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First off, I believe that your chances of success increase if you are among the first anglers on any given day to show the trout a fly. The obvious reason for that belief is that the less the trout have been disturbed the more likely it is that they will act naturally and be at least a little less inclined to spook. A little less obvious reason is that low light conditions make your approach to the fish less apparent. Needless to say, low light conditions occur early in the morning and later in the afternoon. Both times offer good opportunities.

This isn't to say you can't catch these trout at other times of the day.

My second rule for catching the big boys is that I assume that anytime I spot one of them I have a chance of catching it. You can increase those chances dramatically by how you spot and approach the trout. Most of us who fish the river a lot this time of year know the holding water where the trout are most likely to be. I have found that if I try to fish to them from up on the high bank I'll almost always spook them. It's critically important to get into the river and approach the fish from downstream.

If you're not sure where the fish are holding, try slowly walking three or four feet from the bank in either an upstream or downstream direction -- which way you go will depend on which way the lighting is best to spot fish. The odds are that no matter how careful you are you'll probably spook the fish at least a little. Simply keep walking slowly by where you saw the fish while paying special attention to its location. If you come back to that location in 20 or 30 minutes you'll probably find that the trout has returned to it.

The key is get down off the bank and approach the fish from downstream. You may not even be able to clearly see the trout from down in the water, but if you have accurately marked its location you have a good chance of hooking up if you make an accurate presentation. The odds actually remain good for the first 10 to 15 presentations if you are careful to not disturb the water too much.

Every fly fisher has his or her ideas about which flies to use, but two-fly dead drift nymphing rigs using an egg pattern nearest the weight and a size 20 to size 26 midge larvae or pupae imitation on the point are very common. Apricot is a good color for the egg. Tie the egg pattern as small as you can. I like a simple midge larvae pattern tied with black or pheasant tail colored Microtubing for the point fly. If you prefer not to use egg patterns I've had good luck with just the tiny midge larvae patterns.

Sometimes a colored strike indicator will spook the trout. If your indicator is spooking fish switch to a single white disposable stick-on indicator. I'm not sure why these seem to spook the fish less, but it might be that the trout may mistake the white indicator for foam on the water.

Although I will sometimes spot trout actually spawning over the gravel in the more shallow water, I choose not to fish to them because I believe there is a tendency to snag them when using dead drift nymphing tactics. Fish in the deeper water of holding or staging areas are just as plentiful and offer excellent sport.

In the end I think the most important thing you can do is to spend time trying to spot where the larger trout hold. Even if you spook them you can return to that location in the future and often find fish. Other than that, a careful approach and simply putting some time in on the water are the keys to success.

Ed Engle is outdoors editor of the Daily Camera in Boulder, Co.