A growing chorus of hunters, anglers, and other public lands advocates are encouraging President Biden to protect and Dolores River Canyons region in southwest Colorado as a national monument. A multitude of groups/stakeholders, including Sportsmen For The Dolores and many others, are rallying outdoorsmen and women to help push this proposal over the finish line.  

At times when other pathways to protection are stuck in Congressional gridlock, the Antiquities Act allows the President to permanently protect deserving public lands from over-exploitation and consumptive use. When combined with extensive public input, this tool gives us the opportunity to conserve high-quality fish and wildlife habitat, allow existing land uses to continue, and ensure current and future generations can enjoy these wild places.[1]

Hunter-Angler Perspectives

Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) Central West Slope Regional Director Craig Grother was featured in an August 2024 9News story about the proposed Dolores River Canyons National Monument. “One of the concerns people here have is, well, we like it the way it is. We don’t want a bunch of people to show up,” Criag said. “Well, unfortunately, it’s already happening. The secret’s out.”[2]

“Craig supports the monument and fears without it these rivers and lands could be loved to death,” 9News added. “As a hunter and angler, you know, we need wild places. We have very few of them left,” Craig explained. “Places where Craig can try to land a big catch,” 9News emphasized.[3] Scott Braden of the Colorado Wildlands Project adds, “It gives us a chance to be proactive rather than reactive …”[4]

“As a proud member of the Colorado chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers and a proponent of the Sportsmen for the Dolores coalition, I am writing to voice my strong support for the designation of the Dolores Canyons as a national monument,” Colorado BHA West Slope chapter leader Collin Hildebrand wrote in a July Durango Herald opinion piece. “Our connection to the outdoors is rooted in long-standing traditions of hunting, fishing, and exploring the wild places that define Colorado.”[5]

“The Dolores Canyon Country holds a special place in our hearts. It is a prime habitat for deer, elk and desert bighorn sheep,” Collin added. “Like many areas in the West, the Dolores faces mounting pressures from population growth, unmanaged recreation, and development. The threat of losing these wild landscapes looms large. As hunters and anglers, we recognize the urgent need for conservation. A national monument designation for the Dolores Canyons would be a crucial step.”[6]

“Such protection would safeguard wildlife habitat, while ensuring public access for hunting and fishing. We’ve seen the positive impact of national monument designations in Colorado, such as the Browns Canyon National Monument along the Arkansas River,” Collin explained. “In Montrose and Mesa counties, a national monument designation for the Dolores Canyons would not only protect public lands but also boost the local economy. It ensures that future generations of hunters and anglers can enjoy this national treasure.”[7]

“Colorado BHA has a long track record of supporting national monument designations, including Browns Canyon National Monument in 2015 and Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument in 2022,” chapter Co-Chair David Lien (a former Air Force officer) said. “Currently, Colorado’s hunters and anglers have perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to protect a wide swath of public lands habitat in southwest Colorado’s Dolores River Canyons region. In April, we joined hunters, anglers, rafters, business owners, and many others from across the state and region in supporting a proposed Dolores River Canyons National Monument.”[8]

Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper have held multiple listening sessions in the area over the past year-plus. In a joint statement to 9NEWS both senators laid out some guidelines they hope President Biden will follow if he decides to move forward with a declaration. Those recommendations include allowances for ranchers to continue using the land for grazing, and a protection of all valid existing mining rights.[9]

Call For Action

Hunting and angling are allowed in national monuments and would continue to be managed by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Recreational activities like hiking, camping, and rafting are similarly welcome in national monuments. Legally designated roads and trails would remain open to the public, while new management plans can help reduce illegal off-road vehicle use and the damage to streams and upland habitats sometimes caused by this activity.[10]

The growing threat of illegal off-road use is so great that BHA offers a $500 reward for information leading to the conviction of illegal OHV/ATV use, e-bike use, and dumping on public lands. In addition, during 2023 the Colorado BHA chapter increased its reward from $500 to $1,000 for reports or information leading to a conviction of those responsible for building illegal trails on public lands.[11]

Traditional land uses like livestock grazing are also allowed in national monuments and monument designations only apply to federally managed lands, so private, tribal, county, city, and state property would not be affected by this designation. Monuments also protect “existing rights.” This means that most public and commercial activities continue after monuments are established. These existing rights can include existing oil and gas leases, valid mining claims, rights-of-way and utility infrastructure, commercial hunting and fishing guiding and livestock grazing.[12]

After decades of advocacy by local hunters and anglers (and many others) to protect the Dolores Canyons, now is the time to take action. A recent poll found that 84 percent of Colorado voters, including 71percent of Republicans and 93 percent of Democrats, support designating a national monument to protect the Dolores Canyons.[13]

Another poll found that 92 percent of Coloradans support protections. Over 100,000 people have signed petitions calling for a national monument. More than 200 businesses have endorsed the proposed monument. The City of Grand Junction—the largest gateway community adjacent to the Dolores Canyons—supports a national monument designation.[14]

The Dolores River faces threats from industrial scale mining, habitat fragmentation, and unmanaged recreation. Protecting intact habitat for mule deer, elk, and desert bighorn sheep, particularly winter range and movement corridors, is essential for retaining quality sporting opportunities. Now is the time for action![15] For additional information see Sportsmen for the Dolores.

Additional/Related Information

-Sportsmen for the Dolores: https://www.sportsmenforthedolores.org/

-“Hunters And Anglers Call For President Biden To Designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/26/24.

-“Hunters and anglers call for Biden to designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument.” Montrose Press: 8/24/24.

-“Hunters and anglers call for Biden to designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument.” The Durango Herald: 8/22/24.

-r/PublicLands (8/22/24). “Hunters and anglers call for Biden to designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument.”

-“Hunters and anglers call for Biden to designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument.” Yahoo News: 8/21/24.

-“Hunters and anglers call for Biden to designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument: Area faces threats from industrial scale mining, habitat fragmentation, unmanaged recreation.” Colorado Newsline: 8/21/24.

-Thomas Plank. “Colorado’s Senators Share BHA Priorities for the Dolores Canyon National Monument Proposal.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 7/8/24.

-Collin Hildebrand is a sportsman, bird hunter, dog trainer, and conservationist. “Rooted in long-standing traditions of hunting, fishing, exploring wild places.’” The Durango Herald: 7/7/24.

-Kaden McArthur. “BHA, TU, Launch Sportsmen for the Dolores.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 6/7/24.

-“Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Support Dolores River Canyons National Monument Proposal.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 4/5/24.

-Leslie Kaminski. “Conserving the Dolores River canyons is a gain for Western Slope hunters.” Grand Junction (Colo.) Daily Sentinel: 3/8/24.

-“A Hunter-Angler (Hell-Raisin’ & Habitat Savin’) Guide To Winning: Colorado BHA Examples (Browns Canyon & Camp Hale).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 10/23/23.

-“Conserving large tracts of undeveloped public lands as national monuments is essential to America’s hunting and fishing traditions.” –John Gale, former BHA Conservation Director[16]

National Monuments

-Katie McKalip. “BHA Commends Administration Designation of National Monument in Colorado.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 10/12/24.

-Katie McKalip. “National Monuments, A Net Gain for Hunters and Anglers.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 7/27/23.

-Drew YoungeDyke. “A Monumental Win for Fishing and Hunting.” Trout Unlimited: 7/27/23.

-Noah Davis. “National Monuments, A Net Gain for Hunters and Anglers.” Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership: 7/27/23.

-Amber Kornak. “Hunt-Fish Community Outlines Principles And Priorities For National Monuments.” National Deer Association: 8/4/23.

-Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) Report. “Hunter & Angler Tenets for New Monuments.” BHA: 10/12/22.

-Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. “Hunting National Monuments.” BHA National Monument Hunting & Fishing Maps (for six Western national monuments): 2017.

-David A. Lien. “Antiquities Act protects hunting and angling on public lands.” Greeley Tribune: 4/26/17.

-“National Monuments Report.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 2/19/16.

Trails Information/Resources

-Colorado Parks and Wildlife. “Colorado’s 2021 Guide for Planning Trails with Wildlife in Mind.” Appendix A includes standard protocols for how and where the trails are developed (i.e., Avoid, Minimize, Mitigate).

-David A. Lien. “Project 2025 puts public lands in peril.” Colorado Newsline: 8/2/24.

-David A. Lien. “Elk Hunting: A State of Mind (& Body).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 11/21/23.

-David A. Lien. “Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Increase Reward For Illegal Trail Construction (Help Stop Trail Building ‘Free-For-All’).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 4/10/23.

-Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP). “Outdoor Recreation and Elk: A Colorado Case Study. Where do elk habitat and recreational trails overlap in Colorado, and why does it matter?” TRCP Case Study: 2022.

-Liz Rose. “40% of Most Important Colorado Elk Habitat Is Affected by Trail Use.” Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership: 9/27/22.

-Brien Webster and Kriss Hess. “CO BHA Publishes Memo on Illegal Trails.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 8/24/22.

-David A. Lien. “Reward For Illegal Trail Construction Offered By Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 1/31/22.

-Brittany Parker. “Trails Based Recreation And Its Impacts On Wildlife.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 1/31/22.

-David A. Lien. “More trails a slippery slope to less hunting.” Grand Junction (Colo.) Daily Sentinel: 12/9/21.

-David A. Lien. “Trails vs. Elk: ‘They’re Just Dying Off.’” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 12/3/21.

-Brien Webster. “Colorado BHA Report: Impacts of Off-Road Recreation on Public Lands Habitat.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 5/21/18.

-Sylvia Kantor. “Seeking Ground Less Traveled: Elk Responses to Recreation.” Science Findings #219 (U.S. Department of Agriculture-Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station): September 2019. https://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/sciencef/scifi219.pdf

-The importance of roadless areas to Colorado’s fish, wildlife, hunting and angling is detailed in this Trout Unlimited report (authored by David Petersen and Keith Curley): “Where The Wild Lands Are: Colorado.”

[1] Sophia Kaelke. “Can National Monuments protect America's best hunting and fishing spots? Some of the best fishing and hunting opportunities in the United States are found in our national monuments.” Trout Unlimited: 10/9/24.

[2] 9News (8/15/24). “Communities concerned over a proposed national monument in southwest Colorado.”

[3] Ibid.

[4] Evan Kruegel and Anne Herbst. “Proposed national monument would be largest in Colorado.” 9News: 8/15/24.

[5] Collin Hildebrand of Grand Junction is a sportsman, bird hunter, dog trainer, and conservationist. “‘Rooted in long-standing traditions of hunting, fishing, exploring wild places.’” The Durango Herald: 7/7/24.

[6] Collin Hildebrand of Grand Junction is a sportsman, bird hunter, dog trainer, and conservationist. “‘Rooted in long-standing traditions of hunting, fishing, exploring wild places.’” The Durango Herald: 7/7/24.

[7] Ibid.

[8] David A. Lien. “Hunters and anglers call for Biden to designate Dolores River Canyons National Monument.” The Durango Herald: 8/22/24.

[9] Evan Kruegel and Anne Herbst. “Proposed national monument would be largest in Colorado: The proposed Dolores Canyons National Monument would be big enough to fit all nine of the state's current monuments inside of it.” 9News: 8/15/24.

[10] Sophia Kaelke. “Can National Monuments protect America's best hunting and fishing spots? Some of the best fishing and hunting opportunities in the United States are found in our national monuments.” Trout Unlimited: 10/9/24.

[11] David A. Lien. “Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Increase Reward For Illegal Trail Construction (Help Stop Trail Building ‘Free-For-All’).” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 4/10/23.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Sportsmen for the Dolores. “Protect the Dolores Canyons in 2024.” SFTD: 10/23/24. https://www.sportsmenforthedolores.org/

[14] Protect the Dolores. “Western Slope Leaders Call for Swift Action from Senators on Dolores Canyons National Monument.” Press Release: 7/3/24.

[15] https://www.sportsmenforthedolores.org/home/#map

[16] Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA). “BHA Maps Hunting Opportunity in At-Risk National Monuments.” AmmoLand.com: 11/17/17.