Rivers of SW Colorado fall into shape

San Miguel River: (500 cfs)   All of a sudden, the San Miguel is very fishable.  Our daily snowmelt pulses are ranging from 600 cfs down into the low 400s.  No part of the San Miguel is easy to wade, but the water is clear, warming quickly and absolutely jammed with aquatic insects.  Caddis are hatching so thick that you'll roll up your car windows driving from Telluride down valley.  Yellow Sallie Stoneflies and the first PMDs of the season are also showing.  Nymphing and dry-dropper will be the predominant techniques until mid-July when flows dip into the low 300s or 200s.  At that point, the dry fly action will explode.

Dries:  Throw your biggest attractors, such as the RL Stimi, Perry's Bugmeister, Chubby Chernobyl and other high-floating, leggy, indicator-style flies.  You'll catch most of your fish on nymphs, but occassionally a greedy one eats your top fly.

Nymphs: Wire Prince, Queen Prince, Pulsating Caddis, Diving Caddis, Pat's RL Stone (in all colors and sizes), Guide's Choice Hare's Ear, Haden's Black Stone, Beefus Wire Stone, Poxyback Stone, Morrish's Iron Sallie and Stalcup's Yellow Sallie Nymph.

Dolores River : (300 cfs at Dolores, 106 cfs at Rico, 70 cfs below McPhee) Both the Main Branch and West Fork Upper Dolores are completely fishable and becoming more so every day.  Late June hatches mimick the San Miguel, but fly patterns are more match-the-hatch oriented.  In general, choose flies one size smaller for the Upper Dolores than for the San Miguel.  The most effect attractor dries are in the size 10-12 range, rather than #6 and #8.  Dropper nymphs should be #14 and #16, rather than #10 or #12.  That said, the Pat's Rubber Leg Stone in a #10 is a deadly nymph on both rivers.

You'll see plenty of rising fish on the Dolores over the next two weeks.  The most likely match-the-hatch dry flies will be caddis imitations in a #14 or #16 and PMD mayflies in the same sizes.  We particularly recommend Bloom's Para Caddis and the ubiquitous Peacock bodied Elk Hair Caddis for caddis fly imitations.  In the PMD hatch, choose semi-technical dry flies that offer enough bouyancy to be visible to the angler in pocketwater.  The Para-PMD and fully hackled Melon Quill are better choices than no-hackle and thorax-style dry flies.  Save those for the Lower Dolores.

Ah, the Lower Dolores.  The toughest river in Colorado is enjoying optimal water flows and a tremendous PMD hatch.  The Lower Dolores PMD hatch has become semi-famous in SW Colorado, but few anglers have the mental stamina to take so many refusals from big fish.  Lower Dolores PMDs present all kinds of problems.  Every fish in the river is on top, but there are so many bugs on the water that the fish can afford to be highly selective.  There are at least two different "PMDs" hatching simultaneously: a big sulpher mayfly and a smaller pink one "the Pinkie."  One fish will be selectively feeding on the sulpher and the next on the pinkie.  The PMDs hatch in late June and early July, a hot, dry period of the summer on the Lower Dolores.  The biggest fish love to eat PMDs, but are hesitant to break the surface with their noses.  Quite often, fish will eat the emergers or the spinners, but not the dun.  One thing is sure:  it takes a perfect cast with a long leader to be in the game.  Even so, you'll get more refusals than grabs.

For adult PMD patterns, try the old Lawson's No Hackle, Burk's Silhouette Dun,  para quill PMD patterns and Stalcup's hatching PMD.  The best emerger around is still the Walker's Mayhem, greased and fished in the film.  During non-hatch patterns, throw hoppers. 

Uncompahgre : (406 cfs below Ridgway Reservoir)  Wow, that was fast!  The Uncompahgre has dropped back to around 400 cfs and is fishing well at Pa-Co-Chu-Puk.  The dam operators clearly think the snowpack is done.  Wading is not yet "easy," but 400 cfs is a very fishy flow. 

Hatches: caddis, midges, the first PMDs and a few hoppers

Dries:  We're throwing hoppers and Bugmeisters primarily as indicator flies.  Fish won't eat consistently on the surface until the PMD hatch develops in the first or second week of July.

Nymphs: Mayhem, Micro May, Split Case PMD, small Soft Hackles.

Gunnison: (660 cfs below Crystal Reservoir)  Flows from the Crystal Dam on the Gunnison River are perfect for wade fishing.  Floating anglers would love to see a little more water, but 660 cfs is a fundamentally excellent fishing flow.  The famous Salmonfly stonefly hatch has moved above Ute Park into the Upper reaches of the BLM water and Black Canyon National Park.  Below Ute, the giant salmonflies have been replaced by golden stones, yellow sallies and PMDs.  Above the Bobcat trail, the salmonfly hatch is still going full-bore.

If you're heading down this week, go in above Ute Park and be prepared to fish "The Hatch."   Dry fly action is hot and heavy all day long.  Lead with the Rogue Foam Stone in sizes 4 and 6.  The more traditional Sofa Pillow is also a great bet, along with newer patterns like the Bank Robber and Winged True Stone.  Back up your salmonflies with Golden Stones, Yellow Sallies and PMDs.

During lulls in dry fly action, nymphs will continue to take big fish.  Our favorite patterns include the Double Tungsten Red Bitch Creek, WMD Stone, Haden's Black Stone and the wicked Pat's Rubber Legs (aka "Cat Turd" if you're from the Roaring Fork valley).  Caddis and Yellow Sallie stones will mask the Salmonfly hatch near the Gunny Forks, so if you're fishing upstream of Leroy's Pleasure Park, make sure to bring plenty of smaller stonefly and caddis patterns:  Morrish's Iron Sally, Thorax Soft Hackles, Pheasant Tail Soft Hackles, LaFontaine's Emergers, Pulsating Caddis, Stalcup's Yellow Sallie nymph and similar patterns.  Also, though we hate to recommend it, one ought naught fish the Gunnison without a few San Juan Worms in the fly box.

Gunnison Salmonfly Hatch:  If you're heading into the Black Canyon to float or wade the Salmonfly hatch, you'll need to bring the right flies and rigging materials.  This is no place for your 3-weight and 6X leaders....

Critical Salmonfly hatch tackle and flies:

Rods: 5 and 6-weight rods, minimum 9 feet.
Lines:  Weight Forward floating lines with heavy heads and aggressive tapers for casting large, wind-resistant flies.
Leaders: 9' 2X leaders, preferably RIO or other stiff, abrasion-resistant material
Tippets: 2X and 3X tippet.  Don't mess around!

Salmonfly patterns
Dries: Rogue Foam Stone #4-#6, Sofa Pillow #4-#6, Morris Foam Stone #6, Clark's Stone #8, True Salmonfly #8, Rogue Foam Golden Stone #6-#10, True Golden Stone #8

Nymphs: Pat's Rubber Leg Stone orange/brown #6-8 and brown #8, Double Tungsten Red Bitch Creek #6-8, WMD Stone #8, Halfback #6-8.

Also, cover the caddis spectrum with a handful of your favorite nymphs, emergers and dries.