Buena Vista to Salida As of 4/20/2021, Braden Baker with Ark Anglers writes, “Caddis kicked off strong again with Wednesday’s warmth and we have good hatches in the afternoon from Howard through Salida. Expect the leading edge of caddis hatches to be around Big Bend this weekend, possibly even further upstream into Brown's Canyon. With warm weather in the forecast later in the next few days, the window of opportunity is very broad to catch caddis hatching or adult egg-laying activity on the warmer days ahead! We would normally expect a semi-predictable wave of hatches moving upstream day by day, but as delayed as the hatch has been in starting this year we are seeing pockets of intense hatches fire off outside of the typical pattern. Water near Salida that reaches 54 degrees has the potential to see caddis hatches underway over the coming week with the return of warm weather. We'll update this report daily as the hatch proceeds upstream. The blue-winged olive mayflies tend to be most active in the afternoons, with daily behavioral nymphal drifts occurring between noon and 3 p.m. most days. These mayflies typically wait for cloudy, often precipitous days to hatch in the afternoons, but you should be prepared regardless of the forecast. Sometimes all it takes is a single cloud to mute the sun for a hatch to occur. Recently, it seems that the clear, direct sunlight has fish content to feed just under the surface, intercepting nymphs and vulnerable emergers rather than committing to the dun on the water's surface. Next Tuesday's forecast of cooler temperatures and potential precipitation may make for more concentrated surface feeding. These mayflies are generally a #16-18 and offer some of the best "match-the-hatch" dry and dry-dropper fishing of the year. Stonefly and other large attractor nymphs will be great anchor flies while nymphing during non-hatch periods. For droppers, try midge larva and pupa, caddis larva, and blue-winged olive nymphs and emergers.” Flows: 275 CFS at Hecla Junction

Reported by: Colorado D.O.W