Sportsmen Welcome Movement to Conserve Colorado's Thompson Divide

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers commends the recent decision by the Bureau of Land Management to safeguard high quality undeveloped habitat in Colorado's Thompson Divide by cancelling controversial oil and gas leases in the region.
Located west of Carbondale, the Thompson Divide provides one of the largest remaining undeveloped tracts of mid-elevation big game habitat in the state and serves as the headwaters to four high-quality trout fisheries, one of which is a gold medal water.

The BLM’s announcement will help secure public backcountry hunting and fishing grounds that Theodore Roosevelt once described as “a great, wild country … where the mountains crowded together in chain, peak, and tableland; all of the higher ones wrapped in an unrent shroud of snow.”

Colorado BHA Board Member, Bob Shettle of El Jebel added, “hunters, anglers and other Roaring Fork Valley locals know how important the Thompson Divide area is for fish and wildlife and have been working to protect this landscape for years. In the face of increased development, migratory corridor fragmentation, and cumulative habitat impacts, we’re encouraged to see the BLM strive towards greater balance and cancel these leases for the benefit of our quality fish and wildlife resources.”

BHA is committed to continuing our work on behalf of the untrammeled lands in and around the Thompson Divide. These lands fuel healthy populations of fish and wildlife and support longstanding outdoor traditions – traditions that collectively generate more than $30 million for the nation’s outdoor-reliant economy.  Join us to get more involved with efforts like this!

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