This is another FOASTWRN
I've been eyeing this creek for about 5 years. One thing or another prevented me from attempting to fish this creek. It's another long drive down many miles of forest roads before reaching the trailhead. The water I want to fish is several miles up that trail. In fact the actual preferred area, a large meadow is some 5 miles up that trail. This year I waited for the best day, that is the one with the lowest chance for rain, to see how far I could get up this creek.
Again, First I must drive over these mountains and down into the Rio Grande drainage to where the Rios live.

When I first started loading picrures from this trip I looked at the count, 60, and said to myself I have got to trim that down to a reasonable level. I will not leave many clues, but this little blue line is out there for you to find.

Traveling down these gravel roads for a couple of hours and finally reaching the trailhead.
Gear up at the base requires lighting the vest. No nymphs, no split shot, no metal tools, loose the net and it's retainer. Now add a full 1 1/2 liter Campback and a rain jacket. The wading staff will aid just not in the creek but hiking up and down the trail.

The first part of the hike is a steady 30-45% grade for about 500'.
I'm doing OK with frequent stops to catch my breath and look around.

The road goes on forever and the party never ends.....

The bad news is there are not many landmarks to help with my decision on where to enter the creek.
I cross several ravines and their small feeder creeks.....

Even though the chance for rain is a stated 20%, clouds are already beginning to build and turn dark grey.....

A light rain starts so on goes the Goretex......

After a good way up the trail I start looking for a small meadow I've seen on google maps.
So far no luck. On the far side of the valley an impressive alpine creek cascading down the mountain side and starting with a volume at the top which is hard to believe.

I kept walking off trail looking for a smaller meadow at the bottom. After not finding it I would rejoin the trail and keep moving up. The good news is the rain stopped and I was out of the rain jacket.

I was beginning to think I had missed it. It seemed like about 3 miles in, when I saw something approaching flatter ground at the bottom. It always seems that way when going into a drainage for the first time. Had I gone too far, not far enough? When there is no easy line of sight you just never know until you're standing in it.
Then I came upon a pile of rocks stacked up next to the trail. Obviously someone had gone to a lot of trouble to make this monument. It was a good sign and I wasn't going to overlook it. I looked for a way down. I wasn't going to make it to the meadow about 5 miles in anyway, so this was as good a place as any to start.....

Half way down.....

getting closer.....

and finally there it is some 300' below the trail......

Man, was I excited !!!! I almost had the shakes trying to tie on the tippet and fly. The first couple of casts into likely areas had no strikes and no looks?!? Was this place going to be a bust? I kept moving upstream testing all likely spots but no luck...... Ah man, what a disappointment !!! This portion of the creek was in the middle of a big bend and when I came out on the other side,..... There was a couple standing there breaking down their gear. I'll call them Fred and Ethel to protect the innocent. I talked to them and they had been working upstream for about a mile and were turning back now. I told them I love fishing for Cutthroats with drys. They said they started with drys too, but had very few strikes. So they started using droppers and started catching. They also said they hadn't landed anything larger than 12". I said to buck up, from what I heard they top out around 16" in this creek so they didn't do that bad really. Since they were hiking out here I showed them the way I came down and said follow my path through the grass and they'll find the trail at the top.
If there's one mantra for creek fishermen,
"Don't follow anyone up a creek!"
I was about to test the truth behind those words.

I fishing a small Chubby, an old reliable pattern for chasing Cutts up here.....

Yeap, no doubt about it, never follow close behind another fisherman moving up a creek !!!!!
Tell me where you'd cast on this piece of water.....

Well if you said just to the left of that rock this would have been your fish.....

If you said on the right side of that rock this is what you would have caught.....

So you really couldn't loose in this case.
I was wondering where the gentle meanders of the meadow were hiding down here. Well google maps can play tricks on you zooming in to seem the greatest detail. Most of what I thought was the meadow was actually benches about 20-50' above the creek. The aerial maps looking down did not show the separation. There was some flat ground here and there next to the creek, but a wider meadow down here was an illusion. Well I was catching so who really cares.
Here are some of the spots and the fish they held.....

Here in the rock garden, so many pockets, so many surprises.....

This little wash tub just exploded when my fly bobbed through.....

I don't normally take pictures of fish on the bank, but this was none of my doing. I didn't bring a net and as I was pulling my camera out, with this Cutt finning in the creeks' shallow edge, it started thrashing around, and jumped up on the bank. The setup was so perfect, I took a quick pic, and lifted him back into the creek at my feet.
One more with this Big Cutt Nut grinning.....
Still more time before the needed 2 hour hike out so let's get to it.....
Climbing out to get around a big rock and trees blocking the creek's edge.....

Another 14-15" Rio Grande Cutthroat......

I can't believe how lucky I am right here, right now.....
This was a perfect setup, the water dropping from one side into the hole on the other. I just knew there had to be some Trout resting in that softer water at the bottom.....

Yes sir, indeed there was a good one.....

Just look how dark most of the Rios are, they are isolated by an impassable barrier below. I wonder if the gene pool is moving into something unique? There were two in fact from this drop, but the second slipped the hook while I was pulling the camera out. It happened 3 times today. And I still have way too many pictures of this creek.
More as the time ran out.....

This female slammed the fly like so many others did in the tailout just before the drop.....
Well the clouds were definitely boiling up on the ridgeline. I had a good stretch to go.
This was the last look at the creek before I started the climb out.

The climb was only about 200', but I was real happy it wasn't any more. My legs were drained.

A little ways down the trail and there was the monument that lead me down into this stretch.....

Well there's about 3 miles to go.....

There's critters in these woods.....

Anytime you are close to spines of mountain ranges when stroms come through the winds can be fierce.
Imagine the forces necessary to tear this tree off at the roots.....

Looking back at the ridge that storm seems to be hanging out just on the other side.....

All went well and I was so glad to be back at the truck. I had hiked in about 3 miles, climbed about 1000', then down another 300', fish up the creek about 1/2 mile, and the 200' climb out followed by the distance back to the start. I think my heart is holding up just fine.
I was so happy to finally get into this drainage. The fish were darker than other Rio drainages I've fished. I'd like to come back some time and see if I can catch something 16" or larger here. Maybe next time I will make it to the larger meadow that is above all the water I fished today. It's something to look forward to in the future and will keep me coming back.
The drive out through some of the creeks that washed over the road during this week's heavy rains.

When I got in position where I could see that storm it was impressive.

I'm glad I wasn't trying to fish under that storm today.
Jimbo