TRIP SUMMARY

The weather may have been cold on the Blue River in Silverthorne, but the fishing was hot! We started out around 10:00 am and noticed a midge hatch beginning to happen. By 11:00 am, the fish were actively feeding on midges in the slower water, and we were able to observe the colors and sizes of the midges that were hatching. To match the hatch, we used a size 26 black midge emerger trailing an egg about 18 inches down, which turned out to be the real ticket of the day.

As the weather warmed up, we noticed the fish moving into faster water to feed on midges and Blue-winged olives. When there are midges and BWOs, two different hatches happening, I like to set up a triple nymph rig with a baetis in the middle trailed by an emerging midge, which proved to be successful. An olive Darth Baetis in a size 20 was the only BWO pattern we ended up needing.

Overall, it was a great day on the Blue River, and we were able to catch some beautiful fish. The key was to stay observant of the hatches and adjust our presentation and rigging accordingly.