It's tough to beat throwing hoppers to eager trout all day. You may think small creek season is over for the year, but that isn't necessarily the case. While fishing above 10,000 feet might be out of the question there are still plenty of options if you know what to look for. Many of our big rivers start in the high country and work their way down to lower elevations. Along the way there are countless tributaries dumping into these bigger bodies of water. When searching for these late season gems think areas where the elevation is below 8,000 feet. From there it's going to be a game of pick your poison. Locate a few of these areas in couple different places. For example, find an area along two different rivers such as the Colorado and Arkansas River . Watch the recent weather reports and make your choice based on the upcoming forecasts. You might be pleasantly surprised; while it may be snowing over the pass on I70 it could be 60 and sunny where you're headed. I personally have made it a habit this time of the year to keep these weather forecasts on my Iphone because the longer I can avoid fishing with gloves the better. It will be best to fish these creeks after the sun has reached the water which generally means fishing the window from about 10 AM- 4 PM. A lot of people give me crazy looks when I tell them I was catching fish on Hoppers in November but you will find on the warmer days hatches on these tribs are plentiful and the fish are eager to eat just about whatever floats by. Dry Dropper rigs are going to produce the best success. Below I have listed a few flies to have in your box for late season small streams.

Dries- Fat Albert's sz. 12-16, Royal and Orange Stimulators sz. 12-16, Parachute Adams sz. 16-20, October Caddis 16-20, Elk Hair Caddies sz. 16-18, Fat Caddis sz 16-20, Fat Caddis Tan sz 18, Sprout Midge sz. 18-20, Sprout Baetis sz. 18-20, Morrish's May Day sz 15-17, Hi-Vis Parachute Baetis sz 18-22.

Droppers- GB Hares Eares sz. 16-20, Copper John's Red/Chartruese sz 18-20, Frenchie GB Pheasant Tail sz. 16-20, Flashback PT sz. 16-20, GB Pshyco Prince Orange/Pink sz. 16-20, BH Barr's BWO emerger sz. 18-20, BH Rainbow Warrior sz. 16-20, Nosepicker BWO sz. 16-20, Crystal Hunchback Baetis sz. 18-20, Mercury Baetis sz. 18-20,

This past Monday I had the opportunity to get out with my good buddies, Ivan Orsic @yukongoesfishing and the Colorado Rockies very own Charlie Blackmon @chuck__nazty. Our goal was to toss hoppers and avoid big crowds. Needless to say we found what we were looking for! Here are a few pictures from the trip. Photos Courtesy of Ivan Orsic.