Fishing Report For Lake Granby, CO

Current Report: Good

WINTER. Ice fishing for lakers was good last year with quite a few monster lake trout caught. It should be just as good again this year. Favoring water temperatures in the 40's, lake trout have been finding areas to their liking in 45 to 80 feet of water, often suspending 20 to 30 feet above deep structure. They will typically stay at these general depths throughout the cold months. Learning these areas before the lake ices over, can help you identify the better areas for ice fishing. As ice fishing season gets under way, 25 to 40 feet deep is a good target zone. Patient anglers willing to work slowly with spoons, jigs and bait can catch some nice lake trout through the ice.

SPRING. After ice out, trolling with leaded line or downriggers, or vertical jigging with spoons and jigs, completes the cold-water season. Spring weather finds lake trout, along with baitfish, into around 20 to 60 feet of water. Because they are somewhat shallow, Spring is an ideal time to catch big lakers. They are caught in areas of the lake which have deep water, next to shallower, feeding spots. The drop offs on edges in the main basin are classic Spring hot spots. Jigs and heavy spoons catch the majority of these big lakers. Slow trolling with leaded line or downriggers allows small crankbaits and spinners to be worked in deeper water, which also produces some nice fish. Later in Spring they typically drop into deeper water, around 50 to 70 feet deep.

SUMMER. Summer heat drives lake trout to hold around the thermocline, generally in 50 to 90 feet deep. Early and late in the day, lakers may feed slightly shallower. Generally, they prefer to stay around the thermocline, throughout Summer. They look for depth variations like ditches, channels, humps, points and ledges, but are often caught in the deeper water around this structure. Heavy spoons and jigs, as well as very slow trolling, with leaded line or downriggers, produce many of the lakers being caught during Summer. In late summer concentrate on channel edges, troughs, and main lake humps.

FALL. Lake trout will be returning to relatively shallow water, as Fall weather cools the shallows first. They spawn in the Fall, and for a few weeks can typically be found 50 to 70 feet deep on points, flats and humps that have a rocky bottom. Lake trout feed on small fish, so lures imitating baitfish, sunfish, perch or small trout are good choices. Cloudy days, early mornings and early evenings are the best time to catch big lakers. During October or November, they spawn in 10 to 40 feet of water. Spoons, jigged vertically within the target depth can entice bites along depth changes. Trolling at a quick pace with spoons, brightly-colored jerkbaits, and spinners, with a variety of rigging methods to get these lures to run deep. For big lakers, use larger baits.

Current Report: Good To Very Good

Fly fishing is not covered in this website, but rainbow trout are being caught on plenty of other lures and bait.

WINTER. Now that Winter has sets in, jigging spoons, and jigs tipped with bait, are catching nice limits of rainbows out of 8 to 15 feet of water. These baits work well around the old river channel in the main basin, along rip rap around the dam, and along the edges of channel troughs. Trolling , or vertical jigging with spoons and jigs, have been the best approach during the early, cold-water season. Ice fishing for rainbows was decent last Winter, and is expected to be good again this year in 15 to 25 feet of water. Ice is currently unsafe, but should thicken as January comes to a conclusion. Slowly worked offerings are more likely to attract bites in this cold water.

SPRING. As water begins to warm in early Spring, rainbow trout move from their late winter holding spots, to feeding areas in 10 to 30 feet of water. A good number of rainbows are typically caught from mid morning to late afternoon, during the warmest water of the day. Inlets and creek mouths, as well as rocky shorelines and rip rap tend to warm quickly and attract feeding and pre-spawn fish. Shallow flats and rocky structure are also quick to warm in the afternoon sun. Creek mouths, points, shallow coves, and flats adjacent to deep water are popular in Spring. Late Spring finds them feeding in 20 to 30 feet of water, after they spawn. A wide variety of small spinners, spoons and bait are catching most of the fish.

SUMMER. Once Summer is here to stay, the warmer water drives rainbow deeper, 20 to 40 feet deep, occasionally deeper. Trolling the main basin with spoons, spinners and crankbaits, using downriggers or leaded line, and drift fishing with bait, are currently the most productive methods. In summer trout commonly suspend above the thermocline, over humps, deep channel edges and mid-lake structure. Following drop-offs into deeper water, along structure or creek channels, is a major key to getting bites. Early and late in the day they feed in 15 to 20 feet of water. Anglers fishing from the bank are using nightcrawlers or Berkley PowerBait, with fairly heavy weights on a Carolina rig, to get baits into deeper water.

FALL. Cooling water temperatures in the shallows, draw rainbow trout out of deeper Summer depths, closer to shore. As a result, October is a prime month for rainbows, especially for anglers fishing from the bank. Anglers catch them 10 to 25 feet deep on rocky banks, wind-blown points, and flats in the upper regions of the lake. Rainbows also feed on deeper rocky structure, humps, and ledges, anywhere baitfish gather. Now that these trout have had a full summer to grow, there are some nice size rainbow to be caught. Small spinners, spoons, jigs, miniature crankbaits and swimbaits are good choices, as are salmon eggs and prepared baits. Later in Autumn, they move into 25 to 30 feet of water.

Current Report: Fair To Good

Brown trout can be very aggressive, and put up a good battle. These browns are more aggressive than rainbows, and will attack larger lures - especially jerkbaits.

WINTER. Winter has set in, and anglers have been catching a few browns prior to the lake beginning to freeze over. Jigging spoons and jigs tipped with bait are catching most limits of brown trout, in 8 to 15 feet of water. Once the ice is safe, ice fishing is quite popular, using the same baits. Popular areas include channel edges around long points. Slower presentations improve catch rates as these trout have a low metabolism in the colder months.

SPRING. As water begins to warm in early Spring, brown trout move from their deep winter holding areas to shallower, warmer water. After ice out, trolling, drift fishing and jigging spoons all work well. They are found early in the season around 10 to 25 feet deep. Annually, after ice-out, weekend anglers are catching brown trout on spinners, small jerkbaits, nightcrawlers and a variety of other prepared offerings. Many browns tend to congregate around the rip at the dam. Some of the most productive fishing happens from mid morning to late afternoon, on mid-depth humps. Later in Spring, browns prefer water 15 to 30 feet deep.

SUMMER. Once Summer is here to stay, the warmer water drives brown trout deeper, 15 to 35 feet deep, and deeper. Early in the morning and at dusk, they are being caught shallower in these low-light conditions, usually on windy points in 15 to 25 feet of water. Trolling around river channel ledges and structure, using downriggers or leaded line, or drift fishing with bait, are currently the most productive methods. Anglers fishing from the bank are using fairly heavy weights, on a Carolina rig to get baits into deeper water.

FALL. Cooling water temperatures again draw browns shallower. Successful anglers are catching them early in the season 8 to 20 feet deep on points, rocky structure, humps, and mouths of bays where baitfish are gathering. Early in the morning and at dusk, they are being caught shallower. Brown trout spawn in the Fall, usually starting in October. Some of the best catches of the year are reported during this time frame. Jerkbaits, miniature crankbaits, swimbaits and spinners are all popular. Once they have had a full summer to grow, it's a good time to catch a trophy. When they move out to structure in deep water, spoons, jigs and bait are catching browns.