Fall Colors

 Fall Colors

Fall is here in Colorado and with that comes the splendid colors of Aspens throughout the State.  Along with the Aspen’s color change fall also brings the vibrant colors of Large Browns in our rivers.

The first couple cold fronts moving through Colorado bring the Aspen’s leaves a change in color. These first cold snaps also spring Brown trout into action, moving up rivers looking for spawning grounds and food to fatten up for the winter months to come.

In the weeks and months leading up to their spawn, Brown trout will fatten up on the many insects in the river system as well as larger prey such as Trout, Sculpins, Crayfish and Mice. 

These Browns can range in size from fourteen inches up to fish in the thirty-inch range. The larger Browns tend to hide in deep holes and undercut banks and are rarely seen leading up to the spawn.  Many of these large fish also tend to feed nocturnally, so expecting a “Lunker” mid day can be quite and expectation.

Even some of Colorado’s smaller streams can hold large Brown Trout, especially if there is a reservoir or lake that can grow “Lunker” Brown Trout.  You may be surprised at the size of water that will hold a double digit Brown!

Showing up to the river early in the day or fishing late in the evening will produce the best results for these “Lunkers”.  I usually like to fish streamers to the undercut banks and deep holes, making sure you don’t get too close before your first casts hit the suspecting areas and be ready for a good strike. 

A mouse patterns can also be a fun technique for these “Big Guys”. I can’t tell you it is the most effective, as short or maiming strikes are a common occurrence. It takes strong nerves to keep your self from setting the hook on the first attack and a second strike is rare.  Hookups and strikes can be few and far between, but when was the last time you fished a Mouse Pattern???

Another good fall technique for hunting large Browns is what I call a “Triple Trouble” technique.  I like to say this is either trouble for you or for the fish.  The three fly set up can be quite deadly for catching fish but also can cause many a knot untangling session.  If you set it up right it will make all the difference!

I usually fish a larger attractor dry (Hopper, Para Adams, Stimulator or etc.) then drop about three feet of tippet to a good-sized bead head (Crystal Pheasant Tail, Prince Nymph or etc.) lastly add a short dropper of about a foot to a smaller nymph. (JuJu Baetis, Tungsten Zebra Midge, Egg Pattern or etc.)

This is a great technique for fishing shallow fall waters.  Not only are snags less likely then a traditional nymphing rig you will also have a lighter presentation to keep you from spooking the “Hog in the Hole”.

Fish this setup straight up through riffles, across to the cut-banks and you can also do some swinging if you like.  Don’t be surprised if you catch fish on each of the flies through out the day!

The next couple of months offer some superb fishing in what I believe is Colorado’s best season.  Come up and look for some of these “Lunkers”!  I would love to see you stop in the shop for some flies and information.

This is a great time to enjoy some great scenery, maybe get a pic with a Fall Colored Brown, dine on some 2 for 1 entrées in many restaurants throughout Summit County and experience some beautiful fall weather in Colorado.

Blue Sky Days

The first week of August always opens my eyes to how fast the summer has gone by.  It is hard to believe that summer has only a few precious weeks left of long days and warm evenings.

This summer started out quite nice. The fishing was great with low waters. However, that soon became a scary thought with the lack of moisture from the past six months. The July rains could not have come at a better time. 

Not only did the rains help put out the devastating Colorado wild-fires they also added very needed cold waters in our streams at just the right time. We had all been worried that we would have to stop fishing on many of our streams to help the fish survive.

These rains have persisted in the past weeks helping us get through some of the “Dog Days” of summer. But, to be honest, I am getting quite tired of afternoon showers.  Of course there will soon be a change again, and I am sure all of us will welcome in the new weather.

This weather change means the entrance of fall weather patterns. Usually this means blue-sky days, cooler evening temperatures and the chance of snow on the high peaks.

This also means the water temps will be cooling and reviving the streams with more hatches from Pale Morning Duns, Stones, Caddis, Blue Wing Olives and more. The fishing gets hot with all the bug activity. And if you were to ask many of our guides or local fisherman- what their favorite season to fish is-, I am sure many would tell you it’s the fall season from the middle of August through early November. 

This short season offers superb fishing, including, very little fishing pressure, beautiful fall colors and scenery, and quite mountain town experiences.  If you have not visited the mountains in the fall season, you have been missing out! 

There are also many other great deals in our mountain communities in the fall from discounted lodging to 2 for 1 dinners, at many local restaurants. Come visit and fish!

We would like to see you this fall! To entice you to schedule your fall fly fishing trip, we are offering 15% OFF all guided trips booked through our on-line portal for dates from 9-4-2012 to 10-31-2012.  Just enter Code- FALL12 to get the deal!  

Come Early Come Late

Summer has come early to Summit County and the Rocky Mountains. After delayed warm weather the last couple of years, this is a welcome event!

In the last month, we saw the Salmon Fly Hatch come and go -- a good month earlier than in normal years. The Mother’s Day Caddis Hatch was right on schedule and Caddis are still moving up river on the Arkansas and many other rivers in Colorado.

Not only are Caddis hatching in good numbers, but we are also seeing good Mayfly and Stonefly hatches. Everyone is also anticipating the Green Drake hatch on the Blue River and Roaring Fork. This is a must fish hatch, with Mayflies so big that they can barely get off the ground.

The summer guiding season looks like it will be a busy one with many people already escaping the heat from the country’s mid-section. We are anticipating July and August to be especially busy. If you are looking for a trip this summer, be sure you make a reservation and get on the books for the busy weeks to come.

Possible low water has been the talk this season. While we have plenty of water in the rivers now and hot fishing, we are all worried about the first couple weeks in August. This is when the temperatures are at their warmest and the rivers are at their lowest. If we don’t get many rainstorms this summer, this could mean voluntary fishing closures on some river sections to preserve our fisheries. If closures do happen, they will be for only a couple of weeks in early August. Still, this is a very real possibility we should all keep in mind.

My recommendation is to try and get your fly-fishing trips in early this summer (NOW!). The fishing is HOT right now. So don’t delay and come in during the next few weeks! Or, come fish during late summer and fall (late August, September and October). The fishing is quite HOT in the fall due to the cool air and water temperatures. And, did I mention there is no one else up here at that time?

All of us at Blue River Anglers hope to see you this summer -- early, late or even in the potential “Dog Days”! There will always be somewhere great to fish.

Come see us, book your trips and get out and fish!

You have a couple more days to SAVE 25% if you book on-line with the Code-SRING12.

After June 15, I will extend a 10% OFF discount to all trips booked on-line with the Code- RETURN10.

A Step Ahead

The 2012 fishing season you could say seems to be a step ahead of previous years. After a lack luster 2011 season, where we barely saw any dry fly fishing and the streams raged much of the summer, this summer and spring are shaping up to be much different.

This past weekend I guided 3 trips on 2 different rivers and saw some great fishing.  The upper Colorado was our first stop and the fishing was ok, although admittedly I wished it could have been better.  There was a cold front moving in and that very well may have been the problem.  We did see plenty of bugs from Blue Wing Olives, which fish were selectively rising to as well as a few Caddis, small Stones and midges. While the action wasn’t super hot, we did miss fish, hook fish and land a fair share.

The next day we made the trip to the Arkansas to try and track down the infamous Mother’s Day Caddis hatch. (It was the day before Mother’s Day after all!)  The cold front was still lingering the fishing seemed to start out a little bit slow, but as the day warmed up so did the fishing.  We only had a few takes on the dry and saw very few bugs besides Blue Wing Olives. This was expected with the cold front that was lingering and the choice to fish a little in front of the hatch. We did catch many fish on various nymphs, from Copper Johns, Pheasant Tails, Blue Poison Tungs, Prince Nymphs, Zebra Midges and more.  Fishing was quite good in this pocket water section and with the warm weather on its way I would look for the sections above Buena Vista to explode with bugs in the week to come.

On Sunday I had the chance to get out and use my drift boat with some clients.  I was looking forward to not only rowing my boat and enjoying the day, but also getting the chance to see if there were any bugs flying on the Colorado, namely the Salmon Fly. Sure enough as I was rigging my boat I happened to see a Salmon Fly crawling on one of the willows and then noticed a few more crawling on my boat and fluttering on the waters surface.  Their numbers weren’t huge, but this excited me for the chance at fish on big dries.

 

Shortly after putting in we were catching fish on the Stonefly and Copper Johns nymphs we were fishing below our large Orange Fuzzy Wuzzy and then we got our first hit on the dry.  A few moments later we had our first fish to the net, out of fast water on our large dry.  The rest of the day we had a hand full more rises to the dry and maybe one or two more fish to the adult pattern.  Many more fish came to the nymphs below our dry and the fish were not picky as we caught them on Copper Johns in black, red and copper, Pheasant tails, Prince nymphs and Stones.  The fishing is usually quite good on this section this time of year, but what surprised me is to see the Salmon Flies a good three to four weeks ahead of schedule.

The fishing was quite exciting and rewarding this past weekend and hope you all will take the opportunity to stay a step ahead of the rest and get out and fish with us soon.

We are still offering the 25% OFF special for trips booked in the window from now to

6-15-2012. Give us a call or use our NEW On-line Booking Portal and get out with us in this early season.

We also want to introduce our all NEW On Line Booking Portal and calendar through Fly Book.  As an introductory offer to all my returning customers I will honor the 25% OFF on all trips booked for summer.  You just have to book by 6-15-2012, Use our On Line Booking portal and Pay in Full when asked.  Just enter Code- SPRING12

Ushering in the Wonder

As we break out of  January's grip , I always welcome the coming and going of the Super Bowl.  Yes, this is a great sporting event. But to me, its passing signifies the start of a new season and especially the fishing season.

The days are starting to get longer, and the sun seems to give off a different light.  There is a change in the air. It may be me just thinking of the spring to come, but I feel it and see weather patterns change. 

At the same time, the fishes' behaviors are starting to change with insect activity starting to ramp up (even if it is only midges).  Consistent midge hatches bring fish to the surface and the trout feed aggressively in the midday sun. 

Soon many rivers  will start to see the first signs of the Rainbow and Cutthroat spawn, with fish starting to stage in inlets and deep holes, looking for familiar spawning grounds for the dance to come.  This staging is something of a mystery and can happen overnight and in varying numbers of fish from year to year. 

These changes inspire me to branch out and look for new places to fish, free of ice, undisturbed, and with ‘wonder’ in my mind.  Wonder, or the unknown, is probably the most influential part of fishing for me.  Casting your fly in a new river or area you haven’t fished for a few months makes it all worth it, especially when a large Rainbow is on the take.  That’s the moment of wonder- when I say to myself, “I wonder if there is a fish sitting below that riffle that  just freed from the ice.” 

The next couple of months can be very rewarding as I step out of the shop to go fishing.  The Mountains are changing with spring in the air. The views are breathtaking. ‘Wonder’ is alive in each new destination. The fishing and everything you see while in the river's presence is flourishing.

This is a magical time of year. It's time to break free of winter and usher in a new season of change! Time to step out and enjoy the day, the views, the wildlife, the fishing and the ‘Wonder’!

A blog from Chris Thompson who fished with me a week ago!

http://www.steelpursuit.blogspot.com/2012/01/rises-on-blue-river.html

Snow, Fishing and Good Fortune

Snow looks like it is finally starting to fly here in Colorado. The early winter season months were well below average in snowfall, and plenty of us have been worried about another drought year, like 2002.

There has been reassuring talk of a change in the Jet Stream. That would be much appreciated -- not only for some powder days, but also to bring fresh cold water to our streams for the duration of summer.

After such a heavy snow pack year in 2010/11, the streams flowed swollen well into August. This is always healthy for the fish and their habitat. But, as a business owner, this has wrecked havoc on my predictions, buying, payroll -- you name it and it was affected. I can't imagine a drought year right after that. Let's hope the snow comes!

The fishing news this winter is much brighter. Over the holiday season I was quite busy guiding trips almost every morning and tuning skis and snowboards in the evening. The one-two punch was effective while the visitors were here, and the fishing was OFF THE HOOK!

The warmer weather and marginal skiing conditions made the idea of hitting a mountain stream in the middle of winter not so crazy. Some of these trips were booked well in advance, knowing the great winter fly-fishing Colorado has to offer. Many other clients stumbled on the idea after dealing with the crowded slopes and bare runs.  

The winter fishing is really always good. The question is just whether or not you (or I for that matter) are prepared to deal with some of the cold days. Fortunately, most of the trips have been quite comfortable and the awesome fishing made for even a better day. I can't say all the days were warm, but I will say we had great success warm or cold.

Earlier in December, I was lucky enough to be fishing a good run of Kokanee Salmon coming up out of Dillon Reservoir. On an interesting note, the Colorado Divison of Wildlife's local biologist has told me that there has been no stocking of Kokanee Salmon in Dillon Reservoir for twenty years. So, somehow these Salmon are able to spawn successfully in this stretch of the Blue River. He suggested maybe it was the warmer water temperatures in this section or the plain abundance of other kinds of life.

At the same time, all these Kokanee Salmon were in the river, plenty of Brown trout were spawning in fall and winter months. Some very large fish are seen in this stretch, but can prove to be quite hard to hook or get to the net. On a couple of days we were lucky enough to land a few nice ones, like the one at the top of the e-mail.

The Salmon have since died off and the large Browns are becoming difficult to catch. Lately, though, we have been seeing some great midge or "Snow Fly" hatches. It seems a lot of the medium size browns are needing to fatten up from their spawn. So I have been seeing literally hundreds of rising fish in the middle of the day.

I hope this excites you for fishing days to come! We need snow and it looks like the weather change is on its way. This is good for us all -- skiers, visitors and trout. I know I am ready for powder day!

If you are coming to visit in the next couple of months, the skiing will be better and the fishing can be great.   Both just may be not so fun when it is nine degrees out.

I highly recommend booking a trip with me to see what it's all about! Or if its powder skiing, come in for a tune! 

In the meantime, I will be out looking for the next "Hot Spot" and tuning up skis and snowboards with some super sharp edges and fast wax!

Happy New Year and Good Fortunes to All!

   

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Ezekiel Hersh