Cyuest coy, Povicil 
by TOM McNALLY 
Outdoor Editor, The Chicago Tribune 
“It’s a ‘dam’ shame— 
the deathsoriBigyHolerae ss 
Long time readers of my Tribune 
column probably are aware of the 
long-time love affair I’ve had with 
the Big Hole River, in southwestern 
Montana. Over the years I’ve fre- 
quently described its fantastic trout 
fishing and scenery. Quite possibly 
10 years ago the Big Hole was the 
world’s best known trout stream. 
No more. 
Today, the Big Hole is dead. 
It has been slaughtered, unnec- 
essarily, by selfish, disinterested 
men. 
A FEW WEEKS ago | stood on a 
shoulder of the Big Hole, near the 
town of Twin Bridges, Mont., and 
I’m not ashamed to say | could 
have cried. 
Where once crystal-clear, cold 
water sang swiftly thru riffles; 
where once there was a deep, cold 
pool; where once a_ white-water 
rapid sparkled in the sun—now 
there was nothing but a broad, flat, 
Shallow ribbon of warm water. 
There were no pools, no runs, no 
riffles. 
That portion of the Big Hole 
had been destroyed, ecologically 
speaking, by men with bulldozers. 
The Army Corps of Engineers has 
bulldozed and channelized a major 
portion of the Big Hole, which 
winds for more than 100 miles 
thru. Montana’s famed Bitterroot 
country. The purpose supposedly 
has been to prevent or to .slow 
spring-time flooding, and to aid 
ranchers in irrigating their fields. 
Experts explain, however, that 
bulldozing and channelization do 
not halt flooding but, in fact, hasten 
severe flooding in downstream 
areas. And ranchers have never 
needed assistance from the Corps 
in procuring water for irrigation 
from the Big Hole. 
Unfortunately, the lasting de- 
struction of the Big Hole River is 
