Fisheries Restoration, Enhancement and Management Portfolio

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Carbon County-

Traditionally considered an irrigation and livestock watering benefit with angling a distant afterthought, this reach of the Medicine Bow was burdened with a lack of in-stream habitat, detrimental historical land practices and very diffucult access to most areas.

Sweetwater went to work protecting the prior use needs along with installing new and improving existing habitats throughout the 2.3 mile reach. With the entire riparian now fenced but punctuated with water gaps, cattle have excellent access to prescribed watering areas while the remainder of the stream enjoys full protection from land use degredation and influence.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Albany County-

Long considered as just a way to water hay and cattle, this nearly 2 mile reach of the North Laramie River had long been overlooked for its potential as a fishery.

New ownership with an eye toward the possible got Sweetwater involved to transform this reach into a top notch angling experience complete with boulder structures, deep pools, riffles and thalwegs all while maintaining full cattle and hay production capabilities.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Routt County -

With consistent, dependable year round flow, Walker Creek is an excellent option when looking for an intimate experience or getting an angling fix when the rivers are in runoff.

Like so many meadow creeks, Walker needed extensive structure and hole development. Sweetwater also moved a portion of the channel away from the county road so the creek would no longer have to process the silt, sand and other road treatments, dramatically improving the water quality and stream health.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Saguache County -

Lying at the foot of the Sangre De Christo range, Kerber Creek was a small creek with big potential. Hosting a wild population of Brook trout, this 2.4 mile prize needed extensive help improving and expanding what little holding water and habitat was availabe.

An extensive system of pools, deep thalwegs and boulder structures were implemented to convert this borderline fishery into an outsanding fishery that punches well above its weight.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Jackson County-

On the western edge of North Park, this 1.5 mile reach of Grizzly Creek had excellent potential but lacked haitat variety and was badly overgrown.

Sweetwater got to work with structures and bedform modifications to create entirely new habitats and incorporated the existing beaver dam complexes to open up a truly dynamic angling experience. An OHV trail that spans the entire length was also constructed so this gem is now offering all manner of opportunity from spring creek dries to deep hole nymphing.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Routt County-

Like much of the Elk River, at lower flows this 1.5 mile stretch forced fish to concentrate in a few deep bends and at high flows gave them nowhere to rest and hold. Access to the upper half of the reach also presented major difficulties.

Sweetwater added numerous structures and bedform modifications along with the construction of nearly 1/2 mile of OHV trail, enabling access to all the outstanding features the reach now offers.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Larimer County -

When the record setting Cameron Peak Fire swept through the property on September 26th, 2020, the riparian vegetation and surrounding forest was reduced to ash. We went to work modifiying our plan to accomodate the extreme flows, ash and sediment that were a certainty along with ensuring fish had plenty of holding water to ride out the worst of it. The result is a fantastic fishery that now has all of the structural elements for top notch angling and can grow with the property as the vegetation recovers.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Albany County -

While the Laramie River is a notoriously good brown trout fishery, this 3 mile reach was severly lacking structure and quality holding water to retain, recruit and encourage spawning of big browns. This reach also suffered from considerable bank erosion and widening of the channel.

Sweetwater set about the construction of extensive structure, channel and riffle enhancements, and bank restoration in this wide ranging project. Post construction sampling efforts and catch rates have confirmed this fishery has been dramatically elevated. With multiple age classes prospering along with an abundance of big browns, this fishery is finally operating at peak potential.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement Larimer County -

Northwest of Fort Collins, this section of Trail and Pratt Creeks were somewhat forgotten fisheries. Badly overgrown but possessing excellent potential, Sweetwater created and modified over 2.5 miles of habitat and restored angler access along the entire reach. With carefully prescribed thinning and structure placements, these creeks are now a shining example of "diamond in the rough" fisheries.

Fisheries Creation and Enhancement, Platte County -

Primarily a cattle operation, the ownership of this property was looking to utilize the small stream on property for an additional recreational opportunity. Having a fairly steep grade, Sweetwater implemented numerous pools and overwintering habitats throughout the two miles enabling small Slate Creek to flex as a big time fishing amenity.

Stillwater Fishery Creation, Platte County

Looking for an amenity to compliment the outstanding hunting on this property, a series of three ponds were constructed. Complete with solar aeration, these ponds offer an opportunity to catch trophy class trout with an unparalleled views in the rugged and beautiful landscape of the Laramie Range.

Fishery Creation and Enhancement Gunnison County

With 2.5 miles of spring creek, this landowner was looking to create an outstanding, small water experience. Numerous riffle and pooling structures were created along with two in-channel ponds. Each pond was constructed with the intent for angling and as a refuge for migrating waterfowl. With that in mind, Sweetwater not only designed and constructed for depth and fish structure but also to include wetland benches, transition areas, feeding areas and brooding areas.

Fishery Creation and Enhancement Gunnison County -

With the overwhelming success of the neighboring spring creek development, a subsequent effort was undertaken to replicate and build on that success. Waterfowl ponds in place, Sweetwater began the familiar task of creating yet another blue ribbon spring creek. With an abundance of excellent and diverse habitats, this creek has truly found its potential.

Stillwater Fishery Creation, Platte County -

At the base of Squaw Peak in the Laramie Range, this 2 acre beauty exemplifies what it means to have a private pond paradise. With multiple sheet flow drainages converging on the project site, success was a complex achievement requiring Sweetwater to employ extensive creativity an engineering efforts. The resulting fishery is complete with fantastic depth and structure to compliment the incredible trophy trout found within.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement Gunnison County

Big Blue Creek is a wild Brook Trout fishery that starts its journey deep in the San Juan Mountains, at the base of Uncompahgre Peak, and flows north into the Gunnison River just downstream of Blue Mesa Reservoir. The 2-plus miles of creek flowing through the project area is really a tale of two streams.

The upper half wild and rolling, the lower half much more subdued and typical of a mountain meadow stream. Both halves, while having unique limitations of their own, suffered from a common and overwhelming lack of instream habitat along with severe access constraints.

Several months of extensive bed-form maniuplation, point bar establishment, and structure implementation yielded stunning results. Accompanied by the creation of an extensive trail and beat system, this exceptional fishery now offers a world class angling experience.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Larimer County -

Although Sheep Creek is on the smaller side of typical fishieries projects, it was hugely rewarding and the amenety unparalleled for light line angling.

With the initial visit, we knew this little fishery had the potential to be an excellent mountain retreat. Typical of small mountain streams, this Brook Trout fishery lacked quality low flow and over-wintering habitats. Additionally, access was extremely difficult with dog-hair timber stands and willow hedgerows lining the banks.

To gain access, a strategic and thorough thinning operation was conducted and included an atv trail, fishing beats and even picnic areas. Following the access creation, SFG utilized extensive bed-form development and structure placement to ensure a productive habitat would be available throughout the year.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Platte County -

Situated south-west of Wheatland on Sybille Creek, this ongoing stream and pond project has all of the amenities that an angler could hope for. Traditionally managed as an agricultural property, the creek was inaccessable due to the dense and overgrown willow community lining the banks.

Also as is often the case with streams in transition from the mountains to the plains, sparse fish habitat was a major limiting factor for what was otherwise an ideal fishery. A comprehensive thinning effort and considerable machine operation allowed the stream to rise to its full potential as a five star fishery.

The creation of a two acre pond, complete with headwall, flow control structures and in-pond habitats added the cherry on top of this immaculate property.

Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement, Gunnison County -
Posessing incredible potential, the primary limiting factor for this fishery was the lack of diverse habitats including high and low water refuge. This reach was also previously channeled which discouraged sinuosity, flooded riffle zones and drastically impacted macroinvertebrate populations.

As part of the overall plan, SFG reintroduced sinuosity at key points, implemented structures that provided refuge for all seasons and increased riffle areas to support excellent fish populations.

Critical Habitat Restoration and Amenity Development, Garfield County - Previously considered one of Colorado's finest western slope Elk, Deer and Turkey hunting destinations. Ranch management wanted to increase the recreational capacity of the ranch.

Following an SFG fisheries feasibility study, it was concluded that there was approximately five miles of native Colorado River Cutthroat habitat and over 9 acres of off-channel ponds that could be developed and incorporated into the ranches already attractive western recreational destination identity. After four quarters of SFG data collection and design, SFG's design implementation produced a restored watershed capable of supporting one of Colorado's threatened treasures, the Colorado River Cutthroat.

Spring Creek Design and Development, Routt County -
SFG was contracted to increase angling opportunities along an undeveloped off-channel braid of the Elk River of in Routt County. SFG's goal of utilizing existing salmonid resources from the adjacent productive fishery will provide additional recreation year round on this already magnificent ranch.

This stream has a controlled continuous flow of up to 15 cfs and is approximately 1.3 miles in length. The stream corridor averages 12 to 15 wide incorporating the natural landscape to give the feeling of a true western spring creek. Additionally, there are 2 separate specialized habitat sections roughly 40 to 50 feet wide, 12 feet deep, engineered with the intention of recruiting trophy Elk River trout as well as creating a viable self sustaining fishery supporting healthy populations of Rainbow, Cutthroat and Brown trout.

Brown Trout Fishery Rejuvenation, Jefferson County -
Annually challenged by increased summer temperatures and lack of overwintering habitat, a group of conservation minded landowners contracted SFG to remedy these limiting factors associated with their Brown trout fishery located minutes from downtown Denver.

By addressing key factors, such as inconsistent flow regimes, bank erosion and sediment transport, SFG was able to design habitat enhancements allowing for both salmonid and macroinvertebrate population expansion and recruitment. Increasing over wintering habitat availability will offer refuge during the ice covered winter months while providing alternative holding habitats from warming summer temperatures.

Large-scale River Restoration and Multi-Specie Fishery Improvement: Steamboat Springs, CO - A large-scale river restoration project was recently completed by SFG on over 2 miles of the Elk River in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. The fishery suffered from a lack of peak-flow piscine refuge, overwintering habitat, and variable-flow habitat availability, resulting in critically low age-class recruitment and ecological productivity.

SFG’s Strategic Enhancement and Restoration plan relieved these ecosystem stressors through study-based design and structural implementation, resulting in a completely restored and productive system with incredible recruitment potential. Continual biological monitoring on this river fishery will ensure the client’s desired fisheries goals are exceeded.

The cattle ranch will be transformed by Sweetwater Fisheries Group's design and construction of in-stream salmonid habitat improvements, along with a riparian corridor trail system to increase accessibility. The fishery has been depressed by historical land practices, but through proper stewardship and consulting by SFG, the fishery and ecology will be elevated to a tremendous level.