Arkansas River Fishing Report
- Michael Atwood
- 22 hours ago
- 3 min read
May 28th, 2025
Arkansas River Flows
Leadville (Empire Gulch): ~360 cfs
Granite (below): ~620 cfs
Browns Canyon/Nathrop: ~850 cfs
Wellsville: ~950 cfs
Twin Lakes Release: ~165 cfs
Turquoise Res. Release: ~16 cfs
Clear Creek Res. Release: ~140 cfs
Arkansas River Fishing Report:
The Latest:   The weather has warmed slightly this past week, which means the flows on the river are once again on the rise. Things have not been super sunny and hot, which has lead to a nice and slow increase in river flows. It is hard to predict, but we would expect peak flows to arrive within the next 2 weeks. All signs point toward the Arkansas experiencing a lower than usual runoff, which is great for our fishing opportunities. You can always keep an eye on these flows by visiting dwr.state.co/tools/stations and looking at the hydrographs.
General Arkansas River Fishing Report and Tactics: Rising and off-color water give anglers the opportunity to fish larger and flashier flies. This is also a great time to try your "trash flies" like a worm, egg or mop fly. Sometimes it is just a matter of grabbing the trout's attention, while there is a lot of sediment/debris also tumbling through the water column. Nymphing, hopper-dropper rigs, and streamers are still all good methods to try right now, take your pick.
I would fish your favorite attractor nymph (Duracell, CDC Pheasant Tail, French Jig, Rozas Jig) or a stonefly imitation, and pair that with a smaller offering such as flashy nymph/perdigon, etc. If you see caddis fluttering in the afternoon, try a classic such as an X-Caddis or an Elk-hair caddis. Sometimes skating/popping a caddis dry on the surface will result in more takes than a classic dead drift. Caddis flies are naturally fluttery and random with their flight, so it never hurts to try and imitate that.
Hopper/dropper fishing is also a good option right now. It is definitely early for hoppers, but it makes for a great way to present a nymph down below, and is more of a pleasure to cast in my opinion.
If the water does come up, and the clarity declines, throwing streamers will be a good option. Its hard to beat a classic like a black wooly bugger, which gives a nice and noticeable profile in the dirty water column. Try stripping, swinging, and even bringing it back upstream to yourself.
I say this a lot, but I truly believe that your presentation/depth/drift add up to be more important than the specific pattern that you are fishing with. Master your presentation on the turbulent currents of the Arkansas, and you will catch more fish. Remember, this time of year, not all the fish are stacked in the slowest, deepest and calmest water. Fish are actually incredibly spread out in the river, and you will find fish in some surprisingly quick moving riffle water. The Ark is full of rocks and boulders, which all deflect current, and offer a nice spot for a fish to hang. I like to break down the river into super small sections, and fish it like the pocket water that it often is. Any current break, seamline, rocky substrate, pillow in front of a rock, eddy behind a rock, etc are places where fish will be. Catch more fish by learning all the water types, speeds and depths that fish like to hang in!
Stillwaters:
Spinney Mountain Resesrvoir is still too low for the boat ramps to be open, and it appears as though they might remain closed for the forseeable future.
Antero is really picking up the slack, and continues to fish really well. Midges are hatching and fish are really fired up and fighting hard. Callibaetis are really popping off in the late mornings too, and it won't be long before fish are looking for that food item.
Try suspending chironomids, callibaetis nymphs, or olive leeches below an indicator, around any drop offs and depth changes. Having a fly within a foot or two of the lake bottom seems to be a big difference maker.
High Alpine Lakes and Streams:
Any trails and lakes at or below treeline have a good chance of being open for hiking and fishing currently. There simply isn't much lingering snow below treeline this year. Our favorite lakes will probably be a couple of weeks early in opening this year. Early to mid-June we should start to have some good opportunities for high country fly fishing!
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