Pro Staffers Go A Mouching

Midger and I traveled with Team Freestone to Frisco CO to participate in the America Cup. I never thought much of using “competition” and “fly fishing” in the same sentence, but The Chief seemed to have been enriched by his experience controlling for the Spanish Youth Team. So it was with his mantra of “caddis and a bead” repeated under my breath that we headed west.

Frisco, CO. Just like Cooke City, MT. Or not.

We arrived a few days early to acclimate to the altitude and get in a little practice. We thought we’d go a-ridin' into town, a-whompin' and a-whumpin' every livin' thing that moves within an inch of its life and run up the numbers on some dumb canyon trout on the Arkansas River to help our confidence. We’d take it easy while our sea-level-lubbing bodies produced the extra red blood cells we’d need for serious competing.

What could be difficult about a place like this?

Plenty. I struggled to put a half dozen browns and rainbows in my musky sized net that was issued to all Team Freestoners. Midger did much better (go figure) and gained valuable insight into tweaking his nymphing system that would allow him to win his beat on the Upper Arkansas later in the competition. That system involved lots of lead on a very simple fly (maybe cuz we were fishing just downstream of Leadville, the highest incorporated city in the US), and a certain flavor of DMC Precious Metal floss. More sage advice via the Chief.

Below Granite, CO

Midger and Team Captain Sean Crocker rolling flies into the wee hours, debating the merits of frenchies, crystal dips, ju-ju baetis, WD-40’s and other flies I’ve never heard of. The key to Midger’s FIPS nymphing system is being prototyped: the Tootsie Roll. Me, I couldn’t keep pace with their late night and early morning tying sessions, as them schnitzengrubens can wipe you out at almost 10,000 feet elevation. Midger’s technique of hydrating with liquid from a brown paper bag won’t be featured any time soon in Outside magazine.

The next day it was onto the Blue River for practice on the notoriously finicky trout north of Silverthorne. Midger characterized the Blue as just like Spring Creek. It reminded me of a mini Madison, freestone in morphology, tailwater in temperature and fly life. Either way, we seemed to have had the cutt-bows, rainbows, and browns pretty well dialed in, both in the water above Green Mountain Reservoir and through the town of Silverthorne. Captain Crocker even nymphed up a kokanee that shot downstream toward the reservoir from whence she came.

Blue River Cuttbow on #20 Baetis Parachute

Blue River in the Blue River SWA

Working on mysteries without any clues.

Feeling supremely confident, we took a day trip to the upper Colorado near Parshall, not worrying that it would little resemble the competition water we would face further downstream near Dotsero. No problem here...caddis in the morning, baetis in the afternoon. The water was friendly, and the browns were cooperative.

Upper Colorado River Brown

They take midges pretty seriously in CO. I wonder why…

What’s that about the road and the party?

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