2024 is here and it’s frigid out there. After I spent a week with family down in the Denver area cooking, relaxing, sipping and sleeping; I drove back out to Eagle County in perfect weather. That’s a blessing and a curse. We need snow, but I didn’t mind a quick trip home either. Although it was sunny, the week I was gone changed the Eagle River from open to frozen. Temps overnight were below 10 degrees all week so the river is a more than a little icy, and probably a little dicey. Things down in Gypsum still look OK fishing wise, but I decided to venture elsewhere.
My buddy Irah and I hit the Fryingpan on New Year’s Day. It was Winter Warm (especially in the sun) and we had fish rising to midges for over four hours. We managed to catch some on dry flies and then nymphs after the hatch subsided. I know that sounds awesome, but the majority of fish I caught on dries ate a size 26 midge. Fun, right? Honestly, it’s one of my favorite pastimes in the winter on The Pan because it’s not easy. This fish ate on my 3rd or 4th attempt:
The bright sun didn’t make the fish skiddish to eat dries, but it helps them analyze your fly in order to refuse it. I had one fish stare for a good four seconds before giving me its middle fin. That’s tough dry fly fishing, but it makes every fish even more worth it.
As for nymphing, the fish were on a variety of different things, but nothing larger than size 20. Olive midge larva, the Bubble Back Midge, Mysis shrimp and little foam back emergers all put fish in the net. Winter fishing is definitely not for the faint of heart, but the crowds were minimal and we had a stellar day.
I decided to fish the lower Roaring Fork the past two days knowing the tailwater trout don’t know what season it is. The water is always cold up near Ruedi so although the bugs are small this time of year, the fish feed like it’s any other day.
The Fork was challenging. Since there is limited public access I can’t say exactly where I was fishing, but know that I earned every take and the rewards were great. If you tie flies, try different bead/thread/wire combinations for your zebra midges. A zebra I made up because I thought it looked cool accounted for half of my takes on Tuesday. Check out my “What I’m Tying Right Now” page as I expand on a few of these points.
I will say the fish of the day on Tuesday ate a Chartreuse egg. I like fishing an egg in the winter because the fish can definitely see it and I think it draws them to my stonefly, midge, or whatever else I’ve tied on above or below the egg.
I did notice that because water temperatures were VERY COLD yesterday (maximum temp was 33 degrees in Glenwood), the fish were lethargic. I struggled earlier in the day before making it count from 2-4pm.
You earn every fish in the winter, but once again, I relish the challenge this time of year. People are scarce and the fish are there, but it’s our job to fool them.
If you decide to brave the cold and fish a freestone this winter change your depth before you switch flies. Some of the fish I hooked were hugging the bottom and others were in a tail-out that couldn’t have been more than two feet deep. Change your depth and weight before your bugs.
Happy New Year!
Here are my favorite pics from this week:
Mayfly Musings 
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