[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"learn-card-reading-a-tailwater":3},{"id":4,"title":5,"applyCta":6,"authorId":9,"body":10,"cardType":56,"description":16,"difficulty":57,"discipline":58,"editorId":9,"extension":62,"glossaryRefs":63,"hook":74,"meta":75,"navigation":76,"path":77,"publishedAt":78,"readingSeconds":79,"regionTags":80,"relatedCards":81,"safetyDisclaimerRequired":84,"seo":85,"status":86,"stem":87,"track":88,"updatedAt":78,"version":89,"__hash__":90},"learn_cards\u002Flearn\u002Fcards\u002Freading-a-tailwater.md","Reading a Tailwater",{"label":7,"action":8},"Find a tailwater near you","open_planner",null,{"type":11,"value":12,"toc":52},"minimark",[13,17,20,49],[14,15,16],"p",{},"A tailwater is the river section directly below a dam. The dam releases water from deep in the reservoir — cold, oxygenated, and clear regardless of upstream weather. That single fact changes everything about how the river fishes.",[14,18,19],{},"What's different from a freestone:",[21,22,23,31,37,43],"ul",{},[24,25,26,30],"li",{},[27,28,29],"strong",{},"Temperature stays cold all year."," Tailwaters fish through summer when freestones get too warm. Trout grow large because feeding rarely shuts off.",[24,32,33,36],{},[27,34,35],{},"Flow is regulated."," Releases are scheduled, not weather-driven. A river running 2,000 cfs at 10 AM might run 400 cfs by noon. Knowing the release schedule matters more than the weather report.",[24,38,39,42],{},[27,40,41],{},"Bug life is concentrated."," Cold-water tailwaters are heavy on midges and BWOs year-round; mayfly diversity is lower than a freestone but density is higher.",[24,44,45,48],{},[27,46,47],{},"Fish are pickier."," Constant pressure, slow-changing conditions, and clear water make tailwater trout the most selective in fresh water. 6x and 7x tippet, size 22 midges, perfect drifts.",[14,50,51],{},"Read tailwater the same way you'd read any river — riffles for bugs, runs for active fish, pools for big fish — but assume every fish has seen a hundred anglers this week. Presentation matters more than fly choice.",{"title":53,"searchDepth":54,"depth":54,"links":55},"",2,[],"concept","2",[59,60,61],"fly","spin","bait","md",[64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73],"midge","hatch","bwo","dead-drift","presentation","current","riffle","run","pool","tippet","Cold, clear, regulated water below a dam. Different rules than a freestone — and more selective fish.",{},true,"\u002Flearn\u002Fcards\u002Freading-a-tailwater","2026-05-08","140",[],[82,83],"pools-runs-and-riffles","the-dead-drift",false,{"title":5,"description":16},"published","learn\u002Fcards\u002Freading-a-tailwater","reading-water","1","2rAyQv_8Nm8XitAdRXOe6wCLIrldYERZ-VquP7U66rk"]