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North Fork of the South Platte Fishing Information
Upper Section - near Bailey, CO
The north fork of the south platte suffers from inconsistent flows and lack of bug life due to mining. The river holds fish but they don’t get as big and aren’t as plentiful as the south platte middle fork just across the way. This makes the north fork a good way to spend a day in solitude, but fishing is hit or miss.
The lower section has plenty of water below foxton road to fish and the water looks really good. The fish aren’t able to do great in this river for the above reasons, but the ones who do are good fighters and fun to catch.
The upper section is mainly private near bailey with a few access points off the road that at times can hold a few really nice fish since the private water ranches above stock the river heavily. Most of the time you’ll catch 8” – 14” fish but always be ready for that brute.
Fish: Few Large-Sized Fish
Popularity: Medium
Difficulty: Medium
Accessibility: Hard
Best Techniques: Dries & Nymphs
Best Seasons: Spring - Fall
River Type: Medium Freestone
Fish Types: Rainbow Trout, Cutbow Trout, Brown Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Tiger Trout
Dog Friendly: No
Located in the South Platte River Basin near Bailey, 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.
Bailey
66°
light rain
humidity: 90%
wind: 3mph NE
H 65 • L 62
65°
Sun
81°
Mon
81°
Tue
66°
Wed
Weather from OpenWeatherMap
Hatch Charts
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
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)
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.
If you need an easier solution than selecting each fly and size, try out our top fly assortments for this river that will put all the flies you need in a single order for this river. We've already selected the flies we use in our fly box for this river including the sizes and colors and put them in these assortments so you can fish with the confidence that you have the right flies in your box.
Click on any of the pictures to see what flies, colors and sizes we recommend in each assortment.
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.
