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Gunnison River Fishing Information
Upper Section - near Gunnison, CO
The Gunnison River is one of Colorado’s most sought after rivers. A good majority of the river flows through the famous black canyon which is difficult but rewarding access boasting over 20 miles of Gold Medal Waters within its canyon walls. The Gunnison can be divided into the upper reaches which is above Blue Mesa Reservoir up to the headwaters of the Gunnison in Almont (Taylor and East rivers create the Gunnison) including the lake fork, and the lower section which includes the black canyon, north fork , smith fork and confluence of the Gunnison forks and the final confluence it has with the Colorado river. There are miles of fishable water, and even more in it’s tributaries and sub-tributaries.
The Gunnison river holds all kinds of trout within it’s forks, but most of the fish caught will be rainbows and browns. The upper reaches of most rivers including the Gunny can begin to hold brook trout and/or cutthroat when the elevation gets high enough to keep cool water temps. The Gunny is a large river and most of it can be floated when the flows are high enough. Ample wade fishing is available as well throughout the year. Fishing varies from easy to moderate and most anglers will be able to find some fish on the sections they choose to explore. Though it is dammed up in several areas, it fishes most like a freestone and contains a ton of stoneflies, mayflies, midges and caddis to keep trout rising and feeding 24/7.
The Upper section of the Gunnison begins at the confluence and ends when it flows into Blue Mesa Reservoir. The Lake fork is an entire river and is mentioned as it’s own page on our river explorer. Please refer to it here to learn more. The upper section has the most wading and can be divided into a couple smaller sections. The upper reaches is anything from Almont down to the town of Gunnison and the lower stretches is anything from Gunnison down to Blue Mesa. Both areas hold a bunch of trout and even some Kokanee in the fall during their spawn.
Upper Reaches
The upper reaches have several pull outs along the road to park and fish the river with easy access. There is some excellent dry fly fishing on these reaches and the river is a little steeper gradient. It is still a large river here and casting across it in most places is not feasible. It is easily wadeable when the flows are not during run off and you can have a great time throwing dry dropper rigs from rock to rock and run to run finding fish willing to eat. When in doubt, throw a stonefly.
Lower Reaches
The lower reaches below Gunnison have a few primary access points. There is a white water rafting area right in town that has structures that create good holding water for trout and then there are some access easements down further through ranches that can be found easily on our map. There are parking spots and a short hike to the river to find some good fishing. Tons of hatches happen down here as well and dry flies, nymphs and streamers all work well in their given time. Kokanee can be found near the mouth of the reservoir when they spawn in the fall. Talk to a local or a fly shop to hear when the run starts as it’s a little different every year. September to November is the range in which this happens and you can throw any red or pink nymph at the kokes and often get some success. There are some really large trout that come up in the lower reaches from Blue Mesa Reservoir throughout the year, so it pays to have patience and hunt for them if you’re looking for a fish of a lifetime.
Fish: Many Medium-Sized Fish
Popularity: High
Difficulty: Medium
Accessibility: Easy
Best Techniques: Streamers
Best Seasons: Spring - Fall
River Type: Large Freestone
Fish Types: Rainbow Trout, Cutbow Trout, Brown Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Whitefish
Dog Friendly: Yes
Located in the Colorado River Basin near Gunnison, CO
Fishable Seasons & Current Weather
The best seasons to fish this river are Spring - Fall. See the current weather reports for the next 5-6 days listed below for the nearest city.
Knowing what flies to use is only have the battle. You have to know when the insects are active on the water and when it's likely the trout are feeding on them. Refer to our hatch charts below to understand when the insect categories and some of the possible hatches on the river.
Midge Hatches
Midges hatch year round, but their importance is from September through winter into April. During the warmer months, the trout often focus on larger insects as they are more active on the water like mayflies, caddis and stoneflies.
Aside from Blue wing olives, mayflies are active most commonly from May to August in Colorado. There are many different mayfly hatches found on most rivers and the most common are listed below.
Blue Wing Olive: September throut winter to April
Colors: Green/Olive
Sizes: #16-24
Pale Morning Dun: June to Mid September
Colors: White, Yellow
Sizes: #14 - #20
Caddis Hatches
Caddis hatch starting early in May and continue to the end of October.
Colors: Olive, Green, Yellow, Tan, Orange, Brown and Black.
Sizes: #10 - #20
Stonefly Hatches
We have some great stonefly hatches in Colorado and while not all rivers carry all species of salmonflies, you can often fish stonefly adult patterns with confidence from May to September. Start off in bigger sizes and get smaller till September hits (size 8 - 16)
Golden Stone: June to August
Colors: Yellow, Tan
Sizes: #8 - #14
Yellow Sally Stonefly: Mid June to August
Colors: Yellow, Tan
Sizes: #12 - #18
Salmonfly: Mid May to Mid July
Colors: Orange, Red, Brown
Sizes: #6 - #14
Terrestrial Activity
Terrestrials don't hatch since they are out of the water, but they can have importance starting in Mid April and ending in September.
These are the the top flies we sell for this river. Use the hatch chart above to know what flies you will want to have in your fly box during your adventure on the river and then select the flies here 30 days before your trip to get them at a great price. All of our flies are hand tied to each order to ensure quality and to keep our prices low for you.
Click on a fly below to select a size and color for purchase.
Our fly assortments make fly selection easy. We take our entomology knowledge and years of fly fishing experience on these rivers to bring you the right fly patterns, including the correct colors, sizes and quantities to set you up for success. A good selection of flies will prepare you properly for anything the trout may be eating on the river and our fly assortments are specifically curated to maximize your success. Take a look at the assortments we provide below and add one to your box today. Use coupon code AST50 for $50 off and free shipping on these as well, just to help make fly fishing a little more affordable!
Click on any of the pictures to see what flies, colors and sizes we recommend in each assortment.
View our access map for the Gunnison River and learn public and private access points as well as other notable features around fly fishing this river. We include headwater and confluence data and in an effort to not "hotspot" river access points that are better than others, we list every access point available. This serves two purposes. First, it keeps us from hotspotting, which is just showing the best spots and bringing unwanted and harmful attention to the specific access point. The second reason is while we want to help you catch fish and find great places to explore, we don't want to spell it all out for you. If you get it all spelled out, we're doing the exploring, not you. Missing out on the journey of exploring places to fly fish is one of the more enjoyable aspects of fly fishing. While not everyone has time to go explore everything in person, we provide some of the top level data to help you know if something is worth your time, then pass it off to you to explore and find your own adventure. Now enjoy the info, if you're on this page then this river is worth exploring! Go out and find some memories.
Gunnison River Tips & Resources
Use these epic resources to get ready for your adventure. Whether you're planning your trip, learning your insects, improving your fishing with expert tips or getting detailed resources from the USGS streamflows or DoW, we got you covered to help you find the river and find the success you want.