05/22/12 Frying Pan

05/22/12
Frying Pan River
7:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Flows 111

With a day of in between work days in the mountains was the reason why I made the drive up to the Pan!  Normally I wouldn't fish the Pan in the Spring/Summer because of the crowds but I figured I'd give it a try.  I knew the fishing was going to be consistent at the toilet bowl and I thought if I got up there early, I would be able to fish the bowl and then spend some time on the flats and bend hole.

So I got up early and hit the road.  I got to the Pan around 7:00 and was dismayed to see a car already in the lot.  I made my way down to the bowl thinking that if it was packed, I would work the flats and the bend hole...but it was just 1 guy!

I got to talking and Bill from Frisco didn't mind having some company.  He had arrived at 5:30 and already had a good morning.

Second cast...

The rainbows are back!  Spawning is over and lots of the big bows are back in the bowl.  Lots of browns still there of course, but lots of bows that are willing to take mysis, bwo's, and midges!



Quite a few browns were on the prowl too...

While more people that fish the bowl, tie on a bunch of weight, I went with a different tactic to fish for the big guys that were feeding just sub surface and mid current.  No weight!  It was actually pretty fun to watch these fish open their mouths to inhale my flies and even see a few chase and refuse flies.

Next time you're up there...give that a shot.  Not only did it help improve my catch rate, I reduced my snag rate significantly!

Hot flies were stalcup's mysis, craven's mysis, soft hackle hare's ear, flashback rs2 in black and grey and various other midge patterns in black and grey.

Crowds were relatively light in the morning, but by noon, there were 15 cars in the lot and at least 2 cars in every pull out along the way.  The crowds also prevented me from fishing the bend hole...I should have gotten a picture of the 6 guys almost shoulder to shoulder fishing that run...

So if you want some great fishing, get out to the Pan, but get there early!

02/21/12 Eagle River

02/12/21
Eagle River near Avon
2:00 - 4:00 PM
Flows 77

After spending a week on the road, I had another 3 days scheduled for work in the mountains.  Having an itch to fish with rivers so close drew me out for a quick 2 hours of fishing on the Eagle.

Flows are low compared to last year, and run off is almost non-existent.  Water clarity is good, only getting a little brown in the afternoons, but still plenty clear fish, and the lower flows make it super easy to wade.

1st fish of the day

Followed by a few of these...

And a few of these...

Overall, the fishing was great!  I ended up with 10 fish in about 2 hours of fishing.  Nothing of size besides the 1st brownie that I caught, but I can't complain!  It's great to wet a line and catch some fish while taking a break from work!

Hot flies for the day were 20 inchers, rubber leg copper johns, and soft hackle hare's ears.  The obvious trend is stoneflies!

Although there isn't a full blown hatch, fish are keying in on larger flies and darker stones are on the menu.  I didn't really try any other flies, but I've heard that caddis and bwo's are still on the menu.  With the limited amount of time to fish, I wasn't planning on spending too much time experimenting with different flies.

05/06/12 Blue River in Silverthorne

05/06/12
Blue River in Silverthorne
3:00 PM - 6:30 PM
Flows 53
Temps in the low 40's with rain turning into snow

Work is really getting in the way of my fishing!

I can't really complain, my job is a good one with certain times of heavy travel that can be fun...but let's get to the fishing!

The Blue has been fishing very well since the DOW has stocked it, but the fishing is starting to get a little more technical.  Even from the last time I was up, I'm seeing more and more people not catching and I'm noticing that when I'm lazy with a cast, I'm not catching fish either.

These guys have definitely gotten smarter and without a good drift, you won't be catching fish.  A variety of flies will still work, but stick to 5x or 6x fluro tippet and size 16-22 flies.  Midges, mayflies, and mysis are the ticket here and even a mid day midge hatch happens when the sun is up.  Unfortunately, this wasn't the case for today.

I took the family up to the private stretch of the Blue below Green Mountain and we did some fishing and grilling.  This was the 1st time we took Kaycee out to the river and she had a ball.  She even fell asleep in her backpack while we fished for a little and wasn't fussy at all.  She really enjoys being out and taking everything in.  Temps in the morning were mid 60's and slightly overcast skies.  By the time we were done with lunch, the clouds were rolling in...

My wife dropped me off behind the outlets so that she could do a little shopping, and I could get more fishing in!

Lots of beautiful fish and even with the rain that was changing to snow, there were still at least 5 anglers that I could see working their way up and down the river.

Temps dropped fast and the rain continued...but the fishing was still go.  Zebra midges, UV emergers, Top Secret Midges were all readily taken, but only on a good drift.

Again, this river is just getting pounded by anglers so land your fish fast, snap that picture and get them back in the water.  Lots of fish that I caught also had additional "jewelery".  Please don't try to snag the fish...lots of fish with 3 fly rigs in their backs or on their bellies...These fish will eat...just don't try to use 3x tippet and huge flies.

Another great day on the river!  If you are headed to the Blue, the fishing is still good...don't get discouraged when the fishing slows...take time to consider what is going on and change up your flies, add or take away a little weight, and get a good drift and you'll start catching fish again!

Good luck out there!

05/03/12 Blue River in Silverthorne

05/03/12
Blue River in Silverthorne
Flows 70
9:30 AM - 2:00 PM

It's been almost 3 weeks since I've been out fishing...The itch was getting too strong and I had to go get it scratched!

After an early morning flight in from Chicago, I decided to head up to the Blue to see what was shaking.  It's been over a month since they stocked it with the brooders and I wanted to see if they were still there in good numbers.

I was pleasantly surprised...

Lots of fish and they were all still eating.  Although they aren't readily eating everything you throw at them, they have acclimated nicely to "wild" life and are learning what is food and what isn't.  You can't just toss in a size 14 prince nymph anymore and expect a fish on every cast, but the fishing is still consistent if you have the right flies and can get a good drift.

I worked my way up from cable hole and sight fished to lots of fish.  Again, getting a good drift and presenting the right flies were key.  You could easily see fish moving out of the way of your rig or a nice flash of white as they inhaled your flies.

I caught a good mix of brooders and "resident" fish.  (fish without their adipose fins clipped)

Another thing to consider when fishing the Blue is to keep moving.  The fish are on the move so if you are staying at one hole throwing the same rig, the fish will wise up.  If you really want to catch lots of fish, move up and down the river and have fun sight fishing to the big fish!  Find new runs and tailouts!

Or, if you prefer not to move, at least change up your rig.  What's that saying by Einstein?  The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.

Hot flies for the day were top secret midges, uv emergers, miracle midges and rojo midges.  A few also came on a black rs2 fished in the film to rising fish.

If you haven't fished the Blue this spring yet, get up there!  Now is the time for redemption from a winter of poor fishing on the Blue!!!

Here's a little vid before the go pro died...I didn't edit it on purpose to leave out what fly it took...it took a miracle midge.

04/15/12 Blue River in Silverthorne

04/15/12
Blue River in Silverthorne
11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Flows 75

The fishing is on fire!  DOW stocked the river with brooders about 10 days ago.  Lots of "dumb" fish eating everything drifting in front of them and lots of residents still around post spawn looking great!  Although local shop reports are saying that the fishing has slowed...the fishing is still excellent and now is your chance to get into some big fish without having to use 7x fluro and a perfect cast and drift.

Here are some hatchery tagged fish.

Pretty cool to see the tags that the DOW uses to mark them.

In addition to the tags, they also cut off the adipose fins on these brooders.

Fish were taking just about anything you had on.  I started my set up with a two bit hooker to bring the flies down and dropped a rs2 and a WD40 behind and caught fish on all flies.  I did start with 6x tippet, but after losing 2 flies to fish breaking me off, I switched to 5x and I didn't have any problem horsing in the fish after that.  Bead eggs also produced and fish really liked the smaller pink sparkle bead.

After breaking a few fish off and losing my flies, I switched up the droppers to some random midges in various colors that I tied up to give them a shot.  These "experimental" flies are crazy color combinations and styles that I like to try out on winter tailwaters to try to "bust the hatch".  Even though they caught lots of fish today, it's not a true test as to their effectiveness since these brooders are willing to eat just about anything.

But, I did have a resident fish take one of my multi-color midges so I'll be sure to tie up more of them for the Blue this winter!

 A great day on the Blue!  I was pretty excited to see that the DOW put some brooders in there.  The fishing this winter has been average to poor which could have been for lots of reasons.  (high fishing pressure, lower flows, weather conditions) But the fish survey that was done last year has shown a significant decline in fish population and size.  Hopefully these fish will add to the numbers there and help increase the quantity of resident fish in the river when they spawn next spring.

I wish I didn't have to leave since the fishing was so good, but 3 hours of fishing and over 20 fish to the net equals a good day.  I didn't want to end the day stuck in skier traffic so I left with a sore arm and memories of big fish peeling line off!