Spinney Mountain Ranch

The lush meandering, meadow portion of the South Platte between Spinney and Elevenmile Reservoirs is known as the “Dream Stream”.  This beautiful 3-mile section of the Platte offers anglers the opportunity of a lifetime to catch large trout. This fabulous tailwater fishery is located in the heart of South Park, tucked between 14,000 foot snow capped peaks on the west, rich ranchland to the north and south, and Pikes Peak on the east. Spinney is a well-balanced fishery where anglers can catch trout on nymphs, dry flies and streamers.

The river is comprised of prime trout habitat, which includes, riffles, runs, gravel bars, shelves, and undercut banks. Fly-fishers can expect to catch a mixed bag of rainbows, browns, and cutthroats in 16-20 inch range. In addition spring (rainbows, and cutthroats) and fall (browns and kokanee salmon) spawning runs from Elevenmile Reservoir are quite impressive with fish up to 12 pounds landed during a key three-four week period. Ideal flow conditions for “Dream Stream” are between 100 CFS and 250 CFS. The regulations are flies and lures only and all fish must be returned to the water immediately.

Current Conditions

Flow: 153

Clarity: Good.

Water Temperature: High 50's to low 60's.

Major Food Organisms: Midges, caddis, pale morning duns, yellow sallies, blue-winged olives, and Tricos.

Hatches: Midges, caddis, pale morning duns, yellow sallies, blue-winged olives, and Tricos.

14 Day Forecast: Flows have returned to their normal historic levels.  Nymph fishing is the preferred method of catching trout right now, but  dry fly fishing is improving.

Tips and Other Information: Fishing remains fair at the Dream Stream. Flows have been stable at 150 cfs for about a week. There are fewer fish in the river as compared to a month ago, especially big fish, but overall, there are enough fish to keep things interesting. Recommended flies include: #14 San Juan Worms, #18 Buckskins, #18-20 Mercury Pheasant Tails, #18 Barr Emergers (PMD), #18 Barr's Graphic Caddis (tan), and #20 Sparkle Wing RS 2s.  Anglers are catching a mixed bag of small to medium sized browns and cuttbows in the 12-16 inch range, and the occasional rainbow. There has been a dense Trico hatches in the a.m., followed by pmd's late morning/early afternoon, and sporadic caddis and yellow sallies in the afternoon.  There has been some fairly good "hopper" fishing.  Amy's Ant has been the ticket in the riffled water for pounding fish up that are looking for hoppers. The best fishing has clearly been in the morning.  

Effective Patterns:  Barr's Graphic Caddis, #14 Earthworm Brown San Juan Worm,  #20 Mercury Flashback RS II, #20 Mercury, #16-20 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tail, #18-20 Buckskin, #16-18 Bead Head Barr’s Emerger (PMD), #16 Goddard Caddis, #18 Elk Hair Caddis, #16 Yellow Sally Adult, #20-22 Churchill’s Sparkle Wing RS II, #24 Stalcup Trico, #20-22 Parachute Adams, #20-22 Griffith Gnats, and #20-22 Matt's Midge.

Cheesman Canyon

The picturesque boulder-filled Cheesman Canyon portion of the South Platte River is considered by many one of the most pristine fisheries in the world. This area, often times simply referred to, as “The Canyon” is an experience you’ll never forget. It’s the perfect scenario, magnificent beauty in combination with great flyfishing.

The South Platte River carves its way through a granite canyon lined with ponderosa pines, willows,
fallen tree trunks, and various other assorted ground foliages. Boulders as big as Volkswagens Beetles create structure for the super-selective trout residing in the river. Mule Deer, Black Bear, Raccoons, Mountain Lyons, and Bald Eagles all add to the experience. Anglers can expect to catch mostly large rainbows supplemented with a few nice brown trout. The aforementioned “Canyon” is as technical as they get, and if you can catch trout here, you can catch them anywhere in the world. This three-mile section is primarily a nymphing fishery requiring tiny midge and mayfly imitations with fine 6 & 7X tippets. Ideal flows for Cheesman are between 250 CFS and 400 CFS. The regulations are flies and lures only. All fish must be returned to the water immediately.

Current Conditions

Flow:144

Clarity: Excellent. 

Water Temperature: Mid to high 50's

Major Food Organisms: Midges, blue-winged olives, sporadic yellow sallies,  caddis, and golden stoneflies.

Hatches: Midges, blue-winged olives, sporadic yellow sallies,  caddis, and golden stoneflies.

14 Day Forecast: Look for Denver Water to release approximately the same volume that is entering Cheesman Reservoir.  If things stay dry, look for low water. Anglers can expect hatches of midges, blue-winged olives, sporadic caddis, yellow sallies, and golden stones.

Tips and Other Information: "Class is in session" right now in Cheesman Canyon.  Fishing has been difficult lately with the lower water. Fishing has been fair at best the last week or so. Flies of choice are: #18 Barr Emergers (pmd), #22 Stalcups Baetis, #20-24 Mercury Baetis, #20-22 Mercury Midge, #20 Rainbow Warrior, #22 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tails, and #22 Flashback Barr Emerger (bwo).  The Psuedocloeons are hatching now, which really complicates things.   Make sure you have some very small mayfly nymphs, otherwise, it could be a long, tough day. Water temps are slowly dropping with the cool nights, coupled with Denver Water now bringing 30 cfs off the bottom of Cheesman Reservoir.

Effective Patterns: #8 Pat's Rubber Legs, #20-22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #20 Jujubaetis, #20 Chironoflash, Barr's Graphic Caddis #18, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #20 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #18 Mercury Cased Caddis, #20-22 Top Secret Midge, #18 Flash Tail Hot Egg, #16 Nuclear Egg, #20 Rainbow Warrior, #20-22 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tail, #16 Elk Hair Caddis, #16 Goddard Caddis, and #22 Griffith Gnat, #24-26 Parachute Adams.

Deckers

The mileage below Cheesman Canyon is the renowned Deckers area, a world-class fishery with easy access and lots of opportunity. The best fishing is from Bridge Crossing to the lower boundary of the Tee Pee Club. Like Cheesman Canyon, the fish are challenging to catch, and there is no substitution for a good dead drift. Deckers can offer good dry fly fishing at times but like upstream in the “The Canyon” a good nympher will catch the majority of fish. Anglers can expect to catch assortment of browns and rainbows with some exceeding 20 inches. The river is made up of riffles, runs, shelves and gravel bars, and nice pocket water. The ideal flow for Deckers is between 150-400 cfs. The regulations are two trout over 16 inches in length and flies and lures only.

Current Conditions

Flow: Trumbull 149

Clarity: Excellent throughout drainage.

Water Temperature: High 50's to low 60's

Major Food Organisms: Midges, blue-winged olives, sporadic yellow sallies,  caddis, and golden stoneflies.

Hatches: Midges, blue-winged olives, sporadic yellow sallies,  caddis, and golden stoneflies.

14 Day Forecast: Look for Denver Water to release approximately the same volume that is entering Cheesman Reservoir.  If things stay dry, look for low water. Anglers can expect hatches of midges, blue-winged olives, sporadic caddis, yellow sallies, and golden stones.

Tips and Other Information:  Nymphing has been productive with #18 Barr Emergers (pmd), #22 Stalcup's Baetis, #20-24 Mercury Baetis, #20 Mercury Midge, #20 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tails, and #8-10 Pat's Rubber Legs (brown and black).  Dry/dropper rigs with Amy's Ant and Mercer's Micro Mayfly nymphs have been effective in the skinny water.  Water temps are slowly dropping with the cool nights, coupled with Denver Water now bringing 30 cfs off the bottom of Cheesman Reservoir. 

Effective Patterns: #20 Mercury Red Pheasant Tail, #20-22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #20 Mercury Brassie, #20 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #18 Mercury Cased Caddis, #20-22 Top Secret Midge, #18 Flash Tail Hot Egg, #16 Nuclear Egg, #20 Rainbow Warrior, #20-22 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tail,  #22 Griffith Gnat, #24-26 Parachute Adams and #20 Sparkle Duns.

Elevenmile Canyon

The South Platte River below Elevenmile Reservoir is absolutely beautiful. The South Platte River tumbles and twists through a majestic canyon as it carves its way downstream to the small community of Lake George. Parts of the scenic canyon remind you of the fabled Cheesman stretch while others look much like the renowned Deckers area. Elevenmile Canyon is a great winter and early spring fishery with tremendous opportunity to consistently hook nice fish. The river is loaded with Rainbows and Cut-bows with the occasional brown trout.

The average fish ranges between 12 and 17 inches and are strong as an ox. Occasionally you will hook fish between 17 and 24 inches in the upper reaches below the dam. The river is comprised of riffles, runs, shelves, gravel bars, and nice pocket water. The scenery is fabulous with logjams, huge granite boulders, fallen trees, waterfalls, and bald eagles soaring above the canyon’s lip. The ideal flow for Elevenmile Canyon is between 150-250 cfs. The best fishing is in the upper two miles. The aforementioned two-mile stretch is flies and lures only. This section is catch and release and all fish must be returned to the water immediately. Pinch down your barbs and protect this incredible resource.

Current Conditions

Flow:119

Clarity: Good

Water Temperature: High 50's low 60's.

Major Food Organisms: Midges, Baetis, pale morning duns, yellow sallies, caddis, and Tricos.

Hatches: Midges, Baetis, pale morning duns, yellow sallies, caddis, and Tricos.

14 Day Forecast: Look for high flows until things dry out.  Rainshowers have all the tributaries above Spinney running two to three times their normal historic levels.  Once the rain subsides, things will return to normal quickly.  

Tips and Other Information: Flows are high in Elevenmile Canyon, in fact, they are 100 cfs above their normal historic levels for this time of year. Anglers will need to find softer cushions and fish #16 red Copper Johns, #14 San Juan Worms, #20 Sparkle Wing RS 2's, #18 Barr Emergers (pmd), ect. with lots of weight to get the flies down. Anglers can expect to see hatches of caddis, pale morning duns, blue-winged olives, and Tricos.  The dry fly fishing has slowed with the higher flows. Look for the dry fly fishing to improve as the flows drop.

Effective Patterns: #14 San Juan Worm, #16 Red Copper John, #18 red Mercury Pheasant Tail, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #20 Mercury Brassie, #20-22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #22 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #20-22 Mercury Blood Midge, #22-22 Medallion Midge, #20-22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #20-22 Barr Emerger, #22 Benton’s Shuckin Midge, #20-22 Mercury Red Pheasant Tails, #22-22 Mercury Baetis, #18-20 Jujubaetis, #16 Elk Hair Caddis, #16 Goddard Caddis, #20-22 Mercury Pheasant Tails, #22-24 Hi-Vis Baetis #20-26 Parachute Adams, and #22-24 Griffith Gnat.

North Fork of the South Platte River

The North Fork of the South Platte River offers yet another opportunity to sample the South Platte River system. The vast majority of this swift, fast flowing stem of the South Platte River is within an hour’s reach of metropolitan Denver, nevertheless, this branch gets over-shadowed by the renowned South Fork. The headwaters of the North Fork, as it is referred to, commence on the eastern side of legendary Kenosha Pass. The North Fork is extremely small and expeditious for the first several miles until it joins forces with diverted water from the bottom of Dillon Reservoir via the Roberts Tunnel. Another tributary—Geneva Creek—further adds a substantial quantity of water to the North Fork near the small town of Grant. This creek is especially influential during run-off as the North Fork swells and becomes high and roily. Several other smaller side-streams also enter the river but are not the magnitude of the two previously mentioned sources of water.

The North Fork is comprised of shallow riffles, runs, and an abundance of pocket water. Deep holes are uncommon throughout this section of river. The water is gin clear, and standard sight nymphing tactics work best on a day-to-day basis. Short-line nymphing is the most effective technique with the heavy brush, small pockets, and quick seams—all of which are key holding areas for the trout. Typically if it looks “fishy”, it generally is, and of course it’s always lucrative to find fish positioned where you think they should be.

Current Conditions

for Boxwood Gulch, Long Meadow, Farmer’s Union, and North Fork Ranch. These are the private leases we guide on. The same conditions are present on all the public water, however, access is limited.

Flow:335

Clarity: Good

Water Temperature: Mid 40's to low 50's

Major Food Organisms: Midges, green drakes, and red quills.

Hatches: Midges, green drakes, and red quills.

14 Day Forecast:  Look for higher than normal flows.  Anglers can expect hatches of midges, green drakes, and red quills.  

Tips and Other Information:  Look for higher flows due to all the rain. Anglers can expect excellent nymphing with Pat's Rubber Legs, olive Hare's Ears, #14 Soft Hackle Pheasant Tails, #18 Mercury Pheasant Tails, #18 Red Mercury Pheasant Tails and Nuclear Eggs.  Green drakes and red quills are offering anglers the opportunity to nail a few on the surface.

Effective Patterns: #18 Hot Tail Flash Eggs, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #22 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #22-24 Medallion Midge, #20-22 Flashback Mercury RS II, #22 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #18 Gold Bead Flashback Pheasant Tails, #14 Pink San Juan Worm, #18-22 Red Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tails, #20-22 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tail, #18 Mercury Caddis, and #16 Red Copper John.

William’s Fork River

The Williams Fork River is a top-notch fishery of its own. This beautiful fishery is nestled between the Williams Peaks and Middle Park and is truly a fly-fishing paradise. The two-mile stretch between the upper boundary of the Kemp Unit and the confluence of the Colorado River is a mixture or riffles, runs and pocket water with one of the best populations of brown trout in the “west”. A 30-minute hike to the river keeps the crowds to a minimum. Anglers can catch trout with a variety of methods including nymphs, streamers, and dry flies. The hatches include caddis, blue wing olives, midges, tricos, and red quills. Being a tributary of the Colorado River-spring and fall-spawning runs bring some “lunkers” into the stream. Ideal flows for the “Fork” are between 100-250 cfs. The regulations are flies and lures only and all fish must be returned to the water immediately.

Current Conditions

Flow:146

Clarity:  Excellent.

Water Temperature:  Mid 50's.

Major Food Organisms: Midges, Baetis, sporadic caddis, Tricos, and red quills.

Hatches: Midges, Baetis, sporadic caddis, Tricos, and red quills.

14 Day Forecast: Williams Fork Reservoir is full.  Look for flows between 150 and 300 cfs for the remainder of the summer season, to meet downstream water demands on the western slope.

Tips and Other Information: Fishing has been productive on the Williams Fork for brown trout between 6 and 15 inches. Occasionally you'll hook a nice rainbow or two which adds a little spice to the day. Effective flies have been #14 San Juan Worms, #16 Bead Head Breadcrust, #18 Buckskins, #20 Sparkle Wing RS 2's, and #18 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tails.  Look for hatches of blue-winged olives mid-day and red quills late afternoon.

Effective Patterns: #14 Pink San Juan Worm, #6-8 Pine Squirrel Leech, #8 Pat's Rubber Legs, Egg Patterns, Cannon's Wormly Worm, #20-22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #20 Mercury Brassie, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #18-22 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #18-20 Mercury Pheasant Tails, #18-20 Buckskins, #20-22 Sparkle Wing RS II, #20-22 Mathew’s Sparkle Dun, #20-22 Hi Vis Baetis, #16 Elk Hair Caddis, #24 Stalcup Trico, #20 Matt’s Midge, and #24 Parachute Adams.

Colorado River

The Colorado River begins its journey in Rocky Mountain National Park and heads west offering anglers several opportunities to sample this great stream. Near the small community of Granby is the confluence of the Fraser River. At this point the river is a meandering, meadow stream flowing through lush ranchland and the river remains this way until it hit Byers Canyon. Byers Canyon is only about one mile long and this section is pretty tough to negotiate, especially during higher flows. Below Byers Canyon the river is “as good as it gets” with many access points including Paul Gilbert, Lone Buck, Kemp-Breeze, Sun Set Ranch, Reeder Creek and the Pump House to Radium stretch. The Colorado is lined with cottonwood trees and willows and is a dry fly paradise. Anglers can expect to catch mostly brown trout and a few large rainbows. The regulations in this area are flies and lures only and all fish must be returned to the water immediately.

Current Conditions

Flow: Parshall 268

Clarity: Fair

Water Temperature: Mid 50's 

Major Food Organisms: Midges, sporadic caddis, Tricos, and red quills

Hatches: Midges, sporadic caddis, Tricos, and red quills

14 Day Forecast: Look for flows to between 200 and 400 cfs for the remainder of the summer season.  Clarity is changing due to some work being conducted upstream near Windy Gap.  I observed heavy equipment dredging the reservoir recently, which, explains the muddy water downstream.

Tips and Other Information: The Colorado River is fishing fair-to-good. Water temps have dropped with the recent increase of flow from the Williams Fork, coupled with the cool nights.  Effective flies have been #14 earthworm brown San Juan Worms, #18 Buckskins, #20 Sparkle Wing RS2's, and #18 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tails. Anglers can expect to find hatches of midges, Tricos, blue-winged olives and red quills.  Above the confluence of the Williams Fork,  (Lonebuck and Paul Gilbert) flows are considerably lower.  This section is catering to the dry fly angler nicely, however.  The trees are already starting to turn, autumn is not far behind.

Effective Patterns:  #14 Pink San Juan Worm, #6-8 Pine Squirrel Leech, #8 Pat's Rubber Legs, Egg Patterns,  Cannon's Wormly Worm, #20-22 Mercury Flashback RS II, #20 Mercury Brassie, #18-22 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #18-20 Mercury Pheasant Tails, #18-20 Buckskins, #18-20 Rainbow Warrior, #16 Hot Tail Flash Egg, #20-22 Sparkle Wing RS II, #20-22 Mathew’s Sparkle Dun, #20-22 Hi Vis Baetis, #20 Matt’s Midge, and #24 Parachute Adams.

Blue River

Many anglers I know have a love-hate relationship with the Blue River. Just about the time you think you have the river figured out, a humbling experience devastates your ego. The Blue River is a fantastic fishery and a favorite of mine. The Blue certainly is a beautiful as they come, and gives visiting anglers a real sense of “Colorado”. It’s a tough river at times, but a good challenge will always make you a better fly-fisherman. The water is extremely cold coming off the bottom of Lake Dillon. This cold water dictates and controls the feeding window of the trout. It’s not a great morning fishery, but as the water gradually warms up throughout the day, the fishing improves dramatically. The upper stretches of the Blue (from the base of the dam through Silverthorne) holds trophy trout, fattening up on Mysis Shrimp from the lake above. The water is gin clear requiring perfect presentations. Down stream the river changes back in a typical mountain trout stream with a diverse insect life. Several tributaries inter the river before it spills into Green Mountain Reservoir.

The river is  lined with cottonwood trees and willows and is tucked to the east of the beautiful Gore Range. Because the water is so cold the river fishes best from mid-day to dark. Anglers can expect to catch mostly brown trout, a hand full of cut-bows as well as a few rainbows and the river can be excellent with dry fly patterns later in the afternoons and evenings. The hatches include blue wing olives, caddis, red quills, green drakes, pmd’s, and stoneflies. The regulations are catch and release in Silverthorne and on the lower reaches the limit is two trout over 16 inches in length and is artificial flies and lures only.

Current Conditions

Flow: below Dillon Dam 151

Clarity: Excellent throughout drainage.  Clarity will vary depending on rainfall. 

Water Temperature: Mid 50's.

Major Food Organisms: Midges, Baetis, caddis, yellow sallies, and pale morning duns.

Hatches: Midges, Baetis, caddis, yellow sallies, and pale morning duns.

14 Day Forecast: Look for higher flows with all the rain.  Once things dry out, flows will drop quickly.

Tips and Other Information: Dillon is spilling again.  Flows dropped a little over the weekend because Denver Water increased the outflow out of  the east Portal of the Roberts Tunnel.   Anglers can double the flow out of Dillon to get a flow on the lower river (there is no gauging station on the lower river).   Effective patterns are  #8-10 Pat's Rubber Legs,  #14 pink  San Juan Worm, caddis larvae, #18 Mercury Pheasant Tail, #18 Gold Bead Pheasant Tail, #20 Mercury Midges, #20 Rainbow Warrior, #20 Sparkle Wing RS2's.  Dry fly fishing with Renegades, Amy's Ants, and Rubber Legged Stimulators has been effective in the slower pools and tailouts.  I am carrying two rods right now, one with a dry/dropper rig to fish the skinny water, and a nymphing rod to fish the deeper runs and slots.

Effective Patterns:  #14 Pink San Juan Worm, #6-8 Pine Squirrel Leech, #8 Pat's Rubber Legs, Egg Patterns, Laney's Mysis, Cannon's Wormly Worm, #20-22 Mercury Flashback Black Beauty, #20-22 Pearl Jam, #20-22 Medallion Midge, #22 WD 50, #20-22 Mercury Flashback Pheasant Tail, #22-24 Medallion Midges, #22-24 Top Secret Midge, #18 Mysis Shrimp, #18 Hot Tail Flash Egg, #14 Pink San Juan Worm, #20-22 Mercury Midge, #20-22 Mercury Brassies, #22 Benton’s Shuckin Midge, #22 Jujubaetis, #20-22 Cannon’s Snowshoe Midge Cluster, #20 Sparkle Dun, and #20-24 Parachute Adams.

Clear Creek

In 1988 when the Blue Quill opened its doors, there was very little fly fishing going on in Clear Creek. The river had suffered over one hundred years of mining pollution, channeling and chemical spills along I-70. Since 1983, Clear Creek has been a Federal Super Fund clean-up site and each year the water seems cleaner, the hatches of aquatic insects more abundant and the fishing better and better. Clear Creek is only seven miles from the Blue Quill Angler and is home to a very high number of naturally reproducing brown trout.

The Clear Creek watershed is unique. With a mountain range of 14,000 foot peaks as its western boundary and approximately sixty linear miles of mainstream river water, it hosts a variety of natural habitats and wildlife populations. Much of Clear Creek is open to fishing from Golden all the way west to Georgetown. There are many pull-offs on HWY 6 and lots of access points on the service road that parallels I-70. Much of the river is channeled and rocky and can be a dangerous stream to fish especially during run-off though it remains a popular Front Range stream for kayaks and rafts.

Despite the inerrant problems with the environment, Clear Creek can be a very fun and exciting stream to fish with a stimulator or a bead head dropper. The fish are often pushed over on the edges and seem to be behind every rock. Czech nymphing techniques can also be very productive. Clear Creek is the perfect place for an afternoon or evening of fly fishing without the long drive necessary to many other spots and offers many miles of productive angling with low angling pressure.

Flow: Lawson 98
 
Clarity:Good

Water Temperature: Mid 50's

Major Food Organisms: Caddis and Attractor Dries

Hatches: Caddis and Attractor Dires

14 Day Forecast:Clear Creek is awesome and should stay that way until the next big rain or it freezes over. Get on Clear Creek now as it is amazing!!!

Tips and Other Information:Fish the edges with a dry-dropper set-up like an Amy's Ant with a 14 Tungsten Prince or Pheasant Tail. A Dirty Bird dropper in olive has been super effective the last couple of days

Effective Patterns: #18 Hot Tail Flash Eggs, #20, Tungsten Prince nymphs, Tungsten Iron Sally nymphs, Olive Dirty Birds and Pat's Rubber Legs in the smaller sizes