When I was a kid, I loved nothing more than fishing. My home in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. was not conducive to such pursuits, an injustice that I regretted daily.

The young anglers in Buena Vista already have it pretty good. I would have killed to have the Arkansas River flowing through my home when I was a kid! The Collegiate Peaks chapter hopes that after this fall, these kids will have it even better.

This August, the chapter and their supporters throughout the valley, are putting 40 in-stream habitat improvement structures into Cottonwood Creek, a stream that flows right through town. The project site is on a Colorado Division of Wildlife property that already supports wild brown trout fry, but lacks the holding water to keep adult fish.

Local TUers are hoping that the habitat structures will support adult trout, turning this creek into a neat fishery just west of downtown. In addition to the in-stream work, the chapter is installing a trail that will connect the park to the heart of town, allowing anglers of all ages to access the stream on foot or bicycle.

Bob Gray, a Collegiate Peaks chapter member, has put countless hours into the Cottonwood Creek effort. Bob gave me a tour of the project site and told me about this impressive initiative.

To make the project possible, Bob and his fellow chapter members wrote a proposal on behalf of the town of Buena Vista for funding through a “Fishing is Fun” grant. The chapter then drummed up support in the community to match the $78,000 they received in federal funds.

The people of the Upper Arkansas River Valley generously volunteered their time and resources. High school students are building a handicapped angler access railing through their shop class. A local construction company owner will donate his time to pour the concrete. The state prison’s vocational heavy equipment program will assist with the in-stream structures. The list goes on and on.

My conversation with Bob reminded me just how much work goes into this type of project. TUers across the country are donating so much time and energy to make these efforts possible. Orchestrating a project like this could be a full-time job, but TUers like Bob are doing it for free, for the benefit of their fisheries and their community.

The Cottonwood Creek project will join the long list of chapter accomplishments. In recent years, the Collegiate Peaks Anglers have also completed riparian zone fencing on the upper forks of the South Platte River, stream bank stabilization on the Arkansas River, greenback cutthroat restoration, numerous trash pickups, and educational efforts in local schools.

The chapter has also been active lobbying for healthy water flows in the Arkansas River. The Arkansas is dam-controlled and water flows are regulated for agriculture, municipal use, and recreation.

This river is the most popular whitewater rafting destination in the entire U.S. It is also a world-class trout fishery and it is only getting better. Clean-ups at abandoned hard rock mines in the headwaters have improved water quality and the fishing, Bob says.

The Arkansas has always fished well for scrappy brown trout under 14 inches. The river has a lot of insects, making it a great dry fly destination, but it lacks the forage fish that bigger browns depend on. With better water quality and a few years of low mid-summer flows, it seems that the Arkansas River browns are now breaking the 14 inch mark with regularity and a fair number of fish are even exceeding 20 inches.

I spent a beautiful afternoon on the Arkansas between Buena Vista and Salida. It was one of those days that really makes you glad to be alive. The water was cool and clear, the mountains loomed overhead, the sun was shining, and the trout were rising.

While blue-winged olives, pale morning duns, and a few caddis teased the fish off the bottom, I opted for a small grasshopper imitation with a tan body and red tipped legs. For what ever reason, the fish must have loved those legs and I rose a handful of trout in quick succession.

I landed two fish over 14 inches, both of which could euphemistically be described as “snaky.” A few casts later I lost my hopper to a heavy shouldered 16 incher, a fine fish by any standard. That bum tippet knot cost me the fly of the day. I tried numerous other hopper imitations and none were as effective as the one with the red legs!

When the afternoon thunderstorms rolled in and pushed me off the water, I wished I could stay another day or two. The upper Arkansas River Valley sucks you in and makes it hard to leave. Fortunately, I was heading towards another great Colorado river system, the Gunnison.

See my photos by clicking HERE

Visit the Collegiate Peaks Anglers chapter website HERE