The Park City High Country Fly Fishers are working to protect Utah’s native fish and local waters as wildfires threaten the state.
The group said Summit County’s 2024 Yellow Lake Fire inspired its 1.5-mile restoration project after burning 33,000 acres across the Uinta Wasatch Cache and the Ashley national forests and harmed the Soapstone Basin.
High Country Fly Fishers Vice President Jayne Guyse said ash and fire remnants are harmful to the entire watershed, including fish like the state’s cutthroat trout.
“Depending on how bad it is, it can impact the water quality, you know, which will hit our drinking water,” she said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” July 6.
Utah fly fishing hall-of-famer Pat Ronneburg said it also affects the Soapstone Creek headwaters that flow into the Great Salt Lake.
“We can’t afford to be losing headwaters in this way. It just, it doesn’t bode well for our future in the Valley.”
High Country Fly Fishers is the local chapter of Trout Unlimited, a national conservation group that protects native fish and their habitats. It is helping fund the Park City organization’s restoration efforts with grants and matching donations which Guyse said could be up to $70,000.
The fly fishers now need 200 volunteers to complete the project. So far, 100 have signed up.
The volunteers will help build starter beaver dams to slow river flow and catch wildfire debris. They will also cut and stalk willows and plant native grasses.
Guyse said no prior experience is required.
“There will be tasks for people of all ages and activity levels,” she said. “We ask that children under the age of 12 and pets not come to the event for safety concerns.”
Volunteers are needed Aug. 8, 12, 14 and 15 from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Sign up and find more information from High Country Fly Fishers here.
