On February 2, The Greenbacks hosted the opening of “Surface Film II” at the Anthology Fine Art Gallery.  This great event featured the best artists in the Fly Fishing photography industry showcasing their work for a fantastic cause to protect the upper Colorado and Frasier Rivers. The free event was well attended, even though it fell on a night when visibility was practically non-existent and by morning nearly two feet of snow had accumulated. Despite the weather, the turnout was great and everyone seemed to enjoy the beautiful prints from the likes of Val Atkinson, Mark Lance, Brian Gregson and so many more.  The auction really heated up towards the end, with several exciting last minute bids to take home some of the coveted pieces.

The event raised money and drew attention to the perils facing the drainage of our state’s namesake, whose flows are under serious threat of being cut to dangerously low levels to supply the Colorado Front Range with its ever growing water needs. The project under scrutiny is the Windy Gap Firming Project, which could result in up to 80% of the historic flows being removed from the Colorado River headwaters.  It was great to see so many people showing up to support and raise awareness for such an important issue that is not likely to go away anytime soon.  To lend your support and learn more, please visit Defend the Colorado, The Greenbacks and Colorado Trout Unlimited’s websites to find out what you can do to ensure fly fishing in Colorado is sustained for the long haul.

"Don't Suck the Upper Colorado River Dry"

“Surface Film II” is on exhibit through February 24, and The Greenbacks will be hosting a free closing show that evening at 7 pm. Stop by Anthology Fine Art Gallery and see what all the excitement was about.

February 9 Colorado Trout Unlimited hosted a luncheon with renowned author Kirk Deeter, Editor at Large for Field and Stream, Senior editor of The Flyfish Journal and author of The Little Red Book of Fly Fishing and Castworks, to just name a few of this illustrious writer’s countless accolades.  The topic for this presentation was “We Live Here For A Reason: Field and Stream, and America’s Best Wild Places”.  In his presentation, Kirk spoke to how despite having traveled all over the globe that his favorite place to fly fish is right here in Colorado.

Kirk Deeter speaking to the wonders of fly fishing in Colorado

In a world of presentations revolving around exotic fishing destinations, five star lodges, trophy grip-and-grin photographs from every corner of our globe, this refreshing presentation from an esteemed angler, writer and traveler who has seen it all brought the focus to the wonderful opportunities Colorado fly fishing affords. With the beautiful scenery and wild native fish photographs Kirk was showing, it would be difficult for any angler to disagree.  It was especially great seeing all the lively discussion and questions that ensued regarding education and the next generation of stewards to rivers around North America. Kirk was adamantly optimistic about the future of watersheds and ecosystems so long as there is continual commitment to educating in our youth and communities. Again, the word that came to mind was “refreshing”.

This past weekend, February 11, the West Denver Chapter of Trout Unlimited hosted their annual West Denver Fly Tying Clinic.  Bringing together some of the fly fishing industry’s most innovative tiers and revered instructors, this event was a great family oriented opportunity to shake off the winter blues and get excited for the Spring thaw by hitting the vise and restocking the fly box.

Orvis Cherry Creek Fishing Manager Kerry Caraghar freely sharing years of experience in Colorado fly fishing with eager eyes and ears.

Freestone Outfitters was proud to be a part of this great afternoon as well, donating a full day guided trip to the event’s silent auction.  On March 16, Freestone Outfitters will be donating another full day trip for Colorado Trout Unlimited’s Annual Gala Event. Be sure to check back regularly to hear about all the great happenings and causes Trout Unlimited and Freestone Outfitters are supporting in the Colorado fly fishing world.

Anglers All Manager Wes Osborne teaching his tried and true Permit and Bonefish patterns.

We at Freestone would again like thank all these groups for their hard work and steadfast dedication to conservation, education and awareness. For information on how to join these great organizations and take part in the fun, please contact Colorado Trout Unlimited, The Greenbacks and/or West Denver Trout Unlimited and get involved today! If you live outside of Colorado but would like to find your local chapter, please visit Trout Unlimited’s national site and find like-minded people in your neck of the woods to protect your home fly fishing waters.

Don’t let the snow get you in angling doldrums this winter. With all these great opportunities to learn and grow as an educated conservation-minded fly anger, you’re sure to benefit from taking part before the rivers thaw in a few weeks.

The weather report called for some serious nastiness on Saturday for the first Anglers All “On-Stream” school of the season. So we ended up with a few cancellations, but the three brave souls who stuck it out and attended the class were treated to an awesome day when the weather turned out to be much better than predicted. The day was a mix of formal instruction to learn about the fundamentals of fly fishing and putting those skills to work on the pond and the river.

Everyone had a great time – myself included – and several very nice fish were caught. Two of our students enjoyed getting their waders wet for the first time and catching their very first trout on a fly rod. All in all, everyone learned a lot about fly fishing and had a very memorable day.

Mark Shamburg

Freestone Outfitters