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Colorado fishing report, June 3
Published June 3, 2004 at midnight
Southwest region | Northwest region
• Arvada Reservoir - Trout action is best from shore. Try Power Bait, Crave Bait or small night crawlers.
• Aurora Reservoir - Fishing for trout has picked up using salmon eggs and Power Bait. Best area has been the dam. Bass are hitting on soft plastics in Senac Cove. Fair for walleye.
• Barr Lake - Anglers are catching smallmouth with crayfish-type tubes or lures. Fish the northwest shallows for largemouth or muskies.
• Bear Creek - Best trout fishing is early in the morning or later in the afternoon. Flies work best. Mepps and Panther Martin spinners are the lures of choice.
• Bear Creek Reservoir - Good for stocker rainbows using worms and rainbow or orange Power Bait.
• Berkeley Lake - Largemouth are biting on the west side on chrome or orange spinner baits. Good for trout along the south side on red Power Bait or salmon eggs.
• Centennial Park Lake - Rainbow trout are very active. Fish the northeast side with salmon eggs or rainbow Power Bait.
• Chatfield Ponds - The main pond is yielding some large perch caught on minnows. Largemouth bass are being caught on the west side. The small pond is giving up nice crappie on small minnows.
• Chatfield Reservoir - Walleye are being caught on leeches or night crawlers, but few over the 18-inch size limit. Smallmouth bass are plentiful along the northwest side of the dam and around the boat ramp there. Trout action is picking up along the west side.
• Cherry Creek Reservoir - A few bigger walleye and some large wipers are showing up around the island. Leeches and night crawlers fished slowly in 10- to 12-foot depths are most productive for walleyes.
• Clear Creek (above Highway 119) - Use small silver spinners for trout. Fly fishers do best with mosquito flies.
• Clear Lake - Anglers have been catching small rainbows and brookies on Power Bait.
• Evergreen Lake - Good for stocked rainbows. Rainbow Power Bait seems to be the best bet.
• Georgetown Lake - Small rainbows and brown trout are caught on worms, small Tasmanian Devils and Power Bait.
• Jim Baker Reservoir - Stocker trout are hitting on Power Eggs in the morning.
• Main Lake - Bass fishing is picking up. Largemouth are hitting Gulp Worms fished slowly on the bottom.
• Quincy Reservoir - Excellent for bass. The fish are spawning along the shoreline and hitting soft plastics, crayfish or lizard imitations on Texas or Carolina rigs. A few reports of large crappie caught on jigs at the east end of the reservoir.
• Rocky Mountain Lake - Good for trout.
• Sloans Lake - A few crappie are hitting live minnows but fishing has been slow.
• Smith Reservoir - Many largemouth bass are being caught on plastic worms and crayfish-colored crankbaits.
• South Platte River (Waterton Canyon) - Gold Kastmasters with a red stripe do well in the morning. Go to the upper stretches of the canyon.
• Standley Lake - Slow for wipers, crappie and walleye but stocker trout continue to be caught on Power Bait, worms and spinners.
• Washington Park Lakes - Slow for crappie, so concentrate on trout or catfish.
NORTHEAST REGION
• Barker Reservoir - Fair to good using night crawlers, salmon eggs or Power Bait.
• Bellaire Lake - Good for trout using Sparkle Power Bait, Fireballs, Kastmasters, Little Cleos and small Tasmanian Devils.
• Big Thompson Ponds - Catfish are biting on chicken livers, popcorn shrimp and other baits in the back pond. Fair for bass using spinner baits or buzzbaits.
• Big Thompson River - Flow above Estes Lake is 174 cubic feet per second and 127 cfs below the dam. Upper river very fishable with streamer flies. Nymphing works on the lower river.
• Boulder Reservoir - Fair for walleyes using white or chartreuse Twister tails. Bass are hitting white jigs, minnows or worms off the dams.
• Boyd Lake - Fair to good for walleye with several fish weighing more than 3 pounds caught on Shadraps, harnessed crawlers and white Twister tails. Stocker trout, catfish also hitting.
• Carter Lake (west of Loveland) - Walleye are being caught on harnessed crawlers, Erie Dearies and minnows. Fair to good for stocker trout.
• Chambers Lake - Good, with most catches made on salmon eggs, Power Bait and worms.
• Douglas Reservoir - Good for trout with Power Bait, Fireballs and red worms.
• Dowdy Lake (Red Feather) - Good for recently stocked trout.
• East Delaney Lake - Fair for trout. Chironomids are coming off in the thousands and anglers are reporting success with a No. 14 Chironomid or Bow Tie Buzzer.
• Hohnholz Lakes - Fair to good.
• Horsetooth Reservoir - Fair for all species.
• Jackson Lake - Slow for all species.
• Joe Wright Reservoir - Slow but improving for trout.
• Jumbo Reservoir - Slow for all species.
• Lake Estes - Good for trout. Bait fishers do best at the inlet with Power Bait, eggs and worms. Lure casters should use Z-Rays, Thomas Buoyants and Kastmasters.
• Lake John - Fly fishers are scoring with a No. 6 olive Woolly Bugger along the west shore. Bait fishing is fair to good with salmon eggs, crawlers and Power Bait.
• Laramie River at Hohnholz SWA - Fair with Panther Martin, Vibrax and Mepps Black Fury spinners.
• Lon Hagler Reservoir - Good for stocker trout on bait, crawlers or minnows.
• Lonetree Reservoir - Fair to good for walleyes, wipers and crappie.
• North Delaney Lake - Chironomids are hatching. Try Nos. 14-16 Chironomid followed by a No. 16 Pheasant Tail.
• North Michigan Lake - Good at the inlet using small Panther Martins, Mepps and Vibrax spinners.
• North Park Streams - Fish through Walden with a No. 12 Platte River Special. Also try a No. 6 Orange Blossom Special.
• North Platte River - Great. Salmonflies and Stones have finished hatching but the action is still there. Toward evening there are great BWO and caddis hatches.
• North Sterling Reservoir - Fair for wipers along the dam and main points using crayfish tails, shrimp or night crawlers; good for catfish drifting crawdads or night crawlers in the Cunningham Arm or from shore near West Trailhead and the south end of the dam; fair for walleye and saugeye; slow for crappie; fair for trout.
• Parvin Lake (Red Feather) - Fair to good using Little Tasmanian Devils, Thomas Rough Riders and Kastmasters.
• Pinewood Reservoir - Fair to good for stocked trout with.
• Poudre River - Fair to good above Rustic with Beadhead Hare's Ear, Stonefly and Copper John nymphs.
• Prewitt Reservoir - Fair for catfish and wipers.
• Seymour Reservoir - Good for trout.
• Slack Weiss Reservoir - Good for stocker trout.
• South Delaney Lake - Good on the South Lake. Best dry fly action has been early in the morning and late in the evening.
• St. Vrain Ponds (formerly Barbour Ponds) - Green or yellow Power Bait, Power Eggs, Fireballs, night crawlers, small jigs and spinners all catch fish.
• St. Vrain River - Bait fishing is good in pocket water. Fly fishers do best with Flashabou Olives, Beadhead Nymphs and small baetis dry flies.
• Teal and Tiago Lakes - Good with bait or small metal lures.
• Union Reservoir (Calkins Reservoir) - Wiper fishing is very good early mornings and late evenings, especially when there is some chop on the water.
• Watson Lake - Good for smallmouth bass. Trout anglers are catching a few nice rainbows with Thomas Buoyants, Panther Martins and Vibrax spinners.
• Wellington Reservoir No. 4 - Good for stocker trout with bait.
• West Lake (Red Feather) - Good for stocker trout.
NORTHWEST REGION
• Blue River (below Green Mountain Reservoir) - Flowing low and clear and fishing well. Caddis are starting to hatch and Blue Wing Olives continue to come out on cloudy days. Use No. 14 Elk Hair Caddis.
• Blue River (Dillon to Green Mountain Reservoir) - Many fish are being hooked on the small fly range Nos. 18-22 such as cream WD-40s, Miracle Nymphs, Disco Midges, Candy Canes and Mysis Shrimp.
• Colorado River (below Parshall) - Caddis are coming out in force from Radium to the Pumphouse. Use tan-colored caddis patterns sizes 14-16. Best fishing is in the Gore Canyon.
• Colorado River (near Granby) - Nymphs and midges work, but surface action is starting to pick up. Dry/dropper rigs, stonefly patterns and black or olive Woolly Buggers all catch fish.
• Elkhead Reservoir - Anglers are catching crappie, smallmouth and largemouth bass.
• Freeman Reservoir - Good for cutthroat and brook trout.
• Fryingpan River - Outstanding. Anglers are enjoying clear flows of 109 cfs and great numbers of rising fish. There are good hatches of BWOs daily along with good midge and mysis activity.
• Granby Reservoir - Excellent for lake trout and rainbows. Anglers have been catching many 17- to 18-inch lakers on Rapalas, Panther Martins and tube jigs sweetened with sucker meat or shiners.
• Grand Lake - Good for trout at the river inlet and near the boat ramp. Some lake trout are being caught on sucker meat and large spoons.
• Green Mountain Reservoir - Anglers are catching kokanee salmon in 15- to 20-foot depths on Needlefish and Kokanee Kings.
• Green River - Running clear and fishing well. Nymphing with Woolly Buggers, beadheads and scuds works best for fly fishers while lure casters do well with Blue Fox, Mepps or Panther Martin spinners and minnow-type lures such as Rapalas.
• Harvey Gap Reservoir - Excellent for trout on the east side.
• Highline Lake - Crappie are starting to bite on small crappie jigs, mainly yellow and chartreuse with green sparkles.
• Lake Avery - Good for trout.
• Mack Mesa Lake - Power Bait in assorted colors and pink or red salmon eggs have been most successful.
• Muddy Creek - Fishing very well with Woolly Buggers, Caddis, BWOs, Prince Nymphs and various spinners. Anglers have been catching cutbows in the 4-pound range from the pool below the dam.
• Rifle Gap Reservoir - Excellent for trout using Rapalas, green or silver spinners, waxworms and Power Bait, mainly along the west end of the reservoir.
• Rio Blanco Lake - Crappie are hitting well on white and yellow jigs. Good for pike.
• Roaring Fork River - Fishing is great from Aspen to Carbondale. Hot flies: BH Princes, Electric Caddis, Lite Brite Caddis, BLMs, Beerhead Baetis, Stimis, BWO No Hackles and Harrops Thorax BWOs.
• Shadow Mountain Reservoir - Early morning and late evening are prime fishing times for trout. Fishing in the spillway below the dam is always a good bet.
• Stagecoach Reservoir - Good for trout at the inlet. Pike fishing is improving.
• Steamboat Lake - Good with spinners, Woolly Buggers and large emergers.
• Trappers Lake - Very good for brook trout. Some reports of "monster" brookies.
• Vega Reservoir - Good fro trout.
• White River - Anglers have been catching fish with streamers and some topwater action with Blue Wing Olives above Buford.
• Williams Fork Reservoir - Good for pike in the flats and fingers, best from dawn til 9 a.m. Kokanee also are hitting well on trolled Needlefish and Wedding Rings in about 12 to 15 feet of water.
• Williams Fork River - Fair. Caddis and Blue Wing Olives are hatching regularly but fish are spooked because of the clear water.
• Willow Creek Reservoir - Very good for rainbow and brown trout, and brookies can be found in the inlet area. Some anglers are also catching kokanee.
• Wolford Reservoir - Very good for splake, rainbows and brown trout.
• Yampa River - Anglers have been catching a few pike in some of the sloughs.
SOUTHEAST REGION
• Adobe Creek Reservoir (Blue Lake) - Crappie fishing has slowed but catfishing is fair using dough baits, chicken livers or shrimp.
• Anticline Lake - Good to excellent for stocker trout.
• Arkansas River (Buena Vista to Salida) - Some Blue Duns are hatching and stonefly nymphs are very active. Most fish are along the edges.
• Arkansas River (Leadville to Buena Vista) - Caddis still hatching and dry fly fishing can be excellent. On the lower part, fishing is confined to dry-dropper rigs or deep nymphing.
• Arkansas River (Salida to Canon City) - Fair to good as it transitions from caddis to stoneflies and terrestrials.
• Beckwith Reservoir - Fair for trout; fair to good for catfish and bluegill.
• Bonny Reservoir - Walleye are being caught on night crawlers drifted slowly from boats. Shore casters have been catching white bass and wipers off the dam near East Beach.
• Brush Hollow Reservoir - Crappie and bass are biting and anglers are catching a few walleye. Good for stocker trout.
• Clear Creek Reservoir - Very good. Salmon eggs and night crawlers are best bet for trout at the upper end.
• Cottonwood Lake - Good for trout.
• Daigre Reservoir - Fair to good for trout.
• DeWeese Reservoir - Good for trout.
• Elevenmile Reservoir - Fair for all species. Boaters are having the best action toward the east end of the lake; shore anglers at Rocky Flats in the North Shore Camp Area or the Back Country peninsula. Midge hatch is in full swing. Slow for pike; fair to good for kokanee near Deer Island.
• Fountain Lake - Excellent for stocker trout.
• Hale and Hopper Ponds - Good for stocker trout. Bass of up to 6 pounds have been taken on Sassy Shads and worm rigs.
• Hayden Meadows Reservoir - Great. Montera's Marvels work best when the caddis aren't hatching.
• Horseshoe Reservoir - Excellent for trout.
• Jefferson Lake - Anglers have been limiting out on trout using night crawlers, salmon eggs, Power Bait, flies or lures.
• John Martin Reservoir - Slow for crappie and wipers as the reservoir continues to shrink. Lake Hasty below the dam is yielding catfish, crappie and saugeye and has been stocked with trout.
• Martin Lake - Very good for stocker trout. Good for wipers and northern pike.
• Monument Reservoir - Excellent for stocker trout.
• Nee Gronda Reservoir - Fair to good for wipers using Rat-L-Traps, jigs with Twister tails or live minnows fished under a bobber. Saugeye are hitting on jigs, worm rigs and deep-running crank baits. Smallmouth bass have been biting well in the trees along the east shoreline.
• Nee Noshe Reservoir - Saugeye are biting on jigs tipped with worms, and crappie are hitting on small tube jigs.
• North Lake - Good for stocker trout.
• Pueblo Reservoir - Slow but improving for both trout and warm-water species.
• Runyon Lake - Excellent for trout.
• San Isabel Lake - Good for trout.
• South Platte River (between Spinney and Elevenmile) - Very good. Besides baetis, the midge hatch is in full swing. Hot flies: No. 16 Light Tan Hare's Ear, red Copper John, Pheasant Tail, Red Midge Larva, pupae, Parachute BWO, RS2, Brassy and red San Juan Worm.
• Spinney Mountain Reservoir - Anglers on shore are enjoying better action than boaters. Fly fishers scored well with scuds and Zebra Midges along the north shore and Homestake Canal entrance. Tubers have been finding fish off the second and third parking lots on the north side. A few pike are being caught on rainbow Rapalas.
• Trinidad Reservoir - Excellent for trout from shore or boat using various baits and lures. Good for catfish and bass.
• Turks Pond - Channel catfish and blues are hitting on chicken livers and worms.
• Turquoise Lake - Excellent. Lake trout are concentrated near the dam and can be caught from boat or shore. Rainbows are hitting along the upper end.
• Twin Lakes - Rainbows can be caught east of the boat ramp along the shore using salmon eggs and Power Bait.
• Twin Lakes Forebay - Montera's Marvels are still the most popular, but other flies and nymphs also work well.
• Wahatoya Reservoir - Fair to good for stocker trout.
SOUTHWEST REGION
• Beaver Creek Reservoir - Anglers are catching rainbow and brown trout. Kokanee are active, hitting mostly on spinners.
• Big Meadows Reservoir - Trout are hitting on Roostertails and bait of all kinds.
• Blue Mesa Reservoir - Lake trout are moving into depths of 60 to 80 feet. Use jointed Kwikfish in firetiger or frog colors and Bombers in red/white and rainbow.
• East River - Too high for wading. Streamers in all colors may produce a few nice fish along the banks.
• Echo Canyon Reservoir - Excellent, both for stocked trout and bigger rainbows left over from prior years.
• Gunnison River (below Crystal Dam) - Water is clear and fishing has slowed. Midging is good with caddis early and late.
• Gunnison River (through the canyon) - Very good. The salmonfly hatch has moved upstream to Ute Park.
• Gunnison River (Upper from Almont to Blue Mesa) - Fish are holding within inches of the bank in small pocket water. Float anglers can do well with streamers and spinners pounding the banks.
• Jackson Gulch Reservoir - Good for trout with night crawlers, Power Bait or spinners.
• La Jara Creek - The creek is high but clearing and fishing is fair for brown trout.
• McPhee Reservoir - Anglers have been catching smallmouth bass of up to 17 inches on gray tube jigs.
• Mountain Home Reservoir - Good for trout.
• Navajo Reservoir - Very good for for catfish and northern pike at Windsurf Beach and Arboles Point.
• Platoro Reservoir - Good. Stocked with rainbow trout and also contains kokanee, splake and brown trout.
• Ridgway Fishing Ponds - Very good for trout.
• Ridgway Reservoir - Very good for recently stocked rainbows.
• Rio Grande River - Some anglers have been catching a few brown trout on Woolly Buggers close to shore.
• Road Canyon Reservoir - Good for rainbow trout of up to 20 inches.
• Sanchez Reservoir - Fair for pike, walleye and yellow perch.
• Taylor Reservoir - Lake trout have resumed biting.
• Taylor River - Running consistently clear. Use streamer patterns in black and olive or caddis pupa and stonefly nymphs.
• Trujillo Meadows Reservoir - Good for rainbow and brown trout.
• Vallecito Reservoir - Good for brown trout and pike.
• For further information please refer to the Fishing Report on the Division of Wildlife web site at wildlife.state.co.us/fishing/fishcond.asp.
Stocking report
The following waters were stocked last week:
• Andrews Lake; Aurora Reservoir; Big Molas Lake; Boulder Kids Pond; Chapman Dam; Chatfield Reservoir; Clear Creek Reservoir; Clear Lake; Cottonwood Lake; Daigre Reservoir; Dowdy Lake; Flatiron Reservoir; Fountain Lake; Frantz Lake; Georgetown Lake; Green Mountain Falls Lake; Gypsum Ponds; Haviland Lake; Home Lake; Jackson Gulch Reservoir; Joe Moore Reservoir; Lake Dorothey; Lake Estes; Manitou Reservoir; Marys Lake; Monument Reservoir; Mountain Home Reservoir; Nichols Reservoir; North Lake; Pastorius Reservoir; Platoro Reservoir; Rampart Reservoir; Rifle Gap Reservoir; Riverside Ponds; River Bottom Park Pond; Roaring Judy Ponds; Runyon Lake; South Platte River No. 6; South Platte River No. 5; Sweetwater Lake; Sylvan Lake; Tarryall Creek No. 2B; Taylor Reservoir; Trinidad City Park Lake; Trinidad Reservoir; Wahatoya Reservoir; West Lake; Windsor Reservoir.
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