The journal · South Platte

Blog.

River guides, fly selection, and field notes from the South Platte. Written from the water, not a desk.

A fly angler standing thigh-deep at the edge of a broad blue river, fly rod held out to one side with line running off the tip, whitewater breaking in the foreground and a birch-and-spruce shoreline behind

Detecting the Take You Can't Feel

On a tight line, most takes never reach your hand — they show in the sighter. Reading the stall, the tick, and the pause that break the drift, and why you set on all of them.

Oct 9, 2026 · 16 min read Read the story →

More from the journal

133 posts · page 1 / 12

A hooded fly angler stands on a snowy riverbank in heavy falling snow, rod bent in a long arc over dark open water edged with shelf ice (photo: Unsplash)

Why Your Euro Leader Sticks to a Wet Rod (and How to Fix It)

Why a euro leader glues itself to a wet rod blank in rain and wet snow, the five-minute tippet spiral that fixes it, and what never to put on the finish.

October 7, 202613 min read

Golden mist over dead-flat water at sunrise, frost on the bank grass and bare trees along the far shore

Reading Rises: What the Riseform Is Telling You Before You Cast

The shape of a rise tells you what trout are eating — sip, splash, head-and-tail, or gulp. Here's how to decode each one and tie on the right fly.

October 5, 202615 min read

A gold bead-head fly with an orange hot-spot collar, holographic flash and a long soft rabbit-strip wing, laid on pale cloth

The Point-and-Dropper Rig: Two-Fly Tight-Line Tactics

The two-fly tight-line rig is about strategy, not the leader: which fly rides point, which the dropper, how spacing changes with depth, and when to change depth vs. fly.

October 2, 202613 min read

Hardy Firecrest 9-foot 7-weight fly rod, close-up of the butt section with the Hardy, Firecrest and Sintrix FLT lettering on a dark blank (photo: Hardy)

Best Trout Streamer Rods for Colorado Tailwaters: Six Worth a Look

Six trout streamer rods for Colorado tailwaters, sorted by 6wt vs 7wt, sink-tips, South Park wind and swing weight, plus the upgrade I'd make from my Vice.

October 1, 202614 min read

Scott F Series E-glass fly rod — cork grip and black anodized reel seat beside three amber fiberglass blank sections with red wraps and chrome snake guides (photo: Scott Fly Rod Company)

The Blue-Line Setup: Gear & Tactics for Small Colorado Creeks

The rod, reel, leader, flies, and on-water tactics I use to fish small Colorado blue-line creeks — short soft glass, dry-dropper rigs, and a stealth game built on moving slow.

September 30, 202613 min read

Overhead on a clear South Platte tailwater — a rainbow held over cobble on the nymph leader as the current threads past, moments after the take

Leading vs. Following Your Flies on a Tight Line

Drift control on a tight line: when to lead the rig and meter the pace, when to follow the current, and how to stay in light contact without towing the flies off the bottom.

September 28, 202614 min read

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