In addition to coldwater conservation projects within South Mountain State Park, the adoption of the park has created a number of opportunity to help educate the public about our coldwater resoureces. Visit the kiosk develop by Rocky River Trout Unlimited member Gene Vaughn.

Rocky River Trout Unlimited often schedules a Streamside Day Trip to the park and members frequent the park for families outings to picnic, hike and fish. Some of our Charlotte-Metro schools that participate in our Trout in the Classroom program plan their release day field trip to the park. Park staff, teachers, parents and Rocky River Trout Unlimited members all assist with releasing the trout, sampling and identifying the many insects that provide food for the newly release trout and other aquatic life in the stream. The kids love to get their feet wet (or even their clothing) and learn all about bugs!

Annual Nature Day at South Mountain State Park

Rocky River Trout Unlimited has participated in the Annual Nature Day Festival for a number of years as a conservation partner with the park. Our booth is promotes the Chapter and Trout Unlimited with membership applications, fly tying demonstrations and a hands-on fly casting experience. Chapter volunteers that participate in this family oriented public event are provided  lunch and typically have time in the late-afternoon to clock some time on the water fly fishing Jacob Fork Creek. For more information about our closest streams, the park and the next Nature Day, click here. Then search on South Mountain. The Nature Day information will  be posted under activies about 60 days prior to the event in late September.

South Mountain State Park Conservation Effort

After a rigorous hiking, the Angler is standing at the top of High Shoals Falls. The falls plunges 80 feet down and separates the Wild regulated portion Jacob Fork Creek into two distinct section.

Stream Projects and Nature Day contact:
                            
Ranger Cheryl Waltz                            cheryl.waltz@ncparks.gov                         
  (828) 433-4772

South Mountains State Park 
3001 South Mountains Park Avenue  Connelly Springs, NC  28612

The conservation effort at South Mountian State Park was a joint multi-year (2013-2018) partnering program to enhance the preservation, protection and management of the wild and native trout in the South Mountains of North Carolina. The conservation effort is sponsored by NC State Parks and Rocky River Trout Unlimited as well as supported by NC WIldlife Resources Commission, NC state council Trout Unlimited, and Trout Unlimited national.

As North Carolinians we are extremely fortunate to have a large portion of the South Mountains as a state park. This very unique, stand-alone mountain range with several cold water mountain streams contains healthy populations of wild and native trout. South Mountain State Park preserves, protects and manages over 18,000 acres in and around the central mountain peaks which include the pristine headwaters of Jacob Fork which flows to the East, Henry Fork which flows to the North and Clear Creek which flows to the west. The headwaters which flow to the South are entirely in the South Mountain Game Lands which borders the Park and not within the Park boundary.

Trout Enhancement and Restoration (TER)
We have established four (4) objectives to complete within a 3-5 year time frame. Actual restoration of a stream to native trout depends on a confidence level that the appropriate strain of brook trout exists, can be transplanted without harm to the source stream and that there is an appropriate habitat available within the park that can successfully sustain a native trout population.

TER Initiative Objectives:
 
Identify, prioritize and complete cold water conservationprojects within South Mountain State Park that are defined while executingthe Trout Enhancement and Restoration (TER) initiative.
 
Develop a comprehensive profile of wild and native trout populations within South Mountain State Park.

Provide a general education to anglers and the general public in regards to wild and native trout populations within the South Mountains. 

Restore one or more selected headwater tributaries within South Mountain State Park to native trout if deemed appropriate by state-of-the-art scientific methods.


Note: Appropriate habitat criteria include locating a natural barrier that can effectively protect a population of re-established native trout.

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Rocky River Chapter of Trout Unlimited (c) 2014