Upriver shop manager Michael with a quality cutthroat. Eric and his client display a very nice Ark River rainbow trout.
Date: 07/19/2024 @ 9:30am
Arkansas River Flows
Leadville (Empire Gulch): cfs
Browns Canyon/Nathrop: ~800 cfs
Wellsville: ~750 cfs
Twin Lakes Release: cfs
Turquoise Res. Release: cfs
Arkansas River Fishing Report:
The Latest: Flows have come way way down over the past 3 weeks, and are now holding steady at ~700-800cfs at the Nathrop gauge. We expect flows to hold at these levels until August 15th, when flows will once again drop to native levels. Thanks to the Voluntary Flow Management Program, the target flows are 700cfs at the Wellsville gauge through August 15th. These flows are maintained by releases from upstream reservoirs, usually Twin Lakes and Clear Creek Reservoir.
Fishing on the Ark has been about as good as it gets for the past couple of weeks. Dry-dropper is the way to go throughout the day, but look for dry flies to dominate the action in the evening hours when the caddis flies are out in numbers. Look for fish in all water types on the river right now. 8'' - 2' deep riffles will hold a surprising number and quality of fish. If you are overlooking the more shallow water types in favor of the deep/slow runs, you are missing out on so many fishy opportunities.
General Fishing Report/Tactics: Dry-dropper fishing with a foam attractor becomes a very good method now throughout the duration of the summer. As the flows drop and the water becomes very clear later in July-Sept, we will have more success sizing down our tippets to 4x and 5x respectively. Remember, not every nymph eat will result in a "dunk" of your bobber or attractor dry. Sometimes you need to watch for more subtle cues that a fish has eaten your nymph. Watch for your chubby to stop, twitch, or slightly change direction. Setting the hook on these more subtle takes will significantly increase the number of fish you catch.
Fish have started to spread out and occupy many different parts of the river, including shallow riffle water. No longer do you need to focus on fishing just the deep, slow runs of the river. Instead, fish all water types, anywhere you see good structure in the substrate, any seams or changes in flow velocity. You will be surprised by how shallow of a riffle a nice 16'' brown will be holding/feeding in!
For fly selection right now, we like a sz. 10-14 chubby or other foam attractor dry, with sz. 16-18 tungsten beaded nymph 2-4' underneath. It is clear that the fish are willing to eat a wide variety of fly patterns right now, the most important factor is fishing the right water type, and making sure those nymphs are getting down the the desired depth.
Suggested patterns: sz. 14-18 spanish bullets, flashy perdigons, CDC pheasant tails, coppertop duracells, soft hackle caddis, pats rubber legs, and so on! Do you have a favorite nymph that has worked for you in the past? Give it a go right now, and those Ark River browns probably won't refuse it.
Lake County: The upper Ark through Hayden Meadows is now at a very wadeable flow. Look for caddis and stoneflies, but be prepared for significant mayfly (green drakes if you're lucky) hatches as well. The dry fly fishing can be silly up there at times.
Buena Vista/Browns Canyon: Fishing very well! Perhaps even outstanding.
Salida and Downstream: Fishing very well!
Stillwaters:
Mid summer fishing on the S. Park reservoirs can be very difficult. Having a boat to move around and find fish at depth will make a big difference in the number of fish you are fishing to. Often times, the fishing at these reservoirs can be boom or bust. If you are finding the fish, and presenting flies at their depth, then you are likely to hook up. But if you are fishing from shore, or are unable to locate where the fish are hanging out, then you are going to have a difficult time getting it done.
High Alpine Lakes and Streams:
The alpine lakes are in FULL SEND mode right now. Even the highest of our alpine lakes are open and fishable now. Cutthroat trout are done with their spawning behavior in most lakes (not true for all lakes), and more fish are cruising looking for food now. Terrestrial foam dries will fool many fish! Add a midge dropper and now you're really talking. We have about 2.5 months to enjoy this incredible alpine resource, so get out there before you miss out!
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