Closest place to Colorado to catch Gar

[Titan_Bow]

Thought I would throw this out there as this crew covers a pretty broad spectrum of locations. I grew up in North Carolina, and as a kid, my brother and I used to catch gar with rod and reel, and shoot them with our bows. I've always contended that they are one of the coolest, baddest, toughest fish in fresh water. I also got the chance to catch them in Georgia, when I was stationed at Fort Benning.
I want to take my son out this summer and try to catch some, preferably on our fly rods with "gar flies" (ie. streamers you can make with frayed nylon rope). Pretty sure we really don't have any significant populations of them around the Colorado Front Range, so I'm wondering, whats the best bet for a "DIY" trip from Colorado to snag a few gar?

 

[jofes]

Tons in KS. Just gota find a deep hole on a river with brush around it and wait for them to surface.

 

[Dos Perros]

When I was in school you could walk the banks at Rocky Ford / Manhattan, KS and find tons of carcasses, so I imagine there are quite a few there. But I'd bet you'd be driving past quite a few between Denver and there.

 

[Chucklehead]

Lake mcconaughy isn't too far from you. Head below the dam, there is bound to be some there. Most of the ones I ran into on these big plains reservoirs are just little tackle thrashers but I've never specifically targeted them before.