Time: 9:00AM – 10:00AM

Location: Upstream from day use parking lot across from West Halfmoon Campground

Halfmoon Creek 07/12/2016 Photo Album

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. This old saying applies perfectly to my morning on July 12, 2016. I fell into a rut of fishing the same Colorado rivers repeatedly at the same time of the year, and I yearned to try something different. A former co-worker at Air Products mentioned Halfmoon Creek to me several years ago, and this small tributary of the Arkansas River was listed on the DWR surface water table, so I decided to explore it. After battling above average currents of larger rivers over the previous two weeks, I anxiously anticipated a small stream and less selective trout. I envisioned working my way upstream while tossing a large foam attractor, and wild unpressured trout responded to my offerings by slurping my flies with total confidence. That was my vision.

I attempted to do some online research prior to departing on my two day one night camping trip, but information on fishing Halfmoon Creek was scarce. I did uncover an article that said there were more fire pits per mile along Halfmoon Road than anywhere else in Colorado. This bit of trivia was explained by the location of the stream near the trailheads to Mt. Elbert and Mt. Massive. This concerned me, as I feared that all the camping and hiking enthusiasts might also pack fishing gear.

Frost on July 12, 2016 at Hornsilver Campground

I woke up at 6AM at the Hornsilver Campground and decided to get a jump on my day, but when I emerged from my tent, I was shocked to discover frost on the tablecloth, camp stove and rainfly. How could it be 91 degrees in Denver and freezing near Minturn? Colorado is a land of temperature contrasts. I efficiently ate my breakfast and broke camp before 8AM, and when I glanced at the digital thermometer on the dashboard, it registered 35 degrees. Brrr!

I began driving south on US 24 toward Leadville, and I passed a place where a controlled burn converted the vegetation into a black charred landscape. From my peripheral vision I caught a glimpse of some dark large animals, and at first I assumed they were horses. But then my mind rebooted, and I realized that the large bodies I just passed were moose calves. I found a wide shoulder and executed a U-turn and then pulled over on the shoulder across from the young creatures. Initially they were spooked and retreated up the hillside a bit, but after a brief wait, they returned to the charred remains of weeds and began browsing. I have seen bighorn sheep chomping on charred firewood in a campground, and now I witnessed moose eating charred grass. I am not sure what drives this appetite for burned residue.

Siblings Love Burnt Grass

Mt. Massive

Frost on July 12 and a couple of moose along the highway. My fishing adventure to a new spot was off to an exciting start. When I reached Leadville I parked at the Visitor Information Center that had not yet opened and called Jane to check in. Afterward I found the turn off to Halfmoon Road, and since I had never been there before, I drove the gravel and dirt road until I reached the parking area at the trailhead to Mt. Elbert. As the web site described, I passed numerous cars and tents scattered in unofficial pullouts along the road. The creek ran mostly on my right, and I attempted to identify a good stretch to fish. Two choices were obvious. One was located near the gauging station on the lower portion of the creek, and the other was a day use parking lot across from West Halfmoon Campground.

The creek seemed to move away from the road after both entry points, and where possible I seek places that require a bit more effort than just pulling off the road right next to the stream. The day use lot option concerned me a bit due to its proximity to a campground, but I guessed this negative was offset by the extra distance from the road. This became my choice. I pulled on my new Hodgman waders and assembled my Orvis Access four weight and walked a short distance to the edge of the stream. The water was crystal clear and the flows were a bit high, but relatively easy to wade.

Halfmoon Creek Beginning Point

I began fishing with a size 8 Chernobyl ant and a beadhead hares ear dropper. What fish could ignore this classic productive duo? My starting point looked very interesting as the creek split around a tiny island and created some deep water along the bank. Unfortunately my flies did not interest any fish. I quickly moved on, and it became apparent that the stream presented very few attractive holding areas for fish. Initially I prospected any place that might harbor a fish including quite marginal riffles and pockets, but after ample experimentation, I decided to move fast and seek prime spots. I did not observe any competing fishermen, so why not cover an extensive amount of water and cherry pick the juicy holes?

I did this, and during a one hour period from 9-10AM, I failed to land a fish. In fact I never saw a fish, and I covered a mile of Halfmoon Creek and frankly encountered only two places that I would label as above average fish holding locales. Tuesday morning on Halfmoon Creek was the exact opposite of my vision of fun small stream fishing, so I decided to cut my losses and climbed a steep hill through the forest until I intersected with one of the many side lanes, which I followed back to the dirt road and eventually to my car.

Antelope Family

What now? I had given some thought to this eventuality, so I attempted to salvage the day by traveling south to the Hayden Meadows area of the upper Arkansas River. I read an article in the Denver Post a year or two ago that described extensive stream improvement work, so I replaced Halfmoon Creek with the upper Arkansas as my new water for Tuesday. As I drove back toward US 24, two bounding forms crossed the intersection of Lake County 11 and CO 300. I approached slowly, and when I made the right hand turn three antelope paused in the field and stared back at me. Although the fishing was lacking on Tuesday morning, the wildlife viewing was first rate.

Fish Landed: 0