Howdy. My wife and I will be in Colorado the first week of September for vacation. We'll be in Denver through Labor Day but I'm looking for ideas for towns to visit with nearby access to hiking and fishing. We've looked into the Roaring Fork Valley area but I'm reading that many streams in this area are under voluntary restrictions. Can we expect these restrictions to be in place in September? Should we look into going somewhere else? We plan to book at least one float trip. Recommendations for guide services, statewide, would be appreciated. Finally, are waders a necessity that time of year? I can throw them in but I much prefer to wet-wade if that an option.
Colorado First Week of September
- Thread starter ptdowling
- Start date
scotty macfly
Well-known member
Welcome to the forum.
The areas just outside of Denver and north of the city, the water levels are doing fine. The rivers from central CO. and southwest and south are hurting. The biggest river I frequent is the Cache La Poudre, and it's doing well. Check out RMNP in Estes Park, as well as the IPWA above Boulder just on the outskirts of Nederland. Check out Sam's post from when he was here.
First fly fishing trip was great!
There's so many hiking trails, and the fishing is superb if you are into creek fishing. And no, you won't need waders.
The areas just outside of Denver and north of the city, the water levels are doing fine. The rivers from central CO. and southwest and south are hurting. The biggest river I frequent is the Cache La Poudre, and it's doing well. Check out RMNP in Estes Park, as well as the IPWA above Boulder just on the outskirts of Nederland. Check out Sam's post from when he was here.
First fly fishing trip was great!
There's so many hiking trails, and the fishing is superb if you are into creek fishing. And no, you won't need waders.
J
joe_strummer
Guest
Big Thompson above Estes is running less than half it's 19-year median for the date, and temps went above 65 degrees in the warmest waters on the east side of RMNP yesterday, so I wouldn't say things are fine, exactly. Not dire, and we're getting some rain.
I'd suggest bringing the waders. Probably won't need em but if it's cool and wet, you might want em at 8000 feet. And it can get prolonged cool and wet that time of year around here. If it's 50s and 60s and cloudy with rain, wet wading can suck.
I'd suggest bringing the waders. Probably won't need em but if it's cool and wet, you might want em at 8000 feet. And it can get prolonged cool and wet that time of year around here. If it's 50s and 60s and cloudy with rain, wet wading can suck.
scotty macfly
Well-known member
Joe does make a good point about bad weather and how it can not be too much fun if you don't have waders.
Thanks Joe for the water report on the Big T above Estes. I've not fished that yet this year. Do you know how the head waters are like for the Colorado on the west side of the Park?
The Middle Boulder Creek has been running above normal so far. When I took Sam and Leigh there I was a little surprised at it. Last week it was even higher. So if that's what you are looking for ptdowling, it sounds like the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area is where you want to be.
For a float trip, I have no idea what waters are doing that with the voluntary restrictions. If you want a guide for wading, Front Range Anglers in Boulder or Laughing Grizzly in Longmont are good. You may want to also try Trouts fly shop in Denver. But as for floats, I can't help you. Sorry.
zjory
Well-known member
In the past 4 or 5 weeks I have fished the Fryingpan river basin (including several tributaries and lakes), The Big T (in the park, in the canyon and in Loveland), Fern Lake, The Poudre, The North Fork of the Poudre, Sheep Creek, The St Vrain (in Wild Basin and along Highway 7), Middle Boulder Creek and the headwaters of the North Platte. The only water that was low was the North Platte in Routt National forest. The Platte was so low and warm we actually decide not to fish it and went elsewhere. Everything else I have fished has been average to above average water levels. Scotty macfly and I fished Middle Boulder Creek last week and as he said, water levels were far above average. Surprised to see water levels in Moraine Park are so low, I fished it a couple weeks ago and they seemed normal. Other than in the Southwest part of Colorado, I don't think we are going to see major problems in the mid Rockies and Front Range late this summer and fall if we even get a decent amount of rain in the next two months.
If you fish the Roaring Fork Valley, look to the high country. If you float, do it with Taylor Creek Anglers.
If you stick to the Front Range, explore IPWA.
My two cents is no on waders. Bigger water will be down low where it's warm and the skinnier stuff up high can easily be fished from the banks.
If you fish the Roaring Fork Valley, look to the high country. If you float, do it with Taylor Creek Anglers.
If you stick to the Front Range, explore IPWA.
My two cents is no on waders. Bigger water will be down low where it's warm and the skinnier stuff up high can easily be fished from the banks.
flyminded
Well-known member
The Roaring Fork currently has a voluntary closer from 2pm below Carbondale, I have not seen many guide float trips on the river all summer ....I am staying in a house on the river just above Carbondale.
I know the San Miguel had a voluntary closer a month ago and the Yampa has been shut down also.
The Frying Pan below the dam is running low, but fishable due to the cold water released from the dam.
Keep an eye out for wildfires flaring up also ...try to be flexible with your plans if possible.
I know the San Miguel had a voluntary closer a month ago and the Yampa has been shut down also.
The Frying Pan below the dam is running low, but fishable due to the cold water released from the dam.
Keep an eye out for wildfires flaring up also ...try to be flexible with your plans if possible.
J
joe_strummer
Guest
Middle Boulder Creek at Ned is about half its average flow too. Simply not anything freestone here running far above average -- take a look. You can review the last 10 years of data on the gage in Ned and see it's the lowest it's been in that time. It's the lowest it has been on July 31 since 2002.
Detail Graph
Detail Graph
el jefe
Well-known member
As an alternative to waders, if you have a wading jacket (like something Gore-Tex), on bad or variable weather days consider combining it with some Gore-Tex Pacllite pants. Cabela's has them. You can still wet wade, but stay warm. You won't get hit with rain in places that make you cold, and the wind won't affect you when your legs are wet. It is a great, lightweight way to go that keeps you dry but for the part of your legs that is in the river. Wear some wet wading socks and wading shoes, and some quick dry fly fishing pants to complete the ensemble.
proheli
Well-known member
I’m in Steamboat right now and the Yampa is also under voluntary closure. One lady told me the roaring fork was really low, but that was just on a phone call. Another small piece of bad luck I had was the Dream Stream being so washed out after the big hail last week. I would think it would be back to normal by Sept, but there was only access to the first parking lot when I was there. (1 out of 4)
zjory
Well-known member
Fished it 6 days ago above Nederland and it was spilling over its banks. Kind of the point I tried to make in my last post, there's a lot of talk about how low everything is in Colorado, but reading forum posts and water gauges isn't the same as being on the river. It's certainly a low water year in Colorado, but I have fished a lot of different spots in the last two months and have yet to see anything hugely concerning.
scotty macfly
Well-known member
I have fished Middle Boulder Creek for a few years now in the Hessie Trailhead area, and I have never seen it this full at this time of year. Just by what Zjory and I saw, I have to agree with Zjory. It's common to see the left fork of the road where it splits to Fourth of July Lake with a little bit of water on it, and the day Zjory and I went, there was more water on the road then, than the previous week.
Please be assured I'm not trying to start an argument or anything, but I am trying to give the best advice I can give by my own personal experience. There is a pool I took Zjory at the end of our day, and I thought about getting in the water just down from him, but looking at the flow, I thought it better not to. The week prior, I did get in the water just below the pool.
But with Sept. in mind, and I have fished that area in early Sept, the water will be low and the fish will be spooky. But it's a beautiful area for hiking and small water fishing without a doubt. The fishing is hot right now on that creek, but Sept. is a month away. I am willing to get up there at the end of Aug. and fish it again and send ptdowling a report so he knows if it's worth it or not to him.
zjory
Well-known member
What Scotty said. And to clarify, I wasn’t trying to be contentious. Just trying provide some real world experience of what I’ve been seeing over the last month.
J
joe_strummer
Guest
I'm betting you guys were fishing a rain bump... there is an ~50% rise around 7/23 on the Ned gage
I'm not seeking to be contentious either, and I'm not saying people shouldn't be fishing these streams. I expect to still be on them in a month. But flows are in the extreme low range, and August is going to be as bony as we've seen it since the early-00's drought broke. Rain bumps notwithstanding, flows drop about a third over the course of August.
Maybe there's something going on on MBC that I'm ignorant of. Maybe a secret freak snowpack only the pot grows have discovered, or weird hydrology. We've had some heavy rains in the area the past week, and some flash flood watches and warnings. Six days ago you say? Hmmm, that's where I'll put my money. I don't fish there much at all but am going down that way Friday to fish something and may run back in there for a look.
I have a place on the LT, and am in the SV and BT drainages all the time -- 2 to 3 times a week over the last six weeks or so, and have guided about hundreds of trips in these two drainages in the past decade -- and know these places very well. I was fishing places in late June and early July that I've never considered fishable at that time. The only thing in my home-range that could be called average or typical is the Big T below Olympus, and BoR just dialed 20% off from its normal summertime 125 cfs two days ago.
The gages (USGS's official spelling) aren't the whole story, but they're hardly wildly off-base either. They are not showing historic lows when streamflows are really above average. I've been watching them for about as long as they've been online and I find them to give a good picture of what's going on. Three gages I used to watch have not been put back online since the floods, but I check the Moraine gage daily and put my feet in it upstream regularly too, most recently Saturday. How accurate they are I can't independently verify, but in watching them and comparing daily data to many, many observations, I have confidence in their precision.
I'm not seeking to be contentious either, and I'm not saying people shouldn't be fishing these streams. I expect to still be on them in a month. But flows are in the extreme low range, and August is going to be as bony as we've seen it since the early-00's drought broke. Rain bumps notwithstanding, flows drop about a third over the course of August.
Maybe there's something going on on MBC that I'm ignorant of. Maybe a secret freak snowpack only the pot grows have discovered, or weird hydrology. We've had some heavy rains in the area the past week, and some flash flood watches and warnings. Six days ago you say? Hmmm, that's where I'll put my money. I don't fish there much at all but am going down that way Friday to fish something and may run back in there for a look.
I have a place on the LT, and am in the SV and BT drainages all the time -- 2 to 3 times a week over the last six weeks or so, and have guided about hundreds of trips in these two drainages in the past decade -- and know these places very well. I was fishing places in late June and early July that I've never considered fishable at that time. The only thing in my home-range that could be called average or typical is the Big T below Olympus, and BoR just dialed 20% off from its normal summertime 125 cfs two days ago.
The gages (USGS's official spelling) aren't the whole story, but they're hardly wildly off-base either. They are not showing historic lows when streamflows are really above average. I've been watching them for about as long as they've been online and I find them to give a good picture of what's going on. Three gages I used to watch have not been put back online since the floods, but I check the Moraine gage daily and put my feet in it upstream regularly too, most recently Saturday. How accurate they are I can't independently verify, but in watching them and comparing daily data to many, many observations, I have confidence in their precision.
corn fed fins
Well-known member
Check volunteer closures. Drought conditions with normal summer temps have created some stressful environments for Our fish.
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h2ofishfloatski
Well-known member
Closures due to high water temps happening:
High stream temps prompt closures of Fraser, Colorado Rivers for first time in two decades | SkyHiNews.com
Temps will moderate by September but water levels may remain low.
High stream temps prompt closures of Fraser, Colorado Rivers for first time in two decades | SkyHiNews.com
Temps will moderate by September but water levels may remain low.
flyminded
Well-known member
There is discussion about bumping the flows on the Frying Pan to try and alleviate the stress on fish.
River District, feds work to boost river flows | AspenTimes.com
River District, feds work to boost river flows | AspenTimes.com
scotty macfly
Well-known member
A rain bump could be the thing, I won't dismiss that. And even though, just for example, it may be flowing good now, come Sept. it could be a trickle. Early Sept. I have spooked more fish just from my presence than fishing. But like I said in my earlier post. I'm willing to fish it again late Aug. and send ptdowling a report so he won't possibly waste his time. Maybe I'll go up again this weekend and see if what Zjory and I witnessed is a fluke. Jasper looked good too.
All I know is, the last two times up there, the water level was good, but you may have a good point there Joe.
What is MBC source? What lake does it come from, do you know?
corn fed fins
Well-known member
The Front Range is getting the rains. On the west side of the divide and the southern half we have seen little; not nearly enough to impact fishing conditions. Air temps have a much greater effect on water and they remain warm in those parts. I really think during conditions like this many creeks should just be shut down. Most rivers can remain voluntary as they are managed as put and take fisheries anyhow.