Going for the gold

Gunnison and Taylor rivers reach Gold Medal status

Bella Biondini Times Editor

On Jan. 18, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) Commission named the Gunnison and Taylor rivers as the newest Gold Medal waters in the state — a high status that ensures the rivers’ abundant trout fisheries are protected for future generations.

CPW may designate a stretch of a river or stream as “Gold Medal” if it meets two specific criteria. The agency must demonstrate that it produces 60 pounds of fish per acre and at least 12 trout that are 14 inches in length or larger per acre. The Gold Medal status will make the stretches a management priority and require the careful stewardship of the community and visitors so their quality is maintained.

The portion of the Gunnison River that flows through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is already considered a Gold Medal water. The new designation adds the confluence of the East and Taylor rivers in Almont and the Gunnison’s path downstream to the twin bridges. The designation also adds 20 miles of the Taylor River beginning below the Taylor Park Reservoir. The addition of the two stretches boosts the number of Gold Medal sections to more than 360 miles across the state.

“The Gunnison and Taylor Rivers really represent a successful conservation story with lots of partners that have made this fishery what it is today,” said CPW Aquatic Biologist Dan Brauch in a press release.

While the Gunnison and the Taylor are newly designated gold, they have been considered premier trout fisheries for decades, Brauch told the Times Taylor Park Reservoir was built solely to store and deliver irrigation water to the Uncompahgre Valley, but negotiations follow- ing the construction of Blue Mesa created flow levels that would support healthy, coldwater habitat. Today, a group of local water users provides recommendations for Taylor Park releases each year.

CPW biologists sample fish populations through a common method called electrofishing, where an electric current is used to temporarily stun fish so they can be netted. Fish are then weighed and measured, allowing staff to estimate the number and size of trout present in the stream. Surveys are usually conducted every three years and provide data that made the Gold Medal designation possible.

The amount of trout in both the Gunnison and the Taylor rivers has consistently surpassed each of the Gold Medal water requirements. In 2021, the tailwaters of the Taylor produced more than 400 pounds of fish. During the same year, biologists recorded over 200 pounds of trout present in the Gunnison River near Almont, with more than 70 trout that were 14 inches or longer.

With a Gold Medal listing comes a renewed responsibility for biologists to manage the river in a way that preserves the qualities that landed it with the special designation.

“When they're acknowledged to be Gold Medal water, they're high profile and locked in as a management focus,” Brauch said.

The beauty of the designation is also its direct relationship to conservation along the Taylor and the Gunnison, said Bryan Hess, who is the president of the

Gunnison Angling Society — a local chapter of the national organization, Trout Unlimited. This could involve re-evaluating the amount of fish that can be taken from the river or the types of lures and bait allowed if the limits of the resource are pushed. The designation also adds a second layer of protection by requiring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to pay closer attention to releases and any structural changes to the river that may impact the overall water quality.

“Trout are kind of like the canary in the coal mine — they're an indicator species,” Hess said. “Anytime that the water quality changes and degrades, trout can't live there. So as long as we have this significant amount of trout in the water, we know that our water is clean and cold.”

Less than 0.4% of Colorado’s streams reach Gold Medal status. Because it’s no secret that the Gunnison and the Taylor are prime fishing destinations — the tailwater below Taylor Park Reservoir is known as one of the best places to fish for trout in the state — Hess said he doesn’t expect the number of anglers who travel to the Gunnison Valley to drastically increase.

Either way, Hess hopes the organization uses the Gold Medal designation as an opportunity to focus on education.

“This is a limited resource,” Hess said. “Everybody that touches that water needs to be a steward of the water.”

(Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@gunnisontimes.com.)

Bible Gems

New Life In Christ

970.641.1414

© 2023 Gunnison Country Times

Publisher/Owner Alan Wartes publisher@gunnisontimes.com

Office Manager Issa Forrest issa@gunnisontimes.com

Editor Bella Biondini bella@gunnisontimes.com

Photo and Sports Editor Jacob Spetzler jacob@gunnisontimes.com

Staff Writer Abby Harrison abby@gunnisontimes.com

Sales Director Bobbie Duft bobbie@gunnisontimes.com

Sales Representative Jack Anderson jack@gunnisontimes.com

Production Manager Michaela Keefe production@gunnisontimes.com

Production/ Social Media Manager

Libby Marsden libby@gunnisontimes.com