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Tomahawk State Wildlife Area

One of the Hidden Gems of Park County by Jack Hunter

Everyone knows about the popular fly fishing resources in Park County, Colorado; The Dream Stream, Eleven Mile Canyon, and Spinney & Antero Reservoirs. In fact, that’s really the problem for those of us that want to have that intimate and secluded atmosphere as part of our fly fishing adventures. Frequenting the regular spots just doesn’t offer that kind of an experience these days.

In our last newsletter, I wrote about a backpacking trip I made with my wife Jeanne to the Sand Creek Lakes in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. What a wonderful trip! It had it all, wild Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout, secluded, pristine landscapes and all far from the maddening crowds seen on the Dream Stream and other popular areas. However, this kind of adventure is not something that is possible or even favored by everyone interested in a quiet day on a trout stream.

So where does an angler go for an experience that is somewhat akin to a wilderness trip without having to strap on a 70 pound pack and hike 6 miles? One place I’ve found is the Tomahawk State Wildlife Area (SWA) just outside Hartsel, Colorado.

Tomahawk SWA has two main entrances that I frequent. Both are off of Colorado Highway 9 between Hartsel, CO and Fairplay, CO. The entrances are located on the right hand side of the road as you are heading north on Highway 9 and there is excellent signage marking both.

The south entrance offers a relatively well maintained road which leads to a parking lot on a high hillside bench overlooking the area. It’s a great place to survey your surroundings and plot your plan of attack. For those with limited mobility this is probably not the best entrance since it requires a hike down and then of course, back up a rather short but steep hill. From the south lot you can access the lower end of the area where the stream flows through willows and sedge which offers privacy around every bend.

The north entrance leads to a poorly maintained and deeply rutted road that can get really slick if it happens to rain while you’re there so be prepared. Two wheel drive vehicles are fine in dry conditions but I’d think twice about taking one down this road if heavy rain were in the forecast.

The nice thing about the north entrance is it leads directly to a parking lot at stream side for those that might have some physical limitations. From this parking lot most of the fishing is to the north and is more open with less willow and sedge on the banks as compared to the lower sections accessed from the south lot. To the south and west of the parking lot there is a short section of public water which meets a small private section that divides the upper and lower sections of the stream. You can access the lower section by walking the road for about a quarter mile to the south and then moving west to the stream. The area is well marked so obey the signs and you’ll be okay.

The Middle Fork of The South Platte River winds through Tomahawk SWA, creating a unique fishery considered by locals to be some of the most intimate small stream fishing in Colorado. Nestled just upstream of Hartsel, this area provides a stunning backdrop for anglers to enjoy. Willows and Sedge line the banks of the meandering stream, while brilliantly colored rock outcroppings force the stream to curve in large oxbow corners through meadows, beaver ponds, striking riffles and beautiful pools. For those that might enjoy wild flowers, they are there in abundance. Wild Iris, lilies and sunflowers bloom through out the spring and summer.

Rainbows, Browns and an occasional Cutthroat Trout inhabit this section of the South Platte. If your timing is right the fishing can be fun with lots of action. Tomahawk SWA is considered Gold Medal water and therefore this area is catch and release only and all Gold Medal regulations apply. As with any area you plan to fish, check both State and area specific regulations and always obey the rules.

The plentiful fish of this stream love dry flies. This stream can be a great place to spend a day watching Browns chase Caddis, BWOs and Hoppers along the banks and in the riffles and pools. Remember, this is a wild trout fishery subject to the ebbs and flows of a “Freestone” stream. Run off in the spring is high and the bottom falls out of the flows as fall approaches. Locally heavy rains can also affect the fishing conditions so knowing what the weather was a day or two prior to your visit is another key element to making the most of your fishing experience at Tomahawk SWA.

Be sure to check the stream flows at: http://www.dwr.state.co.us/ SurfaceWater/Default.aspx

Select the “Middle Fork South Platte at Santa Maria” for the best reading on the Tomahawk flows.

The Middle Fork stream channel is small and the flows vary widely over the course of a fishing season. Food is also not as plentiful as it might be in a tail water stream.

So, what does this mean to the angler? Well, on one hand it means generally smaller fish than one might find in the Dream Stream or Eleven Mile Canyon tail waters with their huge supplies of food, normalized flows and relatively constant water temperatures. On the other hand it means these are wild trout and they come packed with an aggressive strike, a good fight and a beauty that only a wild trout can display. I for one gladly sacrifice some size for seclusion and the opportunity to catch wild trout.

For those head hunters among us, some very large brown trout migrate out of Spinney Reservoir in the fall and spawn in this section so this can be an especially fun time and it can bring some surprisingly large fish to hand.

So, what works? Well, we all have our favorite patterns and techniques. I’ll share a few that work well for me in this area. By no means is this meant to be comprehensive nor do I claim to be the resident expert on Tomahawk SWA.

I will say that I’ve caught fish with these flies and methods throughout the season and have had days where I’ve caught more fish than I can count and bigger fish than you’d expect to see in this stream. I’ve also had days where the score was Fish 20, Jack Zero. Nothing works every time when you’re dealing with nature.

Generally, the South Platte Hatch Chart holds up well at Tomahawk SWA although I find this area to lag the lower reaches by up to a month or so in some years. The timing and severity of the runoff can also impact the hatches as you can imagine.

Spring, before runoff brings BWOs and midges. For dries I like the Parachute Adams, Neil’s BWO and any of the many small gray or black simple midge patters. The sub surface patterns I like are the Mercury Bead Head Pheasant Tail, Jack Duerson’s Grateful Red, John Barr’s emerger, Flashback Black Beauties with a Dunn soft Hackle, and Miracle Nymphs.

This year I started to fish sub-surface at Tomahawk without a strike indicator and I believe this has increased my hook-ups by about 25%. Of course, this could be a figment of my tiny little brain but hey, that’s how I see it.

Summer, post run-off, brings Caddis and if you hit it right you’d better have a bandana to cover your mouth unless of course you like the taste of this prolific little insect. During this hatch I’ve had great luck with the standard Olive Elk Hair Caddis although I find that if I tie them with a CDC under wing and clip the palmered hackle close on the bottom side of the hook shank they seen to take more fish.

Other good dry caddis patterns include the Micro Caddis with some chartreuse Ice Dubbing on the body and of course Puterbaugh’s Black Foam Caddis as well as the Peacock Caddis.

Subsurface I’ve had luck with the Buckskin and Mercury Caddis again with some chartreuse at the butt end.

Mid-summer and early fall bring out the Terrestrials.This is my favorite time of year on the Middle Fork. My all time favorite fly at this time is the Schroeder’s Parachute Hopper in size 14 & 12. I absolutely kill with this fly. I’ve also done well with the other common hopper patterns but the Schroeder’s is my go-to fly. I’ll even drown the Schroeder’s hopper under a willow outcropping and take a big fish here and there.

Other good patterns are the Gulper Special which is really nothing more than a very large Parachute Adams. This fly works great on Spinney Reservoir during the Calibaetis hatch as well. Better have on your 2x tippet when that 28” rainbow takes this one off the surface of the lake… but I digress. Cinnamon Ants and Foam Beetles work well too and can bring out the big boys.

Pound the banks with the terrestrials, drown them under logs and branches and don’t be afraid to use the technique Ed Engle describes in his book Fishing Small Flies. This requires casting the pattern into the grass and dragging it into the water to imitate a falling ant, beetle or hopper.

If it is really a tough day I’ll hang a Bead Head Pheasant tail or midge pattern off the hopper and fish the hopper-dropper rig but I absolutely refuse to nymph during this part of the season. If I can’t catch ‘em on top I’m either going home or I’m finding a seat on the bank to drink a beer or two.

Like I said no real secrets here, all common patterns and techniques that work well all over the South Platte drainage.

Other great areas in the drainage include 63 Ranch SWA, Badger Basin SWA and Knight-Imler SWA to name a few. Almost all of the things I’ve written here apply to these areas as well so enjoy them all.

This year, your Trout Unlimited chapter will participate in the restoration of the Buffalo Peaks Ranch above Tomahawk SWA which will open up even more public water in Park County where anglers can get away from the crowds, catch some wild trout and enjoy the beautiful valley these areas are a part of.

Check out the Buffalo Peaks Project at http://buffalopeaks.wordpress.com

Please look for volunteer opportunities on this project and others on our website, in our upcoming news letters and at our chapter meetings which are held at the Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) building on Sinton Road on the Fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:00 PM

You know, I’ve had some really awesome days at Tomahawk. Some of those days have brought too many small to medium sized Rainbow and Brown Trout to count. Some have brought that one “Nice Fish” on an otherwise slow day. On other days I’ve witnessed incredible Caddis hatches or landed an elusive Cutthroat Trout.

And, there have been a few days that I’ve ended up sitting on the bank sipping a beer and wondering where all those fish I saw last weekend got off to. I guess what I’m saying is that not every great day of fishing has to mean a ton of big fish, at least not for me. If you fit that mold then Tomahawk SWA is a place you will enjoy as much as I do. .

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Eleven Mile Canyon Pass