MRF logo
A Note From Liz

T he Madison River Foundation has recently undergone changes in our board of directors.  Joe Dilschneider has stepped off the board after many years of dedicated service.  He will continue to support the Foundation both on and off the river.  We appreciate Joe's leadership and his great contributions to the Foundation.
 
Jackie Mathews is the new Chairman of the Madison River Foundation. She is highly motivated and eager to get to work on improving the Madison watershed.                                                                           
                                                                        Read Jackie's Bio Here! 

 Go Forth & Conserve
     Liz
                                                       Young Anglers Series     
 
Fly fishing is often thought of as a leisurely sport. You might picture a man in a hat and fishing vest wading out into an idyllic river on a chilly Sunday morning. However, in recent years, the faces of fly fishing are changing and adapting. Anyone who has ever felt the thrill of a hard strike knows that fly fishing is anything but leisurely. The sport is catching on with young men and women around the nation. In our newsletters, we are going to feature a series called "Young Anglers". The series will include interviews with young fly fishing enthusiasts from around Madison County. If you know of a young person you think would be great for an interview, please send them our way!

Clay Coffman   

The first young angler interviewed for our new series was Clay Coffman. When Clay isn't out on the football field or on the basketball court, you will probably find him out on the water fly fishing. Clay is a sophomore at Ennis High School and he is as busy as ever with school and extracurricular activities. Talking to Clay you can tell that he has a passion for all things fishing related, which is no surprise considering he is the grandson of local legend Coach Cleverley. Bobby Cleverley taught and coached football at Ennis High School for 38 years. He also spent his summers guiding the Madison River, enjoying his love of fly fishing.
 
 
Clay with a nice rainbow 
Clay has been fishing for about six years now. He first learned how to fish on spinning rods from a cousin but quickly advanced to fly fishing. Clay recently completed a Science Fair project on the strength of fishing leaders. He tested different brands of leaders to see if they held up to the weight they claimed to. He shared his findings that the fly lines did hold up to the strength tests. Clay has been taking advantage of the warmer temperatures lately and been out fishing with his five weight rod. He told me a story of how he was fishing tiny nymphs recently at 3 Dollar Bridge with a friend and they both hooked up on the first cast out. An experience like that is a reminder of why winter fishing can be worth it. I asked Clay about what he believed to be the biggest issue that Madison River is facing in regards to fishing. He spoke of overcrowding on the Madison and the fact that there are more boats out on the water than ever before. Last year, locals saw pressure coming in from the Big Hole, Beaverhead area, and Yellowstone after the closure. Clay described the warmer water temperatures that you have to combat while fishing during the summer. He said he was only able to fish successfully several hours in the morning and in the evening. Clay is looking forward to another season filled with fishing adventures.   
By: Chelsea Pardo


Snow Pack Monitoring 
           
The month of February saw very little snow sticking to the ground here in Ennis, at least in town. However, there is still good snow to be found around the Madison County, especially at higher elevations. 
 
On February 22  I was fortunate enough to hike into the Tobacco Roots with other Big Sky Watershed Corp members and Eric Larson, a hydrologist from NRCS Bozeman, to take samples for snow pack monitoring. We hiked about three and half miles to the Four Mile snow course where the samples are taken monthly. By the time we got to the snow course, there was fresh snow falling. Eric equated this month's snow similar to spring snow, a crunchy hard layer with powder below. We had to re-sample several times but finally got our samples.
 
The results:

Sample Number
Depth of Snow Inches
Length of Core Inches
Weight of Tube and Core
Weight of Empty Tube
Water Content Inches
Density Percent
Remarks
1
31
29
40
33
7
23
 
2
26.5
17.5
40
33
7
26
 
3
28.5
17
39
33
6
21
 
4
25.5
20.5
40
33
7
27
 
5
17
12.5
37
33
4
24
 
6
24
14
38
33
5
21
 
7
23
12.5
38.5
33
5.5
23
 
8
26
16
39
33
6
23
 
9
28.5
23
40
33
7
25
 
10
30.5
26.5
40
33
7
23
 
 
In order to sample the snow, a testing tube is shoved down into the snow to measure depth. The core is also gathered from that test. The tube is then weighed to see the weight of the tube and snow core combined. Water content is calculated by subtracting the weight of the tube and core minus the tube itself. Density is calculated by water content divided by depth of snow. The goal is for the density percent of all samples to be within five percent of each other. The average of all 10 sample points we measured was 26" snow depth and 6.2" snow water equivalent. The 30 year median value at Four Mile is 6.0" so the snow pack is average for this time of year.

Below are some pictures from our day out in the Tobacco Roots.

By: Chelsea Pardo


   
 
                          Trout Unlimited Banquet

The Foundation attended the annual Troutfest Banquet fundraiser for Trout Unlimited Saturday February 26th. The fundraiser was a great success for TU and a fun event. Our Executive Director, Liz Davis, also won the beer cart raffle!

  
Upcoming Events

March 15:   Board of Directors Meeting, 2pm at First Madison Valley Bank

March 27:   Public meeting at the Ennis Fire Hall with NW Energy's updates on the dam repair;  7:00 pm.

April 10: Board of Directors Meeting, 2pm at First Madison Valley Bank. 
 
April 22ndMadison Valley Conservation District Fundraiser at Round Barn.
 
June 24:   (Re-Branded - formally known as the Annual Gala)

"Catch the Hatch" celebration and fundraiser at the Jumping Horse Barn.

September 1st & 2nd:
15th Annual Fly Fishing Festival at Peter T's Park. 
                                                            Vendor Exhibit Form 
  

         

                                                  Great MRF swag for SALE!!!       
                                                                                                                    
                   Limited colors & quantities                                                                                                                          
 
1 Percent
Fishing shirts, t-shirts, hats, gifts, and more! And, the MRF is an approved 1% Partner!

Today we're featuring the Tie One On Fly Fishing Festival Shirt, cap, and poster.  This year's festival shirt and poster features artwork by Lexi Sundell.  

 
JOIN THE MADISON RIVER FOUNDATION

Please forward our newsletter to your friends, and encourage them to join our worthy nonprofit organization.  We work diligently to carry out our mission to preserve, protect, and enhance the Madison River watershed.

PRESERVE. PROTECT. ENHANCE.