A WALK DOWN MEMORY LANE

Stay Close to Home: Bear Creek Browns

With 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

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.”

It didn’t take too long for the nymph/midge bite to start up. Kerry caught a couple on a Prince, and I caught a decent one maybe 12- inches on a Sparkle Wing RS2. The creek, being on the skinny side, offers a quick hit-and-move style of fishing. It is not a larger river where one pool can be nymphed for an hour at a time. We only encountered two other fishermen, despite a trailhead and parking area overflowing with weekend warriors. With the warmer day beginning to take share, there was some surface action.

“I just raised a couple nice ones on the Amy’s Ant,” said Kerry, from a pool on the other side of the footbridge, a little distance down from our starting point. “Maybe they are starting to get more active?”

Of course, catching fish on a dry vs nymphing is always a little more exciting, so I asked, “What color?”

“It’s got a green body,” answered Kerry. “I saw a nice fish look at it too, but he doesn’t seem like he’s going to eat it. Olive is always a good color to incorporate in your fly, here.”

We moved on and found about another dozen or so with Barrett, my son, stealing the show at one point as he hooked a fair fish on the nymph rig, while he had an audience looking down on him. The brown hit an Umpqua tung zebra midge.

“Way to go, Bear,” Kerry said as I made my way down to the bank for netting and a quick photo. Barrett was happy to get into the fish, as the fish had proven to be a little picky, and the slightly off-color flows and skinny water made for some challenging presentations.

“Bear Creek, though the fish are cooperative, is a technical fishery, requiring anglers to hit perfect drifts and target water with short strike zones while battling multiple currents,” said Kerry. “It’s a great place to hone your skills, and as the fish become more active, it’s a great place to come and catch good numbers on dries.”

“I like to use the more friendly stretches of the riv

er to teach people how to present flies and mend line, and the browns typically respond,” said Kerry. “The parks here are popular with bikers, hikers, and picnicking families, so an early outing or evening outing is best. Don’t be surprised if a crowd stops to watch you on a bridge and spooks your pool, or like today, a friendly pooch chases a tennis ball or stick into your run, either.”

“My favorite memory on the creek probably came around 2007, when Charlie Meyers of the Denver Post asked me to do a story about Bear Creek,” added Caraghar. “I was nervous and excited all rolled into one. After meeting Charlie and getting geared up, I soon realized I left my waders and boots at home. Charlie picked up on my sense of embarrassment and just laughed. He told me to relax. After a good fishing day of story-telling and talking about life, we called it a day. I will never forget that day.”

In this feature, we talked a little earlier about what flies worked for us, but Kerry suggested this gear for making your own memories on Bear Creek: Caraghar says to use a 7-foot, 6-inch, 3-weight with a 7.5 4X leader with 12 inches of 5X tippet. A light nymph rig works fine for spring with high water, but he prefers a dry/dropper using a 12-inch 5X dropper.

“Look for caddis in the PM, and PMD mayflies in the AM,” says Kerry. “BWO mayflies, midges, and Craneflies will also work well, but also carry a good number of terrestrials. For the dries, a size 16 ParaAdams, size 16 olive Elk Hair caddis, size 12 olive Stimulator, a size 16 PMD Comparadun, and a Cow Killer ant in black and red. As for nymphs, try a size 14 Prince, size 16 soft hackle PT, a

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size 18 SOS, or a size 18 RS2. Do not count out a size 14 red San Juan worm. Lastly, try bigger attractors, too. You will do well in the next couple months with a size 10 Amy’s Ant in red or olive, or even toss a size 10 purple Chubby Chernobyl or size 12 purple About The Author Hippie Stomper.”

Well there you have it—your complete Bear Creek snapshot from someone who has fished it since they were a youngster. Find Kerry at the Blue Quill Angler in Evergreen, and as we ramp up our amazing Colorado economy again, remember to frequent local business, stay at lodges and cabins, and dine at locallyowned restaurants, as they have been hit the hardest. See you on the water and at the local bar, soon!

High Country Angler contributor Brian La Rue enjoys giving fly fishers ideas of where to go for an adventure. Feel free to reach out to Brian at Brian@hcamagazine.com if you want your lodge or guide service featured in an upcoming promotional marketing plan.

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