Great report. I've had the pleasuring of marrying into a family of fly fisherman out of Vail. I've fished the Blue quite a bit and now the "stairs" section well. Fun place!
From: tidal-potomac-fly-rodders@googlegroups.com [mailto:tidal-potomac-fly-rodders@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Greggory DiSalvo
Sent: Thursday, September 15, 2016 2:01 PM
To: Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders <tidal-potomac-fly-rodders@googlegroups.com>
Subject: {Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders} Colorado Report
Hi all,
I got back last week from a week and change driving around Colorado. I was with my fiance, so fishing was a very minor aspect, but I did convince her to partake a little. A quick synopsis for those who may not be as inclined to read through:
I saw fish, I threw flies at fish, I forgot all the basics, panicked and I missed soooo many fish.
Thank you again for the recommendations on guide services out of Denver and the book recommendations all came in handy and were enjoyed. Now for the report.
South Platte - We took a guided day trip led by Scott Dickson from Trouts to the South Platte River. I am 2 years into fly fishing and Emily has a few sunfish and shad to her name, but has little experience, but Scott was more than willing to show us both a few tricks and was particularly attentive to making sure Emily's day was fun and successful. I wanna think that Emily had the unfair benefit of sharing more of Scott's wisdom, but in the end, she simply smoked me. We both brought numerous 10-14" browns to hand and a few rainbows mixed in. This was great fun, and I had my chances with some bigger fish, but broke one off and lost another at the net. Emily, looked like a pro and never panicked as she pulled in a nice slab of a rainbow and a solid 20" brown. Now she has never particularly enjoyed touching fish, so the brown found it quite easy to make a jump for it before the pictures were snapped :) Nymphing was the main fishing, but we had a few takes on the madam PMX. We both had a ton of fun and I was so proud of Emily and how well she did. Scott and the folks at the shop were also all wonderful and gave me some recommendations for small streams around Denver I could try while Emily runs some trails.
Indian Peaks Wilderness - Next we took a backpacking trip into Indian peaks. We wanted to backpack and I felt this would also be a great chance to chase some greenback cutties. They are a fish that have long been on my list...and I am sad to say are going to have to stay unchecked. We targeted two alpine lakes to work to; both around 11,200ft. Unfortunately, it is also at these heights that weather systems often form. The first night we hikes Guord Lake which has two small ponds adjacent. Absolutely stunning and I watched a bunch of small cutties rise. Right around dusk, in one of the small ponds which I hadn't seen any movement, suddenly, I saw a large shadow. It slowly rose to sip on the surface and reveal itself as an 18-20" trout (Water makes every fish look larger, so just an estimate). I went to bed that night wth thoughts of catching this trophy greenback in such a wonderful place, but unfortunately my thoughts were interrupted by the most violent thunderstorm I have ever been near. We survived the night, but we were both shaken a bit. Emily was anxious to get off the peak and move to the next lake so I only had 30 minutes to fish. I saw some movement and put a small hopper about 3' in front. Sure enough, he takes it. I lost all sense and set the hook so hard and ripped it right out of his mouth. Devastated. I could have stayed all day trying for him, but Thunderbolt Lake was up and Emily was anxious. About half way up Thunderbolt, another storm started heading our way. I had tormented Emily enough and we decided to abandon. I am definitely going back on a fishing only trip and catching that fish!
Blue River - Breckenridge is great. The fly shops too. I had an hour to kill while Emily ran one morning, so I hit the very popular "Stair Steps" area of the river. I saw so many large fish, who mainly refused whatever I threw at them, especially dries. There was a small BWO hatch going off, but not much sipping. I switch to a san juan and drifted it past a large bow. I swear I never saw the fish move but suddenly my indicator went under. It would be too obvious to think it was a take, so instead I thought I was stuck and casually lifted my arm to shake the fly loose from the bottom. Nope, fish on. I start reeling, but never set the hook and the fish came loose after a minute. Stupid mistake, but still fun.
Bear Creek - My final fishing was back in Denver on the bear creek while Emily ran. I had about 3 hours, and I was back on small water. I felt at home. Small stimulators were the trick and I was wildly successful moving from pool to pool. I used a 3 weight, and this was perfect as most fish were 8-10" browns.
All in all, Colorado was a blast and the fishing too. I cannot wait to get back out there on a fly fishing trip!
Thanks again for the help guys!
Cheers,
Gregg
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http://www.tpfr.org
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