Colorado fishing reports
147 reports for Colorado — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Midges and tricos carry South Platte tailwaters through drought lows
Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing's midsummer Drought Update frames 2026 as one of the worst water years on record for Colorado, and that reality is shaping how South Platte and Arkansas tailwater anglers need to fish right now. With snowpack and runoff historically low, Cutthroat Anglers is urging statewide caution: once water hits 68°F, it's time to stop fishing and protect stressed fish. On the technique side, low, clear flows favor small and precise presentations, per AvidMax Blog's midge patterns like the Titan Tube Midge ('deadly in clear water and cold conditions') and the tailwater-tuned Chocolate Foam Back emerger. Morning trico spinner falls, the kind Gink and Gasoline describes happening on the South Platte, remain a reliable summer window for picky tailwater trout. Earlier this season, Colorado Trout Hunters reported one of the better migratory-fish runs in years on the South Platte's Dream Stream, a solid signal heading into the back half of summer.
Colorado freestones turn on as this drought year's runoff fades early
The Colorado River near Glenwood Springs is on the back end of runoff and fishing 'sensational' with 'happy fish,' per Crystal Fly Shop, which also has the Roaring Fork producing on large attractor patterns and Rubberleg Stone nymphs at higher flows out of Aspen and Basalt. The Crystal River is dropping fast toward what the shop calls its best stretch of the year, and the Frying Pan tailwater below Ruedi Reservoir stays low, clear, and reliable with daily BWO hatches and fresh PMDs showing up. All of this lands in what Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing is calling the worst drought on record for the state, a read echoed by Cutthroat Anglers, which points to historic-low Western snowpack pushing runoff out weeks early. The upside anglers are reporting: low water has concentrated fish rather than shutting them down, and those willing to hike farther or downsize tippet are finding grouped-up, actively feeding trout across the freestones and tailwaters alike.
South Platte trico falls turn on tailwater trout despite drought lows
Morning trico spinner falls are back on the South Platte's tailwater stretches, the same hatch Gink and Gasoline once described watching so densely that a single scoop of the hand came up with dozens of bugs. That pattern is holding again this July, and it's arriving during one of the driest years on record. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing's Drought Update ranks 2026 alongside 2002, 2012, 2018, and 2020 as a historically lean water year for Colorado, and Cutthroat Anglers' low-water tips echo the same story across the state's tailwaters: flows are thin, but the fish that remain are grouped up, active, and catchable for anglers willing to hike a little farther or downsize their tippet. AvidMax's clear-water midge patterns are built for exactly these conditions. Expect technical, low-and-clear fishing on the South Platte and Arkansas tailwaters this week, with the best window right at first light.
Colorado trout dial in as summer flows drop and warm
Afternoon USGS readings on the monitored gauge (09095500) show water pushing to 79°F with flows holding near 1,780 cfs, a classic mid-July low-water pattern across Colorado's trout water. Crystal Fly Shop reports the Colorado River near Glenwood Springs is on the back end of runoff, with green drakes, golden stones, PMDs and caddis all showing, and nymphing rubberleg stones and drake imitations producing well. Cutthroat Anglers is framing the historic low snowpack as opportunity rather than crisis, noting fish are active and grouped up for anglers willing to hike farther and downsize tippet. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing flags 2026 as among the driest years on record for the state. AvidMax's current tying lineup, including a jigged CDC PT Tungsten and a Callibaetis nymph, matches the technical, low-clear-water game trout are keying on right now. Expect a slower midday and a stronger dawn-and-dusk bite as afternoon temps climb.
Trico spinners and terrestrials take over CO's tailwaters
Flow at USGS gauge 06701900 held near 249 cfs early this morning, keeping South Platte and Arkansas tailwaters in the clear, wadable stage anglers count on through midsummer. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing (CO) has flagged 2026 as one of Colorado's leanest water years on record, so stretches that run thin later this season are worth watching before wading deep. On the bug front, Gink and Gasoline points to the South Platte's reputation for dense morning trico spinner falls, a summer staple worth timing before the heat builds. Trout Unlimited's latest TROUT Tip leans into that same seasonal shift, noting terrestrials are now crawling the banks and getting eaten as big meals once they blow into the current. AvidMax Blog (CO) has been tying small tailwater midge and Euro-nymph patterns lately, a solid backup when the surface bite goes quiet. We're calling both rainbows and browns Active on light tippet and small profiles.
Warm-water trout shift to low-light bites on the Colorado River
This week's USGS reading (gauge 09095500) put area flow at 1,710 cfs with water pushing 77°F Saturday afternoon — warm enough to put trout on notice. Crystal Fly Shop (CO) describes the Colorado River between Glenwood Springs and Rifle as "on the back end of runoff," with golden stones, PMDs, and caddis already active and green drakes roughly two weeks out below Carbondale, though the shop flags that the good window closes once summer heat fully sets in. That heat is already a season-defining story: Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing (CO) calls 2026 one of Colorado's worst drought years on record, which tracks with the elevated temperature we're seeing now. Anglers Covey Blog (CO) notes rivers statewide are slowing into their "dog days" pace, with fish holding deeper and moving less during peak sun. Expect the best bites early and late, with midge and nymph patterns from AvidMax Blog (CO) staying relevant on tailwater stretches.
South Platte tricos click as Colorado tailwaters run low and clear
Trico spinner falls remain a hallmark of South Platte summer mornings. Gink and Gasoline still points to the river's dense trico activity as some of the best dry-fly action in the country, and it's a pattern worth planning around on early starts. No fresh buoy or gauge numbers came through for the South Platte or Arkansas this cycle, so plan on the typical low, clear, technical tailwater flows summer brings to both rivers. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing (CO) has been flagging 2026 as one of Colorado's more significant drought years, which argues for careful wading and early starts before water warms. On the Dream Stream stretch, Colorado Trout Hunters notes this water still holds big, lake-run brown trout outside its classic fall and spring windows. AvidMax Blog's midge patterns built for clear, cold tailwater water are a sensible starting point on both rivers right now.
Colorado River trout dial in as runoff fades and drakes near
Flows on the Colorado River near Glenwood Springs are running around 2,640 cfs and dropping fast, and Crystal Fly Shop calls current conditions "great water conditions and happy fish" as the river clears out from spring runoff. On the Roaring Fork, the shop reports large attractor patterns working well in higher water below Carbondale, with green drakes expected to hatch in the next two weeks. The Crystal River is still shaking off runoff too, though the shop says "spectacular fishing" is only about a week away once flows keep dropping. Downstream on the low, clear Frying Pan, BWOs are hatching daily with PMDs starting to show, best worked with light 6X tippet during morning nymphing before afternoon dry-fly windows. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing notes 2026 ranks among Colorado's driest years on record, a backdrop worth keeping in mind for flows and fish behavior across the Colorado and Arkansas systems this season.
South Platte tailwaters fish low and clear as trico season peaks
Colorado's tailwaters are heading into peak trico season on low, clear water. Gink and Gasoline recalls the South Platte's trico spinner falls as some of the densest bug activity in the state, with tricos so thick on the surface anglers can scoop dozens in a single pass, a pattern that repeats each summer on this stretch. That fishability comes against a backdrop of what Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing calls one of Colorado's worst droughts on record, with snowpack readings at historic lows heading into 2026. Cutthroat Anglers frames the low water as opportunity rather than crisis: fish are grouped up and still eager, rewarding anglers willing to hike farther and downsize tippet. Expect technical, low-and-clear tactics on South Platte and Arkansas tailwaters: small nymphs, careful wading, and morning windows before pressure builds.
Green Drakes Near as Runoff Clears Colorado's Western Slope Rivers
Runoff is finally loosening its grip on Colorado's Western Slope. Crystal Fly Shop clocks the Roaring Fork at 336 cfs at Aspen and 516 cfs at Basalt, dropping fast, while the Colorado River near Glenwood Springs still runs a strong 2,640 cfs on the back end of snowmelt. Large attractor patterns are drawing strikes in that higher water, nymphing has stayed solid on Rubberleg Stones and green drake imitations, and the shop expects the real green drake emergence below Carbondale in about two weeks. The Frying Pan, by contrast, is already low, clear and cold at 110 cfs, with daily blue-winged olive hatches and PMDs starting to show, best worked with morning nymphing and light 6X tippet. Against what Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing calls one of the worst snowpack years on record, Cutthroat Anglers reports fish are grouped up and still willing for anglers ready to hike farther and fish lighter. Brown and rainbow trout dominate this week's reports; native cutthroat aren't broken out separately, so we're rating that bite by season rather than direct testimony.
Skinny Water Sharpens the Bite on South Platte and Arkansas Tailwaters
USGS gauge 06701900 has South Platte-area flows sitting at just 252 cfs this week, and that skinny water lines up with what Colorado shops have been saying all season: 2026's snowpack left tailwaters running low and clear. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing calls the current drought among the worst on record for the state, while Cutthroat Anglers' Low Water Pro Tips post argues that's not all bad news, since thinned-out flows concentrate fish into predictable seams and reward anglers willing to hike farther and downsize tippet. Midges remain the bread-and-butter here; AvidMax's fly-tying series has been turning out foam-back and tungsten midge patterns built for exactly this kind of low, clear, technical water. Mornings are also prime time for the trico spinner falls Gink and Gasoline made famous writing about the South Platte, and Trout Unlimited notes terrestrials are worth a look now that summer hoppers and ants are working their way into the current.
Colorado trout hold in cooling pockets as post-runoff flows stabilize
Our gauge on the Colorado River system logged 71°F water and 1,660 cfs early this morning, confirming what Roaring Fork and Colorado River reports have been tracking: runoff is on its back end and flows are dropping fast toward prime summer conditions, per Crystal Fly Shop. Nymphing with Rubberleg Stones and green-drake imitations is producing fish below Carbondale, while PMD and BWO patterns are working the Frying Pan's cold tailwater mornings. Cutthroat Anglers' Matt Campanella notes this historic low-water year hasn't hurt catch rates -- grouped-up fish are biting for anglers willing to hike a little further or fish a little lighter. Pat Dorsey Fly Fishing frames 2026 as possibly the driest season on record for the state, a theme running through shop reports all spring. With water pushing 71°F, expect afternoon lulls and early starts to matter more than usual; check state regs on any voluntary closures before fishing through the heat of the day.