http://www.dansflyshop.com/1/

Angling Publications - Index

Angling Publications - may2008 - Index

60
Lake City, Colorado, sits in a very unique place in the high
country of southwestern Colorado, amid the magnificent San Juan
Mountains. Nestled into a small valley, with 11,500-foot Slumgullion
Pass on one side and 14,309-foot Uncompahgre Peak on the other,
tight by the banks of the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River and just
downstream from crystal clear Lake San Cristobal, Lake City is the
nucleus of what is, arguably, the best and most overlooked trout
fishing in all of Colorado. Surrounding Lake City are such marvelous
trout streams as Cebolla Creek, Big Blue Creek, Henson Creek,
Cottonwood Creek, the upper Rio Grande River, the Gunnison River,
the Lake Fork of the Gunnison, and many other small streams and
mountain lakes full of feisty trout.
It has become a ritual for me when I am in Lake City to stop by
Dan’s Fly Shop (www.dansflyshop.com) to get the latest word on
where the fish are biting and what they currently prefer in the way of
dry flies. Dan Hall has had a fly shop in Lake City since 1959—which
is amazing, since he looks to be about 50 years old—and has been
in his current location since 1984. There is no one who knows more
about the area than Dan. In addition, he has a core of top-notch
guides that work for him or out of his fly shop.
Cebolla Creek
Cebolla Creek (pronounced “say-boy-ah”—Spanish for onion) has
its beginning just below the summit of Slumgullion Pass. It is the
home to a very good population of larger trout, but because it’s both
easy to find and easy to access, it gets some fishing pressure in the
summer months. Even then, however, it’s not usually what I would call
crowded. You will find everything from gurgling, rock-filled rapids,