Colorado Parks and Wildlife is enforcing a mandatory full-day fishing closure on a 0.6-mile stretch of the Yampa River from the Stagecoach Reservoir dam downstream to the lower boundary of Stagecoach State Park starting Thursday, Oct. 2 through spring 2026, according to a statement released on Tuesday. This action responds to very low water flow from Stagecoach Reservoir, which concentrates fish in shrinking pools, raising stress and vulnerability. “We are trying to be proactive in protecting the outstanding catch-and-release fishery we have downstream of Stagecoach Reservoir,” said CPW Steamboat Area Aquatic Biologist Marisa Eley in the statement. This closure differs from the upcoming Oct. 1-Nov. 15 fishing closure near the Fish Creek confluence on the Yampa River, designed to protect spawning mountain whitefish, a native species facing population declines. These regulatory measures reflect CPW’s efforts to balance recreational fishing with fish population conservation amid ongoing drought and environmental challenges affecting western Colorado rivers.