The Catch Fishing Report

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Greetings Angler,

We're keeping an eye on summer hatches across the Western Slope region, including a strong Mayfly emergence on the Animas near Durango.  Enjoy the following report on current Gunnison Valley fishing conditions from Willowfly Anglers:


Taylor River:
Standard nymph patterns, including Pheasant Tails 14-20, and stoneflies 8-12, midges 18-22, and egg patterns. Also try a Wooly Bugger - black or olive 6-8, and Western Coachman. Streamers - black, olive, white/yellow. Dry fly action with BWOs and midges 18 - 22. Some adult stoneflies and caddis are hatching now as well.



Taylor Catch and Release:
Small nymph and midge patterns, including Pheasant Tails 20-24, midges 20-24, and mysis shrimp 20-24. Dry fly action with small midges and BWOs 18-24. Rainbows are still in spawn mode. Please take extra care of fish and their redds.



Gunnison:
The Gunnison is fishing well from boats. Wading can be tough in places with these flows, but the lower Gunnison at Neversink and Coopers has been very productive for wade-fishers recently. Standard nymph patterns, including Pheasant Tails 12-22, Copper Johns 12-16, and stoneflies 6-12, midges 18-22, and egg patterns. Also try a Wooly Bugger - black or olive 6-8, and Western Coachman. Streamers - black, olive, white/yellow. Dry fly action with small BWOs and midges 18 - 24. There has been a very good caddis hatch on the lower Gunnison during the late afternoons/early evenings. We are also starting to see PMDs and some Green Drakes on the lower river now.



East:
The East River is up and down with some run-off, and it can be tough to wade with this much water. This river is best waded at 450 cfs or less. However, fishing the pockets and runs with nymphs and streamers has been very productive recently.



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. 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 for checking in today.  Thanks to Willowfly Anglers at Three Rivers Resort and Outfitting for the report.

Fish-on!

The Streaming Fish LLC
We're In The Water For You Every Day