8/30/10 - Fall fishing is here!   The Gunnison, Taylor and East Rivers are fishing great.  Currently, bwo's, caddis, and a few stoneflies are hatching.  The water levels are still good for dry fly and nymph fishing from the boat or raft.  The Taylor is at great level, flowing at 250 cfs out of the dam, ideal for the catch and release section.  Lower down, wading can be difficult  but the fishing is great.  The kokanee salmon are running and can be found in the deeper holes of the Gunnison and the East Rivers.  The Blue Mesa and Taylor Reservoirs are fishing great.  The best trout fishing is from 10-2 and then in the evening hours before dark. 

The Bar ZX Ranch is open and the fishing is unreal.  Come fish with us for exotic species and giant trout with the snowcapped peaks in the background.

Below : This monster brown was fooled in willow lake.  This trout is a good example of what is possible at this trophy fishery

             1/31/10 Rainbow                                         1/31/10 28" cutbow

Flows- Below Dam-250cfs, Almont-350cfs                                                      

Techniques and Conditions- There is a lot of variety to be had on the Taylor these days.  Anglers can choose to nymph the deeper holes, fish dry flies for fish feeding on the surface, and dry-dropper fish the endless pocketwater.  Concentrate on the runs, holes, pockets, and transitions in the river.  Look for dry fly activity to increase in the coming days with fall mayflies hatching.

Flies and Hatches-   Below the dam try egg, worms, mysis, rs2 18-24, wd 40 18-24, Baetis nymph #18-24, Black beauty #18-24, Poxy Midges red, black, ufo #18-24, Chocolate emerger, Poly and foam wing #18-24.  Lower down, try smaller caddis and mayfly patterns, and larger stoneflies such as stimulators and madam X with beadhead droppers size 12 -18.

**We have been guiding on a 1 mile piece of private Taylor River that sees very little pressure this time of year.  We are lucky to have this fishery in our backyard.   Expect to see numbers and quality with many fish over 18". $50 half day rod fee and $100 full.

Below : John from Lakewood shows off one his many trout that he landed on that beautiful April day.  This rainbow was 23" and plump.  Our private Taylor access is on fire, come check it out!

Flows - Almont-550cfs , Gunnison-550cfs , Above Blue Mesa-650cfs

Clarity - The river is in perfect shape.

Conditions and Techniques-  Fishing on the gunnison is great with anglers able to choose between nymphing, dry-dropper, streamers and dry fly fishing.  Try hopper/dropper rigs with large hopper patterns 6-10 trailed by a smaller fly such as pheasant tails 14-20, caddis nymphs, western coachmen, and emergers.  Dry fly fishing is picking up with fall baetis gearing up.  Currently, the streamer fishing is also very good.  Salmon are here, so deep nymph rigs are the ticket for the kokanee. 

Flies and Hatches-   Nymphs- Beatis  nymphs 18-20, , blm, Caddis nymphs # 14-16, Soft Hackles,  20 incher #6-16, BH PT's #10-18, BH Prince #6-18, BH Hare's ear #8-16, Brown Stone #8, Halfback #4-10, , BH Lightning Bug #12-16, BH NFS #10-14, BH DJ Juice, Olive #14-16, BH Baetis #14-18  Dries- Stimulators 6-10, madam X 6-10, mother's day caddis, foam caddis 12-18, pmds 14-20, green drakes 8-12,  big stoneflies 4-10.

Give a call for more details                970-209-6555      

Below : 04/08 This 28" 10-12 pound bow ate a #6 olive/white double bunny and put up a 15 minute fight.  That's a real fish! 

Flows - 150cfs

Techniques and Conditions -  The river is low and tough.  As with everywhere else, anglers can choose between a variety of techniques: nymphing, dry-dropper, and dry flies.  The kokanee have showed up as well as kokanee anglers.  Fish deep rigs for salmon.

Flies and Hatches - Mid-day bwo hatch and a few caddis are around.  Also try larger attractor dries with beadhead nymphs dropped a couple feet below. 

Nymphs - BH Beatis, Small PT's, wd,  Western Coachman #8-14, 20 incher #6-16, Purple 20 incher #8-14, PT #8-16, BH Prince #6-16, Biot Stones #8-12, Copper Stones #8-10, Halfback #4-10,

Dries - Midges in the Hatchery ponds, stimulator, mad x, pmds, caddis, p adams

Below: This brown was caught below the confluence of the East and Taylor River.  He was a glutton full of kokanee fry.  Like many trout during the fry release, his eyes were bigger than his stomach. 4/18/09

The Blue Mesa is fishing great.  Come fish the many tributaries that we are permitted to guide.  Our backcountry lake program is unique and offers anglers the opportunity to fish difficult to access water in a very secluded environment.  We access the feeder stream mouths by powerboat then step out and wade up the Lake Fork River, Cebolla Creek, and/or West Elk Creek.  From our recent trips, the morning lake fishing for browns and rainbows has been the excellent.  The many rock walls have hungry trout chasing down flies and lures.  The tributaries are all clear and ready to be fished and the lake water temp is 60 degrees.  Come with us and try something different!!

Flies - The current main food source is crayfish, baitfish, and midge larva with tributaries providing some insects being washed in.  Brown Buggers #4-8, Brown Krystal Bugger #4-8, Olive Buggers #4-8, Black Zonker #6-10, Crayfish, Clousers, muddlers, Perch Fly, and Trout Angels.  The creeks are currently offering excellent dry fly fishing.

Below :  4/28/09 A fat Blue Mesa rainbow caught up a tributary.  The moving water of the many feeders provides great habitat that is rarely hit by flyfishers and accessable only by boat.  This is a very unique experience, come fish with us and we will share it with you!