Anglers are coming to grips with the altered state of a beloved fishery between Denver and Colorado Springs — the result of heavy rains sending rock and dirt down the slopes of Cheesman Canyon.

“Altered” is how some in the sporting scene would now describe this famed stretch of the South Platte River near Deckers. “Devastating” was the word from Trout Unlimited, in an online post recounting the storm at the end of July.

Another hurdle cleared for 49 miles of new trail in northwest Colorado

It was the “worst storm I’ve ever seen in there,” Pat Dorsey, a renowned guide and self-described “canyon junkie” wrote in an Instagram post. “Words cannot explain the devastation that occurred to the fishery and the trail.”

The Gill Trail, reaching down to the South Platte, had been “trashed,” Dorsey wrote, noting also “slides everywhere, many of which dumped insect- and trout-choking sediments into one of America’s finest wild trout streams.” Gravel and sand had clogged go-to holes, according to Dorsey’s reports, with some “massive” washouts contributing to decomposed granite across the river’s substrate.

Trout Unlimited’s post called on volunteers to help with recovery efforts ahead — “what will surely be herculean,” the post read.

The organization recognized the event as “just the latest traumatizing event” for the fishery.

That’s what other outfitters are emphasizing.

That includes Jeremy Hyatt, the owner of Deckers’ Flies and Lies fly shop who has frequented Cheesman Canyon all his life.

“The damage was severe — there’s no question about it,” he said. “But I do think one thing people have to remember is the South Platte River is a very resilient river. With everything it’s been through with the Hayman fire, this isn’t a first.”

The latest impacts do not compare with those from the fire’s wake in 2002, said Rachel Leinweber, another lifelong regular in the canyon and general manager of Colorado Springs’ Angler’s Covey. She said she remembers all too well the ash and debris that choked the river.

“Nature finds a way,” said Leinweber, whose guides returned clients to the canyon this week after a two-week pause. “The river will carve out new holes, new runs. It’s definitely not doom and gloom, like Cheesman Canyon is unfishable.”

$10,000 announced for trail projects in Colorado Springs area

Kyle Battige, senior aquatic biologist with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, said his team was not aware of any fish kill.

“That’s not to say there’s not the potential for impact in terms of recruitment and habitat,” he said. “But best guess would be that there was good water upstream or they may have migrated downstream. … Despite the look of it, the fish were able to tolerate those environmental conditions.”

Dorsey, who could not be reached in time for this article, was swiftly rebuked for his reports. Commenters repeated Leinweber’s point: that the “devastation” was nature at work.

“This is an act of nature, I get it,” Dorsey wrote, “but it’s much worse than most people know.”

He and other guides have voiced support for “a flush” — a reservoir release from Denver Water that would theoretically clear sediment.

“The problem with that is, that sand has still gotta go somewhere,” Hyatt said. “So it’s gonna go into Deckers, it’s gonna go to the Wigwam Club and eventually on to Strontia Reservoir, which is the last place Denver Water wants that sand to go.”

An agency spokesman said there are no plans for a “flush,” and that’s for the sake of protecting Strontia Springs Reservoir, a critical supply for Denver and Aurora.

In an email, Todd Hartman said sediment through the South Platte after the Hayman fire as well as the Buffalo Creek fire in 1996 “continue to be a significant challenge for Denver Water.”

Previously, the agency reported sediment had filled 13% of the reservoir’s space — storage that would otherwise house water to serve as many as 4,000 homes. That report detailed managers’ efforts to address the problem through dredging and forest restoration.

After heavy rains from the end of July, Hartman said Denver Water suspects as much as 20,000 cubic yards of sediment had washed into the river above the reservoir.

He noted: “Not all that sediment will make its way to Strontia Springs this year and the impacts to the reservoir will be moderated over the next several months and years.”

As for impacts to the fishery in Cheesman Canyon, time will tell, Hyatt said.

“We’re just gonna cross our fingers and hope it hangs in there,” he said.

Quintessential Colorado: 12 iconic destinations to visit in Rocky Mountain National Park