Front Range Fly Fishing Update
When talking about Colorado weather in 2026, two common words have been “drought” and “hot”. This past winter we saw the 2nd worst snowpack ever record and this summer temperatures have been scorching. Even the New York Times had an article about the severity of the drought in Colorado and how it has negatively affected so many of the state’s famed trout fisheries.
While this is true, we are lucky to have some tailwaters (rivers below dams) that are managed for downstream water demand. Because of this, they are still flowing strong with plenty of cold water.
The majority of South Denver’s drinking water comes from a combination of the South Platte below Cheesman Reservoir and the North Fork of the South Platte (water tunneled to the Front Range via Lake Dillon). Because of this, we have continued to not only avoid river closures but to actually have great fishing on the South Platte near Deckers and our Private Water fisheries on the North Fork. As Denver will continue to need plenty of water throughout the fall, we anticipate both of these rivers will continue to fish fantastic.
The Dream Stream has been one river that has unfortunately been under a “Hoot Owl” closure due to warm water and low flows. The nighttime temps in South Park have been quickly cooling down so we are hoping the closure gets lifted soon. Even when it does, the flows will remain well below average this fall so it is important for everyone to be respectful out there during the Brown Trout migration.
A pleasant surprise this summer has been the flows on the Williams Fork. Denver Water has been tunneling a lot of water to the Front Range via Roberts Tunnel (water from Lake Dillion). Due to their water rights, they do still need to send water to the West Slope and have been meeting those requirements through the Williams Fork which has stayed above average all summer long. The unfortunate consequence has been the dropping of the Williams Fork Reservoir which currently sits at only 29%. Denver Water has reported this could get as low at 10%! Not sure what will happen to the trophy Lake Trout and Pike that call this reservoir home and will keep you updated as soon as we know more.
Another response to this extreme drought has been the draining of Antero Reservoir. In-order to avoid excess water loss in Antero due to evaporation, Denver Water made the decision to drain the reservoir. This fantastic fishery is unfortunately closed but hopefully it can reopen in 5-7 years depending on moisture levels. Spinney Reservoir is down to 34% and is super weedy. Needless to say, it was been a very tough year for fishing on the reservoirs.
We need rain and snow BAD! Hopefully this winter brings us an above average snowpack and we can see some of the reservoirs refill. In the meantime, Denver will continue to receive its drinking water so we will still have plenty of rivers to fish! And don’t forget about warm water fishers like the DSP and Carp! Fingers Crossed this forecasted “super El Niño” for the Rockies actually happens as we can use all the snow we can get!
