New Mexico Fly Fishing / Wyoming Fly Fishing / Taos Fly Fishing

Van Beacham's Solitary Angler: Fly fishing outfitter and guide service, Taos New Mexico

New Mexico fly fishing / fly fishing New Mexico

Taos, New Mexico is located in the heart of the Southern Rockies. Fly fishing in Taos offers anglers a unique blend of magnificent scenery, beautiful weather and excellent fly fishing on a year-round basis. From high mountain lakes and streams to "wild and scenic" river canyons like the Rio Grande Gorge, fly fishing in Taos offers a variety of fly fishing opportunities, without the crowds. Due to our southern latitude we always have something that is fishing well even in the middle of winter. Come fly fish Taos with us!

Taos is an excellent fly fishing destination for those who like to do other things or have companions with diverse interests. Visit us in Taos during the winter, and you can ski or board one day at Taos Ski Valley and fly fish the next day on the Red River for wild “cutbows” in the warm New Mexico sun. Taos also has world famous art galleries, award winning dining and unique accomodations. In the summer you can fly fish a high mountain stream with one of our guides while your family goes shopping and gallery hopping, or your kids can go on a jeep tour, raft trip or horseback trail ride. The Solitary Angler can book those Taos activities for you as well!


fly fishing The Red River in Taos New Mexico / Winter fly fishing

The Red River is a spring-fed river and the main tributary for spawning and wintering fish coming from the Rio Grande Gorge. It’s our only natural stream in Northern NM that offers excellent winter fly fishing. Since the Red River is only 15 minutes from Taos, it's our favorite beginner Taos fly fishing destination.

Thousands of browns, many over 18 inches, run up the Red River every Fall to spawn. The browns feed aggressively during this migration and are challenging to land in the fast canyon pocket water.
Winter brings in the wintering and spawning cutbows and rainbows from the Gorge. They feed willingly on the midges and occasionally blue winged olives and caddis. Of course there is a healthy resident population of rainbows and browns in the Red as well. Combine a winter fly fishing trip on the Red River with a trip on the Culebra and/or skiing or boarding the steeps at Taos Ski Valley!

fly fishing The Rio Grande in Taos New Mexico

The Rio Grande River flows out of Southern Colorado's San Luis Valley into the 70-mile-long Rio Grande Gorge, a sheer canyon cut hundreds of feet into the Taos Valley Volcanic Field, running parallel to and slightly west of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Taos. The Rio Grande Gorge is the epitome of wild freestone river fly fishing. Uncontrolled by dams for the most part, the river is influenced almost completely by nature. As a result the trout, like the fly fishing, are unpredictable.

The spring (April) before run-off during the classic caddis hatch and fall are the best and most consistent times to fish the Rio Grande Gorge. Streamers work well for lunker cutbows and browns especially for fall browns. We do some custom fly fishing float trips each year through some very remote parts of the Gorge, but for the most part our trips are hike in and wade or drive up and wade. For the adventurous angler who likes a chance at catching large, wild trout that have rarely if ever been hooked or even seen a fly, fly fishing the Rio Grande Gorge is just what the doctor ordered.

fly fishing The Cimarron river

The Cimarron is a small tail water located one hour east of Taos. Eagle Nest Lake, a large reservoir situated in the beautiful Moreno Valley, feeds this beautiful and challenging stream. The Cimarron is home to German Brown trout in abundance and a fair population of Rainbow trout. Fish range 7" to 20" in length, averaging 10 to 14 inches. Don't be fooled by this river's size; it's loaded with willing brown trout!

The dry fly fishing from mid-May through July can be fabulous. Several varieties of stoneflies, mayflies and caddis hatch, sometimes simultaneously, bringing eager brown trout to the surface, often all day long. August and September brings out the terrestrials and bank-feeding browns. By October browns are running and fall baetis are hatching, providing some excellent low-water fly fishing.

Ask about our exclusive access on the Cimarron . It’s so special that anglers who've fished it call it the “Holy Water”. It produces larger and more trout, consistently. Space is limited on the “Holy Water” so book early!

fly fishing Valle Vidal / Rio Costilla

The Valle Vidal unit of the Carson National Forest is a special reserve managed jointly by the Forest Service and the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. The Valle Vidal is one of the last holdouts of the rare indigenous Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout. The Rio Grande Cut is the only indigenous trout species in the Rio Grande Drainage. It’s a feisty little trout with very distinctive and beautiful markings.

The Rio Costilla, the main fishery in the Valle Vidal, is a medium size tail water springing from the bottom of Costilla Reservoir in Vermejo Park. The Rio Costilla is loaded with Rio Grande Cutthroats averaging 8 to 12 inches, and some much larger. It runs through beautiful, wide-open high mountain meadows making it a superb stream for beginners.

There are several ponds and lakes nearby as well. Some lakes have an abundance of fresh water shrimp which the large Cutthroats gorge on. These are the places for float tube fly fishing at its best!

fly fishing Private Water - Culebra Creek / Fly Fishing Colorado / Winter fly fishing

Over 10 miles of Culebra Creek are exclusive to Van Beacham's Solitary Angler. From the dam all the way out to the hay farms, we've got the most water, the best water, the biggest fish and the most knowledgeable guides to make it happen for you.

This is what we mean when we say "Quality fly fishing without the crowds."

The Culebra springs out of the bottom of Sanchez Reservoir, located in San Luis CO about an hour's drive north from Taos. Situated at the base of 14,000-foot Culebra Peak, it offers both fantastic scenery and splendid fly fishing on a year-round basis. The river runs through lovely wide-open pastures and meadows. The fish, on average, are the largest in the Taos area, with fish 18" and up not uncommon.

Van manages Culebra Creek to maximize your potential for an unforgettable day of fishing. He only allows anglers to fish the stream with a guide (unless you are one of the few privileged members of his Solitary Angling Club) which keeps pressure down. There are 10 sections and only one party per day is allowed on each. Every section receives at least 2 days rest each week.

Culebra Creek is by far our clients' favorite place to fish. Hatches occur all year long (see hatch chart) with prolific spring and fall baetis hatches. Stoneflies, caddis, crane flies, PMDs and Tricos hatch all summer and midges hatch all winter. Come visit Culebra Creek !

fly fishing Forbes Trinchera Ranch

The sprawling 180,000-acre Forbes Trinchera Ranch in Southern Colorado, owned by Steve Forbes of Forbes Magazine, is a sight to behold. This magnificent ranch sits in the heart of the highest mountain peaks in Colorado, several rising to over 14,000 feet in elevation. These jagged peaks supply water for 3 major streams on the ranch, each teaming with wild Rio Grande Cutthroats and some browns, bows and brookies.

It’s like having your own wilderness area to yourself but you don’t have to hike. You can drive to most of the fly fishing. There are also several lakes on the property with some very large rainbows, brookies and cuts. The best season at Forbes is late June through August when you can catch fish on dry flies all day long.

The lodge has 5 star accommodations and a well equipped conference room and it’s an ideal location for corporate groups and group conferences. Space is limited on these exclusive trips so book early! Combine with fly fishing on Culebra Creek, just 25 minutes from the Lodge.

fly fishing Green River Wyoming

Van's Green River operations are based out of Kemmerer, Wyoming, just a little over 2 hours from Salt Lake City. From here we fish the Green River above and below Fontenelle Reservoir, the Hams Fork, which runs through Kemmerer, and the Smiths Fork, which is about an hour from Kemmerer. All are fabulous fisheries, each offering something different and all have “quality fly fishing without the crowds”.

There are nice accommodations in Kemmerer and there are several restaurants to choose from but Kemmerer isn’t a big tourist town. Clients come here to fly fish! There’s no 5 star lodges, fancy restaurants or hopping nightclubs here. Just basic stuff and great fly fishing opportunities and of course, professional, experienced guides from The Solitary Angler.

Many clients have combined fly fishing here with trips to the Green River below Flaming Gorge or the Snake River near Jackson Hole, and most tell me this was their favorite part and that they caught larger and sometimes more fish here. Many have told me this is the best trout fishing they ever had!

fly fishing The Green River

The Green River below Fontenelle Dam in Southwest Wyoming is perhaps the last major undiscovered trophy trout stream in the lower 48. The river flows through a magnificent stretch of public land in the middle of the Red Desert called Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, and it’s hardly noticed by anyone.

The river is a broad tail water and is easily floated or waded. It boasts plump rainbows, cutthroats and browns that average over 3 pounds, and fish over 5 pounds are common! Hatches include cicada, stone flies, caddis flies, tricos, blue-winged olives, midges, snails and scuds. Crawdads and minnows of all types also are very abundant for the lunkers over 5 pounds.

The Solitary Angler float fishes five sections of this pristine river and permits are very restrictive, allowing only two guides per day with the exception of six weekdays per year when we’re allowed four guides. This is to protect the wildlife from being displaced in this fragile environment. You need at least two or three days to fully appreciate this special, secluded section of the Green River.

fly fishing The Hams Fork

The Ham’s Fork is a medium-sized stream flowing out of the Wyoming Range into Viva Naughton Reservoir near our base town of Kemmerer. Below the reservoir is a private stretch of water which the Solitary Angler has access to. The stream is a classic tailwater winding though willows with numerous riffles, pools and under cut banks, holding thousands of rainbows per mile that average around 16 inches, many larger.

This is classic dry fly water and hatches occur daily from July through October. Midges and blue winged olives are the primary food source but hatches of golden stones and caddis do occur in June and July. During hatches it’s hard to move from a pool because they just keep feeding.

The lower Ham’s Fork also offers great dry fly fishing but it also has a healthy brown trout population. The trout in the lower Ham’s Fork average larger and some real big browns and rainbows over five pounds have been caught. Stone flies and caddis are also more plentiful in the lower Ham’s Fork and September and October produces many large browns. Combine with a day or two on the Green and/or Smith’s Fork.

Salwater Fly Fishing in Xtalak Mexico

For saltwater fly fishing adventures, Van Beacham's Solitary Angler books trips for Mark Cowan's Saltwater operation located in Xcalac, on Chetumal Bay in Mexico.

Anglers stay at the Costa de Cocos lodge, while enjoying daily jaunts to stalk wiley bonefish, permit, tarpon and snook. This place has the largest bonefish in all of Mexico or the Caribbean! If you have been dying to try some saltwater fly fishing, this place, with its varied available species and locations, is the place you have been dreaming of.

For available options and packages, contact The Solitary Angler for full details. Space at the Costa de Cocos lodge is limited, so book your trip today

fly fishing Wyoming

fly fishing New Mexico

Winter fly fishing

New Mexico Fly Fishing
Taos Fly Fishing
Culebra Creek Fly Fishing

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