Freestones streams are providing legendary dry fly fishing with caddis, yellow sallies, pale morning duns, golden stoneflies, and green drakes. Nymphing is not even a consideration right now with the explosive dry fly fishing! Anglers can begin their day by fishing with caddis or yellow stimulators, then switch to PMD's mid day, then the finale includes green drakes between 1 and 3 p.m. If you're a die hard, you'll find good caddis fishing in the evenings after 5 pm. Flies of choice have been #14-16 yellow Stimulators, #14-16 yellow Humpies, #10-12 Hen Wing Green Drake, #10-12 Mathew's Sparkle Dun Green Drake, Mathew's Sparkle Dun PMD, and #14 Elk Hair Caddis.
In the Gunnison Valley, anglers are experiencing one of the best green drake hatches in recent memory. If you are fortunate enough to have overcast skies, the dry fly fishing is a good as its gets. Its not uncommon to see 8-10 fish rising in a glassy pool or in the tailout of a run. On a recent float below Almont, my partner and I netted 20 fish a piece on green drakes and lost many, many more. The caddis and pale morning dun hatches are equally impressive right now in the Gunnison Valley!
Look for the state's dry fly fishing to stay strong for the remainder of the summer season. Get out while you can--it's pretty impressive right now!