February 6, 2020
Flows: 105 cfs
Water Temp: 30 @ 9a and 40@1p
Water clarity: ~6’ to 8’
Air Temp: 16 @ 9a – 39 @ 5p.
Hatches: Midges – 12N to 2:30p.
Brian and I hit the Tailwater this Thursday. We had a return to winter in the Front Range early in the week – with some snow and lows in the single digits and highs in the 30s. Thursday was the 1st day of relatively decent weather in Pueblo with the high forecast to be 50F and with a low of 19F. The morning actually started off a little colder than forecasted (it was 16F when we arrived) and as I expected the morning bug activity and fishing in general was slow.
It was too cold for me to rig up and fish – so I scouted for Brian, as he fished the Diver Hole and the run above it. There was a thin cloud layer with the sun barely visible, making it very hard to see into the water. I’m not sure if I missed seeing any fish because of it – but there were none to be found. Even though, Brian was able to hook up a fish in the hole – but it quickly got off.
After spending an hour or so in the Diver Hole, both Plunge Holes, and the run between them – we decided to walk upstream with the Tree Hole as our destination. It was about 10:30a and the sun began to break through a little and it was warming up as we approached the Flag Hole and Brian’s Run. It was warm enough for me to start fishing and I rigged up with midge nymphs. I had a #18 Desert Storm, followed by a #24 Mercury Black Beauty and #24 Top Secret Midge. I was in Brian’s Run and Brian was in the Flag Hole – and surprisingly, neither one of us had a hit.
So we headed upstream – alternately stopping at the weirs and pocket water along the way. When I finally made it to the Tree Hole – Brian was already there - fishing the top end. So I went in on the downstream side. This side has a quick tail out that leads into slow, shallow water. It was about 11:30a and a there was a decent hatch taking place. We inspected the flies – and they were definitely midges. But which ones – we didn’t know. They were black and looked like mosquitoes – but not really big ones, which we’ve ID’d as Crane Flies in the past.
After several casts, I was able to get my flies in close to the far (north) side of the bank. This cast is difficult because there are a bunch of trees hanging over the side making for an easy snag – so you need to be careful. Anyway, after I was able to get the flies near enough, with a good drift – I left the line sit at the end. I did this a couple of times – and low and behold, I got a hit. When using this technique during the past couple of outings, I’ve stripped line out line so that I could get my rod tip up – and ended up losing 3 straight fish. So I had decided before hand, to just set the hook solidly by bringing my rod tip straight up and let the drag on my reel take care of the rest. It worked – as I landed a fat, football shaped 19” Rainbow.
Photo courtesy of Brian Kenney
Here's a close up of this bad boy. He took the #22 Top Secret Midge.
Photo courtesy of Brian Kenney
We used Brian’s stomach pump for the 1st time. It was amazing to see what this big trout was eating!! (BTW - it is proper fishing etiquette to occasionally use stomach pumps and is commonly used by respected fishermen to improve knowledge of fish feeding habits.)
Various midges in emerging (pupae) stage.
Caddis larva.
More Midges. Notice the one on the left that is almost fully emerged.
We fished this hole for a while longer – and after getting my rig stuck and totally lost – in one of those trees on the north side of the river - decided it was a good time to break for lunch.
After lunch we went back to the Diver Hole. But the hole was taken by a fisherman spin-casting a spoon. He had a really big black Pit Bull standing beside him. This dog was very protective and stared at Brian and I as we approached. Brian went a bit upstream from this pair, into the Plunge Pools. I decided to head farther upstream – (way farther upstream!!) – and took a look into the West Nature Center Hole. The water level seemed to be dropping and it was too slow and clear with no fish holding in the hole. I checked upstream a little further and it was the same. I had earlier redid my nymph rig with a #20 Green Caddis followed by a #22 Chocolate Thunder with a #22 Top Secret Midge trailing.
By the time I got back – the spin-caster and his dog had left. Brian was ready to head upstream, but I wanted to try a couple of casts into the Diver Hole. I set up in front of one of the large boulders and casted across the river, letting my line swing into the feeding lane. (I knew this lane existed from previous experience). After about 4 casts – I had a nice 15” Rainbow on. She hit the Top Secret Midge at the end of the drift – just like the one I landed earlier in the Tree Hole.
This 15" female took the #22 Top Secret Midge (barely visible on the bottom right side of her jaw).
One fish was about all we would get out of this hole – especially after it was fished hard earlier by the fisherman and his dog. So we headed upstream to the Flag Hole. Fish always seem to be hanging out here and in Brian’s Run – so we gave it another try. After completely covering the run, I decided to head further upstream.
When we were coming back to get lunch earlier – Brian had mentioned that a guy took 4 trout in a seam below the Tire Hole. So that’s where I was headed. It took a while to figure out where the trout were holding – but I was able to take 2 17” Rainbows at the tail out of a mid-channel seam. One took the #22 Chocolate Thunder and the other took the #22 Top Secret Midge. And both took the fly as I let them sit at the end of the drift. Seems to be an effective technique!!
This 17" male took the #22 Chocolate Thunder.
Photo courtesy of Brian Kenney
This 17" female took the #22 Top Secret Midge.
Photo courtesy of Brian Kenney
Comments