Time: 10:00AM – 3:30PM
Location: Between Buford and Trappers Lake
North Fork of the White River 09/10/2024 Photo Album
On day two in the Flattops I confirmed that a lot of beautiful fish reside in the relatively remote high mountain region. I spent another day on the North Fork of the White River, however, I chose a different section.
Pollinating
My Home for Three NightsThe air temperature at my cabin, when I departed, was 44 degrees, but it increased to 51 degrees by the time I arrived at my chosen pullout. In an effort to remain comfortable, until the sun warmed the atmosphere, I pulled on my rain shell. For my casting tool I chose my Loomis two piece five weight. I expected to cast a lot of dry/droppers.
Copper and Scarlet
Brook Trout Resting
Watermelon ColorsIn the two hours before I paused for lunch, I used a tan pool toy hopper size 8 and a size 14 prince nymph to elevate the fish count to ten. The hopper accounted for three trout and numerous refusals, while the dependable prince delivered the remainder to my waiting net. The morning session transpired in some high gradient terrain, and I skipped around quite a few narrow sections with minimal trout holding possibilities.
Nature’s Palette
Mostly Rainbow Here
What a SpotAfter lunch I reconfigured my offerings with a size 14 peacock hippie stomper and a salvation nymph. I read my blog posts on the North Fork from recent years, and they cited these flies as effective. The action was not immediately improved over the morning, but after twenty minutes, the fish demonstrated their appetite for my two flies. The key was finding deep water with length. Short, deep pockets did not produce, nor did long riffles, if the current velocity was too strong.
Turned Around
Trout and LeafBetween 12:30PM and 3:30PM I landed another forty-eight trout to boost the daily total to fifty-eight! Whew! What a day! I covered a significant amount of river length, as I searched for stream characteristics that consistently yielded trout.
Perhaps the Best PoolWhat type of trout was I catching? Unlike previous years, the cutbows and rainbows far outnumbered brook trout. I estimate that ten of the total catch were brook trout. Two of the brookies approached twelve inches, which is impressive for that species in Colorado streams. The cutbows were amazing. Thirteen inches was likely the maximum, but the patterns and colors of these trout were magnificent. It seemed that the cutbows were in varying stages of hybridization. The body color varied from the light gray displayed by rainbows to the deep copper hue of a cutthroat. Pink stripes and scarlet cheeks blended with an orange slash and dense spot patterns to make the fish absolute jewels.
I will be extremely interested to see what tomorrow offers from the Flattop streams. Tuesday was a rare fly fishing bonanza, and I am thankful to maintain my ability to enjoy another year in this wilderness wonderland.
Fish Landed: 58
Looks like you had a stellar day! Thanks, as always, for sharing your fishing with the rest of us!
Thanks. A fun day for sure.
Hi, Dave. I’ve enjoyed reading your blog through the years. I am planning to fish the north fork of the white later this week. I have fished Marvine Creek up that way but never the north fork. Any recommendations on the best locations to access between Buford and Trappers? Is that 100% public water or are there stretches of private to be aware of?
Any of the public waters are great. I fished three totally separate areas and had success on all of them. The real key is being able to read the water, as there are a lot of stretches where the water is too fast or too shallow to hold fish. Focus on deep pools, long pockets and places where the current slows. There are several roadside map stations that clearly define public from private, and the private sections are well marked with signage. Dave