MEET THE STAFF Ep.1 - Fly Fishing the Denver South Platte w/Tryston (aka Carp Daddy)

Episode 1 of Meet the Staff we tag along with Outfitting Manager, Tryston, as he chases carp on the Denver South Platte. We get to know more about Tryston and his journey in fly fishing.

In this video, Golden Fly Shop’s Tryston takes us to the DSP (Denver South Platte) for a day of flats-style carp fishing right in the middle of Colorado trout country. He breaks down why carp are the closest thing we have to saltwater sight-fishing in the Rockies—stalking fish on shallow flats, making precise visual presentations, and watching big carp tip up and sip a fly just like redfish or bonefish.

Along the way he covers:

• Why carp fishing scratches the same itch as Louisiana redfish

• His clear-water carp setup (10-foot leader to 10 lb fluoro and natural crayfish-style patterns in browns, tans, and olives)

• The appeal of visual eats versus blind fishing for trout

• His fishing roots in Salida and stocked ponds, and how he evolved into a carp junkie

If you’re a dedicated trout angler looking for a new challenge—or a warm-season game that feels like saltwater without leaving Colorado—the DSP carp program is about as fun and technical as it gets.

Intro – Multi-Species Day on the DSP

Let’s go.

We’ve got a couple spots we’re going to go check out and really showcase how badass the DSP is.

You’ve got smallmouth, carp, trout, suckers, walleye—lots of different species you can catch out here. Could be a pretty sweet day.

Convincing a Trout Angler to Carp Fish

Q: If you had to convince someone to give up trout fishing completely and only carp fish, how would you do it?

A (Tryston):
That’s kind of a tough one—but honestly, every time somebody comes into the shop in the summer, I’m trying to get them to go carp fish.

I’d say the best way to convince somebody is this: carp fishing is the closest thing we’ve got to saltwater fishing without actually being in saltwater.

What I mean by that is:

• We’re targeting fish on flats or shallow areas

• Everything is visual. 100% visual.

You can trout fish and never actually see a fish—you’re just fishing fishy water. With carp, everything is visual:

• Watching them feed

• Spotting them

• Sight-casting to them

It’s a lot like chasing bonefish. It’s a lot like chasing redfish. It’s just… really, really cool.

First Carp Hookup

We’re working through a deeper pool. There’s definitely more fish in here. It might be a little slow for a minute because he walked us all the way through this pool, but we’ll get another one.

…

There we go. Yes sir—that’s a carp.

He was just feeding, came over, took a nice little sip—exactly what you want. Little drag-and-drop, right where you wanted it, right in the bucket.

Beautiful coloration. Absolutely slurped it right behind this little ditch. Almost lost him down the waterfall, but… hell yeah, man. Solid fish.

Where Fishing Started – Tryston’s Background

Q: Where did fishing start for you, Tristan?

A (Tryston):
Fishing started for me in Salida. My grandpa built a place out there—we still have it. I believe he built it in ’92.

We’ve been coming to Colorado since I was like two years old, and that’s where we’d always go and hang out. On that property we had 13 stocked ponds, and it was a blast. I loved it.

Carp Setup & Fly Choice for Clear Water

All right, let’s go catch some fish.

We’re back out on the DSP trying to get some carp. The water’s a little bit clearer right now, so I’m going to stick with more natural-looking patterns—kind of crayfish-style flies in browns, tans, and olives.

Since it’s clear, hopefully they won’t be as spooky to something subtle like this. We’ll adjust as we go and see how the fish react.

As far as my setup goes:

• About a 10-foot leader

• Tapered down to 10 lb fluorocarbon

• I’m actually using 10 lb saltwater fluoro—that’s just what I had in my bag. You can use regular 10 lb fluoro or saltwater; doesn’t really matter.

Sight-Fishing & Eat

I saw him for a second—he turned broadside. He may still be here…

There he is.

(…fight…)

No, no, no, no, no—come on.

He was just feeding, came over and ate it with a nice little sip. That’s exactly what you want. Little drag-and-drop, put it in front of him, and he slurped it.

Why Carp, When There’s So Much Trout Around?

Q: There’s a ton of trout fishing around here—world-class trout fishing. Why carp fishing?

A (Tryston):
I got into carp because of saltwater, honestly.

After my first year guiding, one of the guys I guided with—Colton—would go down and guide in Louisiana every year for redfish.

I was like, “Hell yeah, I want to do that.” I’d never saltwater fished before and wanted to give it a try. I went down there and absolutely fell in love with it. I love redfishing.

When I got back, I was bummed I couldn’t just go redfish all the time. I wanted to find something that scratched that same itch.

So I got into carp fishing. The first couple years, I got my ass kicked. It was really tough, and I definitely had moments of, “Why the hell am I doing this when we have such good trout fishing around here?”

But I wanted to keep growing and keep learning within fly fishing. Carp forced me to do that—reading body language, making precise casts, staying patient. It pushed me, and that’s why I stuck with it.

Life Outside of Fishing

Q: Outside of fishing, what other hobbies do you enjoy?

A (Tryston):
I’m a big concert-goer. My fiancée and I go to a ton of shows—mostly country.

I’m a big fan of:

• JD Clayton

• Shane Smith & The Saints

• Treaty Oak Revival

• Koe Wetzel

And I love the older stuff too—Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings.

We hit Red Rocks a lot in the summer. It’s probably one of the coolest venues in the country. That’s a big part of what I do outside of fishing… besides that, not a whole lot else.