South Fork 4-20-10

We screwed up and the road to Cottonwood is not open. It will not open until the Palisades Ranger District, which actually manages the road to Cottonwood, officially opens it for summer travel. This date varies from year to year depending on snow, weather and road condition. When the road does open the Palisades District will announce it through the media and their web site. If you have any questions you can contact them at 523-1412.

We apologize for publishing incorrect information and now have a thorough understanding of how the road is managed and by whom. When the road does open we will post it on the fishing report.

We have  much news for the South Fork.  First, the USBLM opened the road to Cottonwood and Burns Creek on April 15th. All boat launch sites are open.  Flow out of Palisades Dam is up to 1450 cfs  (2060 cfs at Heise) making float fishing safer,  but walk-in wade fishing remains a great alternative.  As water moves down the river at these still low flows ( no significant runoff yet) it warms considerably.  The result is that BWOs are emerging on the lower river, so add their life cycle patterns to your fly box when targeting that part of the river, particularly in the afternoon.  Use the info Tim posted in the 4-14-10 South Fork fishing report for best success chances.   Keep those streamers and rubber legs in that fly box, too.   For the upper river and its colder water (canyon and upstream to the dam), those rubberlegs and streamers should be in your fly box, and add red or white zebra midges in smaller sizes.