Frying Pan River

The Frying Pan River below Ruedi Reservoir is one of Colorado's premier tailwater fisheries and arguably the finest small-stream trout fishing in the state. This intimate river flows through a wooded canyon for roughly 14 miles before joining the Roaring Fork River at the town of Basalt, and its cold, clear, dam-regulated flows support an extraordinary density of rainbow and brown trout that grow to impressive sizes on a steady diet of midges, mayflies, and scuds. The upper two miles immediately below the dam are designated Gold Medal water and are managed under catch-and-release, artificial-only regulations that have produced a population of large, well-educated trout that challenge even the most experienced technical anglers.

The Frying Pan's character is defined by its glassy tailouts, deep green pools, and deceptively smooth currents that make achieving a drag-free drift both critical and difficult. Fish here feed heavily on subsurface organisms, particularly mysis shrimp that wash through the dam, and anglers who learn to dead-drift tiny mysis patterns through the deeper runs are often rewarded with the largest trout of their lives. The surface fishing can be equally rewarding during the river's prolific green drake hatch in late June and July, when normally cautious trout throw caution aside to inhale these large mayflies. The Frying Pan's proximity to the resort town of Aspen and the easier-to-fish Roaring Fork River makes it an ideal technical challenge for anglers looking to test their skills after warming up on broader, more forgiving water.