Arkansas River Leadville to Buena Vista
As of 5/3/2022, Braden Baker with Ark Anglers writes, The upper Arkansas is now in full spring mode with blue winged olive may fly hatches occurring most afternoons, particularly on overcast days. Plan accordingly and arm yourself with size
#16-18 blue winged olive dry flies, emergers, and nymphs.
Nymphs will drift on a daily basis and are most active mid-day
through early afternoon especially in shallow, riffled areas. These nymphs often migrate to the slower edge water areas to
hatch, often creating a conga line of vulnerable duns on the surface of the water where resident trout can easily surf and
intercept them before they take flight. Hatches mostly occur between 1:00 and 4:00PM. Though fish may still be near
winter water the increasing temperatures and insect activity have prompted the dispersion of fish into slightly shallower,
varied water and occupation of more of the northern corridor.
Midges are still a very prolific food source up north and a
midge larva or pupa in #16-20 is a reliable dropper to work into your setup. These and the mayfly nymphs referenced above
work well when paired with a weighted attractor nymph like a golden stonefly in a #10-12. Immature golden stonefly
nymphs are molting this time of year and are more vulnerable to predation, and as such are a safe bet for a larger nymph to
incorporate into your nymph fishing. It’s advised to work the deeper, slower water in the mornings and shift focus to
shallow riffles and runs nearby as the day warms.
Arkansas River Buena Vista to Salida
As of 5/4/2022, Braden Baker with Ark Anglers writes, While blue winged olives are still hatching in the middle basin, the
water has warmed enough to start prompting caddis activity in Salida. We’ve seen a few hatches of Brachycentrus caddis in
town and yesterday had caddis hatching as high up as Big Bend. Today’s cooler weather definitely paused active hatches but the river just above Salida still had adult caddis present along the edges of the river that would occasionally tease fish up to the surface to feed. We had reports of good blue winged olive activity today, as well, which fits with the overcast
conditions. We see weather in the 70s again starting Thursday which will restart caddis hatches through and upstream of
Salida.
Hatches can generate great surface feeding mid-day and into the afternoon, but egg-laying behavior in the evenings can
also offer good dry fly opportunities after most anglers have quit for the day. Hatches will intensify here this week, and we
may see overlapping hatches of blue winged olives and caddis tomorrow (5/4) with the forecasted cloud cover. Fish are
responding to dry and double dry caddis rigs on the surface and caddis pupa fished as droppers or fished solo on a tightline swing.
A dead-drifted caddis dry fly can be effective at times, but often an animated imitation given regular twitches and shakes can imitate the naturals better and prompt aggressive strikes. You will still find fish in deeper water at times but the warmer conditions and expanding food options are driving trout to spread out and occupy more types of water throughout the corridor. Shallower runs and riffles are very productive as the warming trend continues.
In spring we generally rely on nymphing and dry-dropper fishing as the primary approach to the Arkansas, running wet flies
underneath an indicator, sighter, or an attractor dry fly. Caddis adults and pupa are best imitated with flies in #14-18, and
the venerable Puterbaugh Foam Caddis is one of the tried and true adult imitations that has consistently proven itself on
the Arkansas for decades. Find a buggy, scraggly caddis pupa like a Kryptonite Caddis or Dirty Bird to imitate the pupal
stage of caddis.
To imitate blue winged olive nymphs a pheasant tail, two-bit hooker, micro-mayfly, frenchie pheasant tail, etc. is definitely worth packing in a #16-18 as we move through May. Mayfly duns are usually a size #18 and Extended Body Blue Winged Olives, Gulper Specials, and Comparaduns are all effective imitations. Golden stoneflies are molting underwater and offer a chance to fish a much larger nymph in sizes #10-12 to imitate the naturals and double up as an attractor. Midges round out the menu and are still incredibly plentiful, effective as a larva, pupa, or even adults in #16-20 throughout the day depending on conditions.
Arkansas River Salida to Canon City
As of 5/4/2022, Braden Baker with Ark Anglers writes, Today’s weather was a little cooler and overcast, and though it paused
active caddis hatches around Salida, there were plenty of adult caddis still present in and below Salida to prompt fish to look
to the surface for food. Some areas saw good blue winged olive hatches as well, which is to be expected under conditions
like this. The rest of the week warms up and presents good sunshine which will all prompt resurgence of caddis hatches
through and above Salida. Starting Thursday, we expect to be back up in the 70s.
Before the cooler weather today, active caddis hatches were as far up as Big Bend and gave anglers some incredible dry and
dry dropper fishing opportunities. You may also see adult caddis flying further upstream over the next few days which may
present evening opportunities to catch fish focused in on egg-laying behavior. This is a great time to get back to the water for some evening dry fly fishing once most anglers have wrapped up for the day. Tomorrow is a cooler, cloudier forecast that should be good for blue winged olives, but we’ve got several more beautiful 60 and 70 degree days ahead this week which are excellent conditions for spring caddis. These hatches are what we hope to see to pump up the resident trout population prior to runoff. Prepare yourself with adult caddis patterns like the Puterbaugh Foam Caddis in #14-16 and various green pupa imitations in #14-18 to either fish as droppers or on the swing. Free-living larva patterns in #14-18 continue to produce along the bottom behind attractor nymphs like golden stoneflies. Interest in golden stonefly nymphs (#10-12) is also high as we are now in middle of spring molting activity. Prior to the caddis hatch coming off, anglers should focus on fishing larva and pupa patterns in anticipation of surface oriented feeding. Don’t forget about midges; they are still one of the most available food sources by volume and will continue to be an important factor through the spring. Think #18-20 most of the time for these smaller larva, pupa, and adults. Where blue winged olives typically hatch in the highest numbers on cloudy days, caddis seem to prefer beautiful, sunny weather and at least 54 degree water. By May, caddis and mayflies can both hatch simultaneously creating a fun puzzle for anglers to work through to discern what trout like best. Blue winged olive nymphs and duns (#16-18) are usually best fished on a dead drift, whereas animation is often the key to a successful match of caddis behavior. This is where swinging a caddis pupa through a riffle or skating/twitching a caddis dry fly along the surface can incite very aggressive strikes, as fish are accustomed to seeing movement from natural caddis. Sometimes fishing in the heart of a caddis hatch can prove challenging at best, as your fly is amongst countless real insects and fish may not find your pattern. Many anglers have their best luck on the leading or trailing edge of the densest hatch activity, when keeping track of your fly is easier and you aren’t competing with as many naturals.
In spring we recommend fishing multiple nymphs under an indicator, sighter, or even under a large, buoyant dry fly. With
warmer temperatures present in the valley, surface oriented, opportunistic feeding has started to yield sporadic eats of
large attractor dry flies. Many of our guides are relying on dry-dropper rigs until the opportunity presents to switch to a
mayfly or caddis specific dry fly.
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