Getting Brighter

It's practically February, and you can finally notice that the days are starting to feel just a little longer. It's not quite so dark at five o'clock anymore, which is great. We've been getting quite a bit of moisture lately here in the Pacific Northwest, which translates into heaps of snow to ride on in the Cascades, and plenty of new water for fresh Steelhead to think about spawning in. It also means more snowfall for the inter-mountain west. Check out this map here, with Snowpack Data For Wyoming to see how things are shaping up for water. Western Wyoming is looking pretty good from here.

I came across a great article here (thanks to Rhett Bain!), which brought welcome news to some nervous residents around Wyoming. There has been talk in recent years of trying to pump some 80 million gallons of water per year from Wyoming's Flaming Gorge Reservoir all the way to the Front Range of Colorado, 500 miles away. Needless to say, this idea is preposterous. Fortunately, it looks like lawmakers in Colorado are realizing that conservation efforts may be a better way to deal with dwindling water supplies for Coloradans. Check this article out from the Summit County Citizens Voice to learn more. I've been doing more skiing lately than fishing, so I'm not able to supply any first-hand Steelhead photos. Instead, check out this beauty that my good buddy John Holland netted last week on a secret Washington State stream. John asked me to join him on this trip, and I had to unfortunately decline. Days went by after the trip, and I got no report from him. I finally sent him a text to ask how the trip went...all I got was this photo. Nice one Holland!