Steamboat Springs Colorado Local Blogs

A year-round destination for fishing, Steamboat Springs has no shortage of rivers, lakes and reservoirs for anglers from all walks of life. Whether you come in the spring, summer, fall or winter, you’ll find plenty of water (and plenty of fish) to cast your line into.

Steamboat’s Seasons

In spring, the tailwaters are the easiest fishing, since streams and creeks are running fast and high. That said, if you want to find northern pike, spring is when they’ll be spawning in the lakes and rivers. Weather tends to be cooler, with average temperatures staying in the 40s and 50s until May.

During the summer a variety of insect hatches peak, making for great dry fly fishing. In late June, once water levels have dropped, the wading becomes much better on the larger rivers. Weather tends to warm up into late July and early August. July is also the wettest month of the year.

Fall is the best time to come if you want to avoid crowds. Although temperatures are cooler, you’ll have large stretches of rivers all to yourself. The best fishing happens in the afternoon, once temperatures have risen a bit and warmed the water.

The start of the ski season doesn’t herald the end of fishing in Steamboat Springs. On the contrary, anglers often find the largest rainbow trout of the whole year in the winter. Once the temperatures drop enough for the lakes to free, ice fishing is a popular pastime on the Stagecoach Reservoir, Steamboat Lake and Pearl Lake. Be sure to check in with rangers or local guides about ice conditions before venturing out.

Yampa River

The Yampa River has unparalleled access for anglers, with seven miles of fishable water right in the middle of town and miles of additional river available to the public. The Sarvis Creek and Chuck Lewis State Wildlife Areas both offer beautiful settings to fish for rainbow, cutbows, browns and cutthroat trout; whitefish; and occasional northern pike.

While the Yampa can be fished from boat or by wading, floating is especially good from late June to early August, when large trout are plentiful.

The tailwaters of the Stagecoach Reservoir, just half-an-hour away, provides easy fishing for trout and northern pike, as well. The abundance of daily activities makes this a great place to bring the whole family.

Bear River

This tributary of the Yampa is an excellent choice for anglers who have already developed their casting skills. The challenging waters of this small river hold brook, rainbows and brown trout. Come early – morning is usually the best time to fish here.

Elk River

Running through the Routt National Forest, the Elk River is lined by forests and mountains. In addition to the miles of public access waters (great for fishing from shore), there are numerous private ranches just outside Steamboat Springs that offer excellent dry-fly fishing, stock ponds, guided trips and fly casting lessons.

Lake Fishing

There are also plenty of lakes to fish around Steamboat Springs. Steamboat Lake (28 miles from Steamboat), at the base of Hahn’s Peak, is a picturesque mountain leak, with peaks and forests surrounding it in all directions. Expect to mainly catch rainbow and cutthroat trout, although you may pull in a brown or brook trout.

Pearl Lake is another mountain lake perfect for fishing that’s less than 30 miles from Steamboat. This 167-acre reservoir has great fishing for large cutthroats and graylings, especially during the last half of May and in the fall.

In addition to Steamboat and Pearl Lake, high mountain lakes on Buffalo Pass and in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area provide more intimate mountain settings for trout fishing. These lakes may take a bit more work to get to, but the solitude and sheer beauty of the surroundings are well worth it (the fishing ain’t half-bad, either).

Private Lands

While there are plenty of public accesses for rivers and lakes around Steamboat Springs, there are also many large ranches and tracts of private land surrounding rivers. Access to these areas may be restricted, so be sure to obtain permission before venturing onto them. Owners may have arrangements with private trip leaders or may charge a fee for use.

Guided Trips in Steamboat Springs

While a guide is by no means necessary, you may find yourself sharing the public access areas with more people than you’d like. Guided trips have the advantage of knowing where to go to avoid the crowds but not the fish and take care of boats and transportation hassles for you. Many of the guide services also have arrangements with privately held land that wouldn’t be accessible otherwise. If you do decide to go with a guide service, you’ll have no problem finding one in Steamboat.

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