Remember our Banquet last year? How well WE remember that day, Friday the 13th, March 13th, 2020. The Year of the River Rat Banquet. Life was so much better then.

We could not have predicted that day that the evil dark cloud of COVID was about to envelop us all and profoundly change all of our lives. Sigh. We were naive and celebrating with a joyous fervor. That very night, about half way through, we found out the first case of Covid had landed its ugly self in Silver Bow County. Our banquet was the last public event in Butte.

It was GGTU's most successful banquet ever! Thanks to everyone who made it happen.

At our last Board of Director's meeting, we had to ask ourselves, during the months of the pandemic, quarantines, isolations, masks, social distancing and Zoom meetings what the heck have we been doing? And what the heck are we doing with all the money you've contributed? As it turns out we were pretty busy. When we tallied it all up, we surprised ourselves with how busy 2020 was.

We've said it all along "It's for the Fish". <°((((><

But maybe it's not always supposed to be just about the fish. Maybe it should be about the folks who have been so generous towards our fundraising efforts. So, in the uncertain early days of the pandemic we donated to several charities in our city to help those negatively impacted by the virus. Recipients of these donations were:

We also made contributions to:

Speaking of Scholarships. We changed the name of our scholarship to the Tony Schoonen Memorial Scholarship. Every year we give this scholarship to a college freshman interested in a science field.

And speaking of Tony Schoonen. Finally, finally after 22 years we finally have a real, bona fide, official FWP Fishing Access Site at what has been known as Mallon's, or later, as the Foxley access. It was primitive. The new FAS is a

walk-in but it's official, real and enduring. Thank you, Tony!!

The Schoonen Family was there with Governor Bullock dedicating the Mallon/Foxley walk in access, but just as important, the Notch Bottom Access, 45 miles downstream, will now be named the Tony Schoonen Fishing Access Site. A remarkable spot in honor of a remarkable man.

In 2020 we completed the Casting for Recovery/Sweetgrass Rod Fundraiser. Casting for Recovery received a check from us for $4875. CFR provides free fly fishing retreats for women with breast cancer, providing physical and emotional medicine. About 700+ women are served every year across the nation.

Here's Glenn Brackett (left) handing that sweet rod off to Lon.

But here's the deal. GGTU doesn't actually do the work. We don't do projects. We simply raise funds and vet worthy projects that fill our mission statement of conserving, protecting and enhancing rivers, streams and lakes in SW Montana. We support the folks who do the work. They hire local folks that provide the engineering and operate the equipment. The money we raise spreads out into the community, putting local people to work to help the fish. Clean water and a healthy fish population indicates how healthy the human community is. It's important.

A big shout out to Jim Olsen, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks Big Hole Fisheries Biologist, for his work. We contributed to his projects on French Creek that moved the creek from a ditch along the highway to reconnect it to the original creek bed. We also contributed funds to help reshape and stabilize nearly 2,000 ft of streambank on French Creek that was chronically eroding into the stream and causing siltation of spawning gravels and harming Pearlshell mussels which are the kidneys of a stream. 

The chapter also contributed funds to help Jim construct a fish barrier on Doolittle Creek which will protect one of the few remaining populations of non-hybridized Westslope Cutthroat in the Big Hole watershed.

We contributed to two projects that Casey Hackathorn, Trout Unlimited's Upper Clark Fork Program Manager has going. One will reconnect ½ mile of historically-altered Storm Lake Creek channel as it enters Cable Creek, effectively doubling the trout habitat in the reach and improving natural water storage. Another project improved the hazardous Alvi-Beck diversion dam on the upper Clark Fork. The project entailed rebuilding the diversion dam with a naturalized feature, installing a fish screen that will prevent fish from being trapped in the irrigation ditch and improving passage for fish and boat traffic alike. A big thank you to the dozens of volunteers that turned out in October to help replant the site!

At the end of 2020 we participated in a very successful fundraiser that will allow Chris Edgington, MTU's Jefferson Watershed Project Manager to complete a project on Willow Springs Creek that will enhance both Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout recruitment for the Jefferson River.

We also helped fund a project brought to us by Kristen Cook, US Fish and Wildlife Service biologist to research the western Pearlshell mussel life history in SW Montana. Their numbers are dwindling rapidly and they're actually very important to rivers since they filter and clean the river water..... naturally.

We partnered with the Clark Fork Coalition to fund a critical stream gage that was in peril of being removed on the upper Clark Fork.

Speaking of important stream gages, this year GGTU is partnering with the Big Hole Watershed Committee to pay for 5 important stream gages on the Big Hole River that us fishermen and fisherwomen depend on.

GGTU also spent a considerable amount of time advocating for acceptance of the Consent Decree for Suprerfund's Butte Superfund Operable Unit and we put a lot of energy and time into advocating for the adoption of the Madison River Recreation Regulations. No funds were spent doing that time consuming work. We did it because our members gave us overwhelming support for these two important developments by sending boat loads of emails in support of both.

We had a busy 2020 and we're not done. . We'll keep supporting the good work you’ve come to depend on from GGTU and our partners.

Stayed tuned folks, there won't be a banquet in 2021. There's going to be the

Please forward this email to your family and friends. Let them know they can go to GGTU.org to sign up for our newsletters.

And if you want to, you can click right here to donate to the work we do for