Hightail it to tailwater for trout

Karl Licis, Special to the News

Friday, December 30, 2005

LAKE GEORGE - Winter is a time of fitful sleep for fly fishermen.

About the time one decides cold weather truly is here and it's time to hibernate, cabin fever sets in. Between the Arctic blasts, record-high temperatures, mountain snows, high winds and clear Front Range skies, the wintertime signals at best are mixed.

To cocoon? To wait until spring?

To stir? To venture to the river, to at least get outside and go through the motions of fishing - perhaps to try out some new piece of equipment that found its way out of the local fly shop and under the Christmas tree?

The season offers some interesting options. Though winter fishing is winter fishing and lounging by the fireside has its appeal, Front Range anglers also can find some potentially good activity as close as their nearest tailwater (river directly below a dam).

Water released from a dam typically is about 40 degrees. Consequently, in even the coldest winters, the river remains free of ice for a considerable distance below.

While a lower section of the river might be covered with ice, the tailwater remains fishable all year.

Most tailwaters are fertile waters. They produce copious populations of aquatic insects, which, in turn, support healthy numbers of trout.

Though most tailwaters have a variety of insects, and some have Mysis shrimp coming down from the reservoir above, midges are the mainstay of winter fly fishing.

Midges might emerge - and trout might rise - on even the coldest days. Dry flies or emerger patterns fished in the surface film can be effective, but nymphs or emergers drifted just above the bottom tend to be more consistent. Either way, the byword is "think small." The most effective patterns often are Nos. 18 to 24 or even No. 26.

In winter, 1 or 2 degrees of water temperature can be critical in stirring insects and trout to life. Sunlit areas of the stream often are the most productive. Even so, wintertime trout move slowly. Takes likely are to be delicate, almost imperceptible, even with the aid of a strike indicator.

Winter fishing might be slow- paced; it might produce some surprisingly good flurries of activity. Either way, the tailwaters are just about the only game in town.

Some possibilities:

• SOUTH PLATTE RIVER, ELEVEN MILE CANYON: Recent frigid temperatures have locked away much of the lower river in ice, but the upper end remains open. Area fly-fishing shops report fair action on the standard array of tiny flies. Some anglers report fairly good midge hatches in the late afternoon.

Fishing in the canyon has been consistently good the past several years and the future looks at least as bright.

Population sampling conducted in the fall by Jeff Spohn, Colorado Division of Wildlife fisheries biologist for the South Platte drainage, revealed a record number of trout per mile in upper Eleven Mile Canyon.

Though the average size might be down somewhat from past years, Spohn expects that soon will change.

"The base is definitely there," he said, noting an exceptional number of young fish. "Anglers who now are complaining about not getting many 14-inch fish should be seeing plenty of them in a year or so."

• SOUTH PLATTE RIVER, DECKERS AREA: River flows have dropped the past week, and at last report, the flow below Cheesman Dam was about 50 cubic feet per second.

Richard Johnson of the Flies & Lies shop in Deckers reports good fishing in Cheesman Canyon on RS 2s, Brassies, Miracle Nymphs and similar midge-imitating patterns.

The canyon has been attracting large numbers of fishermen, and with the lower flow, prime locations have been crowded.

Canyon anglers should find plenty of fish. Spohn's sampling turned up the highest number of trout in five years.

Lower portions of the river remain impacted by aftereffects of the Hayman fire. Spohn found an increase in young-of-the-year brown trout, but their survival might be problematic in diminished wintering habitat and torrential spring and summer flows.

• SOUTH PLATTE RIVER, "DREAM STREAM" PORTION: The river between Spinney Mountain and Elevenmile reservoirs receives less wintertime attention than other sections of the river but offers some possibilities for anglers.

Much of the river below the county road has been ice-covered the past few weeks. The stretch below Spinney Dam is open but requires a walk into the state-parks property.

Fishermen are reminded they will need a habitat stamp and their license to fish the state-wildlife property in 2006.

Population sampling showed remarkable numbers of young brown trout. Spohn's crews found more than 6,000 in a 1,600-foot stretch of river. Though some will move down to Elevenmile Reservoir, anglers will be catching plenty of brown trout for years to come.

• ARKANSAS RIVER, THROUGH PUEBLO: The river below Pueblo Dam has been flowing at a fairly steady 72 cubic feet per second.

David Jones of the ArkAnglers shop in Pueblo reports "really good" midge activity and almost daily Baetis mayfly hatches.

Mayflies usually appear around noon and continue hatching until 3 p.m. Likely midge larva patterns include Black Beauties and their Dorsey's Mercury variants in sizes 20-24. If trout are rising to Baetis, Jones suggests a Comparadun or no-hackle pattern on the surface, with a Barr's Emerger fished as a dropper.

Most of the trout are rainbows in the 10- to 12-inch range, but many fishermen also land at least one 16-incher per trip, and one of Jones' customers recently took a 26-inch brown trout.

• BLUE RIVER, BELOW DILLON RESERVOIR: Snow along the banks can make river access a little tricky, but Brandon Clark of the Blue River Anglers shop in Breckenridge reports good fishing below Dillon Dam.

The usual midges and egg patterns have been the most consistent, but Clark also reports a few small Baetis on the water.

Directly below the dam, trout also might be conditioned to taking Mysis shrimp. Flows have been fairly constant at 100 CFS.

• FRYING PAN RIVER: Anglers willing to venture a little farther usually can find good conditions on the Frying Pan below Ruedi Dam.

"Flows are around 125 CFS, the highest we've seen in probably 10 years," said Tim Heng, manager of the Taylor Creek Fly Shop in Basalt.

Fish have been taking small egg patterns, midge larva imitators and Mysis shrimp in the upper reaches of the tailwater.

Though not a tailwater, the nearby Roaring Fork River also is ice-free and fishable.