Outdoors - Hunting and Fishing

Ready to stock up on rainbow trout

A gift horse sometimes comes with a trout. After a July rainstorm washed tons of debris and silt into the upper Colorado River upstream of Dotsero and subsequently killed nearly every fish in that stretch of the river, Colorado Parks and Wildlife saw the event as an opportunity to improve the fishery. Tuesday morning, Parks and Wildlife biologists and other employees began stocking what they said were “several thousand” whirling disease-resistant rainbow trout in the river ...

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Cutthroat trout going native in waters of its past

A plan to increase the range of native cutthroat trout in the San Juan Mountains has accomplished a critical step with the recent stocking of 250 cutthroat trout in Woods Lake southwest of Telluride. Woods Lake, located in the headwaters basin of Fall Creek, was selected for the restoration project because of it remoteness and pristine waters, said Dan Kowalski, an aquatic researcher with Colorado Parks and Wildlife in Montrose. “There are only a few spots in western Colorado ...

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“State of the Moose” meeting set for Oct.10

Western Colorado residents are invited to a public presentation on the state of the Grand Mesa moose population, and the current status of the relocation project that brought them here, at 6 p.m. Oct. 10 at the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Northwest Region Office in Grand Junction. Based on the latest moose population estimates of around 300 animals, wildlife managers say that the relocation project can be considered a great success. “The project has gone far better than we ...

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Fall brings time of changes, including year’s final fishing report

Information for Anglers THIS IS THE LAST SEASONAL REPORT FOR THE SEASON Oct. 4 – This is the final fishing seasonal fishing report for the 2012 season. Colorado Parks and Wildlife appreciates all of the anglers, park managers, biologists and wildlife managers who took time to send us fishing information to pass along this year. Look for some exciting changes coming before next spring, including an interactive map-based fishing application that a team of really smart people are ...

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Stripers and bass make fishing ‘otherworldly’ at Lake Powell

Lake Elevation: 3,621 asl Water Temperature 73-77 F http://www.wayneswords.com PAGE, Ariz., Sept. 27 – Surface water temperature is now in a slow downward spiral. Nights are enjoyably cool with warm temperatures during the day. A weather front and temperature drop disrupted fishing success for a couple of days this week but it was mostly a readjustment in timing. Some areas that had enjoyed a good morning bite now had better fishing in the evening. Fishing is still good but it may ...

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Hunting turkey worth a little bit of misery

Editor’s note: This is the second in The Daily Sentinel’s occasional series of reader-submitted hunting stories. I grew up in a hunting family, and I had friends who enjoyed the sport, but it was always a gender-specific activity. The boys went out hunting, and the girls stayed home and enjoyed other more feminine passions. Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy those, too, but I have come to discover that I was missing out on something that was much more challenging, fulfilling ...

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No bull — Moose hunt with a muzzleloader

Leaving the conversation hanging mid-sentence, Darryl Powell decided to prove a point. “Man, you know I’m not superstitious or anything like that,” he said with a laugh while flourishing an empty beer can, green with a red ribbon and a familiar silhouette on the label. “But for a month before my hunt, I only drank Moosehead beer. “Now, that’s a Canada moose and not a Shiras, but doesn’t mine look sort of like that?” he asked, admiring the ...

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State fishing report – Fish kill reported at North Sterling State Park

Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012 Information for Anglers LOW WATER LEADS TO FISH KILL AT NORTH STERLING STATE PARK – Due to low water levels and oxygen deprivation, North Sterling State Park has suffered a nearly complete fish kill. North Sterling State Park employees began seeing a few dead fish on top of the water on Saturday, Sept. 15. By Tuesday, Sept. 18 dead fish littered the entire south and east shorelines of the reservoir. Due to the species and the number of fish found, this ...

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Tropical day-dreams on order at balmy Lake Powel

Lake Elevation: 3,622 asl Water Temperature 75-78 F http://www.wayneswords.com PAGE, Ariz., Sept. 21 –  Lake level decline has slowed and weather is similar to that imagined for a dream vacation to a tropical island.  It’s warm in the day time and delightfully cool at night with only a gentle breeze occasionally breaking up the flat calm reflecting pool of Lake Powell. Yes it’s really nice down here right now. Fishing patterns are essentially the same with ...

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Powder Puff

For a woman not much taller than the black-powder rifle she shoots, Shirley Jarvis of Grand Junction certainly stands tall on the firing line. During the National Rifle Association’s 2012 Black Powder Target Rifle Championships at Raton, N.M., Jarvis outshot her competitors to claim eight gold medals in the sharpshooter mid-range competition. “I was really surprised I did so well,” said Jarvis, still a bit shocked by her performance, during a recent conversation. ...

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Fishing Report – Fall best time for northern pike

Information for Anglers FALL FISHING TIPS FOR NORTHERN PIKE Fall is one of the best times of the year to fish for northern pike. As water temperatures begin to cool, the pike will move into shallower, warmer water. Look for water that is 3-10 feet in depth and fish the edges of weed beds, submerged logs and close to brush piles. Sight fishing for pike can be very productive, with fish over 30 inches not being uncommon. Unlike many species of fish, pike do not school up; but typically, ...

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Green Gunnison?

GUNNISON — A solitary drift boat bucked down the Gunnison River on Sunday, dodging some of the rocks but still banging noisily through the meager current. There isn’t much wiggle room when the river is down to bare bones, even if you’re the only person in the boat. “Man, it’s skinny water,” called out the boatman to a watcher on the bank. “Probably won’t do this again.” The curious thing was this particular inflatable was negotiating ...

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Superfly winners repeat 2008 title

Even at skeletal flows, there was enough water in the Gunnison River over the weekend to hold the Gunnison Angling Society’s annual Superfly Contest, won this year by the team of Mindy Sturm of Crested Butte and Gene Hart of Gunnison. This was the duo’s second win — the first was in 2008 — this time with a combined credit of 155 inches of trout. Rules stipulated anglers could catch up to six trout, fairly hooked in the mouth. Each team was accompanied with an ...

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Orchard Mesa Gun Club offering free public rifle sight-in Saturday

Orchard Mesa Gun Club is offering a free public rifle sight-in Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. The gun club is at 150 Browning Road in Springfield Estates, south of B Road on 32 Road (Colorado Highway 141). In addition to the sight-in, representatives from Savage Arms will be present to offer test-shooting of a variety of firearms. First five center-fire rounds are free (excepting the .338 Lapua, $5 per round), and youths 14 and under shoot free. This is the first of three public ...

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Falling lake level continues good fishing at Lake Powell

Lake Elevation: 3,622 asl Water Temperature 77-80 F http://www.wayneswords.com PAGE, Ariz. Sept.12 – Good fishing success we have enjoyed for a while continues and is perhaps even better than last week. The main factor is falling lake level. Shad have been hiding in the brush line surrounding the lake all summer long. Now water level is declining leaving the brush high and dry and shad without a good hiding spot.  Shad are exposed and all game fish are taking a swipe at them ...

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OM Gun Club hosts free rifle sight-in Saturday

Orchard Mesa Gun Club is offering a free public rifle sight-in Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. The gun club is at 150 Browning Road in Springfield Estates, south of B Road on 32 Road (Colorado Highway 141). In addition to the sight-in, representatives from Savage Arms will be offering test-shooting of a variety of firearms. First five center-fire rounds are free (excepting the .338 Lapua, $5 per round), youths 14 and under shoot free. This is the first of three public sight-ins. The ...

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Healing waters

The Battle at Boxwood was heated and intense. It pitted 20 teams of specialized forces formed of the finest men and women who ever served in the United States military. Twenty teams, five members per team. Veterans all. Their mission: To catch and record the most total inches of fish per team, using only artificial flies, in a half day of angling on 2.75 miles of the pristine North Fork of the South Platte River. Four veterans from Grand Junction — Dawn Gwinn, Daniel Giller, ...

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CMU seminar series on water and the drought continues Monday

The fall 2012 Natural Resources of the West seminar series at Colorado Mesa University continues Monday afternoon with a look at the political challenges of drought. Monday’s lecture by CMU political science Professor Tim Casey is titled “Drought as Disaster: The Political Challenges of Managing Drought through Traditional Disaster Response Methods.” Casey will speak from 4-5:15 p.m. in Saccomano Lecture Hall, Wubben Science Building, Room 141. The entire seminar series ...

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Fishing report: September features kokanee salmon, end to Tomichi Creek closure

Colorado Fishing Report, Aug. 28 Information for Anglers SEPTEMBER BRINGS KOKANEE FISHING The month of September brings cooler weather and great kokanee fishing. The kokes are gearing up for their annual spawn and trolling is the optimal technique for pre-spawn success.  Colorado offers some of the best kokanee fishing in the country and Blue Mesa Reservoir has the distinction of one of the best kokanee fisheries in the U.S. Kokanee can be finicky, so knowing how to cover the ...

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BLM to host ‘listening sesson’ over target shooting concerns

In response to general interest in the current and future management of target shooting on public lands around Grand Junction, the Bureau of Land Management is hosting a public listening session 6-8 p.m. Monday at the Courtyard Marriot, 755 Horizon Dr. in Grand Junction. “Many people enjoy target shooting on the public lands managed by the Grand Junction Field Office,” said Assistant Field Manager Michelle Bailey. “At the same time, we’ve also been hearing ...

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