Where to Go South Platte River – Dream Stream
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Photo by Phil Tereyla
Pikes Peak Trout Unlimited has recently installed water temperature sensors here. Check out the water temps HERE
Report Date: 6/14/2026
Current Conditions:
The draining of Antero is now complete and the flows are dropping pretty fast. Current flows this morning are at 146 cfs. We do expect these flows to come down even more over the coming weeks. While the flows are at this rate, the fishing has been great. Its an absolute bug factory up here right now and water temps are still supporting fishing throughout the day. The dry fly fishing has picked up and its a great time to target the hatch specific bugs in their adult stages, or even throw a dry/dropper or hopper/dropper rig. Sight fishing is the name of the game right now and its also a great time to cover water. Water temps are already getting warm and we have seen water temps reach 65 degrees already. Please cease fishing if you see water temps get above 68 degrees as it can be lethal to the fish.
Hatches:
There is a ton of bug activity happening up here right now. Midges, BWO's, some tricos, some PMD's, caddis, and yellow sallies are all making an appearance. The angler will want to pay close attention to the hatches and switch accordingly. It can be a lot more difficult when there is this much bug activity as the fish will get very picky on what they eat.
Tactics:
Its always a good idea to cover ground up here. Nymphing will always be effective but we are now in a great dry fly window. Its a good idea to have both a dry fly and nymph rod set up so you can grab any opportunity you see on the water.
Weather:
Short Term- Today will cool off a bit and be absolutely beautiful. We could see an afternoon thunderstorm here today, so keep an eye out for that. Any storm should be brief and things should clear up fast. We will dry out and warm up next week. Temps could get close to record highs on Wednesday and we will see temps in the mid 80's! Precipitation chances are non existent during this time. Heading towards the end of week, precipitation chances will increase again. We have decent chances of rain from Friday through the weekend, and into next week. Temps will remain warm though. In all, this coming week looks like a great time to head out to the water.
Long Term- With the increased precipitation chances next week, it looks like we may start to see some consistent afternoon rain coinciding with the summer monsoon season. Temps will also be nice and in the 70's. Longer range forecasts have been hinting at this for a little while now, and this looks like the set up to that. We desperately need to get some consistent rainfall as our snowpack statewide is already gone. This is about 3 weeks earlier than normal, and expected after our low snow year. Each year when this happens, our fire danger increases.
Tips:
With the higher flows, dont sleep on some of those larger patterns. Scuds, cranefly larva, worms, and stoneflies can all be great additions to the typical hatching insects.
Keep a close eye on water temps up here. The lower flows will certainly make the temps warmer. We will be seeing lethal water temps up here pretty soon. We are already seeing water temps reach 64 degrees by 1pm. Please stop fishing if you see water temps reach 68 degrees or more.
RECOMMENDED PATTERNS
For a custom fly assortment for this location, click here!
Our Top 6 Nymphs for Today:
- RS2, black, size 22
- Iron Sally, size 16
- Foamback emerger, brown or olive, sizes 20-22
- Barrs graphic caddis, tan, sizes 16-18
- Flashback PT, sizes 18-20
- Barrs emerger, BWO, sizes 20-22
Our Top Dry Flies for Today:
- Mole Fly, natural. Size 20-24
- Chubby, royal, sizes 12-16
- Elk Hair caddis, sizes 16-18
- BWO Comparadun, olive, size 20
- Parachute Adams, sizes 20-26
Our Top Streamer Patterns for Today:
- Extrovert, olive, size 6
- Mini Flatliner, brown/white, size 8
- Tips up, tan, size 2
- Sculpzilla, natural, sixes 6-8
Standard nymph rig set up for the South Platte:
Screenshot the diagram above to reference while you're out on the water!
BE SURE TO CHECK OUT OUR "WHERE TO GO" PAGE FOR DETAILED INFORMATION ON OTHER AREAS!
The South Platte River below Spinney Reservoir is known to most local anglers as the "Dream Stream." This tailwater doesn't have many hold over fish and is subject to high wind speeds and inclement weather. The spring and fall have been the Dream Stream's saving grace because of the spawns. Large rainbows and cutthroat trout move into the river in the spring, and Large browns and kokanee salmon move in in the fall. There is no camping available next to the river; however, several great campgrounds are downstream along Elevenmile Reservoir. There is a $9 parks pass fee to park in the last lot below Spinney.
This is an area we specialize and are permitted to guide in, so give us a shout if you have any questions or if you are interested in allowing one of our Orvis-Endorsed guides show you how best to conquer South Platte River – Dream Stream.