Fishing Chickadee Pond in Boulder County, Colorado

• Overview

  This water sits in Boulder County, Colorado. The surface lies 10,016 feet up. Small enough that any disturbance crosses the whole surface. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Boulder County. Nearest town is Estes Park, 13 miles off. Further out sit Nederland (18 miles) and Granby (18 miles). It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Chickadee Pond

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Survey and observation records for Boulder County include black-spotted cutthroat trout, brook trout, brown trout, bluegill and rainbow trout. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. Chickadee Pond gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 51°F; by February the average is down near 18°F. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Break-up comes around late May, and the run that follows is short and strong. Break-up near late May, freeze-up near early November: that is the shape of an average year. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. On Chickadee Pond that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. Overnight stays are possible 120 yards away. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Ouzel Lake, 0.1 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Ask locally about Chickadee Pond if anything is unclear.