"The Hatch" starts in the Gunnison

Big orange bugs flying upstream from Gunnison Forks:  With water flows at only 704 cfs and temps already in the mid-50s, it's no surprise that Pteronarcys Californicus is on the move.  In the last two days, giant salmonfly stoneflies have been seen in the grass above the Forks of the Gunnison, signaling the beginning of the most famous hatch in Colorado trout fishing. 

Water clarity is still improving, but as the guides say, "the murk can work."  Fish make lots of mistakes when they can't see very well.  As far as they are concerned, any orange and brown object that is about two inches long pretty much has to be a salmonfly.  Fish are not yet consistently eating on the surface, but the early stages of the hatch offer incredible nymphing and dry-dropper opportunities.  In addition to giant stoneflies, the Gunnison between the Forks and Hall of the River King (terminus of the Black Canyon) is filthy with caddisflies and smaller stonefly species.  Golden stones and Yellow Sallies exist in tremendous numbers, so almost any stonefly imitation will work.

If flows hang around 700 cfs, the hatch will advance quickly, perhaps as much as a mile per day.  Like most aquatic hatches, salmonfly activity progresses upstream as water temperatures slowly rise.  Within a week, we should see temps in the mid-50s throughout the lower 14 miles of the Black Canyon, from Chukar Trail downstream.  This is the most accessible section of the Black Canyon, where most of us will concentrate our fishing efforts.  As the bugs hatch farther upstream, the fishing becomes truly intense.  The inner miles of the Black Canyon are ideal habitat for trout feeding on stoneflies.  Unlike caddis, mayflies and midges, stoneflies do not emerge by rising up through the water column.  Rather, they crawl to bank, climb up and shed their exoskeletons on dry land.  Trout line up on the walls and banks, taking giant salmonflies as they make their way to shore.  As a result, our fishing tactics are unique during the salmonfly hatch.

Remember....

1)  Fish rope.  A trout intent on eating a 2" insect does not care whether the fly appears to be tied to 5x or 1x.  On my first salmonfly hatch, my experienced fishing partner rigged by tying on a fresh 9' 3x leader with a neat nail knot.  He then cut off the last 7 feet of the leader, tied a size 4 Sofa Pillow onto the 30 lbs butt section and fished without changing flies for the next 3 days.  If a 14" fish refuses your fly, forget it -- that's not the fish you came to catch.

2)  Work the banks.  You'll catch trout all over the river, but the highest concentration of big fish are right on the walls.  You'll know it's good when you catch several fish off the same wall in the exact same spot, one fish replacing the next in its feeding station.  This is known as the Pez Effect.

3)  Take plenty of flies.  In addition to a variety of salmonfly nymphs and dries, you'll want your caddis, PMDs, Golden Stones and Yellow Sallies.  Golden stoneflies always mask the tail end of the hatch and can be a real problem solver when fish turn off of the giant stones.

4)  This is the streakiest hatch in trout fishing.  Go in for three days and fish as hard as you can.  Be on the water early, late and all points in between.  Like other memorable fly fishing situations, hitting the hatch "just right" is a matter of a couple of magic hours.  Mid-morning and evening are high-percentage, but it could turn on at any time of the day.

5)  You could miss it.  There is probably no angler in SW Colorado who can claim to have hit the hatch just right every year.  All of us who make the annual pilgrimage have also come away shaking our heads.  You won't know unless you go.

6)  The time is nye.  Three weeks from now, it will be completely over.

For up-to-the-second hatch reports, call us at Telluride Angler: 800-831-6230 or check the Telluride Angler online fishing report.

John Duncan
Telluride Angler