Upper Colorado River Spring Runoff: High Water, Early and Late Bite

This is Artificial Lure with your Colorado River fishing report for the upper river here in Colorado. We’re in a spring pattern now, with cool overnight temps and a quick warm‑up after sunrise. Around Glenwood Springs and downstream, expect morning temps in the low 40s climbing into the upper 60s to low 70s by afternoon. Skies are mostly clear to partly cloudy, with a light west breeze building in the afternoon. Flows on the Colorado are running on the high side with runoff, so figure off‑color water, pushy current, and a narrower band of fishable water along the banks. Sunrise is right around 5:45 a.m., with sunset close to 8:20 p.m. The most consistent bite has been from first light until about 10 a.m., then again in the last two hours of daylight once the sun drops behind the canyon walls. Midday fishing is doable, but you’ll want to go deeper and tighter to cover. There’s no real tidal influence up here in Colorado, so you can focus on river levels and clarity instead. With the river up, trout are sliding into the soft stuff: inside bends, eddies behind boulders, and flooded grassy margins. Recent reports from local shops in Glenwood and Rifle indicate solid numbers of browns with a mix of rainbows, mostly 12–16 inches, with the occasional 18–20 inch fish showing up in the softer seams. A few whitefish are still getting picked off on smaller nymphs. No big numbers of warmwater species yet; the river’s still cool and pushing. Best producers lately have been nymph rigs and streamers. For fly anglers, think stonefly nymphs in size 4–8, rubber‑legs in coffee and black, and big attractors like princes and perdigons in size 12–16, all dropped under 3/4–1 ounce of split shot depending on depth. A bright worm pattern or an egg as a point fly has been money in the dirtier water. As the day warms, watch for midges and small BWOs in softer backwaters; a size 18–20 para BWO or Griffith’s gnat will clean up on risers when they show. Spin and gear anglers are doing well on 1/4‑ounce marabou jigs in black, olive, or brown, worked slow along the bottom edges. Small crankbaits in gold or fire‑tiger and 2–3 inch soft‑plastic swimbaits in natural baitfish colors are also taking fish, especially in the lower‑light windows. For bait, nightcrawlers drifted just off the bottom in the soft edges have been steady, with salmon eggs picking up bonus trout and whitefish where regulations allow. Two hot spots to have on your list: First, the stretch just below Glenwood Springs where the Roaring Fork meets the Colorado. That confluence pushes some color and extra food into the system, and trout will stack up in the big soft seam on the Colorado side. Work the inside eddies and that big, slow tongue of water coming off the junction. Second, the water around Rifle — especially the long inside bends and any bank with flooded brush. With flows up, those banks become trout hotels. Hit them from shore or by boat, casting tight to the edges and letting your offering swing into the softer pockets. Overall fish activity is good in the low‑light hours, fair to tough through the bright part of the day. Focus on slower water, get your presentation down, and don’t be afraid to upsize and darken your offerings to give fish a clear target in the stain. That’s your Colorado River report from Artificial Lure. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next update. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn