A Walk Down Memory Lane!
Stay Close to Home: Bear Creek Browns
W
ith all the recent “Stay at Home” or “Quarantine” restrictions around our state, travel and fishing has been limited. At the time of this writing, even if you could go somewhere out of state--like Wyoming—non-resident licenses were not offered. Thanks to the unprecedented virus measures that were taken, even our county roads saw closures limiting access to clean air and our favorite waters. Well, March, April, and May were not total losses, as local fisheries like Bear Creek proved to be a good distraction. “Fishing on Bear Creek has always been special to me,” said Kerry Caraghar, at The Blue Quill Angler in Evergreen. “It’s close to home and provides me an op-
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High Country Angler • Summer 2020
by Brian La Rue portunity to fish before, during, or after work. I do like the challenge this creek offers fly anglers, with the technical casting and short drifts. It’s classic Western small stream fishing for a self-sustaining brown trout population, and you might even catch a rainbow trout, as well. “Some of my fun memories were fishing Bear Creek at Little Park and above, what is now Lair o’ The Bear,” said Caraghar. “That was long before the Open Space development back in the Late 1970s. Lots of bushwhacking and trail blazing then. The effort was well worth it, as we caught many fish with browns up to 16 inches. It was the best kept secret close to Denver. I don’t know the details, but the Evergreen Chapter of Trout Unlimited adopted this as a home water project at some point. The chapter helped develop the fishery and helped make it the fishery it is today.” Caraghar, my son, and I chose a mid-May Sunday to try our luck and get to know Bear Creek better with help from the longtime, local pro. We hit the Lair o’ The Bear area on the lower river, and enjoyed throwing a handful of different patterns. There wasn’t really one fly that worked over the rest, as it seemed the fish cared more about a smaller bug, and with the water still on the cold side, they weren’t exploding on the surface quite yet. “I like a small attractor or terrestrial like this small Amy Ant, and pair it with a smaller Prince or midge until the fish are looking up,” added Caraghar. “There are numerous runs that will hold fish at this flow, but we will probably have to nymph since the water temperatures are still on the cool side. As the water warms up, we will see if they come up for us today. As things heat up with the calendar, anglers will love Bear Creek, as the dry bite will dominate the action and the fun 8- to 14-inch browns will always put on a show.” www.HCAezine.com
