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OUTDOORS FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 A9 Thin Mints, STREAM girls and trout Outdoors By Anne Janik Cookies, Girl Scouts, and trout may seem like an unusual combina- tion, but, last month, 18 Girl Scouts from Western Slope chapters be- came STREAM Girls. This Colorado Trout Unlimited workshop is de- signed to introduce youth to their lo- cal watershed through river conserva- tion and recreation. STREAM stands for STEM, recreation and art. Ross Reels, Able Women, and the local Trout Unlimited (TU) chapter — the Gunnison Gorge Anglers hosted the workshop. The day started with an icebreaker where the girls were grouped by their favorite Girl Scout cookie. Barbara Luneau, TU youth programming vol- unteer, engaged the girls in a wa- tershed discussion. She explained the path of our rivers from their headwaters to their terminus. The Uncompahgre and Gunnison Rivers are tributaries to the Colorado River, which comprises the third largest wa- Ada Malott and Giselle Keller-Chibiko reference an aquatic insect guide to identify species. (Submitted Photo/Anne Janik) tershed in the country. The Columbia River Watershed is second, and the largest watershed in the U.S. is the stream flows, the girls stepped into a Referencing an insect guide, the girls looked like they were determined- Mississippi River. “Our rivers here small channel of the main river wear- identified species by using charac- ly practicing the summoning charm are very hard working with many de- ing hip waders. The scouts timed the teristics like shape, tails, location of from Harry Potter, “Accio -trout” that mands for drinking water, irrigation, travel of a ping-pong ball from a re- gills, and cases. Of course, this activ- will magically bring whatever item is livestock and recreation. These rivers lease point upstream to its catch by ity also required math skills to deter- summoned. are closely managed to meet every- a scout 30 feet downstream, repeat- mine overall stream health using the Fly fishing is all about tricking one’s needs,” Luneau explained. “How ing this three times for an average. diversity of specific bugs (Caddis flies, the fish into biting your artificial fly much water do you think makes it to The girls rocked at the math, calculat- Mayflies and Stoneflies) and their thinking it is the real thing, and the the Gulf of Mexico? Very little.” ing channel area (average width and abundance. Luneau explained that art of fly tying is to imitate the look The new Colorado Outdoor facili- depth), velocity (distance and time), high numbers of these bugs, which are of those tasty morsels. After identify- ty in Montrose provided easy access and finally flow in cubic feet per sec- highly sensitive to pollution usually ing the common aquatic insects, the to the Uncompahgre River, where ond. “This is math under pressure indicate a healthy stream. Guess what? Scouts had a better idea of what those the girls explored the river corridor. adding, dividing, and multiplying This section of the Uncompahgre morsels look like. Now, sitting at a fly Volunteers guided the girls with prob- without a calculator!” said Luneau. River scored well! tying station, each scout was patiently ing questions to help them use all Kick nets were next on the agenda. With a grasp of stream flows and guided by a CTU volunteer on how to their senses to observe the nuances of The girls stirred up the stream bot- aquatic insects, the girls had a better tie a midge or a winged emerger. With the river and adjacent riparian habi- tom with their feet so aquatic insects idea of where trout hang out and what quiet concentration, the girls carefully tats as if through the eyes of a scien- drifted into the nets. With giggles they like to eat basics for a success- created art for fishing. tist, angler, and artist. The girls de- and laughter, the girls enthusiastical- ful angler. This is where the Gunnison To recap the day, the Scouts re- scribed the river sounds and smells, ly scuffled about while trying to keep Gorge Anglers stepped in to help each turned to the river to complete a and sketched their observations in their balance! They rinsed the nets girl set up her fly rod and learn to scavenger hunt for the key ingredi- their STREAM Girls field notebook. into buckets, and transferred samples cast. The girls and instructors began ents of a stream, and began working Ready to learn how to measure into trays for critter identification. casting around the pond. Each Scout See THIN MINTS page 10 Learning about NO MORE STAMPS, NO MORE CHECKS, NO MORE HASSLES the outdoors Switch to EZpay, Most people who rec- with an annual program reate outdoors, be it for all middle school hunting, fishing, camp- kids, called Problem ing, backpacking or Based Learning or PBL. Get a $10 Gift Card hiking, learned about PBL places a prob- it through experience. lem at the feet of the The old “college of students who work as a hard knocks” has been group of three. my biggest education Tips The group of students tool, and still is for that from the Posse then gets to research the matter. subject, both in books When I was a kid, I By Mark Rackay and on-line. Then a pan- wanted to learn every- el of experts comes to thing I good about the eat the stuff I cooked. meet with each group outdoors and survival. Mr. Caster taught me and agrees to be inter- I figured when I knew about wild animals and viewed and questioned enough, I would move tracking. I learned that on the assigned sub- into the mountains and when you see fresh bear ject, thereby provid- live off the land and nev- tracks, close by there is ing insight to the young er be bothered by school probably a fresh bear. minds. or work. With Mr. Caster, whin- There were seven My grandparents ing was not an option, teachers involved in this no longer hunted or as he had little toler- years exercise, including camped by the time I ance for complainers. If Judy Hauger, Michelle came around. In order to I became injured (which Tracy, Tyler Shaw, Judy stop my constant com- was a regular occur- Jacobs, Mark Liebenthal, plaining about wanting rence, Mr. Caster taught Marc Alton and Paige to learn woodcraft, they me how to mop up the Ready. The subject for pawned me off on an old blood and “tough it out.” this PBL was survival man who was a friend Seriously, there is and it was given to about of the family. Mr. Caster very little, if any, for- 40 kids. was the perfect instruc- mal training for people Each group of kids tor for my 12-year-old who want to learn basic was assigned a location Plus when you sign up for EZpay you get your brain. survival and woodcraft where they are strand- Mr. Caster hunt- skills. People asking for ed and in need of rescue, ed, fished and camped guidance, and learn- but must survive. They whenever he felt like it. ing opportunities ask would need to decide ALL ACCESS He was retired so work me regularly where they what items they would never got in the way of should turn. need to survive, what his outdoor pursuits. Most of us have turned items they could bring, Mr. Caster cussed like to outdoor magazines Each group was given PASS! a sailor on shore leave, and books. There are lit- a machete and a pan to smoked Chesterfield erally hundreds of books hold water. The group That is print and digital for the low weekly rate of $3.00 Kings and drank whis- available on the subject, was allowed to select one (minimum 3 months) key from a bottle, in but reading a book does “mystery item” of their Automatic draft from a checking account credit/debit card on the 15th of each month. other words, a perfect not carry the same pow- choice to bring along. role model. er of live teaching. The For several weeks, the Visit montrosepress.com or call 970-249-3444 today! I eventually learned computer is a good place kids researched the area how to build a fire us- to research these skills, they were stranded in. ing a few pieces of kin- and there are a number Some were in the rain- dling, a small pile of of classes you can take forest, Rocky Mountain tinder, and half a box of on-line, but I still prefer National Park, African strike anywhere kitch- live teachers. Desert and the Tundra en matches. He taught Recently I was asked to near the Arctic Circle. me how to cook over help out several teachers The kids must learn the 3684 N. Townsend Ave, Montrose CO 81401 a fire, and eventually at Olathe Middle School See LEARNING page 10 218210 A10 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2019 O UTDOORS M ONTROSE DAILY PRESS LEARNING FROM PAGE A9 climate; extreme weather conditions possible, edible plants, poisonous plants, and animals for food source and dangerous animals. The students were also given a ses- sion with local experts in search and rescue. Paul Gottlieb of the Posse and Hunter Safety Instructor David Hardman were the panel the kids got to interview. They asked about what equipment was necessary, first aid skills, and how to signal for help, among other things. Once the kids completed the proj- ects, each group had to make a pre- sentation to a panel of experts and teachers. The panel for the presenta- tions consisted of David Hardman, Jim Neigherbauer and me from the posse.

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