May 13, 2024
The South Platte River – Deckers (Fishermen’s Run to Ray’s Run & Mark’s Run to the Upper Island).
Flows: 429 cfs at 8a, and dropping to 313 cfs by 11a.
Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent (1% illumination).
Water Temp: 42F @ 9a.
Water clarity: Off color till 2:35p, then chocolate milk brown.
Air Temp: 41F @ 8:30a – 67F @ 4p.
Hatches: Midge: 8:30a and lasting most of the day. BWOs: 12N to 3:30p. Caddis: Hatching throughout the day.
Spawning: Redds seen Ray’s Runs and a couple of rainbows spawning.
Flies: #16 Tungstone, #12 Tan San Juan Worm, #16 Tan UV Scud, #18 Elk Hair Caddis, #16 & #18 Beanhead Olive Caddis Larva, #18 Graphic Caddis, #16Tabou Caddis, #16 Sawyer’s Pheasant Tail, #18 Klinkhammer BWO, #20 Parachute Adams, #20 No See’m Midge, #20 Black RS2,
Horse Creek flowing into the South Platte next to Deckers Resort.
I’ve been waiting for this time of year – this day.
This spring has brought heavy rain and snow to Colorado. The reservoirs all along the South Platte River are full – or near there. Soon something has to give. Either they open the flood gates, or the water will begin to spill over. Spilling over being preferred.
The high water will kick up all kinds of aquatic insects and crustaceans – annelids (worms), scuds, cranefly larva, caddis larva, and stoneflies.
At the same time another insect is set to make its annual appearance. The caddis. The Mother’s Day Hatch.
Everything is coming together – it’s a convergence of goodness for the fly fisherman.
Years ago – before I even began to fly fish, me and my fishing buddy at the time would often go to the South Platte River and fish flies with spin-casting gear. Each year I’d call him and ask if he wanted to go fishing on Mother’s Day. I didn’t realize it was going to be Mother’s Day until he told me. It must be in my biological clock!
What a beautiful rainbow.
Brian Kenney.
The excitement and anticipation has been building for the last month as storm after storm has pounded the Front Range – filling the reservoirs.
In preparation I bought a bunch of supplies to tie patterns for the eventual high flows. Scuds – Pat Dorsey’s UV Scuds to be specific, caddis larva – cased caddis, the one that hatch on Mother’s Day, Tabou caddis emergers, and olive caddis larva to imitate the Hydropysch caddis, Stoneflies, and Craneflies. I had a lot of work to do.
What used to be my Writing Desk – is now covered with feathers, spools of thread, beads, hooks, and other various tools and material that I use to tie flies with. In my prior life, my desk was always cleared off. My iPad the only thing on it. Now I can hardly find it.
A fox came to see what he could steal from us as we geared up.
Brian Kenney.
The day after Mother’s Day. Cheesman Reservoir is 99% full and a recent rainstorm. This had the makings to be a great day on the river.
The little things.
As I selected my fly rods the night before – I chose my Sage 5-weight and 4-weight. Normally I take my Scott 6-weight and one or the other of my Sage rods. But when I looked at the flies that were already tied on the rigs – I had a Tungstone on my Sage 5-weight. It imitates a stonefly and it was the only one I had left. That’s why I chose it over the Scott 6-weight.
The little things.
Common sense says in faster water and with a heavier rig bring the heavier rod. The 6-weight.
Was I lazy? Didn’t seem that way.
The beaver dam in Fishermen's Run.
I checked the flows as I ate breakfast. They were high – just shy of 430 cfs. Perfect.
We left my place at 7:30a sharp, and it was 41F and sunny when we geared up at the Decker’s Resort at 8:30a. Before parking and gearing up, we scouted the river. With the high flows I wanted to fish in wider section of the river like the Bridge Hole, Fishermen’s Run, and Ray’s Run and they were all open. We had the place to ourselves.
There were midges in the air as I stood streamside looking into Fishermen’s Run. Me on the river-right side of the river and Brian on the river-left side of it. The river was running high and it was off color. We wouldn’t be able to sight fish – but on the other hand, we didn’t have to be real stealthy either.
I was contemplating what flies to tie on. My 5-weigth had the #16 Tungstone and following it was a #22 Red Midge Larva and a #24 Grey Sparkle Wing RS2. With the midges hatching I instinctively reached for a midge pupa. Then something smacked me upside the head and I came to my senses. With the high flows I would start with a #12 Tan San Juan Worm and a #18 Tan UV Scud.
This rainbow took my Tungstone in Fishermen's Run.
The little things.
It’s been a while since I used my 5-weight and as I cut off the midge larva and the Sparkle Wing I didn’t know the condition of my tippet. I remember thinking due to the size of my flies, it must be 6x – the lightest tippet I have. But I reused it to tie on my San Juan Worm and Scud consciously making the decision - thinking it would be OK.
Conventional wisdom would say – use new tippet and by the way, with the high flows and off-color water use 5x or even 4x tippet which is much stronger.
I’ve never tied – or for that matter fished – a UV Scud before. Pat Dorsey highly recommends using it when Cheesman is spilling over or when the flows have been bumped up. Just the conditions we were encountering on this day.
A nice brownie Brian landed in Ray's Run.
Brian Kenney.
Brian and I intimately know this run. We’ve crossed it and waded through it many times at very low flows. We know where the troughs are – where the boulders are – where the drop-offs are – and where the fish are likely to be.
I was targeting the troughs first and it didn’t take long before I had my first hit and tie-up. But it was brief – the fish was able to spit my fly. Then BAM – I got tight-lined with a nice brownie only to find that I foul hooked him. Then I had another one on and he spit the hook.
What was going on?
As I was missing fish Brian landed a nice rainbow on an olive caddis larva. Then I got tight-lined again and landed a nice brownie – and a short time later a rainbow. They both took my UV scud.
A squall arrived around noon as I ate my lunch.
We were the only ones on the river. It was quiet except for the occasional chipping of the birds and the rushing water. The sun was shining, warming the cool morning air. Yes, it was a nice start. A perfect day to be on the river.
I moved from the troughs and began to target seams and pockets behind the now submerged boulders. The water flowing around them resembled the V made by the bow of a boat with soft water in the middle of it. I’d approach one not knowing, but thinking there had to be a fish there. Then after a few casts I get a hit. It was fun – almost like sighting fish, but in this case I was sighting likely spots to find them.
I was getting mostly browns and they were hitting my UV scud. This fly really works!
The only problem was I was having a hell of a time netting them. I would have them within netting distance – close enough to see that they took the scud – then something would happen. One would swim into my legs. Another one mysteriously flop out of the net.
The little things.
Brian got this rainbow in Fishermen's Run on a caddis larva.
Brian Kenney.
I changed out my San Juan Worm for a #18 Beadhead Olive Caddis Larva after Brian netted another rainbow on his.
As the day went on I finally stopped making mistakes and began netting fish. Rainbows and brownies – but mostly brownies – one small one, the rest between 15” and 18”. I got one on the Tungstone, one on the caddis larva, and the rest on the scud. That fly really works!
It started to slow a bit and Brian was ready to move on. He began to hike along the river bank heading toward Ray’s Run as I moved back into the troughs – still on the river-right side of the river. With the cloudy, fast water I didn’t want to wade into the river and stayed close to the bank.
A small brownie taken in Fishermen's Run.
For some reason unbeknownst to me, I positioned myself in a spot with a bunch of submerged boulders around my feet and casted into one the troughs. As my indicator paused I set the hook. Fish on! It felt like a small one though. Hardly any resistance or movement.
Then a grey simmering missile flew out of the river. My jaw dropped. It was a 25 incher clean out of the water about a foot clear of it and parallel to the surface. Holy Shit! Brian was still within ear shot and I yelled over to him “you won’t believe the pig I have tied-up”. As he stopped and looked over as the fish flew out of the water again – same type of leap – and splashed heavily back into it.
Oh baby – game on! This was a big fish – I think it was Kamloop. A strain of rainbow native to British Columbia that is – as rainbows go – very big and very strong. Very much like a Steelhead.
A bigger, beautifully spotted brownie.
So there I am – standing among submerged boulders, pretty much stationary fighting the biggest, strongest fish that I’ve had tied up for quite some time. With my 5-weight rod and not sure what fly he hit – maybe one of the ones tied on with 6x tippet. My lightest.
The little things.
Show me what you’ve got. Me determined to land this bad ass – and him just as determined - no more determined – to break free.
I was facing sort of across and upstream as I fought to get the fish in front of me – my rod bent almost in half with the big fish making several runs. Incredibly, I was able to get him across from me. Then he’d make another run. At one point he was behind me and made another jump. This time straight up and violently shaking his head. But he stayed on. My thought was “I must have him hooked up really good”.
One of Brian's brownies.
Brian Kenney.
He was tiring. Each run was shorter. I had him in the upper column – just below the surface - but couldn’t get his head out of the water. He was just off my right hip and too heavy to pull forward. There was no way I was going to reach for him with the net in my left hand. No way. Still stuck amidst the boulders I turned to my right so that now he would be on my left side where I hoped to net him.
When I turned – my movement startled him and he took off like a locomotive barreling downstream. Line was streaming out of my reel.
UH-OH!
All I could do was hold on --- and hope. By now I managed to get out from the boulders and was standing on the side of a deep pool. The fish had stopped and he was still hooked up. There was hope!
Another nice brown.
As I reeled in line all of a sudden it went slack. I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as I brought my line in for inspection. He had broke off my 6x tippet and swam away with my UV scud.
Show me what you’ve got. Make one mistake and your toast.
I made two mistakes. The first one was not moving out from the boulders when I first hooked him up so that I could get into a more mobile position. The second mistake was moving to face downstream. Oh – then add on reusing the 6x tippet.
Oh boy. The little things. They add up and eventually will cost you.
After that I tied on another UV scud – this time with 5x tippet – and spent the rest of the morning in the run. I felt bad hogging it – but there was only one other guy who showed up downstream of me and he could have jumped into a spot along the run if he wanted to. But he didn’t.
The top of the top island.
(Brian - the distant figure - fishing Mark's Run).
Eventually I began to wade into the water and found that it wasn’t that difficult. Even though, I was careful of the various boulders that I knew were in the water but couldn’t see. Kinda dragging my feet instead of stepping. And I continued netting rainbows and brownies – on the UV scud.
As I continued to fish the run, I could see Brian upstream in Ray’s Run. George – a friendly fisherman Brian met a few years ago - was there too. After a bit, I saw George drive by heading downstream and I looked up and saw Brain now had the whole run to himself. He got a couple - a rainbow and brownie - both 17". One on his No See'm Midge and the other on Black RS2.
I sat streamside eating my lunch while I planned out the afternoon. It was time to move on – maybe I’d go upstream and join Brian. That’s when I felt the first raindrops. Why’d I leave that damn jacket in the car? After finishing my sandwich I climbed the steep embankment and began to walk along the road toward the resort to get my rain jacket. As I looked down into the river I could see some nice rainbows coming up at the bottom of the run, tight to the shore.
Change of plans.
A brownie in the net.
After getting my jacket I climbed – no slid – back down the embankment above where the fish were rising. There were BWOs and caddisflies in the air and I thought they must be hitting both.
There was an eddie swinging back upstream near the bank and that’s where the fish were. As usual they situated themselves in a place that would be difficult to get my flies into on a dead drift. The drifts would be very short – some momentarily – until the current flowing between us grabbed my line, causing my flies to swing unnaturally.
Some of the rises were casual sips, while others were splashy. The casual sips were for BWOs – the splashy ones were for caddisflies. I had a #20 Parachute Adams as my lead fly and followed it with a #18 Elk Hair Caddis. As I worked to get my flies into the zone I notices that some of the fish were eating just below the surface too. Must be snagging emergers. Attempting to cover all my bases, I tied a #18 Brown Graphic Caddis – an emerging caddis imitation – onto the bend of the Elk Hair Caddis.
A menacing looking brownie.
Brian Kenney.
I managed to get a few good drifts into the zone but when I did, I didn’t get any takers. Then out of the corner of my eye I noticed some fish rising just below the ones I was targeting. They were in a place that would be easier for me to get a good, drag free drift. I began to focus on them.
They too were tight to the bank and although they were in a more friendly place – for me to get a better cast and drift that is – it was still a challenge. After several tries though I got a good cast – my flies were on a drag free drift into the zone and I saw a nose come up and hit one of them.
BAM! I set the hook and finally had one of those picky sippers tight lined. As I got the fish in close I could see it was a rainbow and not a very big one, but it fought like it was much bigger. When I finally netted her I found that she hit the Elk Hair Caddis and even though she was only 15”, she had a wide girth which explained why she could put up such a fight.
Broken clouds later in the day.
Brian showed up as I released the rainbow and began to cover the top of the run with his nymphing rig. I continued to go after the rising fish – finding a small pod of them on the other side of the river. They were in slow water just above a beaver dam. Looked easy enough, and I had some lookers, but they wouldn’t take it. It’s pretty exciting when you see a rainbow rise just below the surface following your fly. The anticipation – waiting for the take. Even more so when they do.
It was a bit after 1:30p and I was tiring of casting to fish that weren’t willing to take my flies. I was ready to move on and mentioned to Brian that maybe we’d find some risers in Mark’s Run. He thought that was a good idea so we got in the car and took the short drive up.
Miraculously the whole run was open. George had mentioned to Brian earlier that he thought most of the fishermen stayed home – wary of the high flows. I have to agree. But even with high flows, with adjustments to technique, fly selection, and target areas - I’ve had good fishing days. Especially in Deckers.
Got this brownie by the huge boulders below Mark's Run.
There were no fish rising in Mark’s Run and Brian began to cover the middle of the run with his nymphing rig. I started at the top of the run with the same – moving downstream, leapfrogging over Brian to the bottom of the run. Then moving downstream to the hole next to the huge boulder.
I found the hole to be much deeper that recent past and casted my flies into the fast riffles above it. Starting close in and moving out a couple of feet at a time. When I got just past the middle of the pool – BAM – fish on! I guided the fish downstream into slower water where I netted a 16” brownie. He took my UV scud.
I moved around the river while Brian continued to cover Mark’s Run but had no further action. Brian would land a couple of rainbows – 16” & 17” – and he just missed one in the twenty-inch range. The fish was about a foot from his net when it broke free.
The top of Fishermen's Run.
He thought it was Kamloop because of its silvery body. With the river bigger from the recent higher flows – it looks as though the Kamloops are spreading out and moving about the river. That’s a good thing – and I’m looking forward to coming back very soon to see if I can find one – and I’m sure Brian is too.
Netting a fish. It’s not the easiest thing to do. There are so many variables involved and you’ll find yourself in many different situations. I can’t remember how many – but I missed at least three fish when attempting to net them – just on this day. It’s something to pay close attention to – and I’ve found that if you don’t have the fish set up where he is upstream of you when he tires – your chances of netting him are much lower. That’s why it’s so important to be able to move in the river while fighting a fish – so you can get into that position.
The brownies were hungry on this day.
It comes down to the little things.
They matter.
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