Fly Fishing the Colorado River3 Floats, Fish, Flies and Techniques

Colorado River Overview

We are going cover the 55 mile section from Austin to Bastrop. This river has a completely different character from Rivers to the west of I35.

There are very limited wading opportunities downstream of Austin. This section has limited access, with long distances between put-in and take-out points. Floatation is required for this stretch, with kayaks, canoes and rafts being the most popular. Engines are allowed, but not practical, unless water jets are used.

The Colorado can be fished through the winter and turns on quickly with a few days of warm weather.

High winds can make this a very difficult float. Winds about 15mph will be very challenging.

Water clarity varies greatly, depending on the flows, from crystal clear to “chocolate milk”.

Limited sight fishing. Expect to fish to structure – overhangs, cut banks, riffles, etc.

Fish target larger flies, so a 5 to 8 WT rods with floating or sink tip line will tackle most fish.

The Colorado River is the 18th longest river in US and the longest river with both its source and mouth within Texas. The 862-mile (1,387 km) long river flows generally southeast from Dawson County before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico at Matagorda Bay.

The flows below Austin are heavily influenced by water being released through the Longhorn Dam on Lady Bird Lake (Town Lake). During the summer, water is “pulsed” daily for farmers downstream. These pulses will cloud the water and impact the fishing.

Fishing the Flows

Before heading to the river, it's best to check the flow gages maintained by the Lower Colorado River Authority –

http://hydromet.lcra.org/full.aspx

What are the “ideal” flows for the Colorado?

You have to decide for yourself what is safe given your level of kayaking experience. This can be a very dangerous river during rain events.

Flows are determined by releases from Longhorn Dam and by inflows from smaller streams. Both factors must be taken into consideration.

Here are my personal guidelines......yours may vary

Longhorn Dam is controlled by Austin Energy and does not release a schedule for when they will be releasing water. During the summer, there is often a pattern for the

releases, so check what the releases have been for the previous week and assume it

will be similar.

It’s not uncommon for the flows below the Longhorn Dam to be within an acceptable range but the flows in Bastrop to be very high. This is due to inflow from other creeks.

Look at multiple gages before making a decision.

Longhorn Dam (gage 4558) – between 300 to 600 (with no other inflow)

Onion Creek (gage 4598) - above 100 is a problem Walnut Creek (gage 4561) – above 100 is a problem

Bastrop (gage 4599) – below 600 with limited inflow

If there has been rain, I'll check the gages and look at the 14 day view. I look at both the level and the spikes. Recent spikes, followed by heavier flows often mean the water will be off color.

Due to the geology of the river, it tends to clear slower than streams to the west. Don’t be afraid to fish when the water is off-color (not muddy), the fish are used to it.

HWY 183 to the Texas River School

Put In – HWY 183 Montopolis Bridge N 30° 14' 44.93“ W 097° 41' 28.41"

Take Out - Texas River School

Distance - 3.5 miles

Shuttle Service – Texas River School has rentals and may be able to provide a

shuttle for a fee. Contact them at - (512) 289-0750

Notes

This is one of the shortest floats and doesn’t get too much pressure. I’ve had

very good panfish action here.

Advance reservations must be secured through the Texas River School by

calling (512) 289-0750. You must receive the two different gate codes to gain

access.

There is parking available under HWY 183. Risk of break-ins here. Never

leave valuables or gear visible. Avoid parking at the 973 bridge.

River RaftKayaksDiablo

183 Launch

Take Out

Decker Dam

Little Webberville to Big Webberville

Put In – Little Webberville Park N 30° 13' 46.11“ W 097° 31" 08.14"

Take Out – Webberville County Park N 30° 12' 32.45“ W 097° 29' 57.64"

Distance – 5.14 miles

Shuttle Service - Cooks Canoes provides a shuttle and will rent canoes and

kayaks $30 - $40. Shuttle service is around $20 per kayak. Call - 512-276-7767.

http://cookscanoes.com/

Notes

This is the most popular float. Launch at Little Webberville has good, but

limited parking and a port-a-john. There is a good ramp down to the water.

Big Webberville Park doesn’t open until 8AM and closes at sunset

Varied water with excellent fishing. Two distinct sections.

Large “lakes” that can be challenging when the wind is up. The last mile of

river isn’t very productive and you should just paddle through it. The take-

out is just past the high tension power lines.

Put InHigh Water Rapids Produce

Guad from the Rapids

Upper Section

Lower Section

Utley 969 Bridge to Fisherman’s Park

Put In – HWY 969 Bridge N 30° 10' 03.78“ W 097° 24' 11.48"

Take Out – Webberville County Park N 30° 06' 43.01“ W 097° 19' 30.49"

Distance – 14.7 miles

Shuttle Service - No shuttle available

Notes

This is a 2 or 3 day float, depending on how much you want to paddle

and fish. Camping is allowed on islands. Arranging camping with a land

owner is your best option to avoid being flooded out.

Due to the distance, this stretch gets less pressure that others. There will

be more pressure around the put-in and take-out points.

If you are camping on the islands, watch the weather closely.

Rio Grande Cichlid CottonmouthChannel Cat

Island Camping

Target Species

world record Guadalupe Bass – 3.71 lbs

The Colorado River Fly Box

6 Anglers Share Their Favorite Flies and Techniques

Tips

Get close to the bank….real close. Use a weedguard and put the fly on the bank. Risk = fish.

Don’t be afraid to throw a surface fly (swimming baitfish) on a short leader with a sink tip line (Scientific Angler Wet Tip).

Brighter colors for off color water conditions or loud topwater. Natural colors when the water is clear.

Don’t forget about the back waters. These don’t get as much pressure and can be very productive.

Chris Johnson – owner of Living Waters Fly Fishing, a fly shop and guide service in Round Rock Texas. Certified casting instructor. Guides on the Colorado and other area rivers. VP of San Gabriel Fly Fishing , Austin Area GRTU lease rep and FFF Texas Council rep.

Umpqua Swimming BaitfishUmpqua

Chris’ Crafty Shad

Hook – TMC 811S 6 to 2/0Thread – GSP white 100 denierThroat – red arctic foxBelly – white craft fur over pearl angel hairWing – layered tan, rust, olive e select craft furFlash – peacock angel hairHead – stacked olive craft fur under hairEyes – 3/16 hologram dome eyes

Chris Johnson

Whitlock’s Deer Hair Frog

Dave Whitlock

Hook – TMC 8089 size 6 – 2Thread – UTC 210 white Head – spun deer hairLegs – medium round rubber legsTail – chartreuse, white and green grizzle hackleFlash – pearl crystal flashEyes – yellow doll eyes

Tips

Be very cautious if the river is rising or experiencing high water.

Fly fishing from a 3 person raft designed for fly fishing is advantageous in several ways. First off the angler’s higher elevation allows for seeing structure just beneath the water surface. Also, the rower can hold the raft in prime fish holding locations allowing the fly angler the opportunity to make several casts. Bass do not always hit on the first presentation of a fly.

Hiring a guide allows an angler with limited amount of time the opportunity to increase his/her success rate while spending a day out on the river..

Greg Welander – Fly Fishing Manager at Sportsman’s Finest and local fly fishing guide.

Puckerlip

Hook: Std. Saltwater hook, size 4 - 8 (#6 Mustad 34007)Thread: Brown or Olive 3/0Eyes: Small to Medium Bead ChainBody: E-Z Shape Sparkle Body, Fabric Paint. Epoxy(Allene’s Fabric Fusion mixed with a drop of paint)Legs: Brown, Orange or Olive rubber legs Wing: Olive or Natural Deer Hair

Charlie Bisharat

Whitlock’s Near-Nuff Crawfish

Hook – TMC 8089 size 2Thread – 210 Denier whiteBody – 3/8” white or yellow cylinder foam Eyes – 3/16 red hologram dome eye Tail – chartreuse craft fur with crystal flashMarked with sharpie or Prismacolor pens

Dave Whitlock

Bottom’s Up

Hook – 9394 4x LongThread – unithread #8/0 whiteFlash – silver flashabou, pearl & peacock crystal flash

& pearl saltwater flashabouBody – Icelandic Sheep Hair white and greyLateral Line – Saddle Hackle Light Blue DunDubbing - SLF #24 RedCheek – Mallard Drake Breast Feathers (pair)Eyes – 1/4 hologram dome eye or lead dumbell eyes

Kelly Galloup

Tips

You have to be very, very close to the structure with your cast.

Big Guadalupe bass come out of current seams.

Rust color for crawfish patterns and white for baitfish patterns.

Long pants and long sleeve shirts in light sky colors. Hat, buff and gloves to keep the Texas sun from frying you.

Stay hydrated.

.

Matt Bennett– Shop Manager at Living Waters Fly Shop. Runs the FlyGeek blog. Umpqua fly designer. Well known Hill Country fly tyer and VP of the Austin Fly Fishers.

Lunch Money (Formally the Llano Critter)

Matt Bennett

Hook – Gamakatsu B10S size 2Eyes – small painted white lead eyesThread – UTC 140 OliveTail – olive barred white zonkerLegs – pearl silver barred sili legsHead bottom – white lazer dubHead top – lazer dub, white, silver,

yellow, chartreuse, olive

Craft Fur Baitfish

Matt Bennett

Hook – Gamakatsu SC15 2/0Thread – UTC 140 Chartreuse flash - pearl flashabouBody top – chartreuse and florescent yellow craft fur Body bottom – white craft furGills – florescent pink ice dubEyes – 7mm Living Eyes

Bistro Baitfish

Hook – TMC 5262 size 4 - 12Thread – orange Ultra Thread 140Bead – medium black coneheadBody – copper light brightWire – UTC smallTail/collar – crawfish orange pine squirrel

Matt Bennett

Tips

fish often see the fly coming and will hit as soon as the fly touches the water. Try to keep slack line limited and be ready for a quick strike

when the fishing is slow, try in front of, and behind large boulders in the middle of the river

limited cover, so pay attention to overhanging trees and undercut banks

Jeff Hoelter – Accomplished tyer with 18 years of fly fishing experience. Jeff may be the newbie of this bunch but he's spent many days on the Llano.

Gonga

Hook: Mustad 3366 4-10Thread: UTC 140 or 210 or GSPTail: Stacked deer hairBody: Spun deer hair

Charlie Craven

Swimming Frog

Hook – TMC 200R size 4 - 6Thread – UTC 140 chartreuse Body – black mohair yarn Eyes – medium chartreuse bead chainTail – black rabbit stripRib – chartreuse flossLegs – chartreuse and black silly legs

Dave Whitlock

Borski Slider

Tim Borski

Tips

Hammer the banks. Hammer the banks. Hammer the banks.

Fish faster runs, pay attention to the water above and below the runs.

Don’t be afraid to fish heavier rods and tippet. 16 to 20 lb fluorocarbon.

Big flies for big fish

Look for patterns and be prepared to paddle through unproductive areas..

Jim Gray – 30 plus years fly fishing, fly tying and rod building experience. President of the Austin Fly Fishers.

Llanolope

Jim Gray

Hook – Gamakatsu B10S size 2 to 1Thread – UTC Tan 140Head – foam cylinder 7/16” – 1/2”Eyes – craft store doll eyes Body – natural trimmed antelope hair Tail – stacked natural deer hair

Dirty Hippie

Hook – TMC 811S 6 to 2/0Thread – GSP white 100 denierThroat – red arctic foxBelly – white craft fur over pearl angel hairWing – layered tan, rust, olive e select craft furFlash – peacock angel hairHead – stacked olive craft fur under hairEyes – 3/16 hologram dome eyes

Charlie Craven

Peanut Envy

Kelly Galloup

Chris Johnson – livingwatersflyfishing.comAlvin Dedeaux – http://allwaterguides.com/alvin-dedeaux/Greg Welander - http://www.upstreamonthefly.com/