On any given day, fly fishers, bait fishermen and spin casters can be found testing area lakes and rivers while admiring the scenery. Inlet and golf course is fishing slower with the high flow. Large lures might attract one. Current Streamflow : Big T Above Lake Estes: Frozen, Big T Below Lake Estes: ... For info on guided trips on the Big Thompson, hit the LINK. 10 mph. Enjoy! Estes Park always gets hit with lots of summer traffic. Wander beside the river, through park like plazas with benches to sit on, with the sounds of the river nearby. Tiger Muskie •A small population of tiger muskie roam Estes Lake. A lovely paved biking/hiking route with great views that starts off following the Big Thomspon River and then loops around Lake Estes. The RMNP Section is an excellent section of water that holds Rainbows, Browns and Brook trout in it’s waters. A tributary of the South Platte river, the Big Thompson begins its journey in the high elevations of RMNP. Historical River Flow. Fishing is catch and release flies and lures only. This page will refresh automatically. The Big Thompson River below Lake Estes holds panfish sized rainbows, cutthroat trout, and brown trout. Mission: To regulate power generation at the Estes Power Plant and move Colorado-Big Thompson Project water from the power plant on down through the remainder of the C-BT Project. Big Thompson River Below Lake Estes: The Flow above Lake Estes is 436 CFS with the runoff appearing to have peaked. As small drainages offer additional snowmelt, the Big Thompson picks up volume, turning into one of Colorado’s finest streams. Below Lake Estes, the river continues along Highway 34 through Drake, eventually making its way to the town of Loveland. Estes Park, 60 miles northwest of Denver, has a winter population of 6,000 which swells to about 40,000 in summer. When you enter the park, you can drive and access the meadow section of the river by car. Starting at the Visitor Center, the Estes Park Riverwalk follows the Big Thompson/Fall River as it winds through downtown Estes Park. Flow. They show various roads such as in the Big Thompson Canyon. The Big Thompson … 31 cfs. If you know of any other cameras that should be listed here please tell me! These are some of the CDOT cameras and webcams from around Estes Park. Wind. Lakes in Estes Park. FALL RIVER: Bead head squirmy worms, WD40, and black thread midge size 18, or poison tung. With the Big Thompson River running right through the village, Lake Estes at its east entrance and the Rockies rising in nearly every direction, Estes Park is the scene of a mountain angler's dream. Available data for this site Click to hide station-specific text The Water Temperature at this site is operated seasonally, March through November only. Back to other River Reports. The rainbows and cutts are stocked, and the browns are naturally reproducing. Access for the Big Thompson River near Estes Park is widely available for all variety of anglers. Known locally as “The Big T”, Big Thompson River makes it headwaters among the heights of the Rocky Mountain National Park in Forrest Canyon before making its way down the mountainside through Estes Park, then feeding into Lake Estes before winding along highway 34 all the way to Loveland, CO. Current River Flow Updates. The flows on the Big Thompson below Lake Estes are at winter flows of 25 CFS, work on the Cottonwood Siphon has finished. From Lake Estes, the river descends 1/2 mile (800 m) in elevation through the mountains in the spectacular 25 mi (40 km) Big Thompson Canyon, emerging from the foothills west of Loveland. It is at the main entrance of the park at the head of the Big Thompson River, which overflowed in 1976 and killed 139 people in a flash flood caused by heavy rain. Big Thompson - RMNP. National Weather Service Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service (AHPS) River Information. To Book your Guided Trip please contact the shop at (970)498-8968. The week has been warmer than normal and fishing has been very good. Posted By: posim support. Fishing remains very good with size 14 Tarnished Tungsten MicroMayfly, Radiation Baetis (size 16), blue Poison Tung (size 16) and RS2 emergers in grey (size 20). It flows eastward, south of Loveland across the plains into Weld County and joins the South Platte approximately 5 mi (8 km) south of Greeley . Come Fly Fish Rocky Mountain National Park! ESTES PARK — The fly fishing guide who pulled McKenna Fowler’s lifeless body from Colorado's frigid Big Thompson River last month said he is … The max grade is moderately steep, about 8% at 0.6 miles and 2.0 miles. 17/31. Estes Lake so early morning fishing is much better. Free Zoom Tying Demos; Zoom … Above: The chart above depicts the various species surveyed in lake Estes in 1972, 1995, 2010, and 2016. The Fern Lake Trail follows the Big Thompson River all the way to The Pool, and alternates between forest and a few open areas that provide some pretty good views of the Big Thompson Valley. Current Conditions at Big Thompson: The Big T is seeing lots of pressure right now. The Big Thompson River flows through Lake Estes as if the small reservoir were a canal. Starting as a mere trickle on the east side of the Continental Divide, inside Rocky Mountain National Park, the Big Thompson flows from Forest Canyon Pass near the top of Trail Ridge Road through Forest Canyon. The Big Thompson River has its start in the high mountains of Rocky Mountain National Park in Forrest Canyon, flows down through the town of Estes Park where it makes a brief stop at Lake Estes, before continuing its journey though the canyon along Highway 34 to Loveland. BIG THOMPSON RIVER ABOVE THE DAM: Prince nymphs, RS-2, WD40, Ray Charles, sow bug, zebra midge size 18 . Big Thompson River, CO: BLUDILCO: Blue River below Dillion, CO: BLUGRECO: Blue River below Green Mountain. The Big T is open again now that the fires have subsided. The Upper Big T in Rocky Mountain National Park. 29 °F. The best time of the year to throw dry flies starts around June and lasts until October. × Export: Station … The backdrop of the Rockies just adds to the pleasure of trout fishing here. Flows are still up around 300cfs which is fantastic for this time of year. Posted On: October 25, 2016. Two weeks in a row we saw a bear about 1 hour after sundown at the very far western end of the walkway past the P.O. 4/5. On July 31, between 12 and 14 inches of rain fell over a … The tailwater operates very stable for a dam. Colorado Stream Update: Summer in Estes. Directions - 144 Miles - 2 Hours 35 Minutes. LAKE ESTES. From Estes Park the stream flows down to Loveland. Lake Estes serves to regulate both C-BT water and the natural flows of the Big Thompson River. For best results fish early and late in the day. About Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park Big Thompson River water flows … Rating. The rest of the Big Thompson River canyon is open fishing and continues to provide highly accessible water to Idylwilde Dam. Big Thompson River flows through Moraine Park and is a favorite spot for fishermen. CDOT cameras are updated every 3-5 minutes. Low/High . The bureau owns and operates Lake Estes and Olympus Dam and Tunnel as part of the Colorado-Big Thompson Water Project. Below Lake Estes at Estes Park classic tailwater flows are well controlled with fairy stable discharge except for the annual runoff between March and April. Big Thompson River SOUTH PLATTE BASIN Fishing Report. Big T water continuously passes through Olympus Dam on down through the Big Thompson Canyon. Information. The Big Thompson flood of 1976 was the deadliest flash flood in Colorado’s recorded history. Weather @SOUTH PLATTE BASIN - Updated December 18, 2020 - 9:01am by OpenWeather. The tailwater section right below Estes Park can be some of the most exciting sight fishing in the state with the low flows we are seeing. NOTE: Forecasts for the Big Thompson River (CO) at Lake Estes are issued routinely year-round. The Big Thompson, commonly referred to as the Big T, is a beautiful river that originates high in Rocky Mountain National Park. Accessibility: This trail is paved, smooth, typically at least five feet wide, and has an estimated average grade of 4%. Excellent landscaping walking along the always-interesting Big Thompson River & past its confluence with the Fall River. BIG THOMPSON RIVER [00205019] @ Stream Mile: 59.19 Hydrologic Unit Code: 10190006 UTM X: 456377.7 UTM Y: 4469874.8 ... BIG THOMPSON RIVER ABOVE LAKE ESTES: Rating Table Name: WDID: 0403102: Modified: PDF CSV Table; Graph; GAGE.00.01.02.03.04.05.06.07.08.09 DIFF . parking lot & past the tiny playground. The graph shows both the base rating and the current shift adjusted rating. Look for the bronze animal sculptures, and rock water features. Temperature. From Lake Estes the water travels east via the Olympus and Pole Hill Tunnels to the 38.2 MW Pole Hill Powerplant, where it drops 825 feet (251 m), [4] and flows via the shorter Rattlesnake Tunnel to Pinewood Lake. Updated 11/7/2020. “As you all know, the Colorado-Big Thompson … The Perfect Property for Exploring Estes and RMNP - $187 avg/night - Estes Park - Amenities include: Internet, Air Conditioning, TV, Satellite or cable, Washer & Dryer, Children Welcome, Parking, No Smoking, Heater Bedrooms: 2 Sleeps: 6 Minimum stay from 2 night(s) Bookable directly online - Book vacation rental 434223 with Vrbo. About Big Thompson River Fly Fishing. USGS 402114105350101 BIG THOMPSON BL MORAINE PARK NR ESTES PARK, CO. Big Thompson River near Estes Park, station 06735500; Big Thompson River above Dille Tunnel, near Drake, station 06736700, Big Thompson River below outflow above Lake Estes, station 402245105302300, Big Thompson River at Whispering Pines, station 402249105282000, Big Thompson River below Sulzer Gulch, station 402533105124300, Each survey was BIG THOMPSON RIVER BELOW THE DAM: - Try prince nymphs size 16, rainbow warriors size 20, squirmy worms, hot head sow bug, RS-2, and BH Pheasant tail size 16. Light fluorocarbon tippet in the 5x-7x range will be required to fool these highly pressured fish. This small-medium sized river flows through Rocky Mountain National Park and the town of Estes Park before feeding into Lake Estes. Hiking Hiking the Moraine Park area takes you to some fabulous sights, like Mill Creek Basin, Fern Falls and Bear Lake. 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