South Platte, 11 Mile Canyon, Co

Redefining "Keepin' it Real"

Date: Saturday June 11, 2011

Weather: Sunny with a few storms that moved in and out

Insect/Activity: Few caddis in the air, few baetis emerging, Suckers moving into the shallows but not spawning yet.

Patterns Used: Blacktail Baetis, AB Tungsten Hare's Ear

Flows: 107

My 35 week, bursting with baby, pregnant wife redefined "keepin' it real" this last weekend. As we near the birth of our first born we knew she didn't have many fishing opportunities left this summer, so we headed out to the river with Ben, Matt and Chris to spend a day enjoying the river. Needless to say - Michelle is awesome!!!! She spent 8 hours on the river with a smile on her face (except when she was mad, and throwing her hat at me for losing a fish :)

It was a fantastic day on the water. Michelle and I had a bit of a slow morning, but still managed to put some nice fish on the line and even a few on dries. The afternoon really heated up for us though as I think the barometer dropped from a few "quickie" storms and the baetis were on the move.

Whenever the baetis are on the move you don't want to be caught dead without our Blacktail Baetis pattern (since it was designed to imitate emerging baetis). We never really switched up flies once the fished turned on. Not much need to when you are hooking up or getting strikes every time you put the fly in front of a fish.

Needless to say, that is one happy pregnant woman and I had a pretty fantastic day too!

If you are wondering, this is the time to fish 11 MC before they start bringing the flows up! Get out there and have a good time!

-Jeff

On the River: Arkansas, Pueblo, CO

SUPERPOST

November 27 and 28

January 8 and 29

February 19

(and some other random dates)

Prior to June 14th 2010 I didn't even know this stretch of river existed. Living in Gunnison, CO one doesn't exactly seek out what trout fishing there is east of Pike's Peak. Pueblo ?!@!? I assumed the Ark came out of Bighorn Sheep Canyon and turned into a sandy mud-hole and that may have been the case before the reservoir went in.

However, since the advent of mankind building huge dams and releasing cold, clean water from the bottom of said dams trout fishing has no doubt changed in the U.S. (along with the negative impact on Salmon fishing, but I've never lived near the coasts enough to know what I'm missing). And so, I find myself living on the Front Range of Colorado and very excited about the prospect of Pueblo, CO having a tailwater fishery that averages air temps in the 50's all winter long. Throw in the fact that it's a pretty good fishery and you've got yourself a winning combination!

The Negatives:

1. Put and take fishery - They stock it heavily with 4" fish, but there is no shortage of worm-dunkers salivating as the hatchery truck pulls out of the parking lot.
2. Low flows - By this stage of the river the Ark should be pushing at a solid 500 CFS in low winter flows, but since the front range folks need water, they pull a substantial amount out of the river, leaving winter flows at 60 CFS. Combine that with not much gradient and you get a river that has 1 fishable riffle every 100 yards, and some pretty stagnant water in sections.
3. Shoulder to shoulder - See point #2. With a riffle every 100 yards you get a lot of crowding.
4. New Regulations - Yeah, it's kind of a negative in my mind. They designated a stretch that all fish over 16" must be returned immediately. In a put in take fishery, it means people are still doing a lot of "taking" after the hatchery truck rolls away. In the end, you get an apocalyptic battle (similar to Mad Max, Beyond Thunderdome) for fish to make it to the 16" mark. Once they've made it they are then unchallenged to grow to any size possible! So, you have very FEW - HUGE - fish, and nothing in between. Time will tell, but my hunch is this is a bad management tactic.

The Positives:

1. Warmth - Pueblo is pretty awesome weather all winter long. Michelle and I have skipped a few "cold" days, but all-in-all, compared to Gunnison winter fishing you could literally fish EVERY DAY of the winter here.
2. Insects galore - From visiting this fishery over the span of four months it is clear that the insect population is alive and well. Hatches come on very strong! After a few seines it would appear that the population of midges, baetis and caddis are very healthy.
3. Fish with an eye on the surface - While they are mostly stocked fish, I noticed an affinity for rising, and surprisingly, it only took them a few weeks in the river before they would actually reject your fly! That's pretty good for stockers.
4. Large - Naturally, if you have a good bug population you get some pretty substantial growth. On one of my visits with low flows and good visibility I spotted a solid 10 fish in a deep pool that were all over 18". I'm pretty confident that one or two I saw was in the 26"+ range!
5. Special Regs - Yeah, it's a pro too. I mean, for all my complaints above, at least there is a section of protected water with BIG fish.

Thanksgiving was the first time I hit this stretch and Dad and I must have only been a couple of days behind the stocking truck. There was a large quantity of 3" to 7" fish. It made for a great day since we were able to fish every possible pocket and pick up a few fish. The first day we fished there the baetis were in full force, and fish were taking naturals quite greedily, but I would be remiss if I didn't mention that it took a good imitation and a delicate drift to fool them.

Later in the day, Dad and I moved upstream to just below the dam. Dad got locked into a spot that he stayed put in the rest of the day, picking up fish that even pushed the 12" mark. I moved my way upstream testing new water and techniques, trying to find out what "quirks" the river had. All in all it was pretty standard fishing. It reminded my a lot of fishing the White and Norfork rivers in Arkansas - wide, shallow in most spots, not too fast of water. It was nymphing one of the deeper runs that I picked up a hefty rainbow, and a decent brown too.

Over the course of my next couple of trips I discovered a few things. It fished much like the first time. I slowly figured out that you can consistently take smaller fish in fun spots like a shallow gravel riffle. Even if you don't think they're in there, they are and it's a pretty sweet way to fish. The big dogs (so far) have lived exclusively in the deep slow holes leaving you with the options of swinging streamers, or SLOW-nymphing (which I find pretty boring). The best I've found so far is every 1/2 mile or so there will be a riffle that is just perfect - marble sized gravel that shelfs off from 12" to about 6' deep over the course of 30' or so. These locations give you a great drift and some big fish!

Currently, my theory is that hitting the hatches right could produce some awesome fishing for the 20"+ fish in shallower water. I had one afternoon where the baetis were starting to come on strong, but not on the surface yet and the lighting was getting low so visibility was poor. I ended up fishing some riffles that I didn't even realize were shallow until I had fished through them. EPIC, would be an understatement. I went from picking up a fish in a riffle every 20 minutes or so, to picking up a fish every cast or so. I also went from an average of 6" fish to an average of 12" fish. My hunch is that baetis started releasing from the streambed to get to the surface and the better fish responded in kind by moving into the shallower riffles where they could gorge on them. There was one 14" fish that was so shallow my fly hit the water in a 4" deep riffle and in two seconds my indicator was stopped and I lifted up on this fish!

Each time I went, I grew a little more fond of the river, and our last outing was our best time (in terms of size). Michelle and I spent 2 hours in one riffle and picked up 4 fish over the 16" mark (sadly, Michelle lost both of hers before they got to the net, but one of them was about 19"), along with some smaller fish.

I would definitely rate the Arkansas at Pueblo as a great fishery. What it lacks in authenticity, and water quality, it makes up for with a good stocking program. If you're looking for a pristine mountain river without a soul around while you fish to native trout ... probably not your spot. If you're looking for a good time, with a lot of fish, warm winter temps, a chance at some 20"+ trout and don't mind crowds it's a sweet option.

I'm pretty excited to even get out there this Spring, Summer and Fall, but I have a hunch that the allure of the South Platte and other streams in the area will pull me away. We shall see.

Tight lines,

-Jeff

On the River: Arkansas, Bighorn Sheep Canyon, Canyon City, CO

October 15, 2010

If I had a stand-out day this fall, it was on the Arkansas river. It really was the quintessential fall fly fishing day. The sky was a brilliant blue, the air was crisp, the leaves were crunchy underfoot, the wind was non-existant and there was the smell of the fading summer (i.e. decaying plant matter).

There was not much to be said for the size of the fish we were catching. In fact, I have yet to see a day on the Arkansas where the average fish was much over 12". If you know of some spots where the "big fish" live, feel free to contact me and we'll hit the river together (that is if you're willing to divulge those secrets). Until that time, my assumption is that the Ark is a great river for quantities, but not so great for size. I am confident that in all those miles of river with deep pools there lies some pretty monster fish, but they are probably content staying far away from where the angler can threaten them.

As for the fishing, it was fantastic! We splatted a few ant patterns here and there and were rewarded with the occasional fish. We fished the heads of shallow riffles with a blacktail baetis pattern with much success. By the middle of the day, there were enough caddis dancing around to bring up some of the better fish. And nearing the end of the day, it was the poly-wing baetis that caused the biggest fish of the day to scrutinize my fly and take it with a gentle sip (didn't get a picture of that one, he pulled out after 30 seconds or so).

So much of the joy in a day like this one, for me, has to do with the style in which I'm fishing. I love it when things are calm, gentle, delicate. I love seeing the fish. I love seeing the take. I love being refused, then spending some time pondering why and solving the riddle. I think it is why I am so reminiscent of fishing back east all the time. After I've spent a good amount of time fishing all over this country, I've decided that the style that suits me best is found where the water flows a little slower and the fish think a little longer.

In the west, I usually find those days in the fall, and it makes me happy.

And so, at the end of the day, when I was making a 60 foot cast with a #22 poly-wing baetis to a pod of rising fish ... I was a pretty happy man.

Tight lines indeed,

-Jeff

On the River: Spring Creek, Bellefonte, Central PA

July 31 - August 3, 2009

Ah, Central PA is the non-humanoid love of my life. If at any point up until now you were to ask me where I learned to fly fish the answer would have always come back - Central PA. I suppose I did a fair amount of learning on the White and Norfork rivers of Arkansas, but really, I've always considered Spring Creek, Penn's Creek and Big Fishing Creek my "school of hard knocks". These are the rivers that have taught Jay and I so many things about fly fishing along the journey.

So, after many years since I have made a dedicated trip back east to fish Central PA, I finally got to break away for a long weekend and remember the joy!

After fishing in the west for 13 years now, there was nothing I was looking forward to more than standing in Spring Creek, with absolutely no wind, the warm sun on my back, and sight nymphing to 18"+ browns that are holding alongside veronica americana in gentle riffles and flats. But, mother nature had some other ideas about our weekend, and so, midday Friday we found ourselves fishing to a hatchery outlet pipe (the only clear water for miles) in a steady downpour, praying that it would let up and the rivers might have a chance of being fishable the next day.

You see, all Thursday night the Central PA had gotten pounded with rain, so by the time we showed up on Friday the rivers were high a muddy. We knew that as soon as the rain stopped we'd only have to wait 6-8 hours for the clarity to come back a bit, but things were looking grim. Fortune, however, has a funny way of shinning upon us sometimes.

The rain did finally let up and the river, by the next morning, was a milky brown but definitely fishable. We didn't know what to expect, except for the fact that we knew we weren't "sight nymphing" to any fish. So, Jay and I did what we do best and began thinking about how to approach the situation and find fish.

It was about 15 casts, and 6 fish later, that we decided "off color" water wasn't so bad. All in all, we learned some really important things about Spring Creek that weekend. So often, when you can see the fish, you give up trying any blind nymphing. I mean, why would you blind nymph when you can spot tanks left and right. But the twist is that for every fish you spot, there is 4 that you don't.

I can honestly say that being limited by the murky water showed me the true colors of that river. In the past we had always assumed there were not massive numbers of fish in Spring Creek, but a good number of very large fish instead (and who would be sad about that). But with the water being high and off color, not to mention a lot of extra food getting washed down the river, the fish were not as spooky and OUT IN FORCE, slamming our flies on a well placed drift.

I learned some other things that weekend too. I had good confidence in the AB sow bug, but I now have the utmost confidence that it is a sweet pattern. By the end of the weekend there were really on two choices, the AB sow bug or the Gammarus Scud. Sure, you could catch fish on a midge or a hare's ear, but why? The fish were CRUSHING those two crustaceans and didn't leave much desire for changing up patterns.

One of the other amazing things was the holding locations of most of the fish. With the water being "greenish" you could get a feel for depth by looking for the darker green/brown patches (by midday Saturday we had about 8" of visibility). Making a drift over a seem with a little more depth would inevitably produce a fish. In fact, my biggest brown of the trip came out of what was little more than shin deep pocket-water.

We were on the river every morning at about 6 AM, looking desperately for the Trico spinner fall, but none of the days were a heavy enough fall to budge the trout off the bottom of the river. It didn't seem to matter though, the nymphing was good in the morning too. Really the only slow part of the day was the "heat", from about 2 PM to 5 PM, but even then, we were still picking up fish.

We primarily fished the Benner Spring stretch, but did break away for a half day to hit the Fisherman's Paradise. Not to impressed by that ... I know there are some big fish right near the hatchery, but headed upstream into the "Canyon" immediately and regretted it. This fish were plenty, but the size range was about 4" smaller, on average, than at Benner.

All in all, irony played its final twist on us ... As Jay and I were heading back to the car Monday morning, we realized that the true clarity of the river was finally restored. Being that I was so nostalgic for sight nymphing out east, we decided to walk the river, instead of the trail, for the last 100 yards. I immediately spotted this Brown, but he spooked. I thought I saw where he went so I made three drifts and hooked him ... still not a true "sight nymph"

Then it was "batter up" for Jay, but we were 30 minutes behind schedule to get back for dinner with the ladies. Sadly, Jay got a few sweet takes, but never got to seal the deal and we were out of time.

I guess if you fulfilled all your fantasies you wouldn't have a reason to go back ... yeah right! Of course you would, to fulfill them a second time.

I love this sport!

-Jeff

On the River: Gunnison Gorge, Delta, CO

July 22, 2009

Last week my Uncle Al gave me a call and persuaded me to skip work and come fishing for the day with him, my Aunt Pat, and my new friend Joe. They were staying in Telluride so we figured hitting the Gunnison Gorge would be sweet since it's about half way between the two of us.

So, Wednesday morning my wife and I packed up and headed out that way. We arrived at the river around 9:30 and headed upstream from Pleasure Park.

I must admit, I don't get to Pleasure Park much in the summer (I usually save it for winter fishing since the temps are a lot nicer than Gunnison) and I was pretty shocked at the green riverbed. It made the river look like it was a giant spring creek, and if you've read any of my other posts you know that always makes me happy, but upon further inspection, I'm pretty sure it was just a huge algae bloom. If you know anything about it, feel free to clue me in in the comments section, because I am quite curious.

Nevertheless, the fish acted a lot like spring creek fish, feeding in the pockets and wells the algae created so it was a really fun day.

We started out with a nymph rig, but switched to a dark tan caddis within 15 minutes and never really looked back. I wouldn't say the top action was epic, but solid enough to not need nymphs. Most of the fish were in the 10" class, but we raised the heads of at least 4 fish that were much larger, including this sweet brown Michelle hooked feeding tight to the bank.

A little later in the day I spotted some big fish in the 18" class that were feeding on nymphs pretty heavily. I switched back to a single gammarus scud and proceeded to botch two really solid takes. I hang my head in shame.

About the only drawback to this wonderfully sunny, fish filled day, was the temperature was about 97 degrees.

Tight lines,

-Jeff

On the River: Slate River, Crested Butte, CO

July 19, 2009

I was working at one of our jobsites last week and my friend Justin had mentioned he owned property on the Slate River and had access to more than 1/2 mile of private water ... HE HAD ACCESS TO MORE THAN 1/2 MILE OF PRIVATE WATER ... HE HAD ... ok, you get the point.

He said we should hit the river on Sunday afternoon because the caddis were going off. I said yes. We ended up meeting Justing and his girlfriend Sara around 6 PM.

The beauty of private water is that often times you get to see what a river could be like, without the pressure of the general public, and more importantly, without the general public eating half of the trout population.

Mind you, I'm not at all opposed to keeping an occasional fish, but growing up around spin fisherman and fly-fishermen my whole life, I also know how it goes 97% of the time. Frank catches his limit (maybe even more if he thinks he can get away with it) and says to himself, "I'm going to eat all these fish, and what I don't eat I'll give to my friends". As it turns out Frank puts half the fish in his freezer ... and they go bad and get thrown out in a month. The other half he gives to his friends who, in turn, put half in their freezer ... and they go bad and get thrown out in a month. Now, I know, you're saying, "Jeff, that's not how it goes", but the problem is that me, and my Father before me have seen this countless times. It is how it goes. So, the moral of the story is "don't keep fish".

Oh my, I've diverted for too long ... back to the subject. I did get to see what a river could be like, and it was sweet!

Michelle hooked into at least 3 fish that were in the "large" class and as evening descended the caddis started showing up in numbers. Justin hooked this monster brown of the night on a caddis stimulator (see above). For a river that pushes about 20 CFS it was pretty mind blowing to see how many big browns were in there.

Nymphs were doing well, but why bother when they were coming up to the surface. Most of the time Michelle and I shared a rod and had one hooked up with a caddis and the other with an AB hare's ear. After we took out all the risers in a pool, we would play cleanup with the nymphs.

It was a sweet time. Justin said I could come back. I think I will.

On the River: Uncompahgre River, Montrose, Colorado

... again.

If you've been following my posts, you'll no doubt have noticed a tone of disgruntlement at spring weather. I set out on Saturday, April 25th to fish the "Pleasure Park" stretch of the Gunnison River thinking I could get above the North Fork and be in relatively clear water. Unfortunately, the North Fork impeded my progress ... for some reason crossing an 80 foot wide, milk chocolate, raging, 3000 CFS river in my tiny, one man, walmart raft did not sound enjoyable, much less livable.

So, I found myself once again at the Uncompahgre River, just south of Montrose, CO. It wasn't with any reluctancy though, I had a good time when I last visited this stretch of the river and was pretty excited to hike down a little further and fish a lot more water.

It fished very similar to my last visit. The water was up, and moving pretty fast, with a good "greenish" tint to it. The fish seemed about the same, holding in the slow and deep pools. In fact, I don't think I caught a single fish in any other type of water. I was fishing the hare's ear/baetis combo like before and kept a weather eye out for Mother's day caddis (and the fish were too as I'll explain later).

Picked up a lot of good fish and got about as close to a Colorado Slam as you can get. I'm guessing that there are no brookies in this stretch of the river, but by the end of the day I had landed a Brown, Rainbow, Snake River Cutt, Colorado Cutthroat, plus a small Cutbow as well. My pride and joy was a nice 17" brown that came at my fly as it was drifting toward me. I got to see him turn downstream and inhale my fly about 2' in front of me. I think we were both thinking same thing ... "oh, crap".

Near the end of the day I was disappointed that the Mother's Day caddis never happened since I had just tied a fresh dozen of Allen Brothers Cut-wing Caddis. So ... I decided to tie one on anyway, just to test out how well they floated. To my surprise, though there wasn't much of a presence in the air or the bushes, the fish were still looking up. I ended up landing about 3 fish on dries all said and done.

It was a good day ... what more can you say.

Tight lines,

-Jeff