By Jim Sauter
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The Dog Days of Summer have arrived.  Technically, the Dog Days of Summer are from July 3 to August 11 soon after the summer solstice.  Usually, these are the hottest and most unbearable days of the year.  But where did this term come from?    

According to Greek mythology, Sirius was the dog of the hunter Orion, and the ancient Romans placed the star in the constellation Canis Major (Latin for “Greater Dog”). The Romans thus referred to the sweltering period when the rising of the sun and Sirius converged as the “dies caniculares” or “days of the dog star.” By the 1500s, the English world began to call the same summertime point on the astronomical calendar as the “dog days.”

Due to a wobble in the Earth’s rotation that shifts the position of the stars in the night sky, the dates of the “dog days” now fall several weeks later on the calendar than they did thousands of years of ago.  Eventually in the distant future, the “sky dog days” will be during winter months.  (Source:  Christopher Klein, The History Channel)

The implications of this time of year for stream monitoring and fishing is that our air and stream temperatures are at their peaks.  Fishing early morning hours or at dusk is a good strategy.  On extremely hot days, it may be best to stay home and tie some hoppers.  Our highest water temperatures during this last month were recorded on Belle Creek and the Little Canon River at a toasty 68 degrees.  The lowest water temperatures that I noticed on a metro streams in July wer 59 degrees on Hay Creek and Eagle Creek.  I did also notice an amazing 51 degree reading on Trout Creek on July 24th in southern Wisconsin.​

T.U.N.E. Camp MN, a 5-day conservation and ecology camp for girls and boys age 11-16, wrapped up a very successful 2023 session in Lanesboro on July 17th. You can see more pictures of the event on the T.U.N.E. website.

As part of the programming, TCTU board member Paul Johnson taught the campers to tie their own flies. The next day, TCTU volunteers helped the kids catch fish with the flies they tied. Thank you to Paul, board member Yves Charron, and all the other TCTU members who volunteered for this event.

We'd also like to send an extra big thank you to T.U.N.E. Camp MN Superintendent Bruce Gockowski. Bruce organizes this wonderful event every year, and it's one we at TCTU are proud to support. To learn more about T.U.N.E. camp MN, visit their website.

by Bob Luck, TCTU President
Regular blog readers are aware that we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to remove two dams on the Kinnickinnic River, an iconic trout stream that is the home water for much of our membership.  This year, the US Army Corps of Engineers is conducting a feasibility study on the removal of the dams and restoration of the river corridor.  This feasibility study is the first big step in developing a firm plan for the restoration of the river, and can bring up to $10 million in federal funding to the project. TCTU members have provided critical seed money to get this project going.  
The Corps will be hosting an open house on Tuesday August 15th from 6 pm to 8 pm at the River Falls Public Library.  Corps officials will provide a detailed overview of the feasibility study, and welcome the public to join and provide comment. River Falls City Officials will also be present.  The Corps' press release announcing the Open House is here.
This is a great opportunity for us to show our support for the restoration, provide comments, and get our questions answered.  I plan to attend, and I hope that you can join, too! A strong contingent of TU members at this meeting will demonstrate to the Corps and the City just how important this project is to us.
If you would like to read more about the Kinni Restoration project, please check out this page on our website.  If you have any questions about the upcoming open house, feel free to email me at [email protected].