South Fork Boise River

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  • South Fork is Ultimate Winner Again of Fly Casting Tournament

    By Greg Clark

    The 3rd Annual Trout Unlimited Fly Casting Tournament was held at Eagle Island State Park on Saturday, May 11, and raised thousands of dollars to benefit the South Fork Boise River fishery.  The event attracted over 150 people, among them team participants, sponsors, judges, volunteers, and spectators.

    The Judges

    The weather was unseasonably warm with temperatures easily above the 90 degree mark in the afternoon, however the winds were almost nonexistent most of the day and benefited all of the competitors.

    Two rounds of competition were held.  The morning had the Gold division with expert casters and some who wish they were experts.  The afternoon round hosted the Silver division with people of various skills and experience, but united in having some fun and a little competition.

    The seven Gold division teams, including one all women team (each comprised of four individuals) competed throughout the morning on fourteen

    Janet Downey casts while the rest of the Idaho Angler team watches during the Gold division competition

    land or water-based casting targets or “holes.” A team’s best three individual member’s scores per hole were then added together in comprising the team score.  Just as in golf, lowest total score on the 14 holes wins.

    While the competition among teams can get pretty serious at times, the main purpose was to bring fly fishers, flyfishing groups, and local businesses together and raise money for protection and enhancement of a fishery that everyone has a common interest in and can support…and making sure everyone has plenty of fun along the way.  For example, here’s a comment from Whitefish Ed who was part of the Gold division team Whitefish Rules.

    Contestant casts to one of the water targets

    Last year’s 2nd Annual Fly Casting Tournament in 2012 kick-started the focus on flow management of the South Fork Boise River, and in late summer 2012 the first assessment was made of the effects on juvenile trout and on the macroinvertebrate community when the river flows are decreased.

    Results from the 2012 work will be released this summer.  Stay tuned to this website for information.

    Work will continue in 2013 and following years to assess river flows on fish stranding with the goal of finding a flow management that can improve the fishery.

    This year’s Tournament continues the momentum we have built for the South Fork Boise River fishery.

    At the end of the Gold division competition, a delicious lunch was served, prizes were presented to the top three Gold division teams, and a variety of raffle items were won.

    Gold division results:

    Willowcreek Grill

    1st place – Team Willowcreek Grill (a repeat champion, pictured at left. L to R: J.D. Miller, Chris Gerono, Dave Klein, Graham McKenzie)

    2nd place – Anglers (Erik Moncada, Dave Gourley, Bret Bishop and Pete Erickson).

    3rd place – Otter Shrimps (Richard Prange, Jeff Barney, Marty Downey, Bill Hagdorn)

    Silver division teams get the instructions prior to the shotgun start

    The afternoon then included 12 Silver Division teams competing, including three all-women teams, and a good mix of returning competitors and new teams.  Aileen Ellis from Team Trifecta has posted a report with her review of the tournament.

    As the Silver division teams completed the course everyone returned to the shelter for a cold one and to hear some recognition and gratitude to all of the sponsors and the TU Ted Trueblood Chapter Board members for their contributions and tireless efforts toward this wonderful event. Prizes were presented to the top three Silver division teams and a heartfelt thank you given to all involved.

    Silver division results:

    The Bush Hookers

    1st place – Dr. Arave and his ringers

    2nd place – Amateur Hour (Bret Andreason, Andy Andregg, Jeff Tonkin, Bill Tonkin)

    3rd place – Bush Hookers (photo at left, Neal L to R

    Immediately at the awards Dr. Arave showed he is a class act and he handed the 1st place prize, some top-rate fly line, to the 4th place team: the Better than TU team sponsored by the Boise Valley Fly Fishers.  Dr. Arave also was a hole sponsor at the tournament.

    The last act of the afternoon was a raffle was held for an NRS Gigbob personal fishing watercraft, donated by Idaho River Sports.  It was won by Connie Martineau, who was tickled at winning the boat she really wanted!

    Jo Cassin (L) and Stan Kolby (R) flank Connie Martineau, winner of the Gigbob raffle

    If you participated in the tournament we would like to hear your experience and you can post in the comment section below.  Thanks to everyone who supported the event!

  • Year Three Fly Casting Tournament benefits the South Fork Boise River Fishery

    The 3rd Annual Fly Casting Tournament is set for May 11, 2013, at Eagle Island State Park.

    The cause remains the same: conservation of the South Fork Boise River wild trout fishery.

    A day of competition and camaraderie begets conservation.  Sponsored by the Ted Trueblood Chapter of Trout Unlimited, the Fly Casting Tournament attracts more than 100 participants plus an equal number of judges and spectators.  All are there for the cause of the South Fork Boise River fishery.  You can join in the event through participating on a team or as a spectator.  Check out the Tournament webpage here.

    Just as this website tries to demonstrate the number of different agencies and groups involved in the South Fork Boise River, the Fly Casting Tournament is also a showcase of cooperation.  Some examples:

    The Boise Valley Fly Fishers has become over three years the single largest financial contributor to the Fly Casting Tournament, and therefore to the South Fork Boise, by being a Gold Sponsor and fielding several fly fishing teams.

    Last year BVFF fielded a Gold team including notables like Marty Downey, Tom Labreque, Craig Estell and Gino White.  The club also put two teams in the Silver division.

    As the longest continuing fly fishing club in the Boise area the BVFF have time and again stepped up for the South Fork Boise River.  And their presence at the Fly Casting Tournament is evident.

    A stand out contributor to the event is Idaho Angler.  In their third year as a Gold Sponsor the fly shop has helped provide cash donations, prize winnings as well as great connections for putting together teams.

    Shop owner Rick Williams helped with the original course design in 2011.

    With the 20-year anniversary of the store being celebrated on May 4, the week prior to the Fly Casting Tournament, it’s a good time to reflect how this business has become an establishment specialty shop with professional staff who know the South Fork Boise River.

    Not to be surpassed is the support from Anglers fly shop and owner John Wolter.

    John has great customer connections which brought more fly casting teams to the tournament than any one else, and Anglers provides Gold Sponsor support with financial and merchandise contributions.  John has established credibility not only with the Anglers shop but also with informed insight how to fish the South Fork Boise River during the summer.  We’re not going into details here so you will have to ask him yourself.

    The success of the first Fly Casting Tournament in 2011 contributed the funds that made possible the completion of the Pierce Creek reconnection to the South Fork of the Boise River. A culvert is gone, a new steel bridge crosses Pierce Creek and wild trout have access to tributary spawning habitat.

    The 2nd Annual Fly Casting Tournament in 2012 kick-started the focus on flow management of the South Fork Boise River and in late summer 2012 the first assessment was made of the effects on juvenile trout and on the macroinvertebrate community when the river flows are decreased. Results from this work will be released this summer.

    Work will continue in 2013 and following years to assess river flows on fish stranding with the goal of finding a flow management that can improve the fishery.  The 3rd Annual Fly Casting Tournament will be a critical piece to funding the conservation work on the South Fork Boise River.

  • A geology tour of the South Fork Boise

    As the South Fork Boise is currently closed to fishing now is the time to dip into stacks where we can find out a thing or two about the general area where the South Fork flows.  This installment is a geology tour.  At Idaho State University they have lots of geology information posted on line, including the Guidebook to the Geology of Central and Southern Idaho.  In that book is the chapter “Cretaceous and Tertiary Intrusive Rocks of South-Central Idaho,” which includes a tour of the South For Boise River canyon area.

    This geology tour begins with the road approaching Anderson Ranch Dam and goes downstream to the Cow Creek bridge where you drive from the South Fork back to Highway 20.  Included is a side trip from Cow Creek Bridge to Danskin Bridge.

    A couple of notes.  The zero point for the tour, shown as 0.0, is the intersection of Sun Valley Road and Main Street in Ketchum.  So the tour approaches the South Fork Boise from the east.  Secondly, the interval mileage is shown in parentheses.  Here goes: (more…)

  • Fishery Population Status II: The Big Sort Continues

    The 2012 South Fork Boise River fishery population sampling by Idaho Fish and Game shows a continuing population size structure that has lots of small fish and large fish making up the raw sample, but few middle sized fish.  And the numbers of medium sized fish are too small to explain the numbers of the larger fish.  Below is the graph showing the 2012 population distribution by size in 2012 compared with 2009 and 2006:

    Fish between 200 and 400 millimeters  – roughly eight to sixteen inches in length, are (more…)

  • Fishery Population Status I: 2012 the latest sampling numbers

    Idaho Fish and Game biologist Joe Kozfkay came to the January 9th meeting of the Ted Trueblood Chapter of Trout Unlimited with an update on the South Fork Boise River fishery, showing the 2012 trout population appears stable or increasing depending on fish size.

    As manager of the Southwest Idaho Region’s fisheries Kozfkay came loaded with data and historical information in his Powerpoint slide show.  And he explored many facets of this river resource we all cherish.  Over the next few posts we will break down the information.  This update looks at the overall population densities for the latest samping efforts.

    Like any good drama, the results were held until towards the end of the presentation, but it was well worth the wait as (more…)