Cheeseman Reservoir

[buschwhaked]

So I'm thinking of going to Cheeseman tomorrow for some fly fishing. Having never been there, I have a few questions:

1) Anybody want to go?

2) Whats the best way to get there from the Springs?

3) What flys do you recommend?

Thanks for the help.

Nate

 

[welldone]

go up hwy 24 to woodland park. then take hwy 67 to deckers. when you get to eckers take a left on forgot the name of the road but just follow it around you'll a parking lot of the left side of the road. park there and enjoy the hike in. last i head nyph's and san juans worms. might want to try pheastant tails not sure if there any matches going on up there still. hope this helps you out a bit. let us know how you do up ther.

 

[XJNOOB93]

I dont fish -_- Would be fun to go..

 

[riverfever]

67 to Deckers. At Deckers take 126 to the left (over the bridge). It's a bit shy of 3 miles until you'll turn left on Wigwam Creek Road. If you get to the parking lot for the trailhead into the canyon then you just missed it.

 

[riverfever]

Ever throw a fly rod up there before?

 

[buschwhaked]

Ever throw a fly rod up there before?

Nope. Just got a fly setup recently. Been going with my uncle a couple times a year on the San Juan, but he always had an extra setup. But anyway, finally decided to take the plunge and got a setup so I'm trying to get as much in before the weather turns south.

 

[riverfever]

In that case...not to be a d!ck but...I would strongly encourage you to check out somewhere else. In general, that reservoir is difficult to fish with spinning gear due to the steep bank. Combined with the trees, there is virtually no room for a backcast. Your roll cast has to be spot on up there. If there's even a hint of wind it can make for a very frustrating day for the finest caster.

You might want to check out:

11 Mile Canyon. It's been colder up here lately so the water is getting chilly. Hit the deep slots and pools and don't be afraid to use a lot of weight. Make sure you have some #14 San Juans, Pheasant Tails, #20 Black Beauties (my favorite), Cheesman Emergers. As it warms up in the afternoon make sure to try a hopper up near the grassy banks. I'd also look for some hatches going off throughout the day (Blue Winged Olives, Midges, and Caddis into the evening).

Deckers...is always best in that several hundred yard section above the bridge but that's also where you'll need a sausage visor from all the swingin' d!cks. Water will be warmer. This section sees some stonefly activity, and definitely have some of those stupid Sparkle Wing RSII's that Idiot Wind usually has good luck with. Scuds might work too. Don't be afraid to use a hopper dropper combo up there (drop a Copper John or any bead head off a hopper pattern and bomb the bank or edges of rocks). You might luck out and get into one of those big Kamloops Bows that has drifted down from the private water upstream.

Either area will have you working on your short game and that's a great thing if you're relatively new to things. Have fun and handle em easy.

 

[buschwhaked]

Yeah, I wasn't planning on actually fishing the lake, just the Platte on either edge. I figured w/Cheeseman I would have some scenery along with easy river access. But the Deckers area sounds pretty good too. I was also looking at the area between 11mile and Spinney, but everyone says it's heavily fished and can get crowded. Maybe it won't be so bad because it's a Monday. Thanks for the advice too. Being new, I sometime feel like I'm getting hit with a firehose and only retaining a garden hose worth of information. I was planning on using a hopper emerger combo just because that's what I've had the best success with. Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it.

 

[riverfever]

The hike into the Platte directly below the spillway at Cheesman is brutal! I wont do it again. Very pretty but there's better water other places for the effort.

The section between 11 Mile and Spinney Reservoir is Spinney Ranch. Crowded is not really a term I'd use to describe most of the spots around here but I'm from Missouri. It's a tremendous section of water but it is tough to fish. The wind usually makes things very interesting and the fish are incredibly smart and very finicky.

I'll most likely be somewhere tomorrow in the evening.

 

[Idiot Wind]

In case you happen to read this before taking off...

1. Riverfever's advice is always good.
2. My advice would be to hit the Deckers area. There is a shop there (Flies and Lies) that gives out very good info. The area is MUCH easier to fish than Spinney Ranch or the Platte below Cheesman.
3. Let us know how you did!

 

[riverfever]

In case you happen to read this before taking off...

1. Riverfever's advice is always good.
2. My advice would be to hit the Deckers area. There is a shop there (Flies and Lies) that gives out very good info. The area is MUCH easier to fish than Spinney Ranch or the Platte below Cheesman.
3. Let us know how you did!

Isn't that guy uh...........Dick?

 

[riverfever]

Scott...what's the situation on the warmer/slower/browner sections of the Platte up by you? Any of those carp tailing in the evening?

 

[Idiot Wind]

Isn't that guy uh...........Dick?

yeah. not the friendliest around but has set me up on a few occasions.

Scott...what's the situation on the warmer/slower/browner sections of the Platte up by you? Any of those carp tailing in the evening?

I should find that out. I do know that TU have their 2nd annual carp tournament downtown near the REI store coming up REAL soon (it may have been this past weekend) so I'm thinking now is the time. I got my 2x leader and am ready to roll...

 

[riverfever]

yeah. not the friendliest around but has set me up on a few occasions.


I should find that out. I do know that TU have their 2nd annual carp tournament downtown near the REI store coming up REAL soon (it may have been this past weekend) so I'm thinking now is the time. I got my 2x leader and am ready to roll...

Well I was talking about his name. It really is Dick. But now that you mention it...he's not the friendliest guy.

We need to go waste some evenings up there before it gets colder.

 

[buschwhaked]

So I just got back. Ended up just hitting the area just north of Lake George to save gas ($$$). My main focus was working on my cast using various setups and testing different things. Not so much a focus on just catching fish.

That being said I did hook 3 but was only able to bring in one. I'm a beginner so cut me some slack! It was a little too windy for any good dry fly action and I only saw a couple places where the fishing were rising. The water warmed up significantly with the warmer weather as the day went on. There were hitting black and brown emergers pretty hard probably about a foot down.

I basically spent the day playing around with different flies seeing how they behaved in water and what I could do to fine tune the way they act in the flow. All in all, it was a great day.

 

[Idiot Wind]

So I just got back. Ended up just hitting the area just north of Lake George to save gas ($$$). My main focus was working on my cast using various setups and testing different things. Not so much a focus on just catching fish.

That being said I did hook 3 but was only able to bring in one. I'm a beginner so cut me some slack! It was a little too windy for any good dry fly action and I only saw a couple places where the fishing were rising. The water warmed up significantly with the warmer weather as the day went on. There were hitting black and brown emergers pretty hard probably about a foot down.

I basically spent the day playing around with different flies seeing how they behaved in water and what I could do to fine tune the way they act in the flow. All in all, it was a great day.

sometimes it is simply nice just to be on the river. black and brown emergers screams RSII's. Widely talked about as being the greatest South Platte fly ever invented.

 

[buschwhaked]

J/C, there was about an 90 minutes of no wind and I really wanted to try a dry fly but I was having a lot of trouble following it in the water. Does anyone know a trick to see your dry fly besides squinting really hard?

 

[Idiot Wind]

J/C, there was about an 90 minutes of no wind and I really wanted to try a dry fly but I was having a lot of trouble following it in the water. Does anyone know a trick to see your dry fly besides squinting really hard?

Admittedly, I don't dry fly too much other than on small creeks/high mountain lakes, or an obvious hatch. However when I do, I try to use a 'parachute' variety (Parachute Adams as opposed to simply an Adams) which helps me keep track of the fly.

I had more troubles in the beginning when my cast really sucked. I really had no clue where the fly would end up. If I didn't see it land right way, I was done. With the improvements in my casting, I have a much better idea where it will land thus I can track it a bit better. If I don't spot it, I just focus on the general area and look for a rise. When you get to sizes of 20 and smaller on a river like the Platte, hell that is what I do 95% of the time, just look at a general area.

 

[buschwhaked]

Everybody I talk to says the same thing about the parachute adams. I didn't know if there was something like a light weight strike indicator or something out there. The other issue I was having was getting dialed in on what was in the water in the first place. I was thinking about getting one of those small nets, but what do you guys use?

 

[philip_g]

sometimes it is simply nice just to be on the river. black and brown emergers screams RSII's. Widely talked about as being the greatest South Platte fly ever invented.

it's always nice to be on the river and always nicer to catch fish

I'm going to oregon this week to go crabbing, I can't freakin wait.