Hard to believe that the Rocky Mountain Expedition has come to a close. It seems like only yesterday that the trip was just getting started. Since exiting the backcountry for the last time, the nature of our fishing has drastically changed. We swapped the high alpine creeks and lakes of Rocky mountain National Park for the low desert scrubland of the main body of the Colorado River. While we left behind the hungry bro trout and colorful cutthroats of the high country, we got to meet the large and predatory brown trout of the bigger water. On Monday we slept in a bit, then made our way to the Colorado River and began exploring the bigger water and bigger fish of that famous river. We got to camp around 11, set up, had lunch, then hiked up into one of its many canyons in search of the trophy browns and rainbows that have made the river a destination for millions of anglers. Our guys did quite well on this stretch, landing many fine trout, and breaking off a few monsters in the fast currents of this turbulent river.
Tuesday saw us joining forces with Cutthroat Anglers, a guide service out of Silverthorne, for a full day float fishing trip on the Colorado. The action got off to a great start with multiple hookups right off the boat ramp. From there it just got better with every boat pulling in multiple fish, with a good number being over 17 inches in length! The guys all made it back to camp in the mid afternoon and were right back at it wade fishing up the canyon again. And to no surprise at all, they kept it up, landing several more trophy trout before coming back for dinner and some well deserved rest.
Yesterday saw us move to Silverthorne itself and prepare for the trip home. After cleaning our gear and packing up for our flights, we enjoyed a rousing game of ultimate frisbee the hit the pool and waterslides at the local rec center all before capping off the trip with a steak dinner at The Historic Mint steakhouse. All in all it was an awesome trip with countless numbers of fish to the net and many miles hiked in the pristine wilderness of RMNP. Hopefully we will be seeing these guys again, and until then…
Tight Lines Charlie Parr
