Land (Riparian Zone) Protection

Trout Unlimited national has placed a very high priority on working full time at acquiring, leasing or by other means securing lands with riparian zones that require protection from development in order to assure that the existing native and wild populations of trout are protected. The program leverages funding and the acquition through a circle of non-profit  conservation groups and governmental agencies. In specific cases of access needs to a stream or  based on the angling potential for a section of stream that goes on the market, the program may execute a leveraged acquition for securing simple access rights to a section of stream or acquire all or portions of the riparian zone to prevent dsteamside evelopment.

Curent Projects

Wilson Creek DH below High Bridge.

French Broad headwaters acquisition
The property borders the North Carolina/South Carolina line and harbors native brook trout in the high elevation headwaters of the East Fork French Broad River

North Mills River access acquisition (option to purchased secured)

Rocky River Trout Unlimited was a major contributor to funding the purchase option, a deposit or down payment so to speak. Once the property is acquired and transferred to the public domain, the option funding will be re-imbursed back to the NC state council of Trout Unlimited for use on another land protection initiative. The property will provide a much needed access point for NC Wildlife Resource Commision stocking truck to better distribute trout in the Delayed Harvest (DH) regulated section of the river, North Mills River DH.

Rocky Fork tract acquisition (in process)

The Rocky Fork tract in Tennessee habors native brook trout in the high elevation, rugged terrain. The property is one of the last, large and very remote tracts in the southeast.

Wilson Creek acquisition is a testimony for Land Protection

In 2006, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina (FCNC), on behalf of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC), secured a contract with the Lutz Family Partnership to purchase 649 acres along almost four miles of National Wild and Scenic Wilson Creek in Caldwell County for $7 million dollars. This action was taken in direct response to the results a conservaton study completed by FCNC and NCWRC and in full support of a collaborative effort by a number of conservation organiztion in North Carolina.

As word spread that a developer had secured an option to purchase the tract and had submited plans for 250 homesites along Wilson Creek, NC Wildlife Federatiojn (NCWF), NC state council Trout Unlimited, Rocky River Trout Unlimited and Tablerock Trout Unlimited along with other conservaton organizations all pursued an audience with the Caldwell planning board to postpone any rezoning action until a public ownership plan could be attempted. Meanwhile, the Lutz family reconsidered and agreed to not sell and rezoning the Wilson Creek tract was removed from the planning board agenda.

After several years of clean-up work by NCWRC, anglers now enjoy a world-class public trout fishery, the Delayed Harvest regulated section of WIlson Creek DH.

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Rocky River Chapter of Trout Unlimited - 2014