Time: 9:30AM – 2:30PM

Location; Eleven Mile Canyon

South Platte River 07/07/2026 Photo Album

For the week beginning on Monday, July 6, 2026 my calendar was open for Monday through Wednesday. Guess what I did? I went fly fishing on Tuesday. The weather forecast suggested hot temperatures with highs in the nineties in Denver; however, Monday was the hottest of the three days. I played pickleball on Monday morning and remained inside handling chores for the remainder of the day.

Tuesday was forecast to be moderately less hot, so I made it my first fly fishing day of the week. I decided to make a longer drive and chose the South Platte River in Eleven Mile Canyon. Flows out of Eleven Mile Dam were in the 105 CFS range, and I was optimistic that these bottom releases would be enough to buffer the warm air temperatures. As an insurance policy, I prepared thoroughly the night before, and this enabled me to depart by 6:45AM, and the early departure in turn delivered me to my chosen pullout along the South Platte at slightly after 9AM.

Starting Run and Pool

The air temperature was in the upper sixties, as I geared up and fit together my Sage R8 four weight. For the first time I wore a hooded sun shirt that my son and daughter-in-law gave me for Christmas. As I pulled on my wading boots, I discovered the one glitch of the day. The cable lace on the BOA system had broken, and I was unable to tighten the left boot. I had no choice but to tolerate the loose fitting boot, and I now faced the task of repairing the lace on Tuesday evening for a day of fishing on Wednesday.

Stunning Rainbow Trout

The river looked amazing, as it chugged along at 106 CFS, and it was very clear. To begin my day, I deployed a double dry fly system with a peacock hippie stomper and a size 14 light gray deer hair caddis. I began casting at 9:30AM, and my earlier than usual start paid dividends, as I landed three brown trout in the first thirty minutes. Two trout nabbed the caddis and the other one smashed the hippie stomper.

Poised Torpedo

Unfortunately the hippie stomper began to provoke refusals and tentative bites, so I moved the caddis to the forward position, removed the hippie stomper, and added a size 16 light gray comparadun. I was anticipating an earlier than usual pale morning dun hatch. This two fly combination produced, and the fish count surged to seven by 10:30AM. The additional four trout that landed in my net nabbed the caddis, and the size of these fish improved over the earlier catches.

Long and Deep Pocket

Between 10:30AM and 11:00AM I elevated the fish count from seven to eleven. I remember thinking to myself that I had eleven by eleven! Again most of the action was on the caddis, but the comparadun contributed a fish or two. Refusals continued to be an issue, but the takes were frequent enough to offset any frustration, and the size of the fish seemed to improve.

Covered in Ink Spots

By the time I broke for lunch at 11:45, the fish count rested on seventeen. Even if I failed to catch more fish, I deemed Tuesday to be a success. The caddis continued to be the main attraction; however, the comparadun accounted for a few, and it seemed the comparadun attracted larger than average fish. I noticed caddis dancing along the banks, and a few sporadic pale morning duns confirmed my hunch that they were present. I also noticed a few yellow sallies. This observation became a factor later in the day.

Home of Beast Brown

After lunch I continued my upstream migration, and the fish continued to mash my flies, although it seemed the gaps between trout interaction lengthened. The fish count mounted to twenty-two, and among this group of landed fish was a stunning eighteen inch brown trout. It was deeply colored in gold with black ink spots. What a specimen!

Pink Cheek

By now the sun was very bright, and the fishing action slowed significantly. The yellow sally sightings prompted me to replace the light gray caddis with a size 14 yellow stimulator, while I retained the light gray comparadun. The original comparadun lost most of its deer hair wing during one of my hook removal procedures, so I replaced it with a fresh version with a thicker wing.

Rock Garden Ahead

For the remainder of the day I once again experienced steady but slow action, and the fish count lifted from twenty-two to twenty-six. It seemed like I attained the best results in the afternoon with long upstream casts and dead drifts. Across and down casts were not effective, and this is very unusual, since I have experienced many days, where this was the most effective technique.

Bankside Home

Tuesday was a banner day. The early start paid off with extensive morning action. The early afternoon was definitely slower, and I executed many more futile casts to places that appeared to be very attractive. The caddis was easily the most effective fly with smaller contributions from the comparadun, stimulator and hippie stomper. The size of the fish was satisfactory, with many trout in the twelve to thirteen inch range. Of course I also registered six smaller brown trout. The eighteen inch bruiser brown was a highlight of the day. It sipped the compardun from a relatively shallow lie just below some overhanging branches. As long as flows remain above 100 CFS, I plan to make additional visits to the South Platte River.

Fish Landed: 26