream’s blog, “Fly Talk”, “The Bug Guy” offers helpful advice on entomology and fly selection to fly fishers all over the globe. Robert is a featured presenter at the International Sportsman’s Expo in Denver, CO, a Simms Ambassador and Orvis Endorsed Guide and has conducted entomology classes for both Simms and Orvis guides at their national gatherings, as well as for Trout Unlimited and other local organizations in the Rocky Mountain West.Robert teaches monthly lecture and streamside classes at The Angler’s Covey Fly Shop in Colorado Springs. Look for Robert on WFN (The World Fishing Network) and on-line where he discusses insects, and well as fly fishing on Southern Colorado numerous rivers, lakes and reservoirs. Be sure and check out Robert’s newly released 2 set DVD: The Bug Guy: Entomology For The Flyfisher. For more information about Robert check out his websites:www.the-bug-guy.comwww.robertyounghanzflyfishing.com
Field & Stream Hero-For-a-Day Project Completed
Trout Unlimited
And
Field & Stream “Hero-for-a-Day” Project
South Platte Erosion Control
Was successfully completed FRIDAY MAY 18, 2012
Thanks to our 25 hardworking volunteers from three local Trout Unlimited Chapters and the film crew from Field & Stream, the South Platte Erosion Control project at Trail Creek was completed and exceeded expectations for the day. During the six hour work day, 750 native willow shoots were prepared and planted above an erosion control structure located at the confluence of two large ephemeral draws. These hearty willows will quickly root and establish a structure that both absorbs the energy form runoff water and prevents further erosion in the draws. In addition over 100 Ponderosa Pine seedlings were strategically planted along the banks of the draws to further stabilize the soil. These plantings will prevent sedimentation from reaching Trail Creek and ultimately the South Platte River.
This effort was organized in conjunction with the Coalition for the Upper South Platte (CUSP) and the National Forest Foundation and is one of Field & Stream magazine’s ten national Hero-for-a-Day Conservation projects. Video coverage of this program will be posted shortly on the Field & Stream website: http://www.fieldandstream.com/hero-for-a-day.This event was co-sponsored by Field & Stream and Toyota who provided thank you gift bags to all volunteers. In addition, all participants 18 years are eligible for the Hero-for-a-Day Sweepstakes. The winner will receive a trip to the Heroes of Conservation Gala in Washington DC as well as a fishing trip along the Potomac River! Again, I would like to sincerely thank the volunteers who came out on a weekday to work hard and support this program. The Cutthroat Chapter is grateful for the support of the Denver and Cheyenne Mountain Chapters in this effort. The work was not easy but it was very rewarding and in the end makes for many happy fish! 
Thank You,Jim KlugDirector, Conservation, Preservation and RestorationCutthroat Chapter, Trout Unlimited
South Platte Erosion Control Project Rescheduled
With the weather forecast for tomorrows project showing increased chances of precipitation and cold temperatures and due to potential flooding in the area, we’ve decided to err on the side of caution and reschedule the project for Friday, May 18th 2011. The project will take place at the same time and same place. We apologize for any inconvenience, but we must consider the safety of our volunteers first and foremost.Please call Jim Klug at 303-953-8046 if you have any questions or would be able to participate in the project.
Thank You For Volunteering!
A big “Thank You” to the 24 Cutthroat Chapter members who came out to help with our first Conservation project of 2012! With the support of Mr. Lake McGill’s Eagle Scout project, there were a total of 53 folks working to repair the damage caused by the Hayman fire.
The day was very successful as 3700 willows were processed and planted along a ½ mile riparian area adjacent to Trail Creek. In addition, 60 Ponderosa Pines were planted on the repaired stream banks in support of Earth Day.
Overall, it was an eventful day, as it celebrated Colorado Arbor Day, Earth Day and Global Youth Service Day. And at lunchtime we were part of an attempt to break a world record in a Guinness Book of World Records as part of the largest picnic on the planet! We always include some fun with our conservation work. Channel 4 was there to film segments for a documentary on the Hayman Fire Destruction and Restoration.
Please note that we will be doing additional work in the Trail Creek area this Saturday, May 12th. as part of the Field&Stream Hero-for-a Day Program. We are in need of 25-50 volunteers and we are not quite there yet. If you can help, please call Jim Klug at 303-953-8046. See the South Platte Erosion Control article in the events section of this site for the particulars.