TRIP INTEL: Catching Cutthroat in Rocky Mountain National Park
Learning to fly fish isn’t always easy. With the Trip Intel series, you can learn from the collective failures of the No Kype team.
We’ll be talking about trips we’ve taken (no specific spots will be named), the conditions on the water, and the knowledge we gained while fishing throughout the day.
Come learn with us! Together, we’ll all figure this shit out eventually.
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Conditions
MONTH: September
LOCATION: Unnamed Lakes & Creeks - Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
WEATHER: Warm late summer day, partly cloudy with a good bit of sunshine. Some wind, but less than usual for 10,000ft. Light thunderstorm rolling through early afternoon.
BUG ACTIVITY: Sporadic, but persistent. Light hatches of mayflies in the morning. Small gnats and mosquitos were abundant. Plenty of hoppers, beetles, and ants could be found on the banks and in the trees. Heavy hatch of tiny mayflies in the evening, couldn’t really identify them at the time.
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KEY TACTIC
Fishing the dry/dropper rig
Now, I know what you’re thinking. Fishing a dry/dropper rig to catch trout during the summer… real shocker there, right? With a few exceptions, I have a dry/dropper tied up on AT LEAST 1 rod from April til October. As I’m sure most of you do, too. It’s just too much of an efficient, entertaining method NOT to use it. Nothing fancy on this outing, just simple, tried & true tactics.
For the creeks: A bushy, buoyant dry fly, with a section of 6X or 7X fluorocarbon tippet to a heavy nymph. Nailing a clean drift in the deep pools would yield a few brook trout.
As the morning progressed, fish began to push towards the edges. Theory: as the water began to warm up, the trout began to push out of the holes in search of hoppers and ants.
For the lakes: Either a deep dry/dropper rig with a big foamy terrestrial pattern + 1-2 nymphs + split shot…
OR
…a double dry fly rig with one large, gaudy sighter fly tied to a small, natural pattern that matches the hatch.
Both will work. Pick your poison.
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Fly Box
Dry Flies
Hippy Stomper: red or purple, size 14-16
Chubby Chernobyl: tan or purple, size 10-14
Amy’s Ant: red or olive, size 12-16
Stimulator: orange or ginger, size 6-10
Elk Hair Caddis: olive, ginger, or tan, size 12-16
Nymphs
Psycho Prince: purple or yellow, size 16-20
CDC Pheasant Tail: jig hook, size 14-16
Rojo Midge: red, brown, or green, size 18-22
BWO Barr’s Emerger: size 18-22
Egan’s Frenchie: size 16-20
IMAGE: Weekender Media
Lesson Learned
Never doubt the power of summer time dry flies. Everywhere from the tiny tributaries to the middle of large lakes, trout are looking up for meals. Droppers will produce, so dry/dropper rigs will be the most efficient way to catch fish in these conditions. That said, the double dry fly rig generates far more theatrical eats and is the more enjoyable method.
Just depends on what you’re looking for: higher numbers or entertainment value.