As with many substantial stories, investigation into the greenback's history tends to provide the investigator with more questions than answers. It is this seemingly endless quest of discovering and subsequently attempting to answer these questions that has resulted in the fascinating story that I have been familiarizing myself with recently. I have decided to add to my experience of learning about this mysterious fish by attempting to actually catch and hold one. The experience will serve as more of a personal adventure in pursuit of fulfilling a dream, than any sort of confirmation of the fish's existence or lack thereof. Because this fish is so precariously endangered according to popular belief in the field, information regarding the exact location of the one known remaining population of pure greenback cutthroat trout is not easy to find. Even if I am able to discover the exact location, actually gaining access to the location might prove to be quite a challenge in its own right. All that I know right at this point is that the population exists in a small section of Bear Creek which is located west of Colorado Springs. The general idea is to document the whole process of locating, accessing, and catching what is probably the most endangered and simultaneously high profile trout species in Colorado and possibly in the world. I think that what will be interesting about my account from a human interest perspective will be the inside look at how conservation efforts actually materialize. The audience will be afforded a perspective on how this type of environmental protection appears from the lens of the subject that the protection is designed to protect against. Along with this unique perspective, it is possible that this experience will provide some opportunity for suspenseful writing. Although an account of my personal quest to catch and release a pure greenback is going to be the platform of my next piece of writing, another creative nonfiction take on the greenback story sounds even more interesting to me. I think it would be fascinating to do a little "gunkholing" into the lives of the main people involved in the greenback story. I would love to know why it is that people like Jessica Metcalf and Robert Behnke have dedicated huge chunks of their lives to this one little fish? What makes these people tick and why? After all, if it were not for them and their associates we would just be happily enjoying the apparently identical hybrid species that inhabit many lakes and streams of this state; fully believing them to be our beloved greenbacks.
RSS Feed