The Miracle Mile

Intro | Upper River | Saratoga | Access | Tailwaters | Miracle Mile | Gray Reef | Encampment

The Miracle Mile is actually about a seven-mile section of river running from the Seminoe/Kortes reservoirs to Pathfinder Reservoir. During drought years, the flowing river section may stretch twice as far, and when the lower reservoir is at capacity, it may be marginally shorter.

The "Mile" has always had the reputation of being a trophy fishery, and some truly large fish are taken there each year. I personally know of a 21-pound brown trout and an 18-pound rainbow taken there, and have taken many fish in the 5- to 10-pound range--and some bigger--myself. If that's not a miracle, I don't know what is.


The Miracle Mile is one of the best big-trout destinations in the West, but be forewarned: The weather can be miserable in the winter, and in the summer it's often crowded with other anglers.

Population surveys show a robust trout population of about 4,500 catchable trout (larger than six inches) per mile. All of the brown trout are wild, as are about half of the resident river rainbows. Tagging studies show that the rest of the rainbows are escapees from the put-and-take lake fishery downstream.

July 1998 Electroshocking Survey Conducted by Wyoming Department of Fish and Game
Brown Trout	Rainbow Trout	Cutthroat Trout
2953 trout per mile	1287 trout per mile	229 trout per mile
1205 lbs per mile	1662 lbs per mile	474 lbs per mile

These numbers are based on studies conducted in July 1998, and reflect the makeup of the resident trout population. Several different spawning runs of trout come up out of the reservoir during spring and fall, and these migrations can add to the total trout population at any given time.

Although about two-thirds of the trout in the Mile are browns, creel surveys indicate they make up only about 25 percent of an average angler's catch. Some would say this proves wild brown trout are "smarter" than the more commonly-caught hatchery-born rainbows. To me, it just shows most anglers haven't figured out how to effectively fish for the browns. Browns are often nocturnal feeders, prefer the security of deeper water, and prefer larger food sources than rainbows. Most anglers fish during the middle of the day, and fly anglers in particular seem to prefer using the small flies typical of most Western tailwaters.

The Miracle Mile is a place where if conditions are favorable, an angler can expect to at least hook a trophy fish every day. As a result, this stretch of water receives a great deal of fishing pressure, especially in the warmer months of spring, summer, and early fall. While this is a definite downside, remember that this is a wide, sometimes braided river, with public access and good fly water along its entire length. Walk a good ways from the many parking areas, be courteous to your fellow anglers, and you can still have a good time. There is plenty of water, and fish, for everyone. BECAUSE THE MIRACLE MILE is a tailwater, it is susceptible to severe changes in water levels and flows, depending on what demands are placed on the dam itself. Water flows on the Miracle Mile affect trout behavior dramatically, and can frustrate your best efforts. Those who pay close attention to recent water level trends, and can plan their trips accordingly, will meet with the greatest success. At the very least, you should be able to alter your tackle and tactics to meet existing conditions.


When water levels fluctuate wildly on the Miracle Mile, fishing can be extremely difficult. If possible, plan your trip to coincide with stable flows (low stable flows are best). Real-time and historical data on North Platte flows are on-line at the U.S. Geological Survey web site. You can also get daily flow predictions from the automated phone service at the Bureau of Reclamation (1-800-253-8737). In general, flows are low and stable (as pictured above) through most of the winter.

When the water is continually rising and falling over the course of a day, the fish move to the deeper, mid-stream channels where they are very difficult to reach with a fly. Extra weight, longer casts, long drifts, and perseverance will increase your odds of success.

If the water level rises slowly, trout seem to move with the flow and can be found in more accessible slots. The same goes when the water is slowly receding--the fish will gradually move to safer channels but anglers will still be able to get to them. Water flows are much more stable during the winter because there is less demand for water downstream, and the fishing becomes more dependable and productive as a result.

Inconsistent Dry-fly Fishery
Wild flow-fluctuations--particularly during spring and summer--hinder the Mile's potential as a dry-fly fishery. Fluctuating water levels prevent trout from finding acceptable feeding lies during a hatch, and they become accustomed to ignoring adult insects and concentrating on nymphs. I've witnessed blanket hatches, with hardly any water without a bug on it, and seen no rising fish. It is frustrating beyond belief.

In years where the flows are stable because of little demand for water releases, or in years where repairs need to made to the dams, the dry-fly fishing can be excellent, but it's rarely dependable. If you like catching big fish, and don't mind pitching lead or a sinking-tip line to do it, the Mile is for you. If you want strictly dry-fly fishing, you should look elsewhere.

Miracle Mile trout didn't get their heavyweight reputation chasing seasonal hatches. While they do indulge in aquatic insects (usually subsurface) when they are readily available, their most important food source through the year is the scud, a freshwater crustacean that populates the river bottom in astonishing numbers.

Although true aquatic insects are important to angers at certain times of the year, scuds are the single most important year-round food source in North Platte Tailwaters. A rusty orange scud (pictured below) is the most effective fly pattern color. Match the size of your imitation to that of the most prevalent naturals. RUSTY SCUD HOOK: Dai-Riki 135 #10-#16. THREAD: Orange 6/0. TAIL: Orange Krystal Flash. RIB: Copper wire. BODY: Rusty orange dubbing (use dubbing loop). SHELLBACK: Pearl flashabou strip or Scudback. LEGS: Pick out dubbing.

Matching the size of the most common naturals seems to be quite important, as the bulk of the scud population grows at about the same rate over the course of the year. Of course, different generations (and different sizes) of scuds are available all through the year, but most of the scuds you find will be about the same size. Early in the season, a #16 is about the right size, but by the fall, many will be as large as #10. A quick kick-screen sample will help you determine what size to imitate.

Although scuds are found in many different colors, the most common color seems to be a translucent grayish golden olive. In contrast, more trout have been taken from this river on a rusty orange scud imitation than any other color.

I'm not entirely sure why this color is so effective. I've been told that dead scuds turn orange, and that trout key on them as easy prey, but I don't see many dead, orange scuds drifting in the current. It could be the color just gets their attention, or maybe it looks like an egg as well as a scud. Whatever the reason, it works.

Scuds are usually fished by dead-drifting them along the bottom, but they do swim, and can be effective when retrieved with short one-inch strips--especially in slower water.

Other food sources that are found year-round in the drift and the trout's diet are: aquatic worms, cranefly larva, midge larva, and baitfish. Fly patterns that imitate these food sources will take fish all year, but not as consistently as scud imitations will.

Mayfly nymphs, caddisfly larva, and stonefly nymphs are all present, and become important as each insect reaches its maturation point over the course of the year.

Rod Walinchus is a Fly Fisherman contributing artist and author of Fly Fishing the North Platte River: An Angler's Guide (Pruett Publishing Company, 1994). He now lives on Florida's Gulf Coast.

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