So I sat down and watched the preview for this film and I totally think it's worth the $10 for admission. These types of events are a lot of fun, and the Stargazers Theater has already proven to be an awesome venue to do film events such as this. You can purchase tickets online for a small processing fee or stop by the Covey and buy them for $10. Click here to purchase online. The address for the Stargazer Theater is 10 South Parkside Drive, Colorado Springs CO 80910. Event date is Wednesday June 13th and the film starts at 7:30 p.m. Hope to see you guys there!
Gazette Article - How To Properly Handle Trout!
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Recent Photos 5-26-2012
Had a blast with my clients Bob and Andy yesterday! We netted 10 fish all on Hoppers and I picked up a few tricks from Andy who knows a thing or two about photography. We didn't take any photos of fish because these guys have literally been around the world and back. I shutter to think what kind of giant fish they have photos of so we spent a vast majority of the day talking trash and telling stories. Here are a few pics from the day. In case any fellow photographers are interested Andy has a pretty cool show he is doing called Found Botany. Here is the address. http://www.foundbotany.com/
Friday, May 25, 2012
Pikes Peak Time Lapse Video
Hey all!
I just wanted to share with you a very quick glance of a time lapse video I shot of Pikes Peak from Garden Of The Gods! You will see parts of these clips and much more time lapse soon to come in fishing videos/shows. This is only my second time shooting time lapse so there is a ton of room for improvement, but I like what the clouds are doing over the Peak and I haven't seen to many timelapse videos done of this amazing mountain. There are two separate shots taken with my Nikon D90. One at 26mm and the second one at 40mm. I just wanted to say thanks to Kim for allowing me the use of her original music, and hopefully this is a sample of whats to come. Be sure and change the settings to full 1080p HD and give this one a play full screen!
I just wanted to share with you a very quick glance of a time lapse video I shot of Pikes Peak from Garden Of The Gods! You will see parts of these clips and much more time lapse soon to come in fishing videos/shows. This is only my second time shooting time lapse so there is a ton of room for improvement, but I like what the clouds are doing over the Peak and I haven't seen to many timelapse videos done of this amazing mountain. There are two separate shots taken with my Nikon D90. One at 26mm and the second one at 40mm. I just wanted to say thanks to Kim for allowing me the use of her original music, and hopefully this is a sample of whats to come. Be sure and change the settings to full 1080p HD and give this one a play full screen!
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Friday, May 4, 2012
Fly Tying Instructional Videos
Kleis's Hybrid Hopper
Kleis's Mojo Midge
Bubble-Back Midge
Egg Over Easy
The Cheesman Emerger
Scudzilla
The Purple Haze
The Shotglass Baetis
The Bling Bug
Kleis's Mojo Midge
Bubble-Back Midge
Egg Over Easy
The Cheesman Emerger
Scudzilla
The Purple Haze
The Shotglass Baetis
The Bling Bug
Fishing Report May 4th 2012
The South Platte River has been fishing fantastic despite pressure from anglers. The flows are sitting around 100 c.f.s. for both the Cheesman/Deckers area and 11 Mile Canyon. Now is a great time to sight fish for the few bigger fish in these stretches. If you are nymphing come armed with Baetis and Midges in 11mile canyon. Barr's Emergers in BWO sizes 18-22, Bubbleback Midges size 22, Brown Mojo Midges size 22, Black Beauties size 22-24, and San Juan worms hung under an indicator with a little weight will produce fish in 11 Mile. Bring the same flies trading out the brown Mojo Midge for Chocolate, and having a good assortment of Caddis ready for Deckers. Expect to see fish feeding actively on the surface in 11 Mile starting around 11:30 and lasting for a couple hours. Bring small Parachute Adams, Matt's Midges, and Griffiths Gnats all sizes 20-26.
The Dream Stream portion of the South Platte has seen an increase in flows and is sitting at 155 as of today. This is great news for this stretch which is usually recovering this time of year from getting pounded by anglers during the spawn. Fish will be anchored to the bottom of deeper runs and hiding in bends with undercut banks and structure. Get on the spot super early and nymph, or late in the afternoon to throw dry flies to selective fish. Scud shrimp will be a steady food source for trout right below the dam as spring gets warmer and flows increase. Bring the same flies mentioned for 11Mile and Deckers but include small Flash Back Pheasant Tails.
The Arkansas river below Pueblo Res. has had fluctuating flows which has moved the fish around a little. I recently had a great day on the water right below the dam looking for fish throwing streamers. I didn't see to many Caddis coming off but I did a kick with my seine and came up with plenty of larva so bring your Caddis box if your nymphing. My favorite Caddis larva pattern for the Arkansas is a Bottom Roller. My streamer of choice is the Barr's Bouface in black, white, or olive.
The upper ark reportedly has a lot of Caddis in the air with not a lot of fish rising to them which has been common over the last couple of years. I recently watched a presentation given by Taylor Edrington who owns Royal Gorge Anglers and is an expert on all things Arkansas river and he said to drive up river until you have gotten just ahead of the hatch to get into the best dry fly action. It does get crowded this time of year so get on the water early and be prepared to share. Check out http://royalgorgeanglers.com/ for up to date detailed reports on the Ark.
If you don't want crowding to be an issue then I suggest spending a day on any of our stillwater fisheries. Spinney and Antero are fishing fantastic! So are the reservoirs on the North Slope of Pikes Peak. Fishing from shore on the Dam side of Spinney with Chironomids and eggs, and fishing near the North or South boat ramp at Antero with the same flies. Rick Murphy sells a Pattern at Anglers Covey that really starts to hammer fish in reservoirs with heavy populations of scud shrimp this time of year that he calls the Scudzilla. Click here for the instructional tying video or stop by the shop to pick some up!
11 Mile Reservoir Pike have woken up and its starting to fish really good in the afternoon. Bring your 8 weight rod and some big gnarly Pike flies and cover ground. My favorite place to look for big Pike is the shallow coves on south and north of Rocking Chair campground. For more information or to check my availability for guided trips shoot me an email at jonkleisflyfishing@yahoo.com
The Dream Stream portion of the South Platte has seen an increase in flows and is sitting at 155 as of today. This is great news for this stretch which is usually recovering this time of year from getting pounded by anglers during the spawn. Fish will be anchored to the bottom of deeper runs and hiding in bends with undercut banks and structure. Get on the spot super early and nymph, or late in the afternoon to throw dry flies to selective fish. Scud shrimp will be a steady food source for trout right below the dam as spring gets warmer and flows increase. Bring the same flies mentioned for 11Mile and Deckers but include small Flash Back Pheasant Tails.
The Arkansas river below Pueblo Res. has had fluctuating flows which has moved the fish around a little. I recently had a great day on the water right below the dam looking for fish throwing streamers. I didn't see to many Caddis coming off but I did a kick with my seine and came up with plenty of larva so bring your Caddis box if your nymphing. My favorite Caddis larva pattern for the Arkansas is a Bottom Roller. My streamer of choice is the Barr's Bouface in black, white, or olive.
The upper ark reportedly has a lot of Caddis in the air with not a lot of fish rising to them which has been common over the last couple of years. I recently watched a presentation given by Taylor Edrington who owns Royal Gorge Anglers and is an expert on all things Arkansas river and he said to drive up river until you have gotten just ahead of the hatch to get into the best dry fly action. It does get crowded this time of year so get on the water early and be prepared to share. Check out http://royalgorgeanglers.com/ for up to date detailed reports on the Ark.
If you don't want crowding to be an issue then I suggest spending a day on any of our stillwater fisheries. Spinney and Antero are fishing fantastic! So are the reservoirs on the North Slope of Pikes Peak. Fishing from shore on the Dam side of Spinney with Chironomids and eggs, and fishing near the North or South boat ramp at Antero with the same flies. Rick Murphy sells a Pattern at Anglers Covey that really starts to hammer fish in reservoirs with heavy populations of scud shrimp this time of year that he calls the Scudzilla. Click here for the instructional tying video or stop by the shop to pick some up!
11 Mile Reservoir Pike have woken up and its starting to fish really good in the afternoon. Bring your 8 weight rod and some big gnarly Pike flies and cover ground. My favorite place to look for big Pike is the shallow coves on south and north of Rocking Chair campground. For more information or to check my availability for guided trips shoot me an email at jonkleisflyfishing@yahoo.com
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Pikes Peak Is Open For Fishing!
Crystal, South Catamount, and North Catamount reservoirs on Pikes Peak officially opened for fishing May 1st and they are fishing fantastic!
For those of you unfamiliar with these local bodies of water, these three reservoirs supply most of Colorado Springs with its drinking water. Lake trout, a.k.a. Mackinaw, Cutthroat trout and Rainbow trout all reside in these North Slope fisheries. Crystal and South Catamount are open to bait fishing with standard slot limits for trout, and North Catamount is flies and lures only.
It is the angler's responsibility to read the signs posted at each lake and to obey any special regulations on slot limits and boating. Boating is restricted to canoes and float tubes while wearing a life vest.
Lake trout like the one shown were put in the reservoirs to control the sucker population, which they do well. The best way I can describe Mackinaw (Lake trout) is that they are the Northern Pike of trout - only they fight harder.
Even the color and markings remind me of Pike. Lake trout are extremely aggressive and will clear out an unwanted population of suckers just as quickly as Pike. Because they are so carnivorous once they have cleaned out the suckers they turn their attention toward other trout.
Young Lake trout also tend to be long and skinny like their Pike counterparts, but can grow to enormous sizes once they are big enough to swallow a stocker-sized rainbow. I have seen photos of Lakers up to 20 pounds come out of "North Cat" and fish even larger come out of Rampart.
Kristen and I spent two hours fishing on North Catamount on May 2nd, and we landed and released seven rainbows with an average size of 14 inches and a 17-inch Lake trout. Flies of choice were small black Wooly Buggers, Egg Patterns, and Chironomid Pupa. Most of the fish fell victim to the Pupa.
For readers unfamiliar with the Chironomid it is a midge that hatches in many of Colorado's lakes and reservoirs that looks eerily similar to a giant mosquito. When these bugs emerge off the bottom to hatch on the surface they are called pupa, and this stage of the hatch is when they are most vulnerable to fish.
My favorite Chironomid Pupa patterns that you can purchase at a fly shop are: the Tungsten Rojo Grande in red and black, the Frostbite Chironomid, and the Jumbo JuJu in red and zebra.
You can also get away with using basic midge patterns, only in larger sizes such as the Black Beauty and the Brassie. Hang these patterns under an indicator during the Chironomid hatches in the spring and fall and hold on tight!
The North Slope of Pikes Peak is one of the most beautiful drives you will ever take. The fact that you can take a handful of these flies and catch a hard-fighting rainbow out of these pristine high country reservoirs is just an added bonus, so get out there and enjoy! Tight Lines!
To learn more about stillwater fishing or to schedule a guided trip with me on the South Platte River or any of the reservoirs along its drainage, send me an email at jonkleisflyfishing@yahoo.com
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