The Catch Fishing Report

Greetings Fishing Friend,

Sunday's (08-20-06) trip to my absolute favorite Colorado alpine lake was tremendous.  It had been a full two years since my last visit, however the vivid memories of hungry, aggressive, numerous, and very large trout had brought me back.

On the hike in, I passed hikers on their way back down.  The first was a man with his dog.  While my dog Chaos and his dog made friends, I made chit-chat while catching my breath.

"Anyone fishing up there?" I asked.

"Nope, but there are some absolute monster fish in there." he replied.

Playing dumb, I responded with a lame "wow" or something along those lines, totally preoccupied with the pristine high-altitude fish habitat up ahead.  We parted ways and soon I met a group of five women from Crested Butte who had apparently hiked in for the day.  Noticing my fly rod, they provided words of encouragement.

"After it rained all these fish started to feed...we saw some real monsters!" one of them remarked.

At that moment, the wonderful fishing destination received a new name:
                                               Monster Trout Lake

My hiking pace quickened, as I could now picture the glorious shoreline awaiting me.

I made good time and soon I was standing on my favorite rock at the water's edge.  The first cast was all it took...wham!  The hit was a slammer and the fight...tremendous.  A bright cutt-throat was on and I was instantly having a peak fishing experience.

The next two hours where spent casting into the massive schooling trout- another epic day at the world-class lake with the brand new name!

We'd like to share this amazing place with you.
Contact us now to book your trip to Monster Trout Lake. 
Call (970) 349-7047 or email: admin@fishcrestedbutte.com

Thanks for checking in today.

Fish-on!
Mark

FishCrestedButte.com
FishingTravelNetwork.com
We're In The Water For You Every Day

 

Posted by mark at 08:25 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Greetings Fishing Friend,

The following is the daily fishing report from our Fishing Travel Partner, Three Rivers Resort and Outfitting in Almont, Colorado note: river flows are current only for date of publish 08-15-06
(Check current USGS flows):


Taylor River:
8/15: Flow is 363 cfs at Almont. Nymphing is productive with Copper Johns 12-16 (copper and red), Golden Stones 10-14, Pheasant Tails (Flashbacks) 12-18, Prince Nymphs (and Purple Prince) 12-18, Midge Emergers 18-22. Dry fly activity productive with: BWOs (Emergers, Cripples, Duns) 18-24, Attractor dries size 14-18 (Parachute Adams, Royal Wulff, Stimulators), Red Quills 14-16, Caddis in the afternoon/evening (dark green, brown, black - size 14 to 18).


Taylor Catch and Release:
8/15: Summer flow (289 cfs), Baetis hatch mid and late-day, especially cloudy days. Small nymphs and midge patterns: Pheasant Tails 20-22, Disco Midge 22, Princess Midge 18-24, Black Beauty 22, WD40s 22. Egg patterns, Mysis Shrimp 20-24, and stoneflies. For rising fish: BWO patterns - emergers, cripples duns size 18-24. Parachute BWOs and Adams 22-24. Drakes and rusty spinners (12 - 14).


Gunnison:
8/15: Flow is 678 cfs - fishing well with streamers and big stoneflies. Also seeing caddis activity in the afternoons/evenings (dark green, brown, black - sizes 12 to 18). Nymphing is good with Prince Nymphs, Flashback Pheasant Tails, Hare's Ears, and Copper Johns (size 12-18). The Gunnison is fishing well on the surface with caddis and stimulator patterns, and also size 12 and 14 Parachute Adams. It's also a good time to fish a hopper/dropper near the banks.


East:
8/15: Flow is now at 169 cfs. The East is fishable with streamers, big stoneflies, and nymphs (size 12 to 18). Caddis buckskins are also working well. There is a caddis hatch late afternoon/early evening. Try a hopper/dropper near the banks.


Kokanee Salmon Run:
Kokanee are a land-locked form of sockeye salmon. The run to the Roaring Judy Fish Hatchery is the only all natural run in Colorado that goes to a hatchery. Each April, 2-inch kokanee fry are released from Roaring Judy into the East River. Their overnight journey takes them down the East to the Gunnison River and onto Blue Mesa Reservoir, where they typically spend two or three summers. In late August, the salmon begin their trek back to the hatchery and the run usually lasts through October. Division of Wildlife personnel spawn the salmon at the hatchery, taking 3,000,000 to 10,000,000 eggs per year. Catch and release fishing for kokanee is allowed on the Gunnison River and East River. Some salmon make a "wrong turn" up the Taylor River and you are allowed to keep those. If you are staying with us, we have an excellent area on our property for salmon fishing. For more information on the salmon run, call our guide service. You can also reach the hatchery at 970-641-0190.

Thanks to Three Rivers Resort and Outfitting in Almont, Colorado for today's report.  I've also noticed that salmon fishing has been becoming more frequent at the confluence of the East and Taylor Rivers.  They're on the way...

Thanks for checking in.

Fish-on!
Mark

We're In The Water For You Every Day at FishCrestedButte.com!

fishcrestedbutte.com
fishingtravelnetwork.com

Posted by mark at 09:06 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Happy Weekend!

We hope you're fishing has been hot and "the scene" has been cool.  Our Fishing Travel Network Featured Partner Almont Anglers provides today's look at current fishing conditions:

East River

Conditions:The monsoonal flows of moisture from the south are back and causing sporadic afternoon thunderstorms. This has been a big plus by keeping the water levels high but does have the ability to put a lot of turbidity into the water and shut down fishing due to the lack of clarity. Beware of lightning as there have been a # of people struck in the state this year. These flows are ideal for wading the mile plus stretch of water at the Hatchery. Keep in mind this is fly fishing only water. Call now to book a trip w/ us as we are filling up quickly. Mention this report at time of booking and we will throw in 6 free flies!

Hatches:Midges 18-22, Caddis 14-20(in yellow, olive and black), Stoneflys 8-14(in Golden and orange),Terrestrials(Hoppers, ants and beatles), B.W.O.'s 16-20 and P.M.D.'s 14-18.

Gunnison River

Conditions:The monsoonal flows of moisture from the south are back and causing sporadic afternoon thunderstorms. This has been a big plus by keeping the water levels high but does have the ability to put a lot of turbidity into the water and shut down fishing due to the lack of clarity. Beware of lightning as there have been a # of people struck in the state this year. These flows are ideal for both the wade and float fisherman. Float fishing has been extremely productive for both the fly and lure fisherman over the last several weeks, so call now to book a trip w/ us as we are filling up quickly. Mention this report at time of booking and we will throw in 6 free flies!

Hatches:Midges 18-22, Caddis 14-20(in yellow, olive and black), Stoneflys 8-14(in Golden and orange),Terrestrials(Hoppers, ants and beatles), B.W.O.'s 16-20, P.M.D.'s 14-18 and San Juan Worms fallowing the periods of rain.

Thanks to Almont Anglers for this current look at Gunnison Valley conditions.  Call them direct at 
(970) 641-7404.  Thank you for checking in today.

Fish-on!
Mark

FishCrestedButte.com
FishingTravelNetwork.com

Posted by mark at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Welcome Angler,

Rivers are up and the fish are active.  Plentiful moisture has been a consistent afternoon visitor in the Gunnison Valley over the past 10 days.  This evening skies are clear, temperatures are in the 60's, and the winds are light and comfortable...another evening hatch in paradise. 

Our featured Fishing Travel Network partner Three Rivers Resort and Outfitting provides this current report on Gunnison Valley angling:

Taylor River:
Nymphing is productive with Copper Johns 12-16 (copper and red), Golden Stones 10-14, Pheasant Tails (Flashbacks) 12-18, Prince Nymphs (and Purple Prince) 12-18, Midge Emergers 18-22. Dry fly activity productive with: BWOs (Emergers, Cripples, Duns) 18-24, Attractor dries size 14-18 (Parachute Adams, Royal Wulff, Stimulators), Caddis in the afternoon/evening (dark green, brown, black - size 14 to 18).

Taylor Catch and Release:
Summer flow, Baetis hatch mid and late-day, especially cloudy days. Small nymphs and midge patterns: Pheasant Tails 20-22, Disco Midge 22, Princess Midge 18-24, Black Beauty 22, WD40s 22. Egg patterns, Mysis Shrimp 20-24, and stoneflies. For rising fish: BWO patterns - emergers, cripples duns size 18-24. Parachute BWOs and Adams 22-24.

Gunnison:
Fishing well with streamers and big stoneflies. Also seeing caddis activity in the afternoons/evenings (dark green, brown, black - sizes 12 to 18). Nymphing is good with Prince Nymphs, Flashback Pheasant Tails, Hare's Ears, and Copper Johns (size 12-18). The Gunnison is fishing well on the surface with caddis and stimulator patterns, and also size 12 and 14 Parachute Adams. It's also a good time to fish a hopper/dropper near the banks.


East:
The East is fishable with streamers, big stoneflies, and nymphs (size 12 to 18). Caddis buckskins are also working well. There is a very good caddis hatch late afternoon/early evening. Try a hopper/dropper near the banks.


Thanks to Willowfly Anglers at Three Rivers Resort and Outfitting for today's report.  Thank you for checking in.  Give us a call to plan your upcoming world-class fishing trip at (970) 349-7047 or send me an email at: mark@fishcrestedbutte.com.

Fish-on!
Mark

FishCrestedButte.com
FishingTravelNetwork.com

Posted by mark at 05:27 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)