Of Rising Trout and Tiny Flies

Dan and Joe got to fish every day while we were in Breckenridge, and the fishing did not disappoint. Dan had called and gotten the local scoop from a fellow fishing manager at the Orvis store in Englewood, Tucker Bamford. Tucker is a Colorado native, and provided a lot of inside information on the rivers and hatches we would encounter in the areas we planned to fish. This is just one of the many benefits Dan has working for Orvis. He is part of a very large network of Orvis Stores, Dealers, and guides that stretches from coast to coast. No matter where we go, there is someone with ties to the company who is more than willing to share fishing conditions, access points, and local hatch information, all very important to the traveling angler.

The Blue River flows right through the town of Breckenridge, and served as our home water for the time we were there. It was on this river that Joe caught his first trout on the fly, a milestone for any fisherman. The fish rose gently to a well presented dry fly in soft current beside a boulder as the sun set behind the mountains. It couldn’t have been more perfect and Joe was beaming from his accomplishment. Dan caught some nice trout from this river as well and it was so nice to have good fishing this close to the condo.


Another highlight was fishing in the fabled “Dream Stream”, a 3.8 mile stretch of the South Platte River between Spinney Mountain Reservoir and Eleven Mile Reservoir. This section of the river is famous for growing extremely large trout and it was only about an hour from Breckenridge. It was here that Dan met another fellow Orvis employee, Dave Lovell from the Denver Store, who was wearing the same Helios hat and introduced himself. Dave was fishing on his day off, and was generous enough to share his knowledge of the stream as well as giving us a few flies that he favored. It is incredible to be a part of this “family” and to see this played out time and time again. While we couldn’t get the fish to cooperate, we certainly got to cast at a few that were easily over 25 inches. It was a beautiful place, surrounded by mountains in all directions, with water so clear you could watch your nymph drift right past the uninterested fish.

By far the high point of the Colorado fishing experience was catching an 18” Rainbow Trout in the tail water section of the Blue River right in the town of Silverthorne where the outlet stores are. This section is well known for its very large trout that are seldom caught due to the heavy fishing pressure it gets year round. There is a bridge over the river from which you can spot these oversized trout as they hold in their lanes and feed on the microscopic insect life typical in tail waters. From this same bridge, outlet shoppers gather to watch visiting anglers flog the water in vain trying to fool these weariest of fish. It is a challenge that is utterly irresistible. This is technical fishing of the highest order, requiring precise casts with twelve foot leaders tapered to 7x (about 2 lb. test), with flies so small they show merely as a dimple on the flat surface of the water. It is all sight fishing, where you must spot the fish first, sneak into a good casting position, and make your presentation downstream so the fish sees only the fly and not the leader. Dan caught four trout total like this, but the fish pictured was the biggest test. He worked this fish for over an hour before it finally rose and took a size 22 Griffith’s Gnat. Little did Dan know, that Melody, Angie and Joe had just arrived on the bridge, and got to witness the take, the fight, and the elated fisherman, so proud of his catch.