Pete Wadden is Town of Vail’s Watershed Education Coordinator. We at Eagle River Watershed Council work with him on a regular basis: we collaborate on everything from educational programming (check out the Sustainable Landscaping Series taking place every Wednesday through May 27; the series is filling in for Lunch with the Locals) to riparian rehabilitation efforts. Kate Isaacson and our loyal volunteers often work alongside Pete with the Town’s Restore the Gore campaign and associated water-quality improvement efforts. And as of March, the Watershed Council also welcomes Pete to our Board of Directors, in which he is active in several committees and a source of experience in water leadership in our region.

We know how active Pete is in our river recreation community and consulted him on a few topics regarding our Peak Flow Prediction Contest. We also took a few minutes to pose a few questions to Pete to find out his take on everything from why runoff is so important to how to get involved in the river community here in the Eagle Valley. Thanks for all your help, Pete!

  • What is the best part of your job working in river education for the Town of Vail? 

I love that my job allows me to help protect and restore an ecosystem I care about. I feel very fortunate to have work that matters and means something to me and that I believe has a positive impact on the environment and our community. It doesn’t hurt that it gets me outside observing the creek, planting trees and enjoying all that our mountain town has to offer.

  •  What role does runoff have in our watershed?

Runoff is everything in the mountains of Colorado! Most of our precipitation in Eagle County falls as snow. That means all the water that human communities and ecological communities rely on is stored in a snowy reservoir that trickles and then rushes down from the mountain peaks each spring. The cycle of runoff drives the life cycles of fish, insects, birds and amphibians. That runoff also carries a lot along with it on its journey downhill. If the roads it flows over have oil and salt on their surfaces, runoff will transport those pollutants into our waterways. Runoff sustains mountain ecosystems and communities all along the Colorado River, through seven American states and a portion of the Republic of Mexico. As a community at the top of an enormous and dynamic watershed, we owe it to our neighbors downstream to be good stewards of this life-giving resource.

Celebrating runoff is the basis of Eagle River Watershed Council’s Peak Flow Prediction Contest. To learn more and participate, check the contest out here! It closes Sunday May 10th.

  • Do you enjoy river recreation and are you part of the river recreation communities outside of work here in the Eagle Valley? 

Water has been at the center of my life since I was a kid. I was an avid sailor and sea kayaker on the Great Lakes as a kid growing up in Ohio. When I moved to Maine for college, I was on the sailing team and began to get into whitewater paddling and fly fishing. In Colorado, the rivers are where the water is. I spend my free time fishing the streams, running the rivers or simply taking them in. The life of our local waterways and the steady advance of spring have brought me a lot of solace in this time of uncertainty and isolation. Our society seems to have hit the pause button, but nature marches on.

  • If people are looking for a way to get into river recreation activities, where or how would you recommend they start? 

There are so many ways and so many opportunities to enjoy and interact with the waterways in our valley! My two favorites, running whitewater and fly fishing, are at opposite ends of the spectrum in some ways, but Eagle County is an international destination for both. Alpine Quest Sports and the Alpine Kayak/ SUP School are great organizations to help you figure out what gear you need to own and skills to develop to run rivers safely. The Alpine Quest used gear swap will begin on May 8 this year and is a great way to find affordable, used gear. Whitewater rafting companies can be a great informational resource and offer a great opportunity to dip your toe in the water for a day.

If you are interested in fishing, the fly guiding shops offer some great opportunities like free fly-tying clinics and free women’s flyfishing clinics. I also find them to be much more forthcoming with information about where to fish and what lures and techniques to use than the stereotype of tight-lipped fly guides would suggest. Spending a day with a professional guide can teach you a lot about fishing. Those guys and gals can help you improve your cast, learn to read water, and learn to identify hatches and select flies accordingly.

Thanks, Pete, for sharing your thoughts with us and for doing all that you do to advocate for our rivers! We’re proud to work alongside you! As a side note, we are proud to partner with Alpine Quest, through the Land & Rivers Fund. If you are interested in trying flyfishing, we recommend checking out Vail Valley Anglers and Minturn Anglers; both are partners in the Watershed Council’s Business Partner Program. Thank you!

To learn more about the Eagle River Watershed Council, our mission and what it means to be an advocate for the rivers, email info@erwc.org. We welcome a conversation with you!