Category Archives: Fishing Reports

Fishing Reports

Arkansas River – 05/01/2015

Time: 9:30AM – 3:00PM

Location: Fremont – Chafee county line

Fish Landed: 10

Arkansas River 05/01/2015 Photo Album

When we discussed our plans for Friday, Danny decided he wanted retribution for all the lost fish on Thursday and therefore wanted to return to the same place that we fished the previous day. Our plan was locked in, or at least we thought so until I met one of the other young campers at Vallie Bridge. He was wearing a Duke hoodie so I asked him if he was a Duke fan or graduate, and the conversation eventually led to a discussion regarding the whereabouts of the caddis. The young man volunteered that he and his friend were heading downstream toward Texas Creek as some fishermen told them the heaviest hatch was in that locale. Now Danny and I were faced with a dilemma. Should we change our plans to search for the much hyped caddis hatch, or should we return to the Fremont – Chafee county line so Danny could seek vengeance on unsuspecting Arkansas River brown trout?

I suggested that we could spend the morning on a return tour of the Fremont – Chafee area, and then if the fishing was slow, we could make the drive east to Texas Creek in search of the elusive caddis hatch. We packed up all our camping equipment and drove west on route 50 to the Fremont – Chafee county line where we parked and then crossed the river at the tail of the long pool. Once on the north side of the river we ascended the steep bank and hiked down the railroad tracks to the spot below the small island. On Friday we continued farther down along the river and began fishing in a long shelf pool.

I elected to test an old producer; a yellow Letort hopper, and added a beadhead ultra zug bug on a 3.5 foot long dropper. Danny began with a nymphing rig, so I relinquished the deep portion of the pool to him and moved immediately to the narrow top section where the river spilled over some large rocks. In a very short amount of time I foul hooked a brown, and then added two momentary hook ups in two very short marginal pockets along the bank. In the next attractive shelf pool I experienced a refusal, so I began to question my choice of the Letort hopper. It was extremely effective in catching the attention of the trout, but they were turning away at the last instant.

Once again I ceded most of the next pool to Danny and moved to the riffles at the top, but unlike Thursday this area did not produce a fish nor even a refusal. I was eager to approach the right channel around the island, but Danny was still methodically working his way through the pool below me, so I called out that I planned to fish up along the left side of the island and then return when he caught up.

Out of the Net

Top of the Island

In the first small pocket next to the bottom tip of the island I observed yet another refusal to the size 10 hopper. The shape of the hopper is similar to a caddis although ten times larger. Could these fish be drawn to the body shape, but then execute a reversal when they discovered the excessive size? I decided to test my theory and tied on a size 16 olive-brown deer hair caddis. This proved to be a winner, and I landed two medium sized brown trout from pockets along the island until I reached the whitewater at the top, at which point I turned around and walked back to the bottom where Danny was beginning to cast his dry/dropper arrangement. I told him of my success with the size 16 caddis and offered him some of mine.

Danny and I now began to move into the long pool at the bottom of the north channel. Danny’s water looked more attractive than mine, but he was seeking retribution so I relinquished it to him. My side was largely wide shallow slow moving water, whereas, deep runs and pockets screamed big fish all along his side of the river. Sometimes you cannot go by appearances. There were very few caddis in the air particularly when compared to the cloud of small tent wing insects that hovered over the water on Thursday afternoon at the Vallie Bridge lease site. I began tossing long casts to the shallow tail of the pool on the left side and much to my amazement, two fat fourteen inch brown trout rose and confidently sucked in my fly. This was too good to be true. There were no visible caddis on the water, minimal evidence of a hatch in the surrounding bushes, and I was catching nice fish in the less attractive shallow side water.

Danny Ties on a Deer Hair Caddis

As I photographed and released the two brown trout, I certainly caught Danny’s attention. I suggested that he switch from the dry/dropper approach to a single deer hair caddis, and he wandered over to my position to receive two of the ten imitations that were arranged in my front pack. We resumed our casting, and I quickly picked off another fine brown from left side of the current seam that ran down the middle of the pool. Next I moved up five feet or so and made a long cast to the middle portion of the shallow slow moving left side, and once again I was amazed to witness a slow confident slurp of my deer hair caddis. Again this proved to be a solid healthy fifteen inch brown, and I once again snapped some photos.

Very Nice Chunky Brown Trout

Danny meanwhile observed a refusal to his size 16 caddis, and then I nabbed a fifth chunky brown from the center current seam. I could sense that Danny was feeling left out of the fun, so I offered a switch, and he readily accepted my offer. We switched positions, and he resumed the progression up the left side of the north braid, while I crossed to the north bank and began working up along the right side of the center current seam and prospected all the likely deep pockets and runs. The water looked ridiculously delicious, and it did in fact produce two additional nice fish plus one foul hooked escapee, but it paled in comparison to the left portion.

Close Up of the Healthy Brown

While I moved cautiously forward, Danny began to connect with regularity similar to my previous experience. I counted at least five landed fish, and Danny guided one downstream to a point across from me so I could photograph a sixteen or seventeen inch leviathan. I rarely catch fish on the Arkansas in excess of fifteen inches, so this catch was quite noteworthy.

Best Fish of the Trip for Danny

We both now converged at the top of the island, and we decided to use a leap frog strategy to cover the right bank as we moved up the river. It was slightly after noon, so I found a nice grassy spot on the bank and munched my sandwich and carrots, but Danny was still working off his adrenalin rush from the holy water. He wolfed down his sandwich in five minutes and resumed his manic casting and wading.

Unfortunately after lunch the game changed considerably. Since we never saw an abundance of caddis during the red hot action of late morning, I can only assume that the bright sun and warmer temperatures caused the fish to become lethargic and less interested in snatching our deer hair caddis from the surface. We moved upstream through some attractive areas, but neither of us were able to resurrect our morning success.

Focused

When we reached our crossing point, we debated returning to the car to seek another location, but I saw some large gray clouds building in the west, so I guessed that the action might improve if we continued on the north bank toward the west. I was familiar with this water, and I knew there were some very productive stretches ahead of us. Danny agreed with my suggestion, and we continued on, but my theory did not prove out. Danny’s confidence sank and there were several periods where he sat down and rested and watched me.

When the fish ceased showing interest in my size 16 caddis after lunch, I switched to a dry/dropper configuration with a Charlie boy hopper, beadhead ultra zug bug and beadhead hares ear, and these flies remained on my line for the remainder of the day. During one of the time slots when Danny watched and rested, I lobbed a backhand cast to a deep run behind a large boulder, and as we both looked on, a mouth appeared and engulfed the Charlie boy. I set the hook and an underwater missile rocketed downstream. I applied pressure as best I could but in short order the fish broke off all my flies, and I reeled up a vacant tapered leader. This bit of excitement provoked Danny to resume casting.

Long Slender Rainbow

Finally after several hours of fruitless casting, I approached a juicy section of the river consisting of large submerged and protruding boulders with nice deep pockets and runs flowing around the current breaks. Normally I view this type of water as prime brown trout habitat, but on Friday the browns seemed to be spread out in shallow riffles and next to the bank. Sure enough as the Charlie boy drifted down along a current seam, it took a dip and I set the hook and fought a spirited fish. When I slid my net beneath the rugged fighter, I discovered a seventeen inch rainbow. I was proud to make this my tenth catch of the day, and the long slender rainbow gave me a temporary boost in confidence.

I convinced Danny to make one more forward leap, so we ascended the steep bank and walked west along the railroad tracks for another 100 yards and then descended to some nice shallow runs and riffles, where we split the sections. I fished my way upstream once again and finally after twenty minutes without success, a fish emerged near my Charlie boy. I set the hook, but either I was premature or the fish refused my fly, and this resulted in another foul hooked incident. The fish got free before I netted it, but the tussle created a huge tangle of all my flies, so I used this as an excuse to call it a day and waded back downstream until I found Danny.

Did we succeed in finding the elusive Arkansas River spring caddis hatch? When compared to several of the exciting experiences of my past when caddis blanketed the river and crawled into every available nook of my physical person, the answer is no. But for two hours on Friday morning, the brown trout in the area of the Arkansas River where we were fishing were feasting on our deer hair caddis with reckless abandon. It may not have been the core caddis emergence, but it was an incredible period of fast action, and we were rewarded with nice fish in the 13 – 17 inch range. No complaints will be voiced by Dave and Danny.

Arkansas River – 04/30/2015

Time: 11:30AM – 6:00PM

Location: Upstream from Vallie Bridge; Fremont – Chafee county line

Fish Landed: 8

Arkansas River 04/30/2015 Photo Album

Every year at this time I visit the Arkansas River in my perpetual quest to locate the sweet spot of the annual grannom caddis hatch. In my 25 years in Colorado I discovered this to be a frustrating hit or miss proposition. In 2015 Danny Ryan joined me in the difficult search for the mythical leading edge of the emergence, as he read the stories but was too new to Colorado and the sport of fly fishing to have experienced the madness. The ArkAnglers report indicated that the hatch advanced to Salida, and caddis were present throughout Big Horn Sheep Canyon. I’ve grown to distrust the fly shop reports as they are always bullish in an effort to attract front range fishermen and their wallets. I’m sure they are truthful in stating that caddis are present, but the density of the hatch and precise location are left to one’s imagination.

I picked Danny up at 8AM on Thursday, and he added his fishing and camping gear to the Santa Fe. We made the uneventful drive southwest on US 285 and then turned left on CO 291 and passed through Salida. We decided to begin our caddis hatch exploration upstream from Vallie Bridge between Coaldale and Howard. This was near our targeted campground, and it was farther downstream than Salida and, therefore, we felt offered a higher likelihood of stumbling into the center of the hatch progression. As we traveled via US 50 along the river below Salida, we were disappointed to find nearly every pullout occupied with multiple vehicles. Was this really a weekday, and would we find fishing space farther downstream?

We made the turn off and crossed Vallie Bridge and then drove west on the dirt road that paralleled the north shore of the river until we reached the lease parking lot. Two vehicles occupied spaces, but we noticed that the owners were returning from the river. We were pleased to discover that we had our choice of river real estate, at least for the moment. It developed into a rather warm day with temperatures eventually peaking in the high 70’s, so we lathered up with sunscreen and made sure we carried adequate water supplies. I broke out my new Sage One five weight, and together we found a nice path across a dry irrigation ditch and then moved through some willows that opened up at the tail of a long deep pool.

Danny claimed the tail of the long pool while I advanced to the head and set up my nymph rig with an ultra zug bug and bright green caddis pupa. I worked the deep run for fifteen minutes, and then I snagged the bottom in an area that was too deep to approach. I eventually pried my flies loose, but the pent up energy from the whipping lift launched the flies into a large branch in a tree above me. I was unable to reach the limb and resigned myself to a total break off. The tree clung to my split shot and two flies. I sat down and reconfigured my nymphing arrangement, but substituted a prince nymph for the ultra zug bug.

Five casts later I lost track of my position under a tree, and I launched my backhand cast into another tree limb. The result of this error in judgment was the same as the previous stroke of bad luck, and I once again donated a split shot and two flies to mother nature. I was now uttering unspeakable words and exhibiting outward signs of extreme frustration, so I sat down once again and decided to abandon the nymph game and instead converted to a double dry fly strategy. I rarely fish two dries, but I loved the idea of showing the fish a Chernobyl ant and a size 16 olive-brown caddis. The Chernobyl was on fire on Clear Creek and the Big Thompson River, so why wouldn’t it work here? The caddis was a no-brainer since quite a few of the winged creatures were on the willows, and we were on the Arkansas River in search of a caddis hatch.

A Caddis in the Corner of This Fish’s Mouth

The ploy worked in short order and a nice chunky 13 inch brown tipped up and slurped in the trailing caddis in a nice run near the bank above the fly thieving trees. My optimism surged as I moved along the bank and popped long prospecting casts to likely trout havens, but alas the success became fleeting.

Danny approached from below and given the lack of action and the warm temperatures, we decided to retreat to the car for lunch. While we ate our small meal, several additional fishermen arrived, and when we returned to our exit point, we discovered that a trio of hopeful anglers usurped our continuation spot. We were not experiencing great success so we circled around them and dropped back to the rivers edge a respectful distance above the other fishermen. I resumed casting the double dry upstream along the bank, and in a twelve foot long and ten foot wide run I enticed a second brown trout to gulp the trailing caddis.

Unfortunately our progress was once again impeded by the presence of another fisherman, so we circled around by climbing a high bank, and then we found a gradual dry wash that enabled us to approach the river’s edge again. We fished some attractive water in this area but then our upstream migration was once again impeded by a large vertical rock wall. The quality of the fishing did not merit continually climbing and descending, so we decided to return to the car and move to another spot.

Upon our return to the car we debated our options. Perhaps moving downstream would put us in the midst of a heavy caddis emergence. On the other hand, I was quite familiar with the quality stretch between Wellsville and Salida, and could attest to the dense population on large brown and rainbow trout. There were no guarantees that we could locate the hatch sweet spot, so we elected to travel west. At a minimum it would be an opportunity to introduce Danny to some quality water, and we could scout it for Friday. There had to be a reason so many fishermen were present in the morning as we traveled east on our trip from Denver.

Danny Walking the Railroad Tracks

We drove thirty minutes west on US 50 and parked along the highway high above the river between Wellsville and Salida. It was now around 3PM and some large dark clouds were building in the western sky as we descended the steep bank and crossed to the north side of the river. After a five minute hike down the railroad tracks, we reached the river and resumed fishing. Since we spotted far fewer caddis on the branches and rocks along the river, we abandoned the caddis dry fly approach and converted to dry/dropper fishing.

I began with a Chernobyl ant, ultra zug bug and beadhead hares ear and started prospecting a wide shelf pool. A shelf pool is a place where the main current pushes water to the side creating a steeply tapering trough between the main current and the shoreline. My attitude improved when I foul hooked a brown in the first pool because at least the fish showed interest. I circled around Danny and advanced to the wide riffle at the top of the shelf pool, and here I began drifting my trio of flies along the inside seam. Yikes, the Chernobyl dipped, and I reacted with a swift hook set and instantly felt the weight of a decent fish. I carefully landed a nice chunky brown trout and gently removed the ultra zug bug from its lip.

Next I waded across the riffle, and as the flies dangled downstream in the current a small brown slammed the ultra zug bug. Clearly I was experiencing a dramatic change in fortunes. The sky was now quite overcast and a brisk breeze kicked up from time to time. The weather changed, and it seemed the fish grew more active. I released the small brown and positioned myself in the middle of the riffle so I could effectively reach a nice deep seam where the currents merged below the tip of the island. I made several casts and allowed the flies to drift through the deep slot created by the merging currents, and on the fifth such pass, the foam top fly dipped at the downstream tail of the trough. The weight on the end of my line streaked upstream and then down until I applied side pressure and maneuvered a hefty fifteen inch brown trout into my net. Nice!

Zoomed in on a Gorgeous Brown

Next we moved into the right channel around a small narrow island, and Danny worked the middle and right side while I advanced along the left half of the braid. My dry/dropper combination covered the length of the left side of the north channel, and I landed two additional quality brown trout. In the process of landing the first fish, the bottom fly broke off, so I replaced it with a soft hackle emerger with no bead, and this fly yielded the second brown.

Still Working

Meanwhile Danny was working through some ill fortune. He managed to land one nice brown, but this was the only fish to find the net out of six opportunities. Two Amy’s ants were left in the lips of fish, and one heavy fighter sawed off Danny’s juju nymph on a large subsurface rock.

Definitely an Ultra Zug Bug

We skipped the water above the island and then covered the quality deep pockets and runs before reaching our crossing point. In one sweet spot where two currents merged near the bank, I hooked a hot rainbow, but as I guided the feisty fish toward Danny to net, it performed a quick U-turn and slipped free of my hook. Danny got a good look at the fish and described a rainbow in excess of fifteen inches.

The soft hackle emerger seemed to be irrelevant in the late afternoon, so I swapped it with a LaFontaine dark gray diving caddis. I was anticipating egg laying adult caddis becoming active in the late afternoon and early evening. The ploy worked as I landed a medium sized brown from a run behind a boulder as the wet fly began to swing at the end of the drift. When we reached our crossing point, we decided to call it quits and  returned to the car and ultimately to the Vallie Bridge Campground.

After a tasty chicken red curry dinner, Danny spotted some rising fish along the south bank of the river below Vallie Bridge, so he put on his waders and made the crossing. I tagged along and stayed on the bridge to watch his persistent efforts to dupe one of the risers. The fish continued to rise sporadically throughout the twilight period, but the activity seemed to happen in brief waves. Danny rotated through an array of flies until finally trying one of my Chernobyl ants at dusk. I looked away momentarily, but upon hearing some serious thrashing, I whirled around in time to see a fish shake the fly from its lip. Danny was disappointed for a moment, but eventually we both celebrated his ability to actually entice a take on a Chernobyl ant in near darkness.

Danny Works the Water at Dusk Below Vallie Bridge

It was a fitting way to end a strange day on the Arkansas River. We failed to locate the fabled caddis hatch and suffered through a dead period during the middle of the day only to stumble into some decent action on a portion of the river that appeared to be largely devoid of caddis. Danny was frustrated by his inability to land a higher percentage of his hook ups, but he did generate some action. He was haunted by the large brown that sawed him off on a rock, and his goal for Friday became seeking revenge on the elusive Arkansas brown trout in the area we fished on Thursday late afternoon.

Our Campsite Viewed from the Bridge

 

 

Big Thompson River – 04/29/2015

Time: 11:00AM – 3:00PM
Location: Downstream from the end of the catch and release at Waltonia Road
Fish Landed: 12

Big Thompson River 04/29/2015 Photo Album

Three hours of fishing on Tuesday were merely a tease, and I was itching for a longer stint of fly fishing with enough time to sink into a nice steady rhythm. Since I made plans for a two day excursion to the Arkansas River with Danny Ryan on Thursday and Friday, I did not wish to commit to a long drive on Wednesday. I surveyed the local options and settled on the Big Thompson River. The Big Thompson was severely impacted by the September 2013 flood, and I read that significant mileage was now devoid of fish, but electroshocking results in the eight miles below Olympus Dam actually yielded higher fish counts than prior to the high water event. I fished the Big Thompson one time in 2014 with fair results, so I decided to make a second post-flood visit.

Prior to departing I checked the CDOT web site in case significant delays continued on the main arteries to Estes Park and the Big Thompson River. Sure enough the map displayed construction cones on route 36 between Lyons and Estes Park, and when I tapped the cone, I learned that seven miles of my favorite route were reduced to one-way traffic Monday through Friday. Armed with this valuable information I chose the slightly longer but unobstructed route through Loveland and along the lower Big Thompson River. The water between Loveland and Drake was significantly stained, and I began to worry that I made a bad decision, and I would be fishing in murky conditions similar to Clear Creek on Tuesday.

I was relieved to discover however that the source of the  turbid flow was the North Fork of the Big Thompson which entered at the town of Drake, and once I traveled above this confluence, the water appeared to be nearly clear. Even though I’d driven this way in May 2014, I was still shocked by the stark scene of a stream tumbling through a wide trough covered with large boulders with virtually no vegetation along the banks. The flood apparently scoured all the trees and shrubs, and vegetation has not yet repopulated the riparian corridor. The riverbed rocks were stained an amber color, and this color bled through the stream flow to create the appearance of rusty water.

Flood Destroyed Vegetation

When I reached the Waltonia Bridge at the extreme downstream border of the catch and release area, I pulled into a wide pullout and prepared to fish. I chose to use my Sage four weight rod for the comparatively narrow Big Thompson, and since the Chernobyl ant served me well on Clear Creek, I decided to offer it to Big Thompson fish. In fact I knotted the very same fly to my line that hooked all the Clear Creek fish. I began casting to pockets below the bridge and quickly moved to a position above the special regulation water. In a short amount of time I hooked and landed two tiny rainbow trout that were no more than three inches long. These fish caused me to suspect that the DOW stocked fingerling rainbows in an attempt to replenish the fish density after the flood. I began to have misgivings about my choice to fish so far downstream from Olympus Dam. How far downstream did the positive electroshocking results extend?

The One and Only Producer on Wednesday

Nice Beginning

In a deep slot behind a large boulder just above the bridge, I was somewhat reassured when a nice twelve inch brown darted to the surface and slurped the Chernobyl ant. At least I knew there were some fish in the lower portion of the catch and release water. After the brown trout I covered quite a bit of water with no action and once again doubts crept into my head. Perhaps the brown was an aberrant fish, and fish density was quite low? I observed a few caddis in the air, so I decided to cover my bases and added a three foot dropper to the Chernobyl ant and then added an emerald caddis pupa as the point fly.

Nicest Fish on the Day

For some reason the dropper caused the fish to refuse the Chernobyl, and the caddis pupa was drawing no interest, so I clipped it off and returned to the single foam attractor as my offering. With the air temperature now climbing, the fish became more active and I landed four more brown trout before breaking for lunch. I was now convinced that sufficient fish remained in this section of the Big Thompson River to keep me entertained, although I was puzzled that they were all brown trout. The Big Thompson historically yielded 60-70% rainbow trout. Were the rainbows congregated somewhere for spawning or did they not survive the flood as well as the brown trout? I could only speculate on this sudden shift in the species ratio of my catch on the Big Thompson.

After lunch I crossed to the bank away from the highway and resumed my upstream progress while adding seven more brown trout to my fish count. It was a beautiful day with mainly bright sunshine and a cloudless blue sky, and the high temperature peaked in the low 60’s. A slight breeze rushed through the canyon from time to time, but it never impacted the fishing.

Nice Fish Smacked Chenobyl Next to the Foam

The water I fished was nearly all pockets and plunge pools, and the lower catch and release area became my private domain. This allowed me to move quickly without any concern of bumping into other fishermen. I scrambled over rocks and moved from pocket to pocket while popping the Chernobyl in all the likely spots with typically three to five drifts. As I prospected in this manner, I held my rod high to keep the fly line off the water and prevent drag. The most productive locations seemed to be deep slow flows next to structure. Most of the time the structure was large bankside boulders, but occasionally a log or an irregularity in the bank served the same purpose.

After my fish count reached twelve, the fish became more tentative toward the Chernobyl, and I experienced a streak of four or five hookups that escaped before finding my net. It seemed the fish were barely nipping the fly, and my hook set consequently had minimal staying power. My son Dan texted me that he had success on Scott Creek in North Carolina with a woolly bugger below a thingamabobber, so I decided to experiment with his approach on the Big Thompson. It was a nice thought, but it failed to produce so I reversed everything and returned to a single dry, albeit a size 14 stimulator with a medium olive body. This fly failed to live up to the Chernobyl performance, and I was about to return to the black oversized ant when I checked my watch and noticed it was 3PM. I was feeling quite weary from rock climbing, so I decided to halt my quest for trout at twelve and returned to the car.

Wednesday was a fun day. Fly fishing was reduced to its simplest form as I moved frequently and often and used only a size 10 Chenobyl ant. Success was totally dependent on a stealthy approach, reading the water, and executing a drag free drift. I’ll be returning to the Big Thompson again during the 2015 season.

 

Clear Creek – 04/28/2015

Time: 2:00PM – 5:30PM

Location: Mile Marker 266.5 in Clear Creek Canyon

Fish Landed: 8

Clear Creek 04/28/2015 Photo Album

I was concerned that the steady rain of all day Sunday continuing into Monday morning raised the streams to levels that were not conducive for fishing. Another possibility was snow accumulations in the higher elevations that was now creating early run off, but when I checked the flows on the department of water resources web site, most of the local streams seemed to be at manageable levels.

Tuesday morning remained cool, but the forecast called for gradual clearing during the afternoon with the temperature rising to the low 60’s. I was very anxious to maximize my fishing time before snow melt became a significant factor, so I decided to make the short drive to Clear Creek Canyon in the afternoon. Jane and I biked to Coors Field to exchange our rain check from Sunday’s postponed baseball game for a future Rockie’s game and then stopped at Snarf’s for a delicious sandwich, so I was able to depart by 12:45, and I found myself on the stream fishing by 2PM near mile marker 266.5. I like this stretch of water because it runs on the north side of route 6 and, therefore, enjoys more sun than some of the narrower areas.

Near Starting Point – Quite Murky

When I looked down at the water I discovered that it was quite stained. The color approximated that of split pea soup, but the water level was a reasonable 66 CFS. For some reason dirty water always creates the illusion of higher flows in my mind, and I’m also somewhat intimidated by murkiness. I began fishing with a royal tarantula since it performed well for me on an earlier trip to Clear Creek, but on Tuesday it was not popular.

I decided to switch to a black Chernobyl ant, and I theorized that the black color would contrast nicely with the dense olive green color of the water. Since the Chernobyl was more buoyant than the tarantula, I added a 3.5 foot tippet to the bend and then attached a size 16 beadhead prince nymph. For the first 1.5 hours I worked these flies with the only change being an exchange of the prince for an emerald caddis pupa half way through the early time period. I succeeded in generating attention, but the five fish I landed were all foul hooked. It seemed that the fish were looking at the Chernobyl but not taking it, and when the fish appeared from the murky depths to inspect my fly , I set prematurely and dragged the fly into the fish.

I grew weary of the refusal and foul hook game, so I began switching flies. I tried a Cathy’s super beetle, a tan pool toy, and an olive size 14 stimulator, but I quickly realized that these flies were not even able to generate a refusal. I actually gave some thought to quitting, and I planned to blame my skunking on the dirty water, but for some reason I decided to try a different Chernobyl ant. The Chernobyl was creating interest, but it was not exactly what the fish were looking for, so why not try a different version? The first ant was relatively small, and the black rubber legs were short, so I found a size 10 foam imitation in my fly box that had longer brown rubber legs. These legs would be much more visible to a trout with the added advantage of offering more wiggle action.

Big Fly for Small Fish

I knotted the fly to my leader and decided to forego a dropper since that approach was simply increasing the odds of entanglement. My other significant change in strategy was to focus almost entirely on deep pockets bordered by large boulders along the bank. It seemed fruitless to cast to the faster runs away from the bank, and I did not see any competing fishermen so I could afford to cover a significant amount of real estate.

Slow Edge Pockets Were Productive

Success. Over the last two hours I rapidly worked my way upstream along the steep rocky left bank and plopped the Chernobyl ant into all the likely locations that matched my criteria. I landed eight trout using this approach, and I missed at least half this many as well. The fish were quite small and averaged 6-8 inches, but catching fish of any size was preferable to just exercising my arm and climbing over rocks. I was actually quite pleased that I persisted and solved the riddle enough to dupe fish in fairly adverse stream conditions.

Keeping ‘Em Wet

South Boulder Creek – 04/25/2015

Time: 9:30AM – 2:00PM

Location: Just below rock slide area and then up to above the picnic area.

Fish Landed: 8

South Boulder Creek 04/25/2015 Photo Album

I was admittedly a bit disappointed after a slow day on the Arkansas River on Friday, so when my fishing pal Danny Ryan texted me with the idea of fishing on Saturday, I jumped on the opportunity. I did not wish to make back to back long drives, so we agreed to make a short trip to South Boulder Creek below Gross Reservoir. I picked Danny up at 8AM on Saturday morning, and we were on our way and arrived at the parking lot below the dam by 9AM. There were three cars in the parking lot and two young fishermen were suiting up next to us.

We quickly got our things organized and then descended the steep winding path to the creek below us. I suggested that we hike for 30 minutes to get to the lower section which I believe is less pressured than the water close to the parking lot; however, Danny spotted a nice deep pool and asked if he could sample it on our way to the more distant destination. I acquiesced, and while he fished the deep pool behind a large boulder, I walked farther downstream and found some small pockets to prospect. The flows were at 114 cfs, and this level is decent for fishing, but a bit higher than ideal which does limit fish holding locations to mostly pockets and pools behind current breaks.

I found a nice spot with a run behind some exposed boulders and decided to make this my testing ground. I elected to tie on a Charlie Boy hopper as my top fly for buoyancy and to support two beadhead nymphs; an emerald caddis pupa and an ultra zug bug. I lobbed the three flies into the nice run and almost immediately the hopper dipped, and I hooked a fish. The streaking object on the end of my line went immediately downstream into some heavy current and shed my fly. I was excited to experience action early in my fishing venture, but disappointed that I was unable to land my first hook up.

Perhaps the Largest Brown I’ve Landed from South Boulder Creek

I moved upstream a bit over some logs and positioned myself to toss the flies to a deeper area behind a large boulder. The Charlie Boy drifted slowly back toward me, and as I looked on, a large nose appeared and slurped in the hopper! It was simply supposed to be an indicator, and surprisingly the Charlie Boy produced my first fish. In addition it was a brown trout and perhaps the largest brown that I ever harvested from South Boulder Creek.

Emerald Caddis Pupa in the Mouth of This Nice Rainbow

As I photographed and release my prize, Danny reappeared, and we resumed our hike down the path along the north side of the creek. As we encountered the long attractive pool forty yards above the foot bridge, Danny suggested we give it a try, but then we realized a fisherman occupied the lower end of the pool, so we politely moved on. Eventually we split off from the Walker Loop and arrived at a point just downstream from the rock slide area. I decided to cross to the far side of the creek, so I could advance in parallel to Danny who was on the north side next to the path. Danny converted to a nymphing set up while I stayed with the dry/dropper arrangement.

The weather was also worth mentioning. It was quite chilly with overcast skies and periodic wind. Occasionally the sun broke through the thick clouds, but cool and overcast was the norm for most of the day until early afternoon when some light rain materialized.

Flows at 114 CFS

For most of the day the fishing followed the pattern of Danny working nymphs up along the north side of the stream while I advanced with the Charlie Boy hopper, emerald caddis pupa, and a variety of third flies. For much of the day I used a RS2, but I also allocated some time to the ultra zug bug and beadhead hares ear. By the time we rested for lunch, I had landed five fish including the surprising brown trout. The other four fish consumed the emerald caddis, and Danny and I did spot a few caddis fluttering above the stream.

After lunch we resumed our progress, but we encountered a pair of fishermen and leap -frogged them once which took us to the picnic area where we resumed. The afternoon fishing was slower than the morning despite the overcast skies. The weather seemed ideal for a blue winged olive hatch, but I never observed any mayflies on the water. In fact the fishing was only marginally better than my Friday experience on the Arkansas River in terms of catch rate.

Danny Works on His Line

The two hours of fishing in the afternoon yielded three additional trout with two snatching the hares ear and one rising to the Charlie Boy. By 2PM some dark clouds rolled in, and a light rain began to fall. Neither Danny nor I enjoyed any action for quite some time, so we decided to call it a day and hiked back along the path. Danny paused to fish some attractive water at the base of the steep path while I made the climb and reached the car.

South Boulder Creek

The fishing was a bit slow on Saturday, but I did manage to land eight including two on the hopper and averaged two fish per hour which tends to be my norm over long periods. It was another fun spring day of fishing, and I caught up on the latest news from Danny.

Arkansas River – 04/24/2015

Time: 11:00AM – 3:30PM

Location: Lunch Rock and Chafee-Fremont Country Line

Fish Landed: 5

Arkansas River 04/24/2015 Photo Album

Overcast skies, dense blue winged olive hatches, and a caddis emergence were in my dreams as I anticipated my planned fishing trip to the Arkansas River on Friday. I read the Royal Gorge Angler reports as well as ArkAnglers, and I was convinced that the stars were aligned for some fantastic fishing.

Jane decided to join me for this cool spring day, and we departed from Denver at 7AM. I planned to fish from the lease stretch west of Vallie Bridge, so we followed the route through Colorado Springs instead of route 285 that I usually choose for trips to the Salida area. During my fishing trip to Wyoming, I realized that I needed a spool of 3X tippet and a pack of tapered leaders, so we stopped at Royal Gorge Anglers along the way and made that purchase.

By the time we drove west through Big Horn Sheep canyon, we arrived at the Vallie Bridge lease by 10:30, and I began to prepare to fish. There were two cars in the parking lot, and as I pulled on my waders two additional vehicles arrived with a total of seven fishermen. I was quite concerned about the availability of open water given the number of fishermen in the parking lot, so Jane suggested we move to another spot, and I readily agreed with her proposal.

We continued west on route 50 until we reached Lunch Rock just beyond the Wellsville Bridge. A small RV was parked in front of us, but when I walked out on Lunch Rock, I could not find any other fishermen in the area. After I assembled my Sage One five weight and attached a new tapered leader, I began fishing in front of the large rock and continued up the river along the south bank. I began with a strike indicator, split shot, emerald caddis pupa, and RS2; and after fifteen minutes of fruitless prospecting, I managed to hook and land a twelve inch brown trout. Since it was the first fish of the day, I paused for a few minutes to snap a photograph.

First Fish Landed on the Arkansas on a RS2

Unfortunately the brown trout represented my total action in the morning before I paused for lunch at noon. I returned to the car and found Jane exploring the stone beach next to the huge eddy and pool below Lunch Rock. We both grabbed our lunches and munched them next to the river. Large high slate gray clouds covered the sky, and a constant breeze kept me on the edge of being uncomfortable, so after lunch I pulled on a fleece layer and my New Zealand hat with ear flaps.

Overcast Day Did Not Deliver a BWO Hatch

I did not see any fishermen downstream from Lunch Rock, so I decided to explore that area after lunch. I walked along the shoulder of the highway for .3 mile until I found a spot where I could climb over the barbed wire fence that blocked my access to the river. Once I was next to the river, I traversed a path along the top of a steep bank until I found an angled path that allowed me to easily descend to the edge of the river. Almost immediately I encountered a long pool with a slight riffle as the river flowed over a moderate depth. This water was extremely attractive, and I judged it to be a prime spot to occupy should a hatch evolve.

Nice Section of Slow Riffles Over Moderate Depth

At this point I had a beadhead prince nymph with a RS2, and I made some great drifts with no results. I exchanged the prince nymph for a bright green caddis, and still I was thwarted in my attempts to harvest the gorgeous pool. As I was changing flies and prospecting the water the sky darkened, and a breeze kicked up, and I spotted a couple caddis skittering across the surface. Shortly after making this observation, some sporadic splashy rises commenced. I maintained my methodical wet fly approach and attempted to impart some lifting action near the spots where I observed rises, but all these ploys were to no avail.

I could not believe that the beautiful stretch of water in front of me held no fish, so I decided to jettison the nymph rig and convert to a single dry fly. My fly of choice was a size 16 deer hair caddis with a dark olive-brown body. This fly proved to be a great choice, as I landed three fine twelve inch brown trout on the caddis imitation. I spent quite a bit of time in the area, but the rises were very spaced out and sporadic, and prospecting the tiny caddis dry fly without the benefit of a rise seemed quite futile. After fifteen minutes without any rises, I decided to explore new water upstream. The next attractive area consisted of a nice deep run that fanned out from a large vertical rock along the left bank.

Note Deer Hair Caddis in Mouth

Again I spotted two or three random rises and began drifting my deer hair caddis in the vicinity of the riseforms. Eventually after quite a bit of casting, I induced a small brown to slurp my dry fly. The fly actually dragged a bit at the end of the drift, and this provoked a savage attack.

The sparse caddis hatch only lasted an hour or even less, and once the rises ceased to expose fish, I grew impatient with trying to follow the tiny caddis. I added a gray stimulator in front of the caddis and fished a pair of dries for awhile, but this ploy did not yield any results.

A pair of fishermen appeared above me, so I circled around them and then skipped some marginal water and arrived at Jane’s sand bar. I had pretty much exhausted the possibilities around Lunch Rock, so Jane and I jumped in the car and drove west to the Fremont – Chafee county line. Here I descended the path to a perch high above the river and a large pool, and I began probing the depths with an emerald caddis pupa and RS2. These flies attracted no response so I moved upstream and cast to all the likely deep runs and pockets for another fifty yards, but the river was devoid of fish as far as I was concerned.

I was about to return to the car to call it quits when I remembered that I had a five weight sinking tip line in my backpack, so I removed my floating line and replaced it with the sinking tip and attached a peanut envy to the end of the tippet. I worked the articulated streamer for another twenty minutes and saw one small trout follow the fly and also felt a bump in the large pool next to the high rock where I began. It was fun to work the pulsing streamer, but unfortunately it did not reward me with a fish.

I have to admit that Friday was a disappointment. Five fish in four hours is a subpar catch rate, and the average size of the fish was below average. The weather was chilly and blustery, but I believe I determined that the main caddis hatch has not yet migrated to upper Big Horn Sheep canyon, so I will look for future opportunities to meet the 2015 caddis emergence.

North Platte River – 04/22/2015

Time: 9:30AM – 11:30AM

Location: The after bay above the town of Alcova

Fish Landed: 3

North Platte River 04/22/2015 Photo Album

In some ways Wednesday morning was more rewarding than the Tuesday float trip despite landing only three fish in two hours of fishing. The difference was that Steve and I were on our own wade fishing in unknown waters with flows rushing down the river bed at 2,400 cfs.

On Tuesday we asked Greg, our guide, for suggestions on where we could enjoy some success by wade fishing on Wednesday morning before we made the four hour drive back to Denver. He suggested the after bay above Alcova and gave us fairly specific directions. Steve and I remembered turning at a church and parking after crossing a wooden bridge from his description. After breakfast at the Hampton Inn on Wednesday morning, we made the drive west to Alcova and followed Greg’s directions. The town was quite small, and we could see the after bay from the highway, so we were able to locate his recommendation.

Just as he described, we found a wooden bridge and crossed to the southern side and parked in an open area on the eastern side of the road. Several vehicles preceded us, and in fact a fisherman already locked up the prime spot just below the bridge on the east side of the river. Before preparing to fish, Steve and I strolled across the bridge and stopped to gaze down river at the area occupied by the fisherman. Sure enough we felt an adrenalin rush as we observed at least 25 large trout spread out in the shallow flow between the main current and the bank. We both suspected that many of these fish were in spawning mode, but the size and density was enough to raise the heartbeat of any red blooded fisherman.

We continued to the north side of the bridge, and once again we observed a pod of generous sized fish in a smaller narrow space between the current and the bank. Unfortunately this area was much smaller than the occupied space, and it presented the adversity of numerous overhanging branches and required back hand casts from right handed fishermen.

We hustled back to the car, as several additional vehicles arrived during our surveillance mission. The prime spot on the south bank and downstream side of the bridge was occupied, and Steve was prepared to fish much earlier than me, so he chose to fish to the pod on the north bank below the bridge. When I finally rigged my rod, I crossed the bridge and descended a steep path to a spot above the bridge. The water here was rather deep, but moved fairly slowly, so I hoped I could tempt fish that were not visible due to the depth. I began fishing with a butterscotch egg and red rock worm that Greg gave us, but after standing in the waist deep water for 15 to 20 minutes and making numerous backhand casts, I became frustrated with the lack of action and the relative difficulty of my position.

I retreated back to the Santa Fe and pulled on a fleece top, as I discovered that standing in the water created quite a chill despite the relatively warm air temperature. The only option I now had was to walk downstream along a dirt path on the south side of the river. This path ran along the border of an elementary school, but the lack of lights and activity suggested that the school was not in session or perhaps not currently being used. I hiked downstream approximately a hundred yards and found a place to clamber down the steep bank over some large rocks.

When I reached the river’s edge I discovered a wide swath of smooth featureless slow moving water. The only positive to this section was the fact that the water was fairly deep. Surely there had to be fish in this deeper version of the water just below the bridge that was stacked with at least 25 large finned creatures. I began to methodically cover the water and worked my way upstream while cautiously hugging the steep rocky bank. Typically I made three casts with each one fanning out farther toward the middle of the river. In this way I covered lanes separated by 8-10 foot spaces. After each series of casts I moved upstream three or four steps and repeated the process.

After fifteen minutes of fruitless casting and methodical movement, I fell into a bit of a daze, and I was startled when I saw a slight dip in my indicator at the tail of the drift. I pulled myself out of my trance and executed a swift hook set, but I only managed to prick the fish as the hook came free in an instant. This did give me a ray of hope, so I continued my game of river coverage for another ten minutes when once again a twitch at the tail of the drift provoked an intuitive hook set. This time I felt the weight of a substantial fish and I played it to the point where I could see the stripe of a rainbow, but then once again the fish executed an escape maneuver, and I stood motionless feeling waves of regret.

Fat Rainbow Landed from Afterbay Area

Now I was certain that my method could yield results, so with renewed optimism I continued along the bank. I had probably covered one-third of the distance to the bridge at this point, but it wasn’t long before the process played out a third time, but in this case I managed to play a strong fighting fish that raced up and down the river until I finally exerted side pressure and brought it to my net. What a thrill and relief it was to finally have a broad seventeen inch rainbow nestled in my net! I was not certain I could repeat this success, so I snapped several photos and then gently released the noble silver and pink bullet back to its aquatic home. I contrived a method, persevered, and found success using one of the red rock worms that I tied prior to the 2014 trip. This was quite gratifying.

Proud to Land This Fish While Wade Fishing

On I went resuming my pattern of casting and moving until I once again hooked a feisty rainbow. The indicator only hesitated slightly on this fish, so I was quite pleased that I reacted and landed number two. This rainbow was around 14 inches, but it also appeared to be quite healthy and well fed.

Lack of Speckles on This One

The last fish was the smallest of the three landed in the morning and registered around 13 inches. It’s amazing how ones standards of size adjust when fishing a river that holds a pool of larger fish.

The gentleman below the bridge finally exited, and I could see Steve sandwiched between the bridge and the departing fisherman’s previous position. I methodically worked my way up the river to thirty feet below Steve, and here I could finally see the pods of fish spread out across the river bed just as they appeared from the bridge. I was skeptical that I could tempt these lunkers preoccupied with spawning, but decided to give it a half-hearted try. I lobbed several casts above the pod of three or four fish, and on the third drift I saw one of the fish move slightly to the side so I set the hook. Much to my amazement, the fish reacted, and it appeared that I hooked the trout in the mouth with the egg fly. Off the fish streaked, but as I maintained tension, I could feel a small give and then a reconnect. From past experience I knew that this indicated that the hook released from the mouth of the trout, and then the trailing hook found a home in the body. Sure enough when I finally skimmed the fifteen inch rainbow across the surface into the net, I could see that the trailing worm was embedded in the tail. I gently removed the intrusion and released the fine coldwater fish to its freedom.

A Drift Boat in the Afterbay

By now it was approaching 11:30, and Steve and I needed to return to Denver by 4:30, so we climbed the bank to the car and shed our gear and prepared for the return trip. I enjoyed the two hours of fishing on Wednesday morning because I proved to myself that I could catch fish in new water by developing a strategy and sticking to it. The North Platte River was fun, but I’m now ready for more aquatic insect hatches and hopefully some dry fly action. Stay tuned.

North Platte River – 04/21/2015

Time: 8:30AM – 4:00PM

Location: Boat launch below Grey Reef to Government Bridge take out.

Fish Landed: 15

North Platte River 04/21/2015 Photo Album

On Tuesday Steve Supple and I drifted the same water with the same guide that we used at the end of March in 2014 and 2013. The variables that were different were warmer air temperatures, significantly higher flows, and a three week lag on the calendar. Also the flows were running at 2,400 cfs 24/7; whereas, during previous visits the authorities were releasing flush surges intermittently each day. How would these variables impact our fishing success? This was the question that Steve and I debated prior to our scheduled float on Tuesday.

The Drift Boat on the Left Is Ours

Danielle at the Wyoming Fly Fishing shop instructed us to be ready by 7:30 on Tuesday, and Steve and I followed her directions precisely. We each gave our rods and reels to our guide Greg Mueller so he could configure them while we climbed into our waders. Once we were ready, we climbed into his truck, and he drove west on route 220 and turned into the parking lot next to the boat ramp below Grey Reef. When Steve and I asked Greg how the river was fishing in the post-flush time period, he responded with his typically optimistic answer that the river fishes well all year round.

Tall Grass on the South Bank Not Far from Launch

It was bright and sunny at the launch site, but the ever present wind made its presence known, so I wore my down vest over my Adidas windbreaker pullover. Greg added an electric motor to his Adipose drift boat since our last visit, and he used this aid to power us downstream and ahead of the other guides and boats stacked up at the launch site.

Steve Grins as Guide Greg Operates the Electric Motor

Once we were sufficiently clear of competing boat traffic, Steve and I flicked our lines into the river. Steve’s rig sported a purple worm and midge pupa while mine featured a butterscotch egg and red rock worm. In a short amount of time my thingamabobber dipped, and I set the hook and discovered that I was attached to a streaking rainbow trout. After a spirited run, I gained some control, but I was disappointed to realize that the fish was foul hooked. The fish did not add to my fish count, but I was optimistic that I made contact with a nice fish early in the float.

Big Old Owl Looks at Us From Perch

We began the day with me in the bow and Steve in the rear, and then we swapped locations at lunch time. Steve fished from the back position all day during our 2014 float, so I felt it would only be fair if I shared that position. Typically the front is preferred, as that fisherman’s flies are seen first by fish, although I do not believe that the position is as critical when fishing subsurface eggs, worms and nymphs.

I spent the morning in the bow and followed the pattern of casting fifteen to twenty feet to the side and forward of the boat. Greg was very precise in his instruction and quick to reprimand deviations, as he expertly managed the drift and switched from the north to south bank depending on where the best fish holding water existed. In particularly juicy stretches he strained at the oars to row us back upstream against the current and wind, making an extra effort to provide us a second pass.

Dave Displays One of His Nicer Rainbows

During the morning I landed eight rainbows ranging between thirteen and seventeen inches. All the fish were robust chunky fish with bright coloration, and most of them inhaled the red rock worm with one or two preferring the egg.

At 11:30AM Greg pulled the boat into a small bay that was somewhat sheltered from the wind, and we enjoyed our lunch consisting of a sandwich, chips, fruit salad, and cookie. Another Wyoming Fly Fishing guide, Kray, joined us along with his two clients, and Kray and Greg attempted to chum some rainbows to the surface by flicking some of their bread and tortilla into the eddy next to the boats. It would have been fun to witness, but no fish responded to the generous handout.

A Companion Guide and Clients Join Us for Lunch

After lunch Steve and I switched positions, and we also elected to shed layers as the sun was high in the sky, and the air temperature climbed into the low 60’s. Some large clouds continued to block the sun periodically, and when this occurred small mayflies appeared on the surface of the river. These were baetis, also referred to as blue winged olives, but we only spotted occasional sporadic surface rises. Apparently the fish tune into the subsurface nymph form of the baetis, and in response Greg reconfigured our lines with BWO nymph imitations. My line now featured a red rock worm with an RS2 next in the lineup and then a small flashback nymph at the point.

For the next couple hours Steve and I landed fish at a decent rate, and the small blue winged olive nymphs were the most effective, although in my case the fish continued to show interest in the worm. Apparently Grey Reef rainbows do not feed selectively on baetis and respond positively to significant chunks of protein such as worms and eggs.

Greg Shows a Steve and Dave Double

Over the remainder of the day we covered more water compared to the morning, and I added seven more fish to my count. The catch rate for me was fairly even over the course of the day except for the last hour when I was unable to interest any fish. Steve, on the other hand, experienced a hot streak just before lunch and then an even more productive run in the final hour before we landed at Government Bridge.

Loaded and Ready to Depart

The fishing in 2015 was excellent with fifteen fat healthy rainbows landed in the 13 – 17 inch range. The weather was nearly ideal with mostly sunny skies and intermittent clouds to promote hatching mayflies. It was very comfortable for fishermen without the need for handwarmers and excessive layers of clothing. Unfortunately my catch rate was only half of my 2014 and 2013 experience, but I’ve now learned how ridiculously superb the fishing was in my prior trips. Steve and I both agreed that we would attempt to return during the flush period in 2016.

North Platte River – 04/20/2015

Time: 3:00PM – 5:00PM

Location: Tailwater below Grey Reef

Fish Landed: 1

North Platte River 04/20/2015 Photo Album

For the last two years Steve Supple and I made an annual pilgrimage to the North Platte River below Grey Reef Dam just west of Caspar, WY. We scheduled the trip near the end of March to take advantage of discounted rates on guided float trips from the Wyoming Fly Fishing outfitters. The reduced rates were available to customers who booked a trip prior to 1 April. These trips occurred during the annual flush on the North Platte River when the department of wildlife in conjunction with the dam operators released a slug of water in the morning and then cut back the flows. We were able to fish during the flush by beginning our float from the dam behind the wave of flush water. The flush cleansed the stream bottom of sediments for better spawning while also kicking loose eggs, worms and leeches from the stream bottom. Needless to say we experienced fantastic fishing as we each averaged thirty or more fish landed on our two previous trips, and the size of the fish averaged in the 15 – 20 inch range.

Unfortunately Jane and I scheduled our trip to Carlsbad Caverns and Big Bend National Park during the last full week of March, and thus I was unable to join Steve for a third annual North Platte River excursion. When I returned from Big Bend, I contacted Steve, and we agreed to make the trip in April. The price was higher, but what is an extra $100 when stellar fishing is at stake?

We originally booked the float trip for April 15, but an adverse weather forecast made us reconsider, so we delayed our date to April 21. We were able to retain the same guide, but we avoided a day with snow, rain, 25 MPH wind, and high temperatures in the low 40’s.

The plan was set, and Steve arrived at my house on Monday morning at 9AM. We made the four hour drive without incident and checked in at the Wyoming Fly Fishing shop along route 220 just outside of Caspar, WY. Steve and I purchased three day non-resident fishing licenses and proceeded on our way farther west to the parking lot next to the outlet of Grey Reef Dam. The wind was strong as usual as we pulled on our layers and warm hats and prepared to fish. We took a a quick glance at the river and realized that the flows were considerably higher than during our previous visits, Our guide on Tuesday informed us that indeed the flows were running at 2400 cfs compared to post-flush velocity of 500 cfs.

Steve Begins His Quest for Trout

Given the high flows and the wind, I decided to break out my Scott S4S six weight nine foot fly rod. I rigged it using the Alaska set-up taught to me by Taylor Edrington since I knew I’d be drifting eggs, worms and nymphs the entire time. I looped an eight inch section of 0X to the end of my line and then tied a thingamabobber to the other end with an improved clinch knot. Next I clipped a five foot section of 3X from my spool and knotted it to the thingamabobber as well. My next step was to use a surgeon’s knot to tie a 12 inch section of 4X to the 3X, and then I knotted an orange egg to my line. Below the egg I tied a conehead pine squirrel leech, and finally I crimped a split shot above the junction of the 3X and 4X.

Steve and I hiked through the parking lot to the boat launch and approached the water. Steve elected to begin below the boat ramp, and I moved up to some slower moving edge water above the launch. I began drifting the rig along the current seam and eventually foul hooked a nice rainbow. Steve meanwhile moved above me, and he let me know that he experienced a hook up but failed to land the fish.

I leap-frogged Steve and swapped the egg for a red San Juan worm, and after quite a bit of movement and casting, I once again hooked a fish that rocketed downstream at warp speed. Much to my chagrin, this fish was also foul hooked, and the hook was in the tail so the fish was not hindered in its ability to swim. I followed the fish downstream until I could guide it to the bank and release it from the inconvenience of a pointed hook in its tail.

After an hour of fishing I reached a point where a huge 30 yard pool existed between the flume rushing from the dam and the bank next to some campsites and the parking lot. The water was quite deep and slow moving, so I suggested to Steve that we cross the dam and fish from the south bank. Steve decided to remain near the parking lot, so I advanced to the steep bank and ascended to the walkway that crossed the dam. On my way however I paused and gazed down at the slow deep back eddy on the north side of the dam outlet. Here I spotted six or seven decent trout hovering in the deep water and facing back toward the north bank.

Only Trout Landed on Monday

I decided to give these sighted fish a try, and I carefully scrambled down the steep bank over some large rocks. I had lost my conehead pine squirrel leech, so my rig now included a hot red thread head leech and a red San Juan worm. I cast the combination to my left toward the bank and allowed it to slowly drift back toward me with the current formed by the eddy. On the third such presentation, the flies seemed to pause, and I thought I hooked bottom so I slowly lifted my rod, and much to my amazement, I felt weight. I gave the rod tip a quick hook set, and sure enough I was attached to an angry trout. I worked it back and forth a few times, and I was pleased to sense that it was hooked in the mouth. Eventually a bright crimson-colored rainbow slid into my net, and I had my first fish from the North Platte River in 2015. This particular hungry finned creature preferred the pine squirrel leech.

The View from Near the Dam

I made some more casts, but I assumed that I had disturbed the pool, and the remaining fish were wise to my approach, so I climbed the bank and crossed to the south shore. I discovered three other fishermen ahead of me, but I managed to find a short stretch of attractive water where I made some drifts. I worked upstream for twenty yards before I encountered one of the other fishermen, and at this point I decided to call it quits. Steve and I agreed to meet at 5PM, and it was already 4:45, so I began the long return hike across the bridge.

I was pleased to land one powerful bright rainbow trout on Monday afternoon, and now I looked forward to our scheduled float trip on Tuesday.

Arkansas River – 04/14/2015

Time: 10:30AM – 4:00PM

Location: Fremont – Chafee County line and upstream

Fish Landed: 13

Arkansas River 04/14/2015 Photo Album

Five years ago I began tracking my calorie consumption and burn using an iPad app called FatSecret. I am certain that the calories burned under the activity labeled fishing presume the sedentary version of the sport such as sitting in a boat or relaxing in a chair by a lake. My fishing outing on Tuesday on the Arkansas River is testament to fly fishing representing a far different FatSecret exercise category.

Amazingly when I arrived at the pullout along route 50 at the Fremont-Chafee county line below Salida, the air was relatively calm compared to my previous April fishing experiences. The temperature was in the low fifties, so I pulled on my gray fleece cardigan and prepared to fish. I packed my lunch and water in my backpack, as I planned to cross the river and not return until the end of the day. The flows were around 300 cfs, and this level allows crossing the river safely assuming one has a wading staff and is reasonably cautious with foot placement.

Upstream From Site of Two Landed Fish

Once I crossed the wide tail out below my parking location, I decided to work my way upstream. I selected my new Sage One 9′, 5 weight rod, and seeing no insect activity at 10:30AM, I decided to set up the standard nymph configuration with a strike indicator, split shot, ultra zug bug and hares ear nymph. This set up would serve me for the remainder of my time on the Arkansas River. I switched flies infrequently, but I never deviated from the deep nymphing approach for prospecting the clear river.

Second Brown Was Nicest Fish of the Day

The first half hour failed to yield a fish, and I began to see a handful of small caddis flitting about near the surface, so I exchanged the ultra zug bug for an emerald caddis pupa and swapped the hares ear for a beadhead RS2. This change seemed to do the trick, and shortly after 11 I landed two gorgeous brown trout in the 13 to 14 inch range. Unlike most of the fish that I landed so far in 2015, these trout carried more girth. Before breaking for lunch at 12:15, I landed three additional brown trout, and my long drive to the Arkansas was beginning to pay dividends.

Nice Specimen

RS2 Also Produced Some Fish

After lunch I continued fishing the caddis pupa and RS2 with similar results to the morning. I landed an additional eight fish in the next 3.5 hours, so the catch rate was down a bit, but steady enough to prevent my thoughts from straying to baseball or food. Normally if I find myself thinking more about topics other than fishing, I view that as a sign to quit.

Lunch Spot View

My approach for Tuesday was consistent throughout the day. I lobbed the nymphing rig upstream and allowed it to drift back toward me while quickly stripping in the slack. Deep holes did not produce, and the best places tended to be the tail of long riffles and runs where the river rushed over a rocky bottom at a moderate pace with a depth of three to four feet. Not all locations with this type of structure produced, but enough yielded fish to keep my interest focused. Several of the fish grabbed the flies upon the lift to make another cast, but when I simulated the lift by jigging or bouncing my flies as they drifted toward me, I never found success.

Fine Afternoon Brown Trout

In short I covered a huge amount of water, and this entailed climbing over numerous rocks in the streambed and along the bank. In addition my shoulder endured its heaviest test of the season with repeated casting of the nymphs upstream and into the wind which kicked up in the afternoon. I’m certain that all this effort far exceeded the calorie burn incorporated into the FatSecret application.

Attractive Edge Water

From 11AM until 2PM I spotted an occasional blue winged olive, and the RS2 produced four fish during this time frame. I went through a slow spell after 2, so I tested a bright green caddis pupa and size 20 soft hackle emerger, and the bright green caddis produced two fish. Eventually I concluded that the emerald pupa was more effective than the bright green version, so I reverted, and the BWO hatch seemed to end, so I returned to the ultra zug bug. These flies produced the last two browns in the late afternoon.

I had the entire Arkansas River to myself and the weather developed into a beautiful spring day with the high temperature reaching the low seventies. I managed to land thirteen fish on my new rod, and the average size exceeded my previous 2015 efforts. It was a great day to be retired in Colorado.