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Rob Herrmann Photography

South Platte River: Eleven Mile Canyon

Difficulty Intermediate
Ideal Days To Fish 3/20, 3/21 & 3/23

Weekly Report

Report DateMarch 16, 2023

Eleven Mile Canyon flows have been on the rise but appear to be leveling off at 85 cfs. While you will find a few opportunistic trout feeding in riffles, transitions and tailouts on warm afternoons, you’ll find that most fish are stacked up in pronounced pools and runs. Get your flies deep in the water column during the morning using ample split shot. As the water warms up in the late morning and bug activity increases, drop some weight and drift your flies through the middle portion of the water column. Baetis/midge and double midge setups are great starting setups. For a baetis/midge setup, lead with either a JuJu Baetis or Mercury Pheasant Tail and trail a Mercury Black Beauty or Top Secret. For a double midge setup, lead with a red Zebra Midge or Pale Ale Midge and trail a Chocolate Foam Back Emerger or one of the midge pupa mentioned above. If you need help getting their attention, lead with an egg pattern, Mini Leech, San Juan Worm or Rainbow Warrior. Surface activity has been hit or miss due to sporadic weather but we should see more consistent midge and even BWO activity early next week when weather conditions stabilize. Keep some Griffiths Gnats, Parachute Adams and Parachute BWOs handy.

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.