2016 Work Schedule
Article written on 2016-09-20 by: Michael Renish
In the books
May 21st:
We are working with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Tammie Paoli and Ron Rhode on the South Branch of the Oconto just above County Highway T. CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates to work site. Tammie and Ron are out of the Peshtigo office.
Members from our brother chapters of the Marinette, Oconto and Wolf River will also join in.
We will congregate at the wayside in Mountain starting at 8am before heading out. CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates to the wayside. From the wayside, we’ll travel north to 64, head west and then back south on Hwy T. There is parking at the work site. We are planning to start working by 9am.
The job is to clear selective tag Alder along the sections of South Branch west of T and most probably, due to the turnout we expect, east of T (downstream). We will haul the downed Alder back into the woods for decomposing. There is no bundling expected.
This area also has handicap boardwalks and fishing piers that need to get repaired at another date.
The tools for this job are waders, gloves, loppers and maybe small branch saws.
Lunch is served by the Livingston’s who are members of the Wolf River Trout Unlimited ( WRTU ). We need an accurate head count so please contact Mike to confirm.
After Lunch, at around 3:30pm, members of the WRTU will help us locate and catch fish on mighty wolf. CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates to the Livingston’s residence.
June 18th:
We are working with the WDNR’s Trout Habitat Operations crews located at Lakewood, Wi and Wild Rose, Wi. Workday coordinators for this event are Shawn Sullivan and Kyle Siebers.
The job site is located on the South Branch of the Oconto River below County W. CLICK HERE for GPS coordinates to the job site.
Note from Shawn: Our work will entail bank cover maintenance, log sill construction, brushing and brush bundling. In general, improve bank-cover longevity, improve fish holding refuge (log sills) and improving depth, resting and feeding cover (brush bundling). This work will improve fishability and increase trout population densities throughout this section.
We will congregate at the wayside in Mountain starting at 8am before heading out. CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates to the wayside. From the wayside, we will travel west on Church Road and then left on County W, traveling about 3.7 miles south and west, to the work site. Please park on the south side of the road.
The tools for this job are waders, gloves, loppers, pointed shovels and maybe small branch saws.
Lunch is at Tracy’s Place which is 2.7 miles south of Mountain from the intersection of Hwy 32 and Cty W and 2.2 miles north of the intersection of where 64 combines with 32. It is on the west side of 32 just .2 mile north of the intersection of 32 and Old 64. CLICK HERE for a Google map to Tracy’s Place in Mountain, WI. Tracy’s number is 715.276.2310.
July 16th:
Tom Moris, from the United States Forest Service ( USFS ) serving the Chequamegon – Nicolet National Forest out of the Laona Ranger Station, will lead the work project on the North Branch of the Oconto River. We’ll work from 9 – 1 pm.
The location of the brushing will take place just off of North Branch Lane on a section above where Round Creek dumps into the North Branch of the Oconto. CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates of the work project section on the N. Br. Oconto.
We will park on one side of North Branch Lane where Round Creek crosses. Please CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates of where we are to park.
We’ll congregate at the intersection of Hwy 32 and North Branch Lane at 8am. CLICK HERE for the GPS coordinates of where we are meeting before heading out to the work site. Tom will also give us some instructions before we head out and I believe he will have a waiver for us to sign.
The job is to remove tag Alders, bundling, installing those bundles and then “use shovels to relocate sand substrate from the river to cover the bundles. We’ll also be adding large wood (logs and root-wads) to the river to create diverse structure habitat.
The tools need for the job are pointed soil shovels, waders, and gloves. If you want to bring some loppers and pruning sheers along, those may come in handy for some touch up.
Note from Tom: Currently there is a high priority focus on this section of river. Recent past electroshocking surveys have confirmed the habitat restoration work we are doing in this area is paying off with more and larger trout. We are excited to upgrade an impounded area upstream to a free flowing river. This will allow the water in this area to run colder which will increase the productivity of this section of the N. Br. Oconto River even more. We are excited to work with TU again this year on this river to improve our cold water resources !
Some of the guys are meeting for breakfast at the Townsend Town Hall at 7am sharp. You are welcome to attend.
We are having lunch at Pichotta’s Pub and Grub, after the work project around 12:30 – 1pm. Their phone number is 715-473-4314, but they are right on main street in Wabeno.
August 20th:
We are working on Ninemile Creek which is a tributary that empties into the Wolf River just north and west of Langlade. We’ve worked on this section many times before and the results are good and getting better.
If you visit the Wolf River Chapter of Trout Unlimited on their Facebook site, you’ll see some of the big trout caught, and released, in the last year. They are some doozies !
We continue our work with Andy Killoren, president of the Wolf River Trout Unlimited (WRTU), and his posse of WRTU members. We also have confirmation of several Oconto River Trout Unlimited (ORTU) members joining us and hopefully the Marinette Trout Unlimited (MTU) as well.
The job of working on the Ninemile consists of brushing touch up on sections between the old railroad bridge and 55, 55 and East Hollister road and then narrowing a section with brush bundles and sediment cover above East Hollister.
We will meet at the usual parking lot LOCATED HERE at 8am sharp. This parking lot is located north, on 55, of the intersection of 64 and 55 at Langlade ~ 5.6 miles on the left. The parking lot is clearly seen to the left and you’ll see many a car starting to congregate. If you cross Hollister Road, you passed the parking lot by about .3 miles.
Crew leads will describe the details of the work and then break us down into subcrews.
The forecast is for some heavy rain in the area, from Friday morning through Saturday evening. However, the forecast is changing with pretty much every run of predictor. We will press on as we are used to working in and around water. Please wear your duck coats. The main concerns are lightning and driving up to the work site. If we experience lightning, will pause until that threat has passed or make the call to shut the project down. Each driver must make the determination on whether to drive in the rain to the work site. Obviously, speed plays a major factor in safety so leave early, slow down or defer to attend altogether. Make the determination for yourself, and your carpool, Saturday morning. Please stay close to radar and prediction center. You can click on the links in the footer to some handy references to weather.
The tools for the job are waders, boots, gloves, long sleeve shirts, hats, loppers, small hand saws, pruners and spade shovels.
Lunch is generously provided by one of our own, Peter Tilleman, at his cabin right off the stream and the Wolf River itself. Peter Tilleman’s cabin is located just down the road from the project. CLICK HERE for directions.
September 17th:
We are working with Kyle Siebers, of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources ( WDNR ) on Beaver Creek off of 21st Road. This is known to many as Holly’s Hole and there is a fishing platform there from years hence. CLICK HERE for GPS coordinates to the work site. We will start to congregate at that intersection at around 8am and parking is on the south side of the creek on the left side.
The job consists of brushing, brush bundling, and generally making the area more fishable and improving the habitat to hold fish. We will also work a little on the platform itself with the bulk of the platform work coming next year. The hope is to divert water energy to scour the silt that has built up in front of the platform which is significant.
The tools for the job are the typical waders, boots, gloves, long sleeve shirts, hats, loppers, small hand saws, pruners and spade shovels. If you have a cordless drill, with appropriate bits, hammers, and crow bars, they may come in handy to make minor repairs to the platform.
Lunch is graciously provided by the Marinette Chapter of Trout Unlimited. They are providing subs from Katie’s Subs located in the quaint town of Pound, WI. We’ll munch down on the subs at Edward Gengler Memorial Park near the Pound ball diamond. You can CLICK HERE for GPS coordinates to the ball diamond.
Please note when traveling to the ball diamond, south on 141, from the work site. You’ll need to exit 64, go west a few tenths of a mile to old 141 and then turn left and travel south to the center of Pound. Once you’re in the center of Pound, the above GPS coordinates will get you right to the spot.