Just received a belated Christmas gift from Santa–in its January issue Southwest Fly Fishing published my article on fishing Treasure Creek in Southern Colorado! Click on the link below to see the full article.
Just received a belated Christmas gift from Santa–in its January issue Southwest Fly Fishing published my article on fishing Treasure Creek in Southern Colorado! Click on the link below to see the full article.
Off-The-Beaten Path Adventures and Eclectic Musings Of An Itinerant Angler 
Great readings – Would love to go there/Göran from Sweden
LikeLike
Great readnings – Would love to go there one day/Göran from Sweden
LikeLike
Thx Göran! Come on over and let’s go!!
LikeLike
What a great article! I feel like I had a dose of Colorado summer in the middle of winter. Congrats,
LikeLike
Congratulations. This is well-deserved recognition for a plethora of great blog articles written over multiple years. Wishing you a blessed and prosperous 2020.
LikeLike
Thanks for the kind words, Ed!
LikeLike
Great article Chris – that was quite extensive.
LikeLike
Thx Chris. They made it the featured article—8 pages!
LikeLike
Chris, I loved this piece. It might be the best piece of your writing I’ve read and certainly one of the best articles I’ve read on Colorado back country fly fishing. I really appreciated the quality of the prose, the history of the area, and the environmental concerns we should be aware of. And the photography and fish were terrific. Well done. I was out in sw CO in late June and early July but at that point it didn’t look like the waters were ever going to come back down. I tried south park but just too much water, so I bugged out. Good to see that Treasure Creek had so much water in late July, though, but increased flows must have made it more challenging wading for you, too. So different from 2018 and earlier. I’ll take the snowpack, and it looks like we’re on target for another 2019 summer in 2020.
LikeLike
Thx for the kind words, Jim. Made my day! Southwest Fly Fishing is great in letting writers cover history of an area and conservation issues.
LikeLike
Hello Chris,I really enjoyed this article.I’m definetly going to make the trip to fish this gem.Much like the pure genetic Golden trout of the Kern river system the Rio Grande Cutt is on my ” To catch list ” .Your article has inspired me to make it happen this summer.
I read your other articles as well and enjoyed the flavor of your writing.Great info to as I have fished both Grape Creek and Beaver Creek.I recently purchased a second home in Canon and hope to leave Ohio soon or divide my time between the two.
Please continue with writing and fly fishing !
Tight lines,
Greg Smith
LikeLike
Hi Greg. Thanks for the kind words! Maybe we can explore Grape Creek in Temple Canyon together this summer. Let me know when you’re in town.
LikeLike
My family and I enjoyed a fantastic Fourth of July 2020 on Treasure Creek, largely based on your blog post and SWFF article. Thank you, Chris. We’ve fished Pass, Park, Beaver, and the Conejos area, but never thought to turn right at Lake Annella. Man, what a creek. Bigger water than expected and Cutties up to 15″ (for us). Consistent 12″ cutthroats, which is pretty remarkable up that high. We exclusively used big patterns that consistently brought fish up, like size 12-14 Humpys, Stimulators, Trudes, and Caddis.
LikeLike
Good to hear! That little creek is a gem and the Rio Grande cutts a rare treat. Glad you had a good time up there.
LikeLike
Great article! Fishing Conejos in early Sept and your article is prompting me to take little side trip to check it out. Thank you!
LikeLike
Glad you enjoyed it. Check the water levels before you go. Already restrictions on fishing Conejos after noon and Treasure Creek reportedly below 10 cfs now and likely lower in September.
LikeLike
This used to be such an amazing place to catch 20in cuts. The last time I went I couldn’t find anything over 16ish. Still had a blast, but over the last 6-10 years and more and more fishing pressure the quality of this wild native fish have fallen off and its sad to see.
LikeLike
I’ve caught 18-inchers on my last two trips there and quite a few at 15-16”. Have yet to see anyone when I hike in more than a 1/2 mile.
LikeLike
The reason they don’t disclose location is to make sure only those with $500 can fish it. The vast majority of my articles require real effort to get to and only a few do so. I’m a retired environmental lawyer and can tell you from experience one of the best ways to protect fish habitat is to build a constituency of careful users.
LikeLike
Great article. Are hoppers an effective pattern on the creek for cutties? What assortment of dries and sizes do you prefer?
LikeLike
Thx John. Glad you enjoyed it. I like a Royal Trude dry 16-18# to imitate hoppers or caddis flies with a caddis larva dropper of same size. Hopper patterns work best in late July and August. Have fun. Chris
LikeLike
I plan to fish in late August and was planning on throwing a few Morrish Hoppers I tied in sizes #10-12 but from your recommendation of the size #16-18 Royal Trude sounds like that might be a bit big for the fish in the creek. Additionally was planning on focusing on the dries since cutties are suckers for them.
LikeLike
Hi John. I wouldn’t go any larger than a #16. Grasshoppers don’t grow big at high altitudes. Try a #16 Chubby Chernobyl. Chris
LikeLike
Hi John. I wouldn’t go any larger than a #16. Grasshoppers don’t grow big at high altitudes. Try a #16 Chubby Chernobyl. Chris
LikeLike
Barr’s Tung Teaser in 14-18# is another good dropper.
LikeLike