Richard Formato

Richard Formato is an avid catch-and-release fly-fisherman from Wytheville, Va. When not on the water, he operates a small business there. Formato loves to fly-fish in his native Southwest Virginia because of the great water and wonderful people. He also loves to fish the flats and shallows of the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic whenever work and weather permit. He is on the Department of Conservation and Recreation's board of directors and is a trustee of the Shenandoah National Forest and Skyline Drive.

Recent columns

• What about Bob?
• Notes from the Charlotte Fly Show
• A chance meeting
• A wish for Jack

• Column archive
• Talk fly-fishing

Trout Unlimited’s commitment to the restoration of wild and native trout has increased the quality and diversity of trout fishing for everyone, not just TU members.

TU is not exclusively a bastion for fly-fisherman. This is perhaps the biggest misconception.

TU is an organization focused on protecting cold water fisheries.

Were it not for TU members, hundreds of miles of the water that now carry wild trout would still bear the ravages of stream-bank degradation caused by old-style agricultural practices.

TU has been a leading force in helping landowners learn how they can continue successful farming operations and protect cold water streams at the same time.

TU has been a successful advocate for state and federal funding for easements and assistance to provide fencing and off-stream watering systems for livestock.

A great example of TU is the cooperative effort between TU and the commonwealth and landowners with Mossy Creek.

Mossy Creek is a 4-mile special regulation, fly-fishing only stream just outside of Bridgewater off Virginia 42.

Mossy is a spring-fed wonder, meandering through meadows and pastures. It's about 15 feet wide, and holds rainbows and big brown trout.

Mossy’s star power comes from the fact that it is fed by limestone spring near Mount Solon that feeds clear cool water through into the fishery.

Beautiful, usually with gin clear water loaded with aquatic vegetation, it is reminiscent of the fabled spring creeks of Pennsylvania.

Fishing Mossy is an art unto itself. The browns are reclusive and must be tackled with the skill and daring that comes with a perfect one-shot cast at undercuts, edge and grass lines, using a big sculpins or streamer patterns.

Hint: Take lots of big ugly flies, and expect to come home with half of them.

But Mossy Creek wasn't always this way.

During the mid-1970s, TU took action by working with the local landholders to build fences and wooden turnstiles so anglers won't be destroying fences and their waders while going to and from the stream.

TU volunteers have also done the heavy lifting and thankless task by rolling tons of rock and implanting thousands of structures and revetments to create better habitat for trout.

TU’ers also do things like monitor acid rain, which is a huge problem because trout cannot take the hit from wildly unbalanced PH. It is politically active, working with the big power companies to balance their emissions that pollute a lot more than the trout streams.

Were it not for TU members and its environmentally aware partners, our air and waters would be more heavily polluted with the likes of acid emissions and seepage from abandoned mines.

Were it not for TU, thousands of people would not have learned the underlying values of trout fishing: the knowledge of and appreciation for the natural environment that sustains trout and their life cycle, the discipline to master the mental and physical skills required to catch trout, the ethics that underpin the decision to “kill and keep” or release a fish.

Virginia TU is only 3,800 members at present – no more than a small town like Buchanan or Sugar Grove, but it works to preserve some 2,800 miles of cold-water fisheries in the state and to provide opportunities for thousands of residents and non-residents who fish for trout in Virginia.

But TU’s biggest challenge is hatch and develop new generations of cold water conservation anglers who will continue the work of TU after we are all gone.

Nobody reading this will admit that we could be the last generation who will enjoy the water we have now.

But it will happen if we don't start paying more attention, to the water, the land and the fish.

Because of this, whether or not you even fish, TU is relevant for everyone to join and support.

“Healthy streams benefit everyone, not just anglers.”

Who wants to hike or bike by a polluted, dead stream?

All TU chapters meet regularly to yak about fishing the hot spots from Maine to the Bahamas, discuss conservation issues, plan work days on their home waters, organize fundraisers, and, of course, swap a few fish tales and learn how to tie the latest fly patterns.

Trout fisherman are social people too, and many chapters sponsor "Fish with a Friend" programs that connect members in search of fishing companions.

All members also receive a TU patch, decal and TROUT, TU's color periodical that’s loaded with conservation news, updates on TU activities, grassroots success stories, and fishing destinations recommended by "The Budget Angler."

TU offers 10 membership categories at TU.org, which allow individuals and businesses to contribute to TU's mission at the conservation support at levels of their choosing.

Annual dues are $35 for an adult and $20 for a youth membership, tax deductible.

What I like about Trout Unlimited: it is a solid entity, promoting sensible values, with its heart and soul committed to promoting and protecting cold water habitats, and all the benefits we all enjoy from them ... fly rod in hand or not.