Fishing Upper Hancock Lake in Chaffee County, Colorado

• Overview

  In Colorado, Upper Hancock Lake falls inside Chaffee County. It stands 11,726 feet above sea level. This is a pocket water of some 3 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Our Chaffee County list holds plenty of bigger water. The nearest town is Salida, 20 miles away. Buena Vista is 20 miles away, with Gunnison at 31 miles. Being near a boundary, it pays to know which side you are fishing.

• Where to Fish on Upper Hancock Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Open biodiversity records for Chaffee County list brown trout, rainbow trout, black-spotted cutthroat trout, brook trout and california golden trout. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. On Upper Hancock Lake the first feature you find is usually worth a session.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 49°F on average, January about 11°F. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from early June. In an average year the thaw lands around early June and the freeze near early November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. Anyone fishing Upper Hancock Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. Recorded parking is half a mile off, far enough to travel light. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. Hancock Lake sits 0.4 miles off and takes the overflow. For Upper Hancock Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.