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SPRING 2013 VOLUME 10 • ISSUE 2
FEATURES 12 MOVING WITH THE SEASONS BY LANDON MAYER 20
IDAHO’S SOUTH FORK RIVER BY BRIAN LA RUE
DEPARTMENTS 8
FROM THE EDITOR BY FRANK MARTIN
A GUIDE’S LIFE BY HAYDEN MELLSOP
LET’S GO FISHING BY BILL EDRINGTON
FIT TO BE TIED BY JOEL EVANS
10 16 24
COLORADO TU SECTION 26
RESTORING THE HEADWATERS
27
SOMETHING TO “REACH 4”
29
FAMILY FLY FISHING CAMP
30
THE LAST CAST
BY JOHN NICKUM
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
7
EDITORIAL •
BY FRANK MARTIN
How Time Flies
W
ith this issue, High Country Angler begins its 10th year of publication, and we couldn’t be more excited. We’ve seen a lot of changes in the fly fishing industry through the years—some good and some not-so-good—but thankfully we’ve been able to navigate the ups and downs. Other magazines have come and gone, and the economy stinks like three-day-old chicken, but through it all we’re still going strong. I give the credit to our loyal base of readers. I guess the old adage is true: When the going gets tough, the tough go fishing. We’re celebrating this milestone with a few new changes. First, we’ve completely redesigned our website. The new site is much cleaner and easier to navigate, and includes an online “Digital Magazine Viewer” that allows visitors to look through each issue right on the site. Just like
they do on Star Trek. We’ve also started a new free newsletter to keep in touch with readers between issues. You can sign up for the newsletter on our website. Just go to www.HCAmagazine.com. While you’re there, be sure to check out the store. We just got in a new shipment of hats and are selling them for only $12 each, so pick one up and represent! You can also buy copies of Landon Mayer’s DVDs at a new reduced price. On our Facebook page, we’re holding regular contests and giving away free gear. This issue’s cover shot is from Dave Gonnion, the winner of our most recent photo contest. And last month a lucky reader won a free reel from our good friends at Aspen Fly Reels, just for signing up for our newsletter. If you haven’t “Liked” us on Facebook, you’re missing out on all the fun, so be sure to do that today. Thanks for your support, and here’s to the next 10 years!
HCA Staff P U B LISHER S
J ac k Tallo n & Frank M ar t in
C ONTENT C O NSU LTANT L ando n M ayer
EDITOR IAL
Frank M ar t i n, M anagi ng Editor f rank@ hc am agaz i ne.co m Landon Mayer, Editorial Consultant Ruthie Mar tin, Editor
ADV ER TISING
B r ian L a R ue, S ales & M a r keting, b r i an@ hc am agaz i ne.co m, ( 303) 835- 8003 Direc t : ( 714) 944- 5676
DESIG N
David M ar tin, Creative Direc tor & Graphic D esigner w w w.reimaginedesigns.com
P HO TOG RAP HY
Frank Martin, Landon Mayer, Hayden Mellsop, Brian LaRue, Bill Edrington, Joel Evans
C ONTR IB U TING WRITE RS
REIMAGINE THE
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High Country Angler is a FREE publication published four (4) times per year by High Country Publications, LLC., 730 Popes Valley Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80919. Copyright 2012, High Country Angler, a division of High Country Publications, LLC. All rights reserved. Reprinting of any content or photos without expressed written consent of publisher is prohibited. To add your shop or business to our distribution list, contact Frank Martin at 719-265-4082, or email frank@hcamagazine.com. D i s t r i b u te d by H i g h Co u nt r y Pu b l i c at i o n s, L LC 7 3 0 Po p e s Va l l e y D r i ve Co l o ra d o S p r i n g s, Co l o ra d o 8 0 9 1 9 T E L E P H O N E 7 1 9 - 2 6 5 - 4 0 8 2 FA X 7 1 9 - 5 9 3 - 0 0 4 0
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VisitGCB.com Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
9
A GUIDE’S LIFE
•
BY HAYDEN MELLSOP
First Fish
I
t is impossible to live in the town of Turangi, New Zealand, and not be affected in some way by trout. Signs on the highway at each end of town welcome all to “The Trout Fishing Capital Of The World.� The town center has more fly shops than pubs and fishing guides dominate the brochure racks in motels with names like Angler’s Paradise, and The Creel and Rainbow Inn. The Tongariro River is the most famous fly fishing river in New Zealand. The lower river, where it flows past Turangi and empties into Lake Taupo is open to fishermen year round. The upper Tongariro is closed to angling over the winter, allowing the thousands of fish that run upriver from the lake to spawn undisturbed. While most of these runs take place in winter, a falling barometer or unseasonal cold front can instigate a run of fresh fish at any time of the year. Word of these out-of-season runs spreads like wild fire through the local fishing fraternity. Sage heads consult the moon’s chart, hours of daylight and water level in order to predict where these fish might hold on any given day. Generally they move upstream at night, choosing the deeper, slower pools in which to lie low during the day. The savvy angler can thus anticipate where on the river the run might be, positioning themselves to ambush these fresh fish, some weighing ten pounds or more. In the mid-eighties, as a twenty-something raft guide working the Tongariro, I was focused on more earthly pursuits, and the notion of spending a day in quiet contemplation riverside held little appeal. Besides, most fishermen I’d encountered up close weren’t particularly affable. They’d glare at me in humorless silence, gin blossom noses flaring, hands on hips as I floated over the top of their lines, my clients jumping over the side of the raft and swimming through the pools between the rapids. It surely wasn’t my fault if they didn’t know how to have a good time. One day early fall, the phone rang. It was Johnny, perhaps the most well known of the local fishing guides. Could I take him and a client to float the upper river tomorrow? There was a run on, and he guessed the fish would be close to the top. The upper river being boat accessible only, he’d hopefully avoid the crowd while getting his client into a trophy fish. I’d done this for local guides a few times before, and enjoyed the change of pace. The pay was better, they provided lunch, and I could take a book along to read while they fished. Local regulations forbade fishing from the raft, so we’d find a likely spot, pull over, and Johnny would work with his client from shore. With luck, I’d even get a nap in. The upper river consists of dozens of tumbling rapids interspersed with quiet emerald pools where the fish lie deep, scooting out of the 10
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
way of an approaching raft like dark, silent torpedos. It was late morning when Johnny called out for me to pull to the side at the top of a long, boulder-strewn pool. I liked Johnny. English by birth, he’d ‘done his time’ as he liked to say, in
the corporate world, based primarily in Africa. Several business trips had brought him to New Zealand, and when a corporate restructure gave him the opportunity for an early retirement he took it, relocating with his wife to Turangi. He
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guided for the joy of it, and because, he assured me, his wife was glad to get him out of the house once in a while. A cool wind blew down off the mountains to the south, the first hint of winter in its bite. I hunkered down in the lee of a toe-toe bush and pulled my dog-eared copy of From Here To Eternity from my vest. I’d been reading for a half hour, and was just drifting into a nap, when a sense of urgency in Johnny’s voice had me stirring and on my feet, looking upstream to where he stood with his client. “See it? Over there! A rod length downstream of the boulder!” I walked up and gazed across with the fisherman to where he pointed. “There, again, just below!” I saw nothing, and by the look on the fisherman’s face, neither did he. Johnny was busy cutting off the heavy nymph rig they’d been casting, patting his vest for a fly box. He pulled out something big, white and hairy. “Royal Wulff should do it.” I subsequently learned it was rare to see a fresh run fish feeding on the surface. They generally stayed deep, forswearing food until the business of spawning was complete. Johnny handed the rod back to the fisherman and resumed his vigil toward the far bank, where a large boulder showed a couple of feet above the surface, creating a gentle vee of foam bubbles in its wake. As we watched, a large ring radiated out from the foam line where Johnny had pointed and we looked at each other, two of us Doubting Thomases no longer. “Drop the fly right on the side of the boulder and let it float down the foam line.” The fisherman did as instructed. It was a long cast, across several different current seams….the fly pirouetted down the foam and a large head broke through the surface, jaw flopping lazily open like a whale feeding on krill. The fly disappeared into its mouth as the fish rolled, revealing a sleek, dark green flank with a vivid crimson stripe as it vanished silently below the surface. “Now!” Johnny yelled. “Set, set, set!” The fisherman lifted the rod skyward, and fifty feet of line snapped off the water in a shower of spray, the rod tip bucking, the fisherman scrambling to dry land. The fish charged upstream, reel screaming then silenced as it turned and headed downstream, the fisherman furiously stripping line. Somewhere below the boulder it exploded above the surface, tail-walking toward the far bank in a fit of headshaking fury, fisherman keeping rod high, grimly holding on. It slammed below the surface then jumped again, towards us this time, the fisherman stripping more line. Five minutes later, using the slower water at the tail of the pool, he managed to work it into Johnny’s net. The rainbow was nearly as long as my arm. Johnny patiently revived it and it slid from his hands and dissolved into the deep. The fisherman was grinning from ear to ear. Until that day, the only fish I’d ever caught were surf casting or hand lining, hauled from the depths of the ocean with all the subtlety of a tractor pull on line you could hogtie a calf with. A whole new world had been revealed. I put my book away, deciding to pay more attention to Johnny the rest of the day.
About
The
Author.
Hayden Mellsop is a fishing guide and real estate agent who enjoys mountain biking, snowboarding, raising his two daughters to be good stewards of the land, and writing his blog at www.flyfishsalida.com. www.HCAmagazine.com
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11
by Landon Mayer
W
hen one season gives way to another, anglers can rely on more activity from trout and better results on the water. The same activity and movement from the angler is just as important. The more ground you cover, the better chance you have at finding productive water temperatures and larger targets migrating daily. The following tips will help you successfully move with the season as the year pushes on. Weather plays one of the most important roles in determining where you want to start on the river. It will trigger fish to move, make them active, or keep them lethargic. Starting with the winter season, tailwaters become the primary area for anglers to target. Unlike still waters and freestone rivers, these waterways remain ice-free for the most part, with water temperatures hovering around 42 degrees Farenheit. This is enough to keep the water from freezing and supplies warmth to keep trout actively feeding as midges begin to bloom. I always start my hunts as close to the dam as possible, knowing that trout from lower locations in the river will migrate upstream and accumulate in the deep runs—supplying great numbers for anglers. During the spring, water begins to warm and the still waters and freestone rivers begin to open. Always remember, in this season trout prefer cold water that is beginning to warm, making areas like the edge of a reservoir, inlets to still waters, and lower sections of a freestone an ideal area to hunt. Similar to the winter season, I will start my trips toward the release of a tailwater or the lower sections of a freestone in order to target active and warmer fish. Then, as the temperatures increase, I’ll start to move toward waters that were cold during the morning hours of the day. My favorite areas to search for migratory trout are inlets of still waters or confluences of rivers. With waters warming and opening up, large trout will begin their migration, giving you access to some of the largest trout. I stay away from late spring when these giants begin to spawn. I mention to clients how drastic water temperatures can increase in the time frame from early morning to high noon. The river can go from 30 degrees to 40-45 degrees. The ten plus degree difference is enough for a trout to go from a lethargic still state, to moving and feeding for four hours. 12
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
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On still waters, the edge is your best friend. Even when the ice has melted away, the preceding four weeks of open water will still trigger trout to cruise the edges in search of food. During low moisture winters, you want to also search the reservoir’s inlet. Trout that are lying in wait for river water to move (which will trigger a migration) will concentrate in huge numbers—supplying some of the best still water action. I have seen river levels drop to as low as 20 cfs, physically not allowing trout to move upstream and, for the following two weeks, watched as trout begin to pile in from all over the reservoir to the inlet area. The urge to migrate and spawn is so strong that the trout act like they do not know there is an entire reservoir to move around in.
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During the summer months my approach will flip. I target the lower and mid sections of a river first, knowing that they will warm quickly, and then move to the headwaters or dam release areas for cooler water around the heat of summer’s midday. For those who hunt all hours, I will then for the last few hours of the day, return to the lower or middle section, looking for all species of trout, but most importantly the browns! Brown trout prefer warm water cooling. This search for temperatures will also become important during the summer, with the late hours of the day providing cooler waterways. In summer transitioning to fall, brown trout will begin their migration. Unknown to many, this will take place as early as late summer, and lasting through mid winter. Brown trout and steelhead are known to migrate further and longer than other species—making the importance to run early a huge part of the fishes’ survival. In addition to the time of day, weather for the spring and fall are important for supplying good temperatures and cover in order for large trout to feel safe and move. A good example of this in the spring is snowstorms. When a storm system settles in, there are no clear skies and the air is insulated—supplying warmer temps and improving activity. The temperature with cloud-filled skies can be 10-20 degrees warmer than with clear skies, especially in the morning hours of the day. Without this insulation, morning hours can be lost from cold temperature, leaving the trout inactive. In the fall, daily storms become more important; you are looking for dark skies and 14
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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heavy storms. The low light makes these fall fish feel comfortable—especially brown trout that are known to feed heavily in the evening. It is as is if the dark skies are fooling the large trout into thinking that the evening is approaching fast—triggering them to feed and move. My favorite four hours of the day are two before nightfall, and the first two hours in the evening. My rule of thumb for the fall night bite is that once you see steaming of the water, and every breath produces a thick cloud, the ideal temps are nearing their end. While you can still be productive as the night wears on, up to around 11:30 pm - 12:30 am is best. Timing is one of the most important tools in fly fishing. If you can learn how to adapt during the four seasons, you will be able to target the prime temperatures that trout need for active survival. Start investigating the weather before your trips, and you will soon have a temperature system that will produce results for years to come.
About the Author.
Landon Mayer is a veteran Colorado guide and author of several books, including Colorado’s Best Fly Fishing, from Stackpole Books. He has co-produced 2 fly fishing DVDs with John Barr, both available from Mad Trout Media. Visit Landon’s website at www.landonmayer.com.
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
15
LET’S GO FISHING •
BY BILL EDRINGTON
Staying At Home This Summer
B
efore last year, the worst drought year I can recently remember was 2002, the year of the Hayman Fire and numerous other maladies. I vividly remember worrying that we would lose some of the population of Brown Trout in the Arkansas River that I so dearly love. We watched water temperatures soar past 80 degrees the first couple of days in August, and I went to the river walk in Canon City each morning expecting to find dead fish. I did find fish in warm low water, holding, but not expending any energy. We stopped fishing the river in the afternoons to protect the fish from lactic acid build-up produced during the playing and landing process.
As Fall came, the fish fed greedily and we had a long stretch of good fishing. The following year produced the best fishing the Arkansas had seen for many a year. We discovered that not only did the fish survive, they grew and spawned vigorously. They added body weight from not having to fight currents all summer. When you grow up in the middle of traffic (heavy currents and runoff), you are likely to become smaller and more athletic if you want to survive. Being fat and overfed is not possible. In working with State Parks and Wildlife on the Citizens Task Force, we constantly try to weigh the needs of a multirecreational public on the number one white water river in North America, and the number one fished river in Colorado if not the West. The Arkansas above Pueblo Reservoir is an unfettered freestone river with tremendous public access from Canon City to Leadville at the headwaters. The Management Plan for the Arkansas is a masterpiece of compromise between commercial rafting, commercial fishing, private anglers, private boaters, environmentalists, property owners, and water managers. I am amazed that not only do we all sit in the same room together several times a year, but
ROYAL GORGEOUS CADDIS HOOK: DIA RIKI 135 OR TMC 2488H 14-18 BEAD: MFC BLACK TUNGSTEN THREAD: 8/0 BLACK BODY: CHARTREUSE MEDIUM OR OLIVE/ CHARTREUSE CO-WRAPPED THORAX: OLIVE RABBIT/OLIVE MFC GENERATION DUB/OLIVE ICE DUB BLENDED AND PICKED OUT
we manage to all view the river as a resource that is not meant for only one group’s enjoyment. Since I represent anglers in this group, I do have a fondness for seeing fish grow and
HOPPER JUAN HOOK: TMC 5262 SIZES 6-10 THREAD: 3/0 TO MATCH FOAM COLOR BODY: 2MM FOAM CUT TO SHAPE UNDERWING: MFC WING MATERIAL CUT WITH WING CUTTER WING: NATURE’S SPIRIT COW ELK FLASH: KRYSTAL FLASH, PEARL OR UV PEARL LEGS: MED RUBBER LEGS COLOR TO MATCH FOAM INDICATOR: MFC GATOR HAIR THIS IS A WONDERFUL HOPPER/DROPPER PATTERN BECAUSE IT DOES NOT REQUIRE TREATMENT ON THE RIVER AND IT FLOATS VERY HIGH AND VISIBLY.
16
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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prosper, and that is not always best for many of the other interests. We live with the decisions we make, and hope that they are good for the river, but I tend to get excited after low water years because of what I saw in 2003. Now, the bottom line for all the information above is that in 2012, we experienced a year similar to 2002 as far as the river is concerned. The fisheries report for 2012 is already out, and it is spectacular. Our Parks and Wildlife biologist, Greg Policky, is, in my opinion, one the most talented and aware fisheries biologists I have ever met. For example, last year, Greg wanted to increase the biomass of fish food in the river, and actually harvested Pteronarcys (Salmonflies) from the Colorado River and planted them in the Arkansas. This had been attempted 30 years ago, but had failed due to heavy metal pollution from the Leadville mine tailings. The project this time was wildly successful, and more will be transplanted this year in hopes that we can sustain a good population of the big bugs that drive fish and fishers crazy around the first part of June.
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The disease-free Hoffer X Rainbows were first stocked in the Arkansas in 2009, and they now comprise around 23% of the fish population at Wellsville, where biomass sampling is compared from year to year. Trout numbers in total are stable however, which shows that the newcomer to the river is being accepted by the Brown Trout. Because of that comfort zone, the Rainbows successfully spawned in 2012, giving us another wild trout gene pool and the potential for a selfsustaining population of Rainbows as well as www.HCAmagazine.com
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Browns. These fish have been stocked all the way downstream to Canon City, and we are seeing the results of that endeavor along the river walk system. Creel surveys on the river in 2012 actually showed that 26% of the catch rate was Rainbows--giving further credibility to the stocking program’s success. Also, regardless of regulation, surveys show that 98% of the fishers on the river practice catch and release which basically proves my lifelong theory that education and peer pressure is better than passing more laws that are difficult to enforce, and virtually meaningless in the long run.
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MEATLOAF SAMMY Slice this meatloaf thick and take it with the fresh ingredients to the river in a cooler. Set up a Coleman stove and sear the meatloaf on both sides, then pop some sliced cheddar on top to melt. Toast the bread on aluminum foil and your sandwich becomes a nicer lunch than a cold one. Two lbs. 85/15 ground beef One lb. breakfast sausage Three eggs Three cups Italian Bread Crumbs One tablespoon salt and one tablespoon black pepper One tablespoon crushed red chili flakes if you like it hot One cup milk and one cup of water Mix and bake at 350 in a meatloaf pan. Release from pan and let refrigerate before slicing For the the sandwich use Ciabatta bread, fresh tomatoes, romaine lettuce, mayonnaise, and real cheddar cheese.
With the 1993 Superfund Cleanup around Leadville complete, water in the Arkansas has increased in quality and heavy metal contamination is at an all time low. Previous issues of Whirling Disease and Cadmium pollution are no longer a plague to this river, and even though Whirling Disease will always be with us, fish are now seemingly resistant. With many areas boasting nearly 5,000 fish per mile, fishing has never been better. Those of us who have worked hard to help this river become what it has, believe it to be the best fishery anywhere. There are the famous tailwaters such as the Frying Pan, the Big Horn, and the South Platte, all of which I dearly love, but the great fishing on them is restricted to about three to ten miles of water. The Arkansas has over one hundred miles of water that can be walked or floated. Float 18
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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fishing the Arkansas has become increasingly popular, and can expose up to fifteen miles of water a day to the fly fisher. Even a four hour float can wear out your casting arm. So now that I’m through bragging about my back yard, come enjoy it with me this summer. You will not be disappointed. Try out Juan Ramirez’s patterns in this article. His Royal Gorgeous Caddis and the Hopper Juan are dominant on the Arkansas. If you are interested in seeing more of this talented young man’s work, go to his blog at www.hopperjuan.blogspot.com, and from there you can go to his Facebook page which is chock full of great flies. Don’t forget to cook lunch on the river.......an activity that adds enjoyment to your day and beats the crap out of a can of tuna.
About
The
Fish Rifle, Colorado this year! We have some of the finest fishing in the U.S....
Colorado River Roaring Fork River Rifle Gap Reservoir
Author.
Bill Edrington is a retired sociology/criminology professor who has owned Royal Gorge Anglers for over 20 years. He has authored several books and magazine articles. You may follow his fly fishing and cooking adventures on his new blog “Tight Lines and Tasty Spoons” at www.tightlinesand t ast yspoons. blogspot.com.
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
19
by BrIan La Rue
D
epending on what region of the country you’re from, the generic term “South Fork” might describe any number of fisheries, but the trout fishery I always think of when I hear someone say, “South Fork,” is the South Fork of the Snake River, just west of the Wyoming/Idaho border. We highlighted the Henry’s Fork a couple of issues ago, so it is only fitting we follow up with the South Fork this time around in order to give you an idea of where to wet a line this year. Have you planned your next road trip yet? The South Fork flows out of Palisades Reservoir and on through Swan Valley--offering some 70 miles of trout-filled water that’s within easy reach of a home base like South Fork Lodge (www.naturalretreats. com/outfitters/south-fork-lodge/). Ian Malepeai, general manager of the property, says the river is full of quality rainbows, browns, Yellowstone cutthroat and mountain whitefish. “The South Fork is a very healthy fishery sporting more than 5,000 trout per mile, with the average trout running 12 to 14 inches,” said Malepeai. “On a typical day however, it is common to catch a 20-plus inch fish. “As a tailwater, the South Fork does not see extreme runoff,” added Ian. “Though many small tributaries find their way to the South Fork, the fishing remains very productive in spring as anglers capitalize on our famous stonefly hatches of salmon flies, golden stones, and yellow sallies. We identify May 15- June 15 as our runoff season, but in order for this to really affect the fishery, snow pack levels must exceed 100 percent. Spring fishing is also highlighted by the Mother’s Day caddis hatch, and popular stoneflies starting early June.” With the thought of higher flows only pushing from 6,000 cfs to 14,000 cfs at most, Malepeai still says the river is best fished from a driftboat. However, there are more than 60 public access points along the 70 miles of river. The river does channel often, with pools and riffles rarely measuring more than 4-feet deep. Some of the best banks are undercut and brush-lined, so a boat will get you in front of the best holes with ease. 20
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
“Summer fishing can simply be called dry fly heaven,” touts Malepeai. “Summer arrives in June as the fish are ready to start eating. The cool, clear, oxygenated water coming from Palisades Dam provides all the necessary ingredients to create an epic ecosystem for insects and trout. Cutthroat love to eat dry flies and they set the standard for trophy browns and super-charged rainbows. What appeals to me about the South Fork the most? Anglers can catch lots of trout and big trout on large foam flies from June to October. These high-floating patterns simulate early golden and salmon flies, not to mention the various hoppers and mutants found later in the year. “My favorite hatch is our PMD hatch starting in July,” said Ian. “This hatch usually kicks off between 10-11 AM, and once it’s going, the fish key in and move to the riffles. It’s not uncommon to pull into a riffle and see 50 fish feeding on PMDs, and then realize that four hours have passed since you started picking them off, one by one!” Fall continues with the hot terrestrial fishing as the famed mutant golden stone hatch keeps rolling. These early risers offer some of the most exciting fishing in the West. “Mating at night, these insects have shortened wings, which do not allow them to fly, but rather skitter across the water,” said Malepeai. “Eager trout aggressively chase these twitching bugs and offer an amazing visual with big fish smashing the surface. You have to wake up early for this one. As soon as the sun hits the water the hatch is done.” Caddis and streamers also add to the fun later in the year. October caddis and sedge caddis are top picks, but the streamer-eating browns shine in the fall, reminding anglers just how many big trout are in this fishery. All the fly industry legends come out from behind their vises or off their speaking tours to tap into the South Fork at this time. Some of the other favorite patterns on the South Fork, depending on the season, include Rubberlegs, Elden’s Ant, Redemption Nymphs, Lawson’s No Hackle Pink PMD, Captive Dun, Provo Hookers or some other gnarly streamers, Yellow Stimulators, and Bead Head Pheasant Tails. www.HCAmagazine.com
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
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Located close to Yellowstone and Jackson Hole, this destination offers numerous side trips for the traveling angler. There are tons of guides in the area, but only a few lodges to book for your stay in Swan Valley. If you like spoiling yourself while on a trip, check out the South Fork Lodge. Share your photos of your next trip with us on Facebook, or e-mail them to High Country Angler—there’s nothing wrong with a little bragging!
About
The
Author.
High Country Angler contributor Brian La Rue enjoys giving fly fishers ideas of where to go for an adventure. His work can also be seen at his Examiner.com Denver Fly Fishing page. You can contact Brian by writing to brian@HCAmagazine.com.
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High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
23
FIT TO BE TIED
•
BY JOEL EVANS
McLoco Beetle
N
McLoco Beetle
ew doesn’t always mean new to existence. New can simply mean new to you. Fly tying goes back centuries, yet there is always some new material, effective new pattern, or someone new to the craft. Ryan Keyes was introduced to fly tying several years ago and really got after it. How many of us have written a book on fly tying? Ryan started his company, RK’s Fly Design, then wrote a book, Step-By-Step Beginner Fly Tying Manual, and produced a demonstration DVD to go with the book. Having met Ryan at a fly fishing show, I acquired his book and DVD, along with a fly box filled with a dozen of his ties. His book contains a pattern for a Rubber Legged Beetle, but it was the version of the beetle in the fly box that caught my eye.
Hook: #10-16 dry, standard length, down eye, wide gap Thread: Black, 6/0 Underbody: Black ice dubbing Shellback: Peacock Loco foam, 2mm Legs: Black rubber legs, medium Indicator: Orange McFly foam
The updated version uses a foam that is the standard black on one side, but has a layer of iridescence on the other side. When the iridescent side is folded over to be the top side, the appearance is striking just sitting in the box. But I expect that when fished, it will catch any light and make it highly visible to the fish and the fisherman. Ryan adds an orange indicator/hot spot, making the beetle a pattern to be fished alone as a dry, or as a strike indicator to a dropper. As a Recreation Therapist, Ryan has taken great interest in working personally with disabled veterans and the non-profit for veterans, Project Healing Waters. Using his therapy training, Ryan takes those vets fly fishing and teaches fly tying. Find Ryan on Facebook at rksflydesign, his tying videos on YouTube, and Project Healing Waters at www.projecthealingwaters.org.
About The Author.
Joel Evans is a fly fishing writer, photographer, and long-time member of Trout Unlimited from Montrose, CO. You can contact him via the HCA editor at frank@hcamagazine.com.
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High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
25
Restoring the Headwaters
G
enerations of anglers have cherished fishing the gold medal waters of the Upper Colorado River below Granby. But for years, those waters have been seriously degraded by a major water diversion—Windy Gap—that pipes water across the Continental Divide to Front Range communities, leaving only 40 percent of the river’s flow behind. This has left stretches of the river depleted and choked with algae and sediment – and in turn caused serious declines in trout populations and the elimination of other species, including stoneflies and sculpin. On top of the existing diversions, the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District (“Northern”) has proposed an expansion of Windy Gap that would take another 15 percent of flows out of the river, putting it on the brink of collapse. After years of dogged effort, TU scored a huge victory for the river in 2012: Colorado TU, the Colorado River Headwaters Chapter, and National TU staff worked together to negotiate an agreement with Northern that will put the Upper Colorado on the road to recovery. The agreement includes several key protections for the Upper Colorado: • preventing stream temperature impacts during low flows in the summer. • providing periodic “flushing flows” to cleanse the river during runoff. • conducting major habitat restoration work on reaches of the Colorado below Windy Gap. • requiring the construction of a Windy Gap Reservoir “bypass” to reconnect the river around the dam and improve water quality and river health. “For years, those of us living in Grand County have seen the once-mighty Colorado in a state of serious decline,” said Kirk Klancke, president of the Headwaters Chapter. “This agreement will provide protections and new investments in river health that can put the Colorado River on the road to recovery.” The bypass was a key element in addressing the root causes of chronic habitat problems in the Upper Colorado. A study by Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologist Barry Nehring found that a bypass was a key ingredient in restoring river health below Windy Gap. Currently, the reservoir harms water and habitat quality by capturing the river’s natural bed 26
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
load (including cobble and gravels) while passing fine sediments (silt) downstream where it has filled in around the stream substrate and created an “armored” condition that was not scoured even by the epic high flows during the extended runoff of 2011. A bypass study, paid for by Northern, is expected to be completed by October 2013 and will look at alternatives for a bypass and the benefits they could provide. If a feasible approach can be identified, Northern will provide $2 million toward construction of the bypass. An additional $2 million from the State has been approved by the Colorado Water Conservation Board, pending approval by the legislature. TU also points to the agreement as a model for how conservationists and water developers can find common ground – providing water supplies for Colorado’s
growing population while still protecting the health of our rivers, which help offer the quality of life that makes people want to live here. Reaching the agreement was a long journey. Early in the year, TU was advertising on a Denver-area billboard and holding rallies outside of the State Capitol and the Regional Headquarters of the Environmental Protection Agency, telling decision makers “Don’t Suck the Upper Colorado River Dry.” By autumn, TU and Northern had found agreement on a package that respected both group’s interests. “This deal is the product of compromise,” said Mely Whiting, counsel for Trout Unlimited. “Looking at the entire package, we firmly believe it offers the best chance for the upper Colorado River’s recovery.”
One Down, One To Go The fight to protect the Upper Colorado isn’t over. Another major pipeline project, Denver’s proposed Moffat expansion, would hammer the Fraser River, a major tributary of the Upper Colorado that is already on life support. TU has asked Denver Water to provide protections for the Fraser similar to those pledged by Northern. The Fraser is an outstanding fishery in its own right, and in 2012 a reach of the river near the town of Fraser was designated by the Colorado Legislature as the “Eisenhower Reach” in recognition of President Eisenhower’s frequent visits to the area and the river’s importance as part of Colorado’s heritage. So far, however, Denver Water has offered very little to protect the Fraser River. Denver Water has touted its Cooperative Agreement for the West Slope, but the funds and commitments included in that agreement – while important and valued steps – address only existing problems and not the impacts of Denver’s new proposal to further deplete the Fraser. Trout Unlimited, Grand County landowners, and other stakeholders are urging Denver Water to follow Northern’s lead and finish the job of protecting the Fraser River, by: • providing flushing flows to keep the river clean and healthy; • curtailing water diversions when high water temperatures jeopardize aquatic life; • agreeing to an ongoing “adaptive management” plan to monitor river conditions and respond to unforeseen problems caused by the diversions. “These added protections are affordable and pragmatic,” said Drew Peternell, director of TU’s Colorado Water Project. “And they can be added to the project for mere pennies a month for Denver Water customers.”
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Something to “Reach 4”
W
hen you do something good and do it well in a small town, especially one with the quaint practice of supporting two local newspapers, word gets around. So when the Purgatoire River Anglers Chapter played a key role in restoring “Reach 4” of their home river without spending local taxpayer money, it generated a lot of press. It was an effort that “seemed to please everyone,” according to TU volunteer Joannie Muzzulin, whose husband Jim serves as chapter president. Trinidad, population 10,000, sits at the base of the Culebra Range, just north of the New Mexico border. Its rich history features several tribes of Native Americans as well as Spanish explorers, French trappers, Santa Fe Trail traders, homesteaders, coal miners, ranchers, farmers and railroaders. The Purgatoire, variously known as the Purgatory or Picketwire, flows northeast from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains through town to a junction with the Arkansas. Legend has it that the Rio de Las Animas Perdido en Purgatorio (River of Lost Souls in Purgatory) was so named after a troop of Spaniards, (whose mistreatment of the natives is also legendary), was massacred on its banks. French trappers shortened it to Purgatoire. Over time, the river experienced the neglect common to urban rivers during the industrial age. But about eight years ago some Trinidad boosters, among them the founding chapter president Howard Lackey and current president Jim Muzzulin, got the idea that the Purgatoire might become a recreational attraction with its own trout fishery. Howard, who is also president of the Trinidad Community Foundation, played a key role in attracting the necessary funding and partners to achieve that vision. The ambitious effort to rehabilitate the Purgatoire began with a series of annual spring cleanups, repair of the damage from off-road vehicles, removal of invasive species such as tamarisk and Russian olive, and construction of a river walk that ran the entire length of the river through town. Establishing a fishery was a bit more complicated, but two important grants helped get things started. The first was for $5,000 from the Trout Unlimited Embrace-a-Stream program, and the other was a $1,000 “Gomo” grant from Colorado TU. The Gomo grant program was created to honor the late Leo Gomolchak, a renowned Colorado TU volunteer and staff member. The two grants covered the cost of a study by habitat specialist Pete Gallagher of FinUp Consultants. Gallagher produced a set of step-by-step recommendations for six separate river reaches, including the establishment of a seasonal trout fishery along Reach www.HCAmagazine.com
Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
27
seed disturbed areas, harvest willow cuttings and plant willows and sedge along the newly created riparian benches. Handicapped fishing access was also in the plan. On May 1, chapter members, helped out by some local school children who happened to be on a field trip, stocked more than 450 trout, from 4-inch fingerlings to catchable 12-inch fish. The final touch was a dedication ceremony held during Trinidad’s May 17th Water Festival. There was a final reason everyone seemed pleased with the results of the river project. The work was carried out so efficiently that enough money was left over to complete the second phase of restoration without addition-
al fundraising. The chapter credits a number of others in the effort to resurrect this section of the Purgatoire, including Jeris Danielson of the Purgatoire River Water Conservancy District, Pioneer Natural Resources and the Southern Colorado Greenbacks Chapter, which was instrumental in helping the Purgatoire chapter get its start in 2009. There’s no doubt the Purgatoire project has made a big splash in Trinidad. “We saw the opportunity to reconnect the Purgatoire River with the residents of Trinidad.” said chapter president Jim Muzzulin. “We’ve helped turn it into a place where children can play and tourists can visit.”
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w w w. d a n p a s s . c o m 4, right in the middle of town. The study showed that the river had a healthy population of aquatic insects and could support trout. What was needed was river structure that established shelter, and in-channel holding areas to combat low winter flows and prolonged high flows during the irrigation season. Those low winter flows, a result of a local emphasis on irrigation that kept water sequestered in Trinidad Lake during the winter, left scant amounts of creek water to flow downriver. Next came the challenge of raising the estimated $120,000 for project work along Reach 4. Contributors included the Colorado Water Conservation Board ($75,000 grant), the Purgatoire River Water Conservancy District ($15,000), and Pioneer Natural Resources, a local oil and gas producer (cash and in-kind contribution of $45,000). Other partners in the venture included the Trinidad Community Foundation and Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The heavy lifting took place over four days in March, when more than 650 large boulders were placed in the river to stabilize stream banks and establish a series of cross vanes, j-hooks and boulder clusters. “It was fun to watch,” Joannie says. “The guy operating the heavy equipment was so good – he operated his machines like they were kitchen utensils!” The chapter followed up in April with a workday to clean up the boulder stockpile sites, re28
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
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First Annual Family Fly Fishing Camp
O
n August 9-11, 2013, Colorado Trout Unlimited, with their partner Angling University, will be holding their inaugural Family Fly Fishing Camp at the Pickle Gulch Campground in Gilpin County, Colorado. At this camp, youth ages 9-13, with a responsible adult (parent, mentor, etc), will have the opportunity to camp, fly fish, and experience Colora-
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do’s beautiful mountain environment! This camp is designed to teach youth and adults basic fly fishing skills while encouraging them to embrace angling as a healthy, family-oriented activity. Fifteen youth campers, each accompanied by a family member, can participate with sign-up on a first come first served basis. The cost to attend this camp is $175 for each youth/adult pair. Financial aid is available for those who may need it. Camp topics will include: • Equipment basics • Casting • Fly line and leader knots, fly selection • Trout habitat, reading the water, catch & release • River ecology and conservation For more information or to sign up, go to http://www.coloradotu.org/ family-fly-fishing-camp/ Or contact Jake Lemon, CTU Youth Education Coordinator at jake.lemon@coloradotu.org, 720-354-2646.
Spring 2013 • High Country Angler
29
THE LAST CAST
•
JOHN NICKUM
Climate Effects on Rocky Mountain Trout
Q
What are your thoughts on a recent article in the American Fisheries Society technical magazine, Fisheries, that discussed potential effects of climate change on trout populations in the Rocky Mountain region? Is there anything we can do to reduce the effects of climate changes on our trout fisheries?
A
I think the authors produced an accurate and very timely article. The evidence is clear; climate has changed and continues to change. There are arguments about the cause(s) of the changes; primarily about the role(s) of human activities as a cause for the observed and measured changes, but scientifically valid evidence identifies the changes and the trends in these changes. The authors of the Fisheries article, almost all of whom live in the Rocky Mountain region, identified the following potential problems for trout: increased disturbances from wildfires, upstream shifts in habitat caused by warmer water temperatures, increased scouring of eggs from redds, declining summer flows, and greater fragmentation of acceptable habitats. Warmer, silt-filled waters and decreased flows with few escape pathways are not the prescriptions for high quality trout fisheries. The problems they identified were based on long-term monitoring of five separate areas in the Rocky Mountain region. The last period of global warming, roughly 1000 years ago, differed considerably from the present warming trend. The primary differences relate to atmospheric pollution. Evidence gathered from polar and Greenland ice sheets indicates that levels of carbon dioxide and other atmospheric pollutants were not elevated in the period around 1000 AD. Burning fossil fuels in huge quantities simply was not a factor at that time. Acidification of ocean waters because of elevated carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was not a problem. However, warming was great enough to drive Atlantic salmon out of regions south of the present day St. Lawrence River. What events and/or natural cycles drove the warming trends of the past remains uncertain, but scientists are certain that present day atmospheric pollution causes natural cycles to be more volatile and more extreme than they have been in the past. Warmer, drier conditions combined with violent storm events will increase the probability of more and larger wildfires. These wildfires will remove ground cover, stream shading, and make soils more easily eroded. Subsequent storms will wash silt into streams, destroying habitat for insect life and clogging the coarse gravel beds where trout spawn and young trout spend their early weeks of development. The highly predictable result is fewer trout. Warmer waters and shorter cold water periods will decrease the total miles of streams 30
High Country Angler • Spring 2013
that can support sustainable trout populations. When trout spawn, they are driven by their genetic makeup. If the streams are too warm for fall spawners, or if the streams become too warm for full development of early life stages of spring spawners, recruitment of young fish into the population is blocked. Insects and invertebrates that provide the food base for trout suffer the same problems. Decreasing available habitat and fragmenting it into small, isolated, high elevation segments prevents re-establishing populations in the event of geologic or weather-driven catastrophes. Potential donor populations cannot make their way through the warmer, silted, low flow segments to reach the few areas of acceptable habitat that remain. Some people may argue that trout will adapt to the changes and thrive in the warmer waters, decreased areas, lower flows, and additional siltation. I suggest that such thinking is not positive optimism, but rather “burying one’s head in the sand.” The hard fact-of-life is that genetic adaptation is a much slower process than the environmental changes driven by atmospheric pollution. Research and long-term observations indicate that such adaptations normally taken at least 12 – 15 generations to become fixed in a population. So… is there anything that we can do to prevent, or at least minimize the negative effects of a warmer and more erratic environment in Rocky Mountain trout streams? Perhaps the first steps toward new management strategies are to accept the realities of the changes and to recognize the need for new management approaches. In the words of the article’s authors we “change our mindsets from last century’s paradigm of dynamic equilibrium to one of dynamic disequilibrium.” Nature has always involved more of “détente” than “perfect balance,” but we must expect greater fluctuations in the future than we have experienced in the past. A growing human population will add to these exacerbations. Whether or not management strategies and
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techniques can be developed and deployed to counteract all the negative factors is uncertain at this time. What is certain is that the more information we have from monitoring and research programs, the better are our chances for managing an acceptable set of trout fisheries. What is also certain is that we must learn to manage for systems that are efficient and sustainable under the altered conditions of changed climates. Another certainty that is often forgotten is that stress is cumulative. Each stress adds to the total effect; therefore, we must give even more attention to the effects of land management focused on short term gains; water withdrawals that take streams below optimal flow levels for even short periods of time; pollution, and anything that reduces the resilience of the trout and their habitats. These factors can be deadly by themselves; but, climate change simply adds to the negative effects of the existing stressors. The systems that developed and thrived during the gradually changing conditions of the last 10,000 years of post-glacial period will not flourish on their own. It remains to be seen whether or not we can provide the management assistance needed to maintain the trout fisheries we have enjoyed and loved in recent times. We must exert major efforts to consider the cumulative effects of all stress factors, with a comprehensive view in both time and space.
About
The
Author.
John Nickum, is a retired PhD. fishery biologist whose career has included positions as professor at research universities including Iowa State and Cornell University, director of the Fish and Wildlife Service’s fisheries research facility in Bozeman, MT, and science officer for the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Mountain-Prairie Region. He was inducted into the National Fish Culture Hall of Fame in 2008.
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Going Fishing this Weekend? Make the most of your time with our FREE REPORTS! Find out what’s HOT & what’s NOT! The most comprehensive hatch conditions for Colorado with over 10 years of data and images. Front Range Waters
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Cheesman Canyon Fishing Report
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Rating: GREAT
Early August
105 cfs
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Cheesman Canyon Report Archives
Fly Fishing Report Date: Sunday, August 12, 2012
Colorado Stream Update: Recent reports in the canyon have been fair to good. Guides are seeing micro mayflies, midges and the sporadic caddis hatch. Long leaders, light tippet 5x-6x are needed right now. Good luck!
Weather & Water Conditions Weather Temp: 60+ Sky: Clear Wind: None Precip: None
Water Temp: 36 - 39 Flow: 105 Clarity: Crystal Clear Runoff: No
Current Insect Hatches at Cheesman Canyon Insect Type: Mayfly Insect: Red Quill Color: Red Size: 20 Time: All Day
Recommended Flies for Cheesman Canyon Fly: Black Beauty Color: Blackish Brown Size: 20 Time: All Day
Fly: Sprout Mahogany Color: Red Size: 20 Time: All Day
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