5/26/2013 Eleven Mile Canyon Fly Fishing Report

We fished the canyon at 50 CFS. Lots of fishermen, little water. Good numbers of fish holding to whatever depressions/structure they can find.

San Juan worms, RS2's, periwinkle midges, Cheeseman emergers all took fish. Some dry fly activity to small midges. Try a small parachute adams or G. Gnat.

Fish lightly. Walk lightly.  Catch quickly and release quickly. Try to be content fishing for a few hours.  Maybe only try dry fly fishing.  Fish are getting stressed in these conditions and I can't imagine what it will be like when the summer crowds arrive.

Eleven Mile Canyon: Fishing Report May 4th, 2013

I guided 3 beginners today and found good fishing in the  low water of  Eleven Mile Canyon. Some dry fly fishing starting on BWO's and midges.  Nymphing was good on double and triple fly rigs:  San Juan worms, RS2's, Periwinkle nymphs and other small midges. Hopefully the water will come up again. Looking forward to Caddis and Tricos and some of the best dry fly fishing anywhere. I fished 5x to the San Juan worm and 6x to the smaller flies.

To See A Trout Rise; Getting Ready For Blue Wing Olive Mayflies, Caddis, and Trico Hatches On the South Platte RIver

Meet Clarisse, a 17 year old from on of my favorite novels, “Fahrenheit 451”; a story about a futuristic society where it is illegal to read books. Books are burned. All independent thinking is suspect.

In Clarisse’s world most people are in a rush and do not have time for day dreaming or contemplation or for truly seeing nature.  In this world you can be arrested for being a pedestrian because the state does not want anyone to really think too deeply about anything. In this world most people simply interact with their technological devices.

But Clarisse is different. She notices things in the natural world. She has no interest in the technological devices of her times. She does not like the ‘parlor walls’, (a type of flat screen interactive device that people talk to and refer to as their “family”). She challenges the mad rush every one seems to be in. She says,  “I sometimes think drivers don’t know what grass is, or flowers”.

Clarisse understands what it means to, “Consider the Lily of the field”.

Clarisse challenges the main character, Guy Montag, one of the firemen, to think and feel for the first time by simply asking him some questions; “Are you happy”?  “Have you ever smelled old leaves”? . She goes on, “Bet I know something else you don’t.  There’s dew on the grass in the morning”.

I think of a line from the book of Job, “Who has begotten the morning dew”?   

Guy Montag did not know about the dew.  He did not know how to answer Clarisse. Do we?  Maybe if we can’t see the morning dew we will not see the fish rise or at least we won’t see it in the same way.  

I am an educator who like many of my colleagues is concerned with the disconnect many of us have from the natural world. I particularly worry about many kids who know little of the morning dew or the sound of snowflakes falling in a forest or what it is like to walk in a Spring meadow.

Can we hear the sounds of a  river?   

Or, can we see a fish rise?

I think Marissa could.

With the small mayfly and caddis hatches coming soon to the South Platte River we can only hope to sharpen our vision.