Bull Creek Reservoir Number 4 in Mesa County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Bull Creek Reservoir Number 4 is one of the Mesa County listings for Colorado. Land around it is mixed forest. It runs to roughly 31 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The edge runs 0.8 miles or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Cedaredge sits 13 miles from here and is the nearest stop. The nearest city of size is Boulder, 161 miles away. This one sits near enough to a boundary to be worth checking.

• Where to Fish on Bull Creek Reservoir Number 4

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. Inflow corners move water, and moving water gathers fish. Points where the flooded channel swings in are the reliable ones. Fish documented in Mesa County include flannelmouth sucker, bluehead sucker, green sunfish, white sucker and common carp. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. At this water the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs 17°F to 56°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Ice is part of the season here, ending near mid May. On the long-run averages the water opens up around mid May and starts locking again about mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Time your trip to this water by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. Nothing built is recorded close to the bank here. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Parking space is the usual limit rather than the bank itself. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Failing this one, try Bull Creek Reservoir Number 3, 0.4 miles away. For this water, the notice at the access point is the final word.