Stagecoach a winter sports destination

Ihave covered the outdoors in Colorado for two decades, and one trend has become apparent: People do not want to stay indoors in the winter.

Camping, cross country and alpine skiing, snowshoeing and my favorite, ice fishing, are among winter activities that continue to gain popularity.

Cory Spakes, from Stagecoach State Park, joined me on my radio show Saturday morning to share the wealth of outdoor activities available there.

Stagecoach State Park is in Routt County near Steamboat Springs. The main feature of the park is the 819-acre reservoir located on the Upper Yampa River, which boasts some of the state’s best rainbow trout and pike fishing.

Stagecoach is one of a couple of reservoirs in the state that are managed for trophy pike and large rainbow trout. The park accomplishes this by stocking mostly in the fall.

Pike tend to feed less this time of the year, and trout that are stocked have grown larger and are less apt to be eaten by smaller pike. This produces a tremendous population of trout that average from 16 to 18 inches, with bigger fish common.

These trout also provide a food source for the large pike encouraging growth to trophy size. Pike longer than 30 inches are common, with many larger ones caught on a regular basis, including the state record (46½ inches, 30 pounds, 11 ounces).

In fact, Stagecoach Reservoir has been stocked with 42,000 trout as recently as November. This means that as soon as there is fishable ice, the action should be phenomenal, and unlike many areas of the state, Stagecoach Reservoir is experiencing typical winter conditions, which usually sees the lake frozen over by the third week of December.

For those of you who don’t ice fish, the Yampa River both above and below the reservoir holds rainbow, brook and brown trout. Available to spinand fly-anglers year round, the Stagecoach Tailwater, just below the reservoir, is frequently mentioned as one of the top fisheries of its kind in the state. It’s about a 2-mile hike in, so it doesn’t get a lot of pressure in the winter.

Many visitors to the Steamboat Springs area take advantage of the park activities during their stay. For those who don’t fish, there are 8 miles of groomed trail for hiking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing and “fat-tire biking.” If you don’t have your own equipment, the park has a loaner program.

For those wanting to winter camp, it is available on a limited basis during the winter. Four campsites in the Pinnacle Campground are plowed and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Most facilities are shut down for the winter, including showers, flush bathrooms, the dump station and water. Electricity is available at the sites throughout the winter.

Stagecoach offers an excellent natural setting where visitors can delight in the wide-open expanse and connect to the natural world. Lands adjacent to the reservoir feature expansive views of the snowcapped Flat Top Mountains to the southwest, Greenridge to the south and Blacktail Mountain, with its rimrock outcroppings, to the north.

With the unseasonably warm weather most of the state has been experiencing, and for those of you eager to get on with outdoor winter activities, Stagecoach State Park is a great place. In addition to world-class fishing, it offers something for the whole family.