Places I've been Fishing in the Front Range
All of my fishing is done using nightcrawlers and an ultra-light spinning rod (sorry fly-fishing folks, I don't have the money for fly-fishing).
Last Updated June 6, 2010.
Clear Lake (off Guanella Pass Road)
Decent luck. I caught many small brook trout. I had my best luck fishing from the east side of the lake where there are many rocks and nooks for the fish to hide. The western side tends to be very crowded anyways, so all the better. To access the east side you can either cross the dam at the north end of the lake or hike up the stream at the south end until you find a place to cross. Clear Lake can get very crowded as it is right off the road (e.g. too easy to get to).
Urad Lake
A crazy drive up. The road is filled with huge rocks and steep, tight switchbacks. When I drove up there was also a lot of run-off washing out huge ruts. It was still frozen over in early June. It's pretty nice once you reach it but the drive up is a little creepy, it reminds me of a Half-Life level. Lots of big industrial buildings, holding ponds, and drains, and no one around.
Georgetown Reservoir
I've never had any luck fishing here. Apparently most of the fish hang out at the eastern end but I have never been down that way because it's always very crowded. It's typically pretty windy as well.
Clear Creek
There are a couple of Clear Creek County open-space parks accessible off of Stanley Road that I've had a little luck at. Lightly used, less regulations, and the people that do come here tend to be more relaxed than your average city-dweller. I've never had any problems with my dog not being on a leash. Being 100 yards from I-70 does get a little old after a while, though.
I've also fished from US-6 near Golden without any luck, but I've only been once. Again, noise is a real downer.
Mount Evans SWA
The best spot I've found so far. From the parking lot take the (gated) fire road that heads south up and over the ridge. I'd guess it's a half-mile walk to Bear Creek. I've had my best luck fishing downstream from where the road first meets the creek. The last time I was out I tried heading upstream and had decent luck until I got about a quarter-mile up and was then skunked. Mostly small trout but I've caught a couple 8"+ fish. Very pretty scenery and I've had it all to myself during the week. On the weekends it starts to turn into a zoo after noon. Technically dogs are supposed to be leashed but I've never seen a dog on a leash except when the weekend crowd shows up.