Blue Mesa Fishing Report April 23, 2021

Blue Mesa Fishing Report April 23, 2021

The water level has been slowly dropping for the last week as we hope to squeeze some snow out of these last few storms!  The first week of fishing has not disappointed as we have been catching all species, seen some encouraging salmon schools, had some incredible trout action and landed some giant lake trout!  It seems like we are dicing with wind or weather almost daily.  The Blue Mesa Rotary Club tournament is ago for May 1 and 2!

Trout- there are definite windows throughout the day where the bite seems to be on fire and other times where it’s fair, but overall you can troll, cast, or jig and get into some awesome action!  A lot of the brown trout are very colorful this spring and very healthy!  Cover water and focus on those rocky shorelines!

Salmon– I’ve had a lot of people reach out to me about what the future of the salmon looks like.  The winter started off a little slow but ended really well for salmon action and we haven’t spent a lot of time fishing for them yet, but have caught a few and have seen a lot of nice schools across the lake!  From what I have seen, a lot of those schools look to be younger fish, which matches up with what we were seeing last August while jigging for the mature fish!  Gill lice are still present, but it appears that we have some good numbers of younger year classes in the lake.  This will probably result in good action this year for kokanee salmon as long as the water temps, oxygen levels, and gill lice levels stay within a maintainable range.

Lake Trout– Tis the season for chasing our favorite species, the lake trout!  It’s never “easy” but spend some time on the water during this time of year and you will typically cross paths with some opportunities at big fish!  Blue Mesa lake trout typically take 10-12 years to reach the 30″ mark and then usually grow an inch per year after that so PLEASE consider catch and release when chasing these magnificent giants!  It’s important to keep your hands out of their gills, never hold them by the gill plate or vertically, don’t drop them, and minimize their time out of the water.  These fish can live to be 60+ years old and can be a memory for many anglers if catch and release is practiced!!!

Fishing Trips– if you want to get out to chase any of the species Blue Mesa has to offer, we would be honored to assist you in your quest!  We have a team of passionate, experienced, friendly fishing guides who truly enjoy sharing their knowledge and experience.  You can text or call for more info (970) 784-6555

This fishing report was provided by Robby Richardson and his team of guides.  Robby specializes in guided fishing trips as well as real estate in Southwestern Colorado.  Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!