Weekly Fishing Report June 8, 2026
Planning a Trip to the San Juan?
Our lodge offers guided fishing and comfy rooms right on the river.
Fishing Overview
- Flows: 940 cfs
- Water Temps: 40s (℉)
- Clarity: 4ft visibility
- Nymphing: Good
- Dry Fly: Fair
- Streamer: Fair
- Weather: Sunny. AM: 50s/60s. PM: 80s/90s w/ 30mph winds.
- Lower River Guide Trips: Yes, just ask your guide!
Summary: Flows are coming down to 500cfs on Wednesday. The water is clearing up quickly, with about 4 feet of visibility across all sections. Midges and mayflies are coming back into play.
The water is clearing up quickly, with visibility now at ~4 feet vs. 1 foot last week. Flows will also be going down to 500 cfs this week. These two factors change our guidance from the previous few weeks, when flows were high and the water was turbid. Instead of fishing just big patterns like eggs or San Juan Worms, smaller bugs are coming back into play. Think midges and Baetis in the size 18 to 22 range. Still add a bit more weight and distance between your first fly and your indicator to get those flies down to the fish while flows are at 900 cfs. Streamer fishing has been fair; it’s just tough to get them down to the fish with flows at 900 cfs. Dry fly fishing is starting to improve.
How Each Section is Fishing
The Quality Waters
Overview: Worm imitations, egg patterns, bright-colored larvae, bunny leeches, and flies with some flash are still productive, but now also be ready to fish the traditional size 22 midge and mayfly patterns. Red midge larvae in size 18 to 22, mono midges, RS2s, etc., are coming more and more into play. Keep an eye out for cloud cover to get the BWOs going. As summer continues, we expect hoppers, ants, and beetles to come into play. Streamer fishing has been fair. The main challenge has been getting them to the necessary depth at these higher flows.
Tips/Technique: Nymph rigs with fluorocarbon tippet are catching the vast majority of fish. Since the water is off-color and the fish won’t see your leader as easily, 4x and 5x tippet are fine. If fishing streamers, use brighter colors and fish them right off the bottom. Despite the temporary lull in hatches, the Baetis are still active subsurface in the afternoons, so look for fish eating gray, olive, and brown mayfly nymphs in riffles, tailouts, and faster water.
The Lower River
Overview: The Lower River has been fishing quite well, with most of the action here also subsurface. Caddis have been the main driver of the action here. We're still fishing mostly subsurface, since the dry fly action is still just picking up. It will get better as the water continues to clear.
Tips/Technique: For this week, the techniques aren't really different from the Quality Waters section, except that we're fishing caddis patterns here in larger sizes. The bug size is always bigger on the Lower River than in the Quality Waters, so think sizes 16 and 18 here vs. 22 to 24 in the Quality Waters.
The Village
Overview: Fishing here has been solid. No reports of monster trout this week, but the fish in this less technical section remain eager to eat. PMDs and caddis are showing up, and we'll start seeing more prolific dry fly action as the water stabilizes and clears up. Cloud cover will be key for dry fly action in this section.
Tips/Technique: For this week, the techniques aren't really different from the Quality Waters section. A larger pattern on top, like a worm, with a mayfly dropper (Prince Nymph or Pheasant Tail) will work well.
Current Fly Recommendations
You can purchase flies and licenses at our fly shop. Many are hand-tied by our guides themselves.
Sub-Surface Flies
| Name | Colors | Sizes |
|---|---|---|
| Vernille San Juan Worm | Brown, Black, Natural | 10 to 14 |
| Lynch's Double Dot Egg | Orange Blood Dot | 18 |
| Midge Larvae | Red | 16 to 20 |
| Rojo Midge | Gray, Olive, Brown | 20 to 22 |
| Mono Midge | Black, Olive, Brown | 20 to 22 |
| Foam Wing RS2 | Brown, Black, Gray | 18 to 20 |
| Bunny Leeches | Black, Olive, Gray, Natural, White | 6 and 8 |
Dry Flies (Just in Case!)
| Name | Colors | Sizes |
|---|---|---|
| Parachute Adams | Standard | 20 to 22 |
| Comparadun | Standard | 20 to 22 |
| Rosenbauer Parachute Beetle | Black | 10 to 24 |
| Cartoon Hopper | Gray, Olive, Brown Flash! | 4 to 8 |
| Ants | Black | 12 to 16 |
Planning a Trip to the San Juan?
Our lodge offers guided fishing and comfy rooms right on the river.