Fishing the Big Thompson.

On a fluke I decided to spend Christmas and the week following in Estes Park Colorado...after spending the last few Christmases in either the Keys, Tampa Bay area or the Panhandle of Florida fly fishing...I wanted a change. I was going to fish yesterday but it was extremely windy and snowing all day and well....I decided to drive in the mountains. I went for a little while today, I decided I better pay for local experience, I am glad I did. First off, I saltwater fly fish...it is a different beast than trout fishing. The temperature has been below freezing in the Mountains of northern Colorado a lot lately...and the fish apparently like microscopic food. I fished #26 nymphs...on 7x tippet, let me tell you...strip setting just don't work. I did manage to catch a couple of trout, a brown and a rainbow. If I could figure out how to set the hook with this outfit, I would have caught a good 30 or 40 fish. Oh yeah, the only open water around was the tailrace of Estes Lake...and I use the term open loosely, I was redneck Ice Hockey fly fishing....I only had rubber cleat soles on my wading shoes...that is what I use in Florida...now I know to buy spikes.

Sounds like a great new experience. Thanks for sharing and good job making a significant transition from the Florida fly fishing ... like night and day, no doubt.

"I was redneck Ice Hockey fly fishing"

Please send video..........

I've had to do that. Korkers are the answer. That 7X tippet takes a while to get used to.

I am still amazed that those small hooks can catch anything larger than a guppy. I could dang near fit a dozen of those flies on one thumb nail, with nothing hanging off.

injun joe said:

"I was redneck Ice Hockey fly fishing"

Please send video..........

I've had to do that. Korkers are the answer. That 7X tippet takes a while to get used to.

Click to expand...

I wish I had videoed it, would have easily won on America's Funniest Videos...if it is still on the air. Aside from habitually double hauling for cast that had only 10 ft of line past the tip....the fly line would get ice on it after about a dozen or so casts. Everyone else I saw fishing looked like they were just using their fly rod for a cane pole. Not me though...I wanted tight loops for my 8 ft casts....though there were some spots were I was able to shine with my casting and sling three little nymphs on out there...the problem though was that the eyes would all ice over if I did a long drift.....Getting that soft set for someone who only strip sets...well, they say it is muscle memory...I am hoping to be chasing redfish with in the next week or two....I hope my muscles have not lost their memory.