11.jpg
Rob Herrmann Photography

South Platte River: Eleven Mile Canyon

Difficulty Intermediate
Ideal Days To Fish 4/1, 4/2 & 4/3

Weekly Report

Report DateMarch 30, 2023

Eleven Mile Canyon flows are holding around 92 cfs, which is well above the historical average for this time of year. Trout are doing most of their feeding in pronounced pools and runs but will move into transitions and slow riffles to feed during the afternoon. With mild air temps in the forecast, focus on deep and slow water during the morning and switch to faster water in the afternoon (slow riffles, pockets, transitions, seams etc.). Mini Leeches, eggs, San Juan Worms, Flashback Pheasant Tails, Guide’s Choice Hare’s Ears, Rainbow Warriors, purple Zebra Midges and JuJu Baetis are productive lead patterns. For your trailer, olive/grey RS2s rarely let us down, but you can’t go wrong with a Mercury Black Beauty, Top Secret, Chocolate Foam Back Emerger, WD-40 or Barr’s Emerger. On warmer afternoons, we’re seeing decent surface activity during midge hatches, so keep an eye on soft pools, runs and outer seams for rising trout. If you see trout consistently rising, tie on a Griffiths Gnat, Matt’s Midge or Parachute Adams. BWOs are yet to make an appearance but it shouldn’t be long before these bugs grace us with their presence and the surface feeding frenzy begins. Based on the forecast this weekend, we wouldn’t be surprised if hatch activity really picks up over the next few days.

Recommended Flies

River Flow

Flow Region

Detailed River Info

Background:

The Eleven Mile section of the South Platte is a gorgeous stretch of river that offers anglers amazing fishing year round. The canyon experiences some great hatches throughout the warmer months and because it's a tail water, it can be fished in the winter. As you explore this river you'll notice that it has blended characteristics of the Cheesman Canyon and Deckers sections of the South Platte. While the best fishing usually occurs within two miles of the dam, the road that parallels the river makes it easy to jump in and out of the car to explore different sections. Eleven Mile has quickly become one of our favorite places to fish.

Angling:

The Eleven Mile stretch of the South Platte offers a wide range of features that caters to any style of fly fisherman. The canyon sections of the river provide deep pools for the streamer junkie and the nymph fisherman who likes to sling around a lot of weight and drift flies down deep to try and catch a picture worthy fish. Other sections of the river remind us more of Deckers with medium depth riffles, runs and tail outs. Considering this section is a tail water, the standard South Platte flies are the way to go. Classic examples are size 18 - 24 RS2's, Top Secrets and Zebra Midges. Other than the beauty, our favorite part about this river is it's ease of access and the ability to fish 2-4 sections in a day. Our favorite thing to do is drive up close to the damn, fish a quarter mile section, jump back in the car and move down river until we find another quality section to fish. No need to haul around a big back pack either! With the road so close to the river, you can access your lunch and river beers with ease! 

River Access

The Eleven Mile  section of the South Platte river is easy accessed from County Road 96. County Road 96 is a dirt road that starts in Lake George and runs along the river up to the dam. The road consists of pull-offs and designated parking lots making it easy to jump in and out of the car to fish different sections of the river. One thing to be aware of is the $7 entrance fee that needs to be paid to enter the canyon. Plan on bringing a check or cash to pay this fee.