Wade2/100
Wading is the most sensitive plan today. Use protected edges only, avoid crossings, and downgrade quickly if clarity or current feels wrong.
Menu
All Colorado reports
Fly fishing report · West
Colorado River Middle Colorado
A middle Colorado River report for Pumphouse, State Bridge, Catamount, float planning, RiverReports/USGS flows, hatches, and access rules.
Check flow & weatherToday's river scoreMedium source confidence
34
Poor
Best option: Float.
A float can fit better than wading only if launches, shuttle, boat skill, wind, and local rules all check out.
Updated Jul 13, 11:17 PM UTCUsually refreshes about every 45 minutes
Recommended approachFloat
Mode scores adjust the river-wide score for the risks of wading, bank fishing, or floating.
Bank / edgeCheck
This report does not describe this as a primary mode. Verify legal access, depth, launches, and retreat options before planning around it.
Float · Best fit28/100
A float can fit better than wading only if launches, shuttle, boat skill, wind, and local rules all check out.
Confirm before you leave
Flow and weather right now.
Use the flow trend to confirm the score before you leave. Weather can change the safest and most productive fishing window.
Loading current flow and weather.
River strategy
This is the Pumphouse-to-Catamount planning page.
The middle Colorado is a major float and wade corridor. Use the Catamount flow chart, BLM access pages, and CPW rules before building a day around Pumphouse, State Bridge, Radium, or nearby ramps.
- Use the Catamount RiverReports and USGS gauges for this middle-river plan.
- Separate float access from wade access before choosing flies or timing.
- Check seasonal confluence closures and late-summer temperature risk.
- Use the upper or lower Colorado pages for Parshall/Kremmling or Glenwood.
Why this score moved
HeatLowers score
The NWS forecast is near 94F. Without live water temperature, heat risk needs a conservative check.
Best mode nowLowers score
Float: A float can fit better than wading only if launches, shuttle, boat skill, wind, and local rules all check out.
FlowNot verified
The live water-data source did not return a usable value. Open the source before committing to the trip.
Target choiceUse caution
Coldwater targets are a poor choice in this heat window without a current water-temperature check; consider warmwater targets only where that matches the river and rules.
SeasonHelps score
Summer: Caddis, PMDs, stones, and terrestrials matter when temperatures remain safe.
Read the water
What changes the plan.
The middle Colorado is best when flow, clarity, temperature, and access logistics all line up. Float days need ramp planning; wade days need public-boundary awareness and safe water.
Low clear flow
Use longer leaders, careful boat positioning, and lighter nymph rigs.
Medium float flow
A good window for bank streamers, dry-droppers, and nymphing from boat or shore.
High runoff
Use professional judgment for floating and avoid unsafe wading.
Warm late summer
Check water temperature and any CPW voluntary or emergency guidance before targeting trout.
Field plan
Fish it with intention.
Best flows
Use the Catamount trend more than any single target number. Stable or slowly dropping flows are the clearest fit for both floats and edge wading, while high runoff, abrupt changes, or late-summer warmth should move you toward a backup river or a shorter bank-only plan.
When to skip
Skip the trip when runoff or weather makes a float feel reactive instead of planned, when ramp or shuttle logistics are unresolved, when late-summer water temperatures look hard on trout, or when every public access point is already operating at peak recreation pressure.
Local plan
Choose one anchor section before loading the truck: Pumphouse when you want the classic public launch and upstream feel, State Bridge when you want a downstream shuttle target, or Catamount when you want to key the day off the lower part of this middle-river corridor. Build the flies and shuttle around that decision instead of around a generic Colorado River idea.
Backup water
If the middle Colorado is too warm, too busy, or too pushy, pivot to the upper Colorado for a different public-river day or to the Blue River if you need a colder tailwater backup with a more wade-focused plan.
Hatches & flies
Bring a flexible box.
TimingWhat to watchUseful flies
WinterMidges, small baetisZebra midge, RS2, small pheasant tail
Reviewed pattern · report says “Zebra midge”Zebra MidgeLook for a very slim tapered thread body, evenly spaced contrasting wire rib, a small bead, and no tail or wing. The reviewed classic is black with silver wire and a silver bead. Red, olive, brown, glass-bead, jig-hook, resin-coated, or tailed forms must remain labeled variations rather than replacing the classic identity.See photos & how to fish it ↗
Reviewed pattern · report says “RS2”RS2Start with the beadless architecture: two dark-dun Microfibett tails separated behind a slim, tightly twisted and visibly segmented dubbed abdomen; a fuller thorax; and saddle-hackle web clipped into a short angled wing bud. Rim Chung's original-style form uses natural beaver dubbing and hackle web. CDC- or Antron-wing ties, beads, curved hooks, flash, and tailless Avatar-style flies must remain labeled variations.See photos & how to fish it ↗+ 1 more reviewed guide in the Fly Box SpringBWOs, caddis, stonesBWO emerger, caddis pupa, stonefly nymph, soft hackle
Reviewed family · report says “BWO emerger”Blue-Winged Olive PatternsBWO describes a hatch group, not one fly. Nymph, emerger, dry, cripple, and spinner profiles must stay separate because they occupy different parts of the water column.See family guide ↗
Reviewed family · report says “caddis pupa”Caddis Pupa PatternsCaddis pupa is a life-stage family. Curved bodies, wing pads, legs, beads, and soft-hackle collars differ among exact patterns and must be labeled.See family guide ↗+ 2 more reviewed guides in the Fly Box SummerCaddis, PMDs, golden stones, terrestrialsElk hair caddis, PMD, stimulator, chubby, hopper
Reviewed pattern · report says “Elk hair caddis”Elk Hair CaddisLook for a tented elk- or deer-hair wing, clipped hair head, dubbed body, rib, and hackle palmered along the body. The body color should be labeled because tiers often match different natural caddis colors.See photos & how to fish it ↗
Reviewed family · report says “PMD”Pale Morning Dun PatternsPMD names an insect group, not one fly. Pale nymphs, trailing-shuck emergers, upright or low-riding duns, cripples, and spent-wing spinners stay visibly separate.See family guide ↗+ 3 more reviewed guides in the Fly Box FallBWOs, midges, October caddisBWO dry, RS2, October caddis, streamer
Reviewed family · report says “BWO dry”Blue-Winged Olive PatternsBWO describes a hatch group, not one fly. Nymph, emerger, dry, cripple, and spinner profiles must stay separate because they occupy different parts of the water column.See family guide ↗Reviewed pattern · report says “RS2”RS2Start with the beadless architecture: two dark-dun Microfibett tails separated behind a slim, tightly twisted and visibly segmented dubbed abdomen; a fuller thorax; and saddle-hackle web clipped into a short angled wing bud. Rim Chung's original-style form uses natural beaver dubbing and hackle web. CDC- or Antron-wing ties, beads, curved hooks, flash, and tailless Avatar-style flies must remain labeled variations.See photos & how to fish it ↗+ 2 more reviewed guides in the Fly Box 01
Choose float or wade access before choosing a fly plan.
02
Use the Catamount gauge for this middle-river page.
03
Work banks and current breaks from a boat during medium flows.
04
Stay off private banks unless access is clearly public.
05
Check temperature before late-summer catch-and-release trout fishing.
Access & responsibility
Know the entry. Know the exit.
CPW lists Colorado River regulations and seasonal closure details by reach. Verify the exact Pumphouse, State Bridge, Catamount, and downstream section rules before fishing.
Pumphouse Recreation Area
A key BLM access and float-planning site for the middle Colorado.
State Bridge Recreation Site
A major middle-river access marker and shuttle-planning point.
Catamount Bridge gauge corridor
Useful for downstream middle-river flow context.
Transparent sources
Check the facts behind the plan.
Last material review: 2026-05-31
flowRiverReports: Colorado River at Catamount BridgeflowUSGS monitoring location: Colorado River at Catamount BridgeaccessBLM Pumphouse Recreation AreaaccessBLM State Bridge Recreation SitebackgroundColorado Parks and Wildlife Colorado RiverregulationColorado fishing special regulationssafetyNational Weather Service forecast point near Catamount
Common questions
Before you leave.
What does Middle Colorado mean here?+
This page is scoped to the Pumphouse, Radium, State Bridge, and Catamount planning corridor.
Should I float or wade?+
Both can work, but access, flows, and private banks make that decision reach-specific.
Which gauge should I use?+
Use the RiverReports and USGS Catamount Bridge flow for this middle-river page.
What is the main summer risk?+
Warm water and low flows can stress trout, so carry a thermometer and check CPW guidance.