Family-Outdoors

Finding places to fish around Steamboat Springs, Colorado is not difficult. There is seemingly a stream around just about every corner and a lake around the others. There are pike, trout of many varieties, and even catfish, bass, crappie, walleye, bluegill, and more. Most people do not travel to this part of the world for warmwater fisheries, but are headed to this part of Colorado for trout and perhaps pike. Let's take a look at some of the great trout fishing opportunities within 30 driving miles of Steamboat Springs.

We cannot help but begin with the Yampa River. In the upper reaches of the river is Satgecoach Reservoir. We will explore this in more detail later, but for now, let's just say that this lake can be considered part of the Yampa system. The river below the reservoir is a very good tailwater fishery yielding some awfully large rainbow trout. There are accesses through state wildlife areas until you get to Steamboat Springs. Then, once you are in Steamboat, the access is pretty well wide open. There is a trail system right in town and you can just follow it to find good fishing spots.

The fishing downstream from Steamboat Srpings is good, but tougher to access. Also, the trout fishing does gradually subside, but the pike fishery (despite efforts to eradicate them from the river) picks up. There is a campground down near Hayden where there is more good access to the river. A very enjoyable thing to do is float the Yampa from Steamboat to Hayden and/or to Craig. There is quite a diversity of fishing as well as river running conditions.

VERY IMPORTANT: Do thorough research on river conditions as well as fishing regulations!

Let's take a look at a couple of lakes in the area. First let's look at previously mentioned Staegcoach Reservoir. This lake is a great place becuase of its diverse opportunities. Really, just about all of the region's species that can be caught, can be caught in this lake. The fishing is primarily done from boats, but fishing from shore can be very productive. Fishing strategies include powerbait, worms, typical flies, and spinners/lures. Big Mepps Spinners are a good general bet for pike. Smaller Mepps or other spinners are good for trout.

A little under our 30 mile radius north of Steamboat Springs is Steamboat Lake which has received the coveted gold medal trout water designation. The lake is known especially for rainbow and cutthroat trout fishing. The best fishing here is typically from ice out until the end of June. Fish tend to be in the no wake zones of the lake and hit typical Colorado trout fishing offerings like powerbait, worms, spinners, and flies.

Another fishing option for the area is the lesser known Elk River, just north of Steamboat and flowing into the Yampa about 10 miles below Steamboat Springs. There are many good fishing options on the upper part of the river in Routt National Forest. The middle reaches are somewhat inaccessible due to private property restrictions. On the lower portions access can be had at Christina State Wildlife Area with good fishing for rainbows and brown trout.

There are also a few good smaller lakes around Steamboat Springs. One that is particularly worth mentioning is Dumont Lake. It is about 23 miles from Steamboat, up in the Rabbit Ears Pass area. This little lake has some brrok trout as well as stocked rainbows in the 10"-14" size range. The typical strategy is to fish a fly under a bubble if spin fishing. There is a nice campground in the vicinity and many lakes that offer more secluded fishing chances - if you are willing to do some hiking.

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