Dec. 2021 - 37

this area have boosted the fuel load, " said Sheridan
Region Terrestrial Habitat Biologist Todd
Caltrider, who is leading habitat improvement
projects in the area.
" This increases the potential for high-intensity
wildfires and protecting stands from
these types of catastrophic wildfires is critical
to sustaining winter deer habitat. The mahogany
stands that burned in 2006 were heavily
encroached with conifers, enabling the fire to
increase in heat and intensity and destroy the
mahogany stands. Curl-leaf mountain mahogany
is a slow growing plant species, and we do
not expect these burned stands to come back
to their original density and size for at least
another 100 years. "
In response to the fire in 2006 Game and
Fish, in partnership with the BLM, initiated
fuel reduction projects on Ed O. in 2011 to
eliminate conifers from mahogany stands.
Removal is slow and laborious with hand
crews using chainsaws to mechanically cut
and scatter the trees.
The work has expanded to neighboring
BLM and private property. To date conifers
have been eliminated from more than 3,500
acres in the southern Bighorn Mountains. But
much remains to be done. Caltrider estimates
57,000 additional acres of crucial mule deer
habitat in the region are threatened by conifer
encroachment.
Fantastic fishing
The Ed O. is the domain of elk, deer and
other wildlife in the winter. But when it opens
annually to human presence in mid-May, it
offers anglers a special experience.
" Fishing the Middle Fork of the Powder
River is undoubtedly an adventure, " said Gordon
Edwards, a Sheridan Region fish biologist.
" The upper reach is a very long drive from Kaycee
or Buffalo into remote country. This stream
gives you a place to get off the beaten path and
fish somewhere wild, away from civilization. "
The Middle Fork of the Powder River sustains
wild brook, brown and rainbow trout
populations and Game and Fish does not stock
fish in this stretch of the river. Instead, fish
managers aim to keep natural reproduction,
rapid growth of trout and fishing pressure
balanced.
" Overall trout density is on par with large,
well-known rivers like the Bighorn and North
Platte, " Edwards said. " The average trout is
about 12 inches and fish in the 14-to-16-inch
range are common. The occasional bruiser near
18-to-20 inches is out there. "
There are three BLM fishing access sites on
the Outlaw Cave Road. On the south side of
the WHMA you can find the rugged Miller
Trail, which leads hikers and anglers down into
the Middle Fork within the WHMA proper.
Camping is allowed with a 14-day limit and
certified weed-free hay is required if utilizing
the unit with horses.
" If you can visit the area when the grass
greens up and just following a thunderstorm,
it's an amazing place to be, " Roseberry said.
" It is full of history, lots of nooks, crannies,
canyons and caves and is a pretty unique area
to experience. "
- Christina Schmidt is the information and education
specialist in the Sheridan region, and is a regular
contributor to Wyoming Wildlife magazine.
Wyoming Wildlife | 37
Good-sized trout, like this brown held by Wyoming Game and Fish Department Assistant Fisheries Management Coordinator Mark
Smith, can be caught on the Ed O. Taylor Wildlife Habitat Management Area. (WGFD photo)
" The average trout is about 12
inches and fish in the 14-to-16-inch
range are common. The occasional
bruiser near 18-to-20 inches is
out there. " - Gordon Edwards

Dec. 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Dec. 2021