Frying Pan Anglers - Colorado Fly Fishing Report 18th June

Earlier in the week it was clear and cold but warmed a little towards Thursday. Then the snow arrived. Since Friday we have had close to 20" and it is still falling a little on Sunday evening. It became quite cold today as the day progressed, dropping down to 10 degrees after midday. The snow is welcome for both the skiing and the snow pack for spring. Over the next week the prediction for the weather is a little patchy however the main theme is cold. Mid week we might get a little more snow but with the clear skies and the artic weather moving down to us it is certainly going to be cold at night and will struggle to move into the twenties during the day. It is doubtful that the weather will move above freezing during the whole of next week, so reports of a unseasonally warm winter were a little too early and a little too optimistic.

There were a few fishermen about during the week, but as the skiing improved most of the potential fishermen stayed on the slopes. This granted perfect access to the river to whomever wanted to venture there. However with the recent snow fall and the freezing along the sides of the river flow, take care when wading in because it can get a little tricky getting over the ice and into the running water. The closer one fishes to Reudi the warmer the water and less ice in the flow. The cold over the next week will build the anchor ice a little and this will make the wading even a little trickier wherever the anchor ice is laying across the bottom of the flow.

Stay warm and close to the car. Also be careful with the added snow and cold, because unless the roads and accesses are plowed the ruts frozen in the ice will make it difficult to access some parts of the river if you have a car and you don't have good tires. The access to the dam was not plowed this morning so a foot of snow caused one car to go sideways and block the road except to those who had tall enough trucks or jeeps to drive around the vehicle in the deep snow. If you have any doubt, be careful. Park on firm ground and walk in. It is a long walk back to town and there is not much traffic to get you a lift. Usually the access road to the dam is plowed during the week, so today was a little exceptional. But it can happen again.

With the promise of cold weather well below freezing, try and fish in the sun if there is no cloud. With the temperature in the teens, the guides will ice up regularly so pick up some Stanely's "ice-off" and keep your guides clear of ice as best you can. The key will be to wait until the sun is up then follow the sun. The midges will generally start to come off around midday.

Midges were coming off today even as the temperature fell from 17 degrees to 10 degrees with cloud cover and snow falling. I decided to go home when my gloves began to adhere to the metal handle on my net! The fish were taking midges on the surface. After the fly got wet it turned to ice in the air and sank so it was a matter of drying the fly as much as possible to try and keep it floating. A number of dry patterns worked, from the z-wing real midge, to the midge winker but the key was small sizes - #22 - #24. Anything larger was refused.

Take care when handling the fish. Leaving a fish out in the air when it is so cold will cause the water to freeze and damage the gills potentially causing irreparable harm to the fish. In addition, land the fish and release it quickly to limit the amount of energy expended. Sometimes if I can't remove a hook quickly enough I will just break off the line. The fish are now confined to restricted diets for the next 3 months so it is important to let them alone as much as possible so that they will survive the winter in reasonably healthy condition.

Recommended Flies: Wait for the sun to hit the water before venturing out. Then follow the sun. In the bright light the fish can easily be spotted in the deeper slower water. In the coming week fish midges deep and then if they start coming off fish closer to the surface with emergers if the fish start rising in the water column. Watch until the fish are poking their heads out of the water to take the midges off the surface before switching to dry patterns. When the fish are taking midges they won't move much to take them so fish as accurately as possible to ensure that the fly drifts down or up to the level of the feeding fish. It is imperative that one fishes right to the fish, so continually vary your weights. If you are careful you will get a lot of shots at a suspended fish as it won't move much to inspect a fly. Try WD-40's #20 , red and black chironocones #20, brassie's #18 - #22, midge larva patterns #18 - #22 and garcia's rojo midges # 18 - #22. It's only when you practically hit the fish on the head and he moves off that you will know for sure he won't take your midge pattern. When the fish are taking midges off the surface, try and identify the size of the midges floating by and match the size. Carry a range of dry patterns such as the z-wing real midge, suspended midge and any similar dry black patterns in sizes from #20 through to #26. In addition with the browns on the redds still spawning take care not to disturb them. Instead fish downstream with egg patterns where other fish will gather to feed on them.

Roaring Fork

Current Flow: near Emma - 194cfs (if you want more uptodate figures check out current readings on our "Links" page).

Earlier in the week the warmer weather kicked up the flow a little in the Fork to close to 260cfs. However the onset of the colder weather and snow has slowed the flow over the last few days. The additional snow resulted in chunks of ice breaking off the Fork and floating down over the week end. Essentially it prevented any access for rafting apart from the fact that it was very cold as well. There are midge hatches in the sun. Streamers and eggs will work as well.

Recommended Flies: Use the same flies as the Pan. (See our report for the Frying Pan). In addition use streamers, san juan worms and egg patterns. Generally try midges. Try larva and pupa patterns until the fish are moving under the surface then try emergers.

The Colorado should remain clear for the moment. There continues to be good fishing with similar patterns to the Fork only a little larger.

Recommended Flies: midges, larva, pupae, dries and emergers; 20 inchers size #10 - #14; streamers #6 and #8 and smaller and try egg patterns.