Time: 12:00PM – 3:00PM

Location: Dirt road below Nighthawk

South Platte River 06/25/2006 Photo Album 

Upstream from Parking Lot

I fished the area with a parking lot upstream from Whale Rock. The flow was at 235 cfs, and that was higher than previous trips to the South Platte. I landed three small trout. It was pretty slow, but the lack of action may have been attributable to the abundance of tubers disturbing the water.

Fish Landed: 3

More Floaters

Time: 2:00PM – 5:00PM

Location: Below Whale Rock parking area

South Platte River 06/04/2006 Photo Album

Dan, Eric, and Wei Descend Bank to Start

Jane and I escorted Dan and his two friends, Eric and Wei, to the South Platte River. We fished from around 2:00 – 5:00PM, and then we grilled brats and a veggie burger and had a picnic dinner. Wei landed one trout, Dan caught two and landed one, and Eric hooked up on one but did not land it. June 4 was a beautiful day in Colorado.

Fish Landed: 0

Yum. Brats

Time: 3:00PM – 6:00PM

Location: Downstream from Parking Lot before Whale Rock Area

South Platte River 06/03/2006 Photo Album

View of Bend

After meeting with success on Memorial Day, I checked the flows, and the South Platte River below Cheesman Dam was 71CFS. This flow rate remained low and fishable compared to other streams that were under the influence of snow melt. Based on this information I headed to the Nighthawk area somewhat upstream from where I fished on Monday. I arrived and began fishing around 3PM until 6PM. I landed 5 trout, several of very nice size. Today I will be guiding Dan and friends in the stretch I fished on Monday.

Fish Landed: 5

Nice Brown on Beadhead Hares Ear

Time: 11:30AM – 4:00PM

Location: Nighthawk

South Platte River 05/29/2006 Photo Album

I checked the flows, and most rivers were high and muddy with snow melt. The only real option near Denver was the South Platte River in the Deckers area, which was actually running relatively low at 52 CFS. I went for a run and took my time before arriving at the stream at around 11AM. I turned right at the bottom of Nighthawk hill and headed to the parking area near some very large boulders personally named Whale Rock. I knew there was some nice pocket and riffle water near this lot that does not typically receive much pressure. I had no information regarding fish density since the Heyman Fire, but this was an area I enjoyed in the pre-fire era.

Starting Stretch

I ate lunch first, and then hiked along the dirt road and cut down the steep bank, crossed to the other side and continued until I reached the white water drop off. There was a very nice deep pool just before the major spill over. I put a yellow Letort hopper on top with a beadhead pheasant tail below. The two fly combination generated flashes to the hopper but no take, and eventually I shifted my position, until I was directly downstream, where I could obtain better drifts and cover the water more effectively. With this shift in approach I began to catch fish. I caught 5 trout from the first pool; one or two on the hopper and the rest on the beadhead pheasant tail.

Brown Takes Caddis Pupa

Eventually I moved on and began prospecting with the combination in likely locations. I noticed a bunch of caddis flitting about, and the beadhead pheasant tail was not producing to my liking, so I tied on a beadhead bright green caddis pupa. This was the ticket. I caught nearly all my fish on this fly. Toward the end of the day it began to unravel. I had amazing luck in very shallow shelf lies where the water fanned out toward the bank. The river was very low compared to normal, but the fish did not seem to be exceptionally skittish.

Deep Hole Produced Five

Around 3PM as I worked my way to near the parking area, I began to spy yellowish mayflies floating above the water accompanied by sporadic rises. A pair of fishermen above me departed just as the hatch commenced. They left me two beautiful runs going into pools with rising fish. I was about to call it a day at twenty fish, but when I saw the mayflies, I absorbed a boost of interest. I nipped off the hopper and caddis pupa and tied on a size 16 PMD comparadun. This was a winner, and I experienced great fun over the next hour taking trout on the surface. After I rounded the bend, I caught one or two, but refusals became more prevalent, so at this point I called it a day.

Fish Landed: 26

Indicator Fly

Time: 12:00PM – 4:00PM

Location: Cheesman Canyon

South Platte River 05/07/2006 Photo Album

With a beautiful spring day forecast; Amy, Jane and I hiked into Cheesman Canyon to enjoy the outdoors. I enjoyed a few hours of fishing and caught three beautiful trout. This may be our favorite Colorado location.

Fish Landed: 3

Rod in Deep Bend

A Second Brown Takes Huge Dry Fly

Time: 9:00AM – 1:30PM

Location: Deckers area.

South Platte River 04/01/2006 Photo Album

Choppy Stretch

I caught three rainbows in some early season action on the South Platte in the Deckers area.

Fish Landed: 3

Caddis Abdomen

Dark Cahill Wet Fly

Cutbow with Slash

South Platte River 11/06/2005 Photo Album

I made a late season trip to the South Platte River on November 6, 2005, and the linked photo album documents the day. My fish counter indicates that I landed seven fish, but I did not prepare a fishing log entry to provide more details.

Fish Landed: 7

Close Up of Olive in Box

Time: 2:00PM – 5:00PM

Location: Waterton Canyon

South Platte River 10/08/2005 Photo Album

Jane and I loaded our bikes on the RAV on October 8 and headed to the Waterton Canyon parking lot. It was a beautiful day with high temperatures expected to be 70 degrees, although nasty weather was forecast for Sunday. We biked the four or five miles up the dirt road in the canyon to the picnic table just beyond the first bridge above the lake.

More Bend

A guy was standing in the large pool that I fished with moderate success the previous Sunday. I tied four size 22 CDC BWO’s Saturday morning in case a BWO hatch once again materialized. I put on my waders and began working the next upstream pool above the large bend pool. Almost immediately I noticed some sporadic rises, so I tied on a gray Madam X and then added a yellow beadhead caddis pupa below it. When I spotted some emerging BWO’s, I tied another length of tippet below the yellow caddis pupa and then added a WD40. I encouraged a flash to the Madam X, but the flies were not producing, so I cut everything off and tied on one of the CDC BWO’s, that I produced earlier in the day. I made two with a BWO poly body and two with a lighter olive poly body. The darker body was not generating interest, so I switched to the lighter color.

Successful Fly

Almost immediately my fortunes improved, and I landed eight trout over the next several hours. Six of the netted fish were rainbows or cutbows, and two were small browns. One of the cutbows looked more like a cutthroat than a rainbow, as It displayed lots of speckles and a slash under its mouth. The success required numerous casts, and the sporadic nature of the rises caused me to spray casts to many food lanes. After I landed five or so, the gentleman in the prime pool below me approached to learn what I was using. He had a box full of olives of varying sizes, and said he was using them with fish rising all over the place, but he did not indicate any success. I gave him a CDC olive in exchange for a trico. I do not think he gained any luck, so I concluded that presentation skills were the key.

Last Bow of the Day

Toward the end, I decided to work upstream more and landed two more rainbows where the river came back close to the road. By 5PM Jane grew impatient, so after releasing the last trout, I clambered up the bank, shed my waders, packed everything in the backpack, and biked back down the canyon. The foliage on the cottonwoods was brilliant, as we drove back to Stapleton.

Fish Landed: 8

Nice Foliage

Time: 12:00PM – 4:30PM

Location: Waterton Canyon

South Platte River 10/02/2005 Photo Album

It was a warm day with temperatures in the 70’s, and I decided to bike up Waterton Canyon. I had not been to this stream in over a month, and I did not want to travel far to fish. As I was biking, a man pulled up beside me on his bike and began talking to me. He said he fished Waterton Canyon quite a bit and seemed to be rather knowledgeable about what worked. He said he mainly nymphed and had much success with very small flies. He invited me to accompany him to where he generally starts, and he would share some flies with me. We parked our bikes at the picnic table beyond the first bridge in the upper special regulation water, and he gave me his version of an RS2, a black pheasant tail and a “Barrett Special”, a nymph with a green floss body. His name was Ken Barrett and he was a radio voice for concert ads in the 80’s and 90’s.

Approaching Nice Pool

I retreated downstream a bit, stashed my bike, put on my waders, took some photos, and began fishing back up to the bridge. I put on a size 12 parahopper and trailed a beadhead prince nymph. I caught five small trout on the prince nymph, four browns and one rainbow. I was experiencing success, but it was admittedly small stuff. I worked under the bridge and then approached a beautiful bend pool, where the main current deflected off a vertical rock wall. I could see six or seven trout lined up in the current below where it deflected off the rock. I also observed some BWO’s, so I concluded baetis were the preferred menu option. I tied on a CDC olive, but then I experienced an abundance of refusals and no luck. A change in tactics was in order, so I moved up to the head of the pool where the water had more riffles. Here I managed to take two rainbows. The rises occurred in waves. A flurry of activity transpired, and that was followed by a lull in feeding, before the rises reappeared. I noticed a couple fish rising about a foot from the far bank during one of the dead interludes. I decided to tie on a black ant with an orange poly indicator. I cast in the current that ran a foot from the bank, and a fish rose and engulfed my ant. The netted fish was a small brown, and then I spotted another fish rising 5 to 10 feet further downstream also a foot from the far bank. I provoked this brown to rise to the ant as well. However in the main runs at the head of the pool, they showed minimal interest in the ant.

Another Rainbow on BWO

While I was catching the trout on the ant, Ken worked back downstream with his nymphs. He was on the other side and made the comment, “it’s really been dead for the last hour”. I asked if he had seen the subtle rises, and he said he had not. I advised him to try a BWO dry. He appeared to change flies, but eventually reverted back to nymphs. Meanwhile another wave of rises took place at the head of the pool, and I changed back to a CDC olive. I was able to catch and land two decent rainbows on the olive. I packed everything up around 4:30. As I biked back down the canyon, I spotted quite a few trout sipping in the slower moving pools, and I decided I needed to tie some smaller CDC olives and return in late afternoon in the near future.

Fish Landed: 9

Black Ant

Time: 12:30PM – 5:00PM

Location: Waterton Canyon

South Platte River 09/04/2005 Photo Album

Downstream from Start

I decided to fish the South Platte River in Waterton Canyon to avoid gasoline consumption. Jane, Amy, Max and Kirk agreed to bike the canyon, but I left before them. I reached the spot I planned to fish in the special regulation area above the diversion dam by noon. I ate my lunch, and then I put on my waders and began fishing upstream. When I checked the stream flows, the chart displayed around 67 cfs. I knotted a yellow Letort hopper and beadhead prince nymph to my line. I chose the prince because the water was just a bit off color, and I guessed that it would be more visible.

Prince and Letort Hopper Used

The visibility strategy worked rather well, and I landed 16 trout on the day. I caught rainbows and browns in a 50-50 mix, and half the trout slurped the Letort hopper, and the other half preferred the prince nymph. In one long smooth pool I spotted a solitary rise, so I cast the hopper a couple times, but the riser showed no interest. I decided to try a fur ant, and I selected one with a small white poly wing post for visibility. I cast above where I spotted the rise, and a rainbow rose and sipped the ant. I went back to the hopper and prince after this incident and continued catching trout. I stopped fishing when I reached the first bridge that crossed over the river.

Fish Landed: 16

Rainbow Landed