Salida fishing

hooknfly

The Big Ark

My home water near Salida, Colorado, the Big Arkansas River (grew up on the Little Ar-Kansas in Kansas) is fishing well for Brownies right now. Five inches of snow a week ago, but bright warm sunshine has melted it all, and trout are fattening up for winter. Mercifully, no hordes of rafters or float fishermen. Water levels dropping this week so wading will be less risky–down from 700 CFS to 550 near Salida. Use caddis nymphs and follow warm weather and warmer water downstream from Salida towards Cañon City. Look for fish in quieter, sunny pools near shoreline. Gentlemen’s fishing hours from 10:30 am to 3 pm when sun is on water. Stayed warm with neoprene waders and three pair of socks. Felt soles and wading staff advisable–rocks very slick!! And keep an eye out for some beautiful bighorn sheep!!

hooknfly

Shaking Off The Runoff Blues On Silver Creek: Act II

Early June 2017

A week after my foray up Silver Creek above Poncha Springs, Colorado, in search of fishable waters, the sun has been shining brightly and everything has busted loose. 

(See my earlier blog from June 1, 2017:

https://hooknfly.com/2017/06/01/beating-the-runoff-and-hitting-the-bonanza-on-silver-creek-near-salida-co/amp/. )

The Big Ark stands at 2,500 CFS near Salida and even the South Fork, normally a quiet little gem near my cabin, has jumped its banks.

IMG_1421
South Fork Jumping Its Banks

 

To make matters worse, the high country lakes are still locked up with ice thanks to a cold May in this neck of the woods.  What to do to remedy this angling fever?  I check the water level on Poncha Creek (which Silver Creek drains into) and am surprised to find it still stands at about 100 cfs, just a tad more than last week.  That might mean Silver Creek is still fishable, and I only fished the middle section below Sheep Mountain and the Gates.  So I go prospecting with my GPS and just above the guardian Gates palisades, beyond the short canyon stretch, I see lots of beaver ponds and a winding creek in what looks to be a series of wide meadows.  Now sometimes what shows on the satellite view is much different when you put boots on the ground, but there really aren’t any options.  So I load my daypack up for a little hike, stuffing it to the gills with fly fishing paraphernalia, waders, etc. and set the alarm at 5:30 a.m., images of icthylogical pleasures dancing in my head.

Continue reading

hooknfly

 Beating The Runoff And Hitting The Bonanza On Silver Creek–Near Salida, CO

“… when the lawyer is swallowed up with business and the statesman is preventing or contriving plots, then we sit on cowslip-banks, hearthe birds sing, and posess ourselves in as much quietness as these silent silver streams…”

Izaak Walton
The Compleat Angler  (1653)

 Late May 2017

I’m hunched down behind a big beaver dam high in the Colorado mountains.  I gingerly step on the twisted mass of branches in front of me so I can peer over the dam, the preferred way to scout out a beaver pond where the trout are often very skittish.  I carefully elevate my head and spot a nice foot-long brown trout finning in the slow current not 30 feet away.  With an extra abundance of caution, I begin my casting motion, making sure not to snag in the overhanging willows behind me…and promptly spook the fish that heads pell mell into the next county.  I can only laugh!  Fortunately, I haven’t scared off all the fish and am able to seduce a couple of brightly colored little brookies that are hiding in deeper water out of the sun.

I’ve just gotten off the road after two weeks, my annual migration from Florida to my cabin in the Colorado mountains near Salida.  It was time to escape the 90 degree heat and pesky, voracious salt water mosquitoes in the Everglades as well as the incessant political chatter about Biggly 45.  So I am in serious need of a wilderness injection and trout remedy. The problem?  The Big Ark, my home water, is running at over 1,000 CFS, which means any real wading is risk of life.  And most of my favorite streams are also blown out with runoff from the peaks.  Fortuitously, one of the local fishing gurus, Fred Rasmussen (founder of the local chapter of Trout Unlimited and conservation raconteur par excellence) has suggested trying Silver Creek as an option.  It’s only a short drive from my cabin…so here I am and let the fun begin.

Continue reading

hooknfly

North Fork Sampler–Arthur Lake Near Salida, Colorado

CAVEAT: The North Fork Road has reopened, but is still very rough.  Call ArkAnglers in Salida, CO, for latest information.

For my articles about nearby Island and Hunky Dory Lakes see:

https://hooknfly.com/2016/08/17/north-fork-sampler-island-lake-high-above-salida-colorado/amp/

https://hooknfly.com/2015/08/17/hunky-dory-lake-near-salida-co/

Arthur Lake Below North Fork Reservoir On Map Arthur Lake Below North Fork Reservoir On Map
The Hike Starts Here--North Fork Dam The Hike Starts Here–North Fork Dam

The North Fork of the South Arkansas River springs from three high-mountain lakes–Arthur,Island,and Billings– about 20 miles west of Salida,Colorado.  Arthur Lake is one of my favorite early summer destinations, ensconced in a gorgeous setting just below the Continental Divide, loaded with hefty cutthroat trout, and requiring some substantial effort to reach its shores.  Which means I usually have the place to myself, particularly during the week.  It’s late June, and the report from ArkAnglers fly shop is that Arthur is ice-free, so I’m on the road early for the hour-long drive west from Salida to the trailhead at North Fork Reservoir.  The turn off of US 50 is at Maysville, then about a ten-mile trek up County Road 240 that starts out as a smooth, scenic paved road but which turns gnarly about four miles up just past the public Shavano Campground.  From there it is a very rough road suitable only for high-clearance, four-wheel drive vehicles.   You’ll be lucky to average 10 mph.  Buckle up!  Some big cutthroat are just up the road!

Continue reading

hooknfly

Ice Out Doubleheader–Grass Lake and Hunt Lake Near Salida, Colorado

I’m cruising through the Wet Mountain Valley on the last leg of my annual migration from Florida, eager to get a look at my home water, the Arkansas River, to see if it’s fishable.  My heart drops as I come down the hill into

North Fork Of The South Arkansas
North Fork Of The South Arkansas

Cotopaxi–the Big Ark is BIG.   When I check the water levels later I find it’s running at 3,500 cfs–I fancy myself a strong wader, but don’t go near it when it’s over 750.  AARRGGHH!!! Well, maybe the smaller creeks are in better shape….but no, when I cross the usually diminutive North Fork of the South Arkansas on the way to my cabin just outside Salida, I find it’s jumped it’s banks and is blown out.  Plan B seems to be in order–maybe a hike to one of the high country lakes near the hamlet of Monarch/Garfield, just up the road.  Next day I check in at my local fly shop, Ark Anglers, and get the good word.  Ice is out on Grass and Hunt Lakes, two of my early season favorites.  The weather report is perfect–70 degrees and sunny.  My alarm is set at 5:00 a.m!!  Grass Lake or bust!

Continue reading