Posts by Chris Taylor - Head Fly Guide

Flows went down to 500 from 900 last week and have settled nicely since. The slower, clearer water has the fish seeking out midges, mayflies, and caddis, especially if fishing the village or lower river. The fish are also starting to look up for dry flies, especially on….

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…

Conditions are stabilizing after the flow increase 2 weeks ago and water should remain in 700 to 800 cfs range this week as well. The same advice from last week holds true for this week: don’t let the low water clarity scare you. The fish are eating away below the surface.

Flows ramped up to 870cfs, but don’t worry the fish are still eating. With no major rain the forecast, we expect the flows to stabilize at this level and water clarity to improve. Don’t let the clarity scare you; just think bigger and brighter. Instead of tiny size 22 midges in black…

The fishing remains excellent across all sections of the river. THE BIG THING IN PLAY this week is flow changes: The Bureau of Reclamation has been bumping flows up and down a bit as needed to meet water requirements at Shiprock. The San Juan supplements other rivers…

Chris Taylor, Fisheads of the San Juan’s Tip of the Week The river is running at 259cfs. The water is turbid from all the rainwater that entered the lake last fall and normal winter lake turnover. Fishing has been good! Fish worm imitations and egg patterns. Bright colored larvae should also work well. I would…