In this report
Flow is Dropping Hard—Fish the Tight Slots
At 64 CFS, Deckers is running well below the 150–400 sweet spot for this water, and that’s the story of the week. You’re looking at what amounts to a low-water technical fishery: gin-clear flows, concentrated trout, and fish that will move away from you the moment your shadow crosses the water or a fly line lands badly. The upside is honest—you can see fish and read the water like a book. The downside is equally honest: these trout are spooked, selective, and clustered in the few pockets deep enough to hold them confidently. Wading is easy and safe by Deckers standards, but your casting and approach matter far more than they do when flows run higher.
Midges Own November; Fish Them Small and Patient
November on the South Platte is midge season, full stop. At this flow and this time of year, the primary forage is small—#20 to #24 emergers and nymphs, with the occasional adult midge bringing a rise on the quietest afternoons. Black Beauty, Mercury Midge, and zebra midge patterns in #20–22 are your anchors. Tie a small RS2 emerger or zebra midge as your point fly and fish it on 5X tippet; the small diameter matters when water is this clear and trout are this wary. Rig a #22 black midge emerger about 18 inches above the point on 6X as your dropper—the lighter tippet reduces visibility, and the smaller fly matches what the fish are actually eating.
Blue-Winged Olives can show on the warmest overcast afternoons, but don’t bet your day on them. If the sun stays behind clouds and afternoon temps stay in the low 40s, you might see a thin hatch and a few fish rise to a #20 BWO dun. More likely, you’ll fish emergers and nymphs all day and take your fish subsurface.
How to Actually Fish This
With 64 CFS and clear water, your target is the deeper, slower water—the slots behind boulders, the inside bends where current slows, and the deeper runs along undercut banks. Skip the shallow riffles; they’re not holding fish at this flow. Focus on water that looks like it might be 3 to 4 feet deep and relatively quiet, even if it’s bordered by faster current.
Fish a tight-line or light-indicator rig depending on your preference, but weighted. Use a Barr’s-style anchor fly—something like a #18 or #20 black beauty or pheasant tail nymph—to get to the bottom and hold position in the small amount of current. Add one small split shot just above the dropper to keep everything in the strike zone without overdoing weight and spooking fish on the cast. Cast upstream and across, mend carefully—don’t false-cast over holding water—and let the flies tick bottom in the deeper slots. Takes will be subtle; fish this low and clear are not aggressive. Use a sensitive indicator or go tight-line so you feel the grab rather than waiting for a visual cue.
Tippet is #5X for the point fly, #6X for the dropper. The smaller diameter is not just theory here—at 64 CFS, visibility is extreme, and a thicker tippet will cost you fish.
Water Temperature and Fish Welfare
November flows this low raise a secondary concern: water temperature. Midges thrive in cool water, and the South Platte in November usually runs cold enough that stress is minimal even at low flows. Still, mid-afternoon can warm the shallows slightly. If you’re fishing, avoid the shallowest runs and smallest pockets; keep your focus on the deeper, slower water where temperature stays stable. Play and land fish quickly, and consider catch-and-release at the small end of the size range—keep what you keep, but don’t exhaust fish unnecessarily in low-water conditions.
Access and Conditions on CO-67
The roadside access off CO-67 is your advantage this week. Deckers is never remote, and at this flow, wading is straightforward—no heavy current to fight, no tricky footing. Trumbull, Deckers Bridge, and the Scraggy View picnic area all offer good entry points. Water temperature won’t demand special boots, but watch for occasional ice on CO-67 itself during early morning; November here can shift fast, and the highway can become slick if overnight temps drop sharply. Plan accordingly if you’re arriving early.
The reach is more open and direct than the Cheesman Canyon upstream—there are no confusing canyon walls or hikes required. You park, you walk to the water, you fish. At low flow, the wading is genuinely user-friendly.
The Real Play This Week
Don’t overthink it. Small midges, clear water, low flow, and fish that have nowhere to hide and nowhere to go. Cast short, land softly, mend minimally, and keep your flies in the deep slots where trout are holding tight. This is technical fishing, but it’s also honest fishing: you’ll see what you’re doing wrong, and you’ll feel when you do it right. If you fish patient and small, you’ll pick up fish. If you fish fast or sloppy, you won’t. Deckers rewards precision, and this week demands it.