While there are no Mysis shrimp or scuds, the brown trout get huge eating midges, caddis, Green Drakes, and of course a steady diet of 10-inch stocked rainbows. The fruit of this labor is an impressive man-made piscatorial playground.ĭespite the continual stocking of both rainbows and cutthroats, naturally reproducing brown trout are what make the Uncompahgre special, and they reach the most impressive sizes, with many browns north of 10 pounds caught every year. Mine cleanups upstream together with a settling effect in the reservoir have reduced heavy metals in the Uncompahgre, while the installation of two hydro turbines at Ridgway Dam simultaneously increased oxygen and decreased nitrogen levels in the river, drastically improving water quality. Logs, tree roots, and rocks were also used to shore up the streambank and create additional sanctuaries. Truckloads of boulders were placed in the river to construct rock weirs, forming a lengthy chain of fish-friendly plunges, pools, and runs. Bureau of Reclamation, Colorado Parks & Wildlife, and Trout Unlimited together undertook a herculean habitat improvement project at Pa-Co-Chu-Puk.
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It was like a raging gutter full of polluted water. The tailrace was shallow, fast, and contaminated with heavy metals, as the upper watershed is punctuated with hundreds of leaky abandoned mines. The tailwater section of the Uncompahgre is in Ridgway State Park adjacent to Pa-Co-Chu-Puk Campground, and locals often refer to the fishery simply as "Paco." After Ridgway Reservoir was completed in 1988, serious questions remained as to whether the 1.5-mile stretch of public water below the dam would even support a fishery. In the language of the Ute Indians, the original stewards of this spectacular swath of God's creation, "Uncompahgre" translates to "red water spring" and is likely a reference to several natural hot springs near Ouray and Ridgway. The Uncompahgre River births out of Lake Como high in the windswept San Juan Mountains and slogs northward through the towns of Ouray, Ridgway, and Montrose as it makes its 75 mile voyage toward a rendezvous with the Gunnison River in Delta. Although you are more likely to lay eyes on sasquatch than a truly unknown Colorado tailwater, the Uncompahgre River is unquestionably the least known and most unheralded tailwater in the Centennial State. But if you are privy to the muted conversations whispered in darkened corners of fly shops across the state, you may be aware of another tailwater gradually ascending to the upper echelon of Colorado trout waters.
And for good reason, as they have high numbers of trout, with more than a few trophies finning in plain sight. If you ask Colorado fly fishers to name their favorite tailwater fisheries, responses such as the Taylor, FryingPan, South Platte, and Blue Rivers will predictably roll off their tongues.
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