So, what do you do after visiting the Garden of the Gods, really?
Do you sit back and revel in the pure beauty of that location? Do you trudge back to your hotel and check the box that says “Visit nature” on your to-do list?
Not even close.
Visiting the beauty of nature is nothing compared to stepping into nature and allowing yourself to join with it, however briefly.
Stop one – A great Fly shop (I obtained a one-day license before I left for CO, hoping I could make this happen).
These people (the cap, not the beverage!) run a great fly shop and offered me some excellent advice. They even have a monitor in the shop that shows you the flies to use on various waters, in the area. If you are heading up to the South Platte, or to Rimrock Creek, as was suggested that day, I strongly suggest a stop at their shop. They can be found here.
(Also…that beer is quite good, at the end of the day!)
Anyway, heading out of Woodland Park, we passed some beautiful locations. The rocky terrain, pine trees, and crisp, clear waters made me miss the PNW even more!
After a while (yes, we completely missed the turn at the “bright purple house. You can’t miss it”), we came upon this gem.
Private land…but I just had to go right to the fence and take this pic. So clear. So beautiful. The kind of place that gives you fly fishing dreams for months!
A turn down the right road and a small usage fee ($10) later, we found ourselves driving up past some private (Boy Scouts) land, then finally pulled off at the first place that looked…like home.
I had no idea how much I missed the PNW…until I looked out over this view and felt the wind against my face. So much missing in Houston. So much that I know I will need to fully reconnect with, later in this journey called “life.”
Parked in one of the first pull-offs after the reserved land, I quickly assembled my gear and prepared to step into the flow of a river for the first time since October of 2022!
Oh. My. Word.
Again, I had no inkling of what I had let slide into the background, until I felt the flow of the water around my legs, the cross-breeze that would try to frustrate me as I worked my way across the current and upstream, and the general stillness that being there brought back to my soul.
I paused for a moment, then dropped my river thermometer next to my leg and started casting…
I am very happy to say that I do still remember how to cast, mend, and retrieve WF fly line, and the fly I had attached to it!
That said, and despite the very reasonable and sound advice of South Platte Fly Shop, I did stick to dries.
Yes, they told me I should at least throw on a dropper.
Yes, the water was…a few degrees cooler than ideal for dries.
No, I did not stray from my surface fishing, as that is what I truly love.
After pulling in and checking the temp, I knew that I may not connect with any trout, going my chosen route, but that’s not the point of it, anyway.
So many excellent views.
Pockets and riffles that I knew, if it were later in the year, would answer the call of my dries.
But, in the end and as I have said before, I don’t necessarily come to these places to catch fish. I enjoy the technique. I enjoy the locations. I enjoy reconnecting with the nature around me, which is so completely lost when one lives in a major city.
After some time, I became aware that my breathing was heavier than it should be and my arms more tired than what I had done should explain.
I had missed one aspect that had not been an issue when I fished in Yakima, or on the west slopes of the Cascades.
I had gone from roughly 200′ elevation to 8500′ in two days, and jumped right back into the activity that I so love.
A bit weary, I finally came out of the river. No fish caught and one fly lost to an eddy that dragged my line behind a rock.
Fair trade, if you ask me.
My brother and I drove up the rest of the road, until we came to the base of the dam on 11-Mile Reservoir. Beautiful country. I highly recommend a visit if you have the opportunity. For those of you looking to drive to it: 38°57’27″N 105°23’23″W will put you where we parked, at the beginning of an amazing drive upstream.
There is nothing like a mountain stream to refresh the spirit.
True to the advice I received at the Fly Shop, I saw several people nymphing and pulling out beautiful Rainbows! I wish them all the best, but I just don’t enjoy fishing the wet flies, so I will instead make a note that I have to return in warmer weather.
A great trip, and excellent Fly Shop (always a plus!), and the following day a gathering of people to celebrate the 60th Birthday of a great friend that I have known since the 80’s.
What could be better?
Tight lines…