Fishing a Winston Fly Rod on Western Colorado Rivers
A fly rod is a feedback tool. It tells the angler what is happening at the end of the line, how the cast is loading, and when to set. Different rods communicate that feedback in different ways. Some rods speak in a fast, sharp voice. Others speak slowly and progressively. The right rod for the angler is the one that speaks the language they want to hear.
Winston rods speak slowly. The Winston feel is the company's signature, and it shows up most on the kind of water that rewards patience and presentation. Here in western Colorado we have water that fits a Winston perfectly. Spring creek style tailwaters. Technical small streams. Big river runs that ask for finesse over distance. Our guides have fished Winston rods on all of it and here is which model goes with which water.
The Lower Gunnison and the Gorge
The Lower Gunnison and the Gunnison Gorge are big water. The river is wide. The wind comes up most afternoons. The hatches are heavy in the summer and the trout are often willing to come up.
For this water, the Winston Air 2 is the right tool. The Air 2 is Winston's most versatile freshwater rod, combining boron and SuperSilica resin technology to deliver a rod that is light in hand, has fast recovery for its action, and still carries the smooth progressive load that defines a Winston. The Air 2 in a 9 foot 5 weight or 9 foot 6 weight handles dry fly work, nymph rigs, and small streamers on this water without complaint.
The Air 2 is also the Winston we recommend for anglers who want to bring one rod for a Gorge trip and have it work for everything from a hopper dropper rig on day one to a tight line nymph rig on day three.
For anglers traveling to the Gorge from out of state, the Winston Air 2 Trout 5 Piece is worth a serious look. Same Air 2 performance in a 5 piece travel-friendly build that fits in a roller bag and survives the airline gauntlet. If you fly to your fishing trips, this is your rod.
If you want to learn more about the Gorge trip, our Gunnison Gorge 3 day guided fly fishing page walks through the experience.
The Uncompahgre
The Uncompahgre is technical water. The Pa-Co-Chu-Puk tailwater section below Ridgway Reservoir holds selective trout that have seen every fly in the bins. Light tippet. Small flies. Long leaders.
This is where the Winston Pure 2 shines. The Pure 2 is built specifically for presentation. NanoParticle graphite gives it touch and loop control on light tippet that few other rods can match. The action is medium fast, smooth, and deeply communicative. You feel everything. The hookset is forgiving enough to protect 6X and 7X tippet through a hard set and a downstream run.
The Pure 2 in a 9 foot 4 weight is the classic tailwater rod. If you fish the Unc seriously, especially the upper sections, this is the right tool.
If you are planning a trip on the Uncompahgre with us, our Uncompahgre River guided fly fishing trips cover both the tailwater and the float sections.
The San Miguel and the Cimarron
The San Miguel and the Cimarron are smaller water. Tighter casts. Lighter tippets. Smaller fish on average. More wading and more tree branches overhead.
The Pure 2 is excellent here as well, particularly in lighter line weights. A 8 foot 3 weight or 8 foot 4 weight Pure 2 is the kind of small water rod that fishes itself. The deep load and slow recovery are exactly what you want when you are dapping a dry fly into a pocket from 15 feet away.
For anglers who want something different on this kind of water, the Winston Air 2 Reach is worth considering. The Reach is built for situations where reach mending matters more than long casts. Small to mid sized water where presentation and line control define the day. This is a specialty rod that excels at one thing and the right anglers know who they are.
And for the angler who wants the full traditional experience, a Winston Bamboo on a small stream is one of the great pleasures in fly fishing. Slow, smooth, deeply progressive, and an absolute joy on a quiet creek in July.
The Saltwater Question
We get this one a lot. Anglers planning a winter saltwater trip want to know which rod to bring.
The short answer for Winston is the Air 2 Max. Saltwater specialist. Built around sealed components that survive salt exposure. Fast, light in hand, designed to lift heavy lines and deliver flies into wind. The 8 weight handles bonefish and small permit. The 10 weight handles permit and small tarpon. The 12 weight is the giant trevally or large tarpon rod.
The Air 2 Max represents Winston's most modern saltwater technology. Boron-enhanced backbone with a recovery speed designed for the demands of the flats.
Trout Spey and Two Handed Water
This is where Winston has built a lineup most other brands have not matched. If you fish Spey or want to start, Winston has three rods that cover the full range.
The Winston Air 2 TH is the full Spey rod. Built for big water steelhead and salmon swinging. Light in hand for the line weight, with the progressive load that makes long Spey casts feel effortless. If you swing flies for steelhead or salmon, this is the rod.
The Winston Microspey Air 2 is trout Spey. A growing application that takes Spey technique and brings it to trout water. Sized smaller than a traditional Spey rod, the Microspey lets anglers use two handed techniques on water where a full Spey rod is overkill. Streamer fishing for trout becomes a different game with a Microspey.
The Winston Air 2 Reach sits between single hand and Spey. Built for reach casts and mending applications on water where neither pure single hand nor full Spey is the right answer. A specialty rod that the right angler will fall in love with.
Why Winston Holds Up Where Other Rods Do Not
Every Winston rod is built by hand in Twin Bridges, Montana. The blanks are rolled in-house on mandrels in the Winston shop. The boron-graphite composite is proprietary to Winston and no other rod company has matched it in decades of trying. The components are sourced for performance. The guides are wrapped by hand. Every rod gets inspected at multiple stages and the rods that ship are the ones that earned it.
Every Winston rod is backed by the Winston unconditional lifetime warranty. When something goes wrong, you send the rod back to Twin Bridges and the same factory that built it rebuilds it. The turnaround is fair and the work is done right by people who care about the brand.
For more on the Winston story, read our piece on why Winston Fly Rods are worth the investment.
Come Cast the Lineup
If you are planning a trip to western Colorado and want to fish a Winston matched to the water you are coming to fish, stop by the shop at 432 East Main Street in Montrose. We have most of the Winston lineup on the rack and a casting setup available outside. You can put time on the rod you are considering before you commit. We can also match the rod to a reel from our Ross, Abel, or Lamson walls.
If you cannot make it in person, you can browse our full Winston Fly Rods selection online. We ship anywhere in the country.
Either way, when you fish a Winston, you are fishing a rod that was built by hand in Twin Bridges, Montana, by people who care deeply about the craft. That is the kind of gear we like to put in our customers' hands.