Some of the more obvious public areas include Highway Springs Campground, Coller State Wildlife Area, Marshall Park, Palisades, Marshall Park and Fisherman's Access.

Twenty-three miles of Gold Medal Water restricts anglers to flies and lures only. But read the regulations and signs because it seems like each year, new restrictions are in place, especially regarding possession, slot limits and catch-and-release.

KID STUFF
Both as a youngster and as a teen, Denham fished from dawn until dark. He remembers wading upstream for miles, when virtually none of the river was private. He could catch 50 fish in a few hours and was so absorbed that he wouldn't realize until too late that his family would be worried about him.

The Rio Grande swells with tributary after tributary, surrounded by interconnecting trails and alpine lakes. Deep runs, big pools, riffles -- all kinds of water flow through narrow canyons and broad valleys.

He recollects a few bear encounters over the decades. Once on the railroad tracks he met a bear coming right toward him. No way up or down, so he dropped his full creel and backed off until the bear got satiated on trout and then rambled away.

On their way to Hunter Lake years later, Randy and his son Sam ran into a mother bear with two cubs. Young Sam had no clue of the danger involved.

"That was one nervous hour as Sam and I waited for the bears to leave the trail," said Randy. Legacy!

Ten years later, 16-year-old Sam and a friend went fishing upstream on the Rio Grande and were supposed to get back to the cabin before dark. They weren't. Denham was out on the river looking for them with a flashlight, worried to death.

A 9 p.m., Denham was panicking. After a frantic search, he walked in the cabin and found the two. The boys had had a great day of fishing -- so good that they fished until well after dark.

Eventually, you have to let your sons and daughters face the dark and bears all on their own.

"Sam can wade all day long, better than me now," said Randy Denham. "And while I hesitate to admit it, he's getting closer to outfishing me."

Denham smiles widely. "But not just yet."