Yuba report...

[JasonB]

Well usually fishy reports are those with GLOWING and verbose language about how GREAT the fishing was. So it is that I offer a fish report of another kind:

First the short version for anyone who doesn't have much patience. I got skunked. Fished about 6 hours above hwy 20 bridge with 0! fish to net. Ok, now if you wish a few more details, I'll start off by saying that I did not see 1 single fish landed (bad news), but on the other hand I saw only a few other anglers out trying their luck (good news!). The wind gusts on Wednesday were certainly not helping, but nonetheless were quite manageable. The bugs were out, as evidence by the plethora of birds skimming the water for a good portion of the day (starting at least as early as 11am). There were much fewer skwallas out and about, although I still managed to have some takes on my skwalla dry imitation (thanks to Bill Carnazzo).

So there was certainly some surface activity, and there were lots of march browns on the water. Maybe it was the wind, or maybe it was just a classic case of "should have been here last week". At any rate, I think I got all of maybe a half dozen really good takes and a few more short strikes and an equal mix of refusals. I am sure that my poor net numbers have absolutely NOTHING to do with my newness to the sport of flyfishing, or any angler errors whatsoever!!!

Must be just bad luck :p but I will say that those little *>&%! are mighty fast at picking up and ejecting the hook. There was one very bright and exciting moment to the day when a true beast chomped down on my meager Skwalla offering, jumped (and grew exponentially in size), and quickly snapped my tippet on landing. Anyways, seemed like no one was really having any more luck (most seemed to be having less). On the other hand, there are still fish there, and they are biting (on something some of the time anyway)...
But contrary to many recent reports, it seemed to me to be a VERY slow day on the Yuba.
JB

[Sammy]

good report.

I totally agree that it is rarely, if ever, angler error when it comes to not catching fish. Nobody to blame but faulty gear and poor water quality

[Woodman]

I am sure that my poor net numbers have absolutely NOTHING to do with my newness to the sport of flyfishing, or any angler errors whatsoever!!!

Must be just bad luck :p but I will say that those little *>&%! are mighty fast at picking up and ejecting the hook.

These two statements lead me to offer some food for thought...

Sometimes in dry fly fishing, striking too soon can be the problem.

[Hogan Brown]

If it makes you feel any better if you are raising a handful of fish in an afternoon of fishing on the lower yuba you are doing fine. It is by no means a numbers game when it comes to wade fishing and throwing dries.

[Troutstalker55B]

Well said Hogan, and for some of us just a few fish on the dry is all we need.

Jon.

[Dabalone]

Maybe a bit superstitious but from my experience you won't find me out fishing when the north wind is cranking.

[JasonB]

Yeah the wind did play a bigger role than I had hoped for, and certainly gave me more frustrating tangles than normal. Honestly though I can't really blame it on the wind (it wasn't THAT bad), or anything else but "driver error".

@Woodman, I think that my problem of the day had much more to do with not being ready to strike fast enough. I often had a fair bit of slack in my line as I was trying to get some really long clean drifts. That and the classic fishy trick of waiting to strike until I am just about to mend my line...

Still had fun though, and most importantly still learned a few things along the way
JB

[JohnS]

My friend, Doug, and I hit the Y on Thursday about 11am and decided to fish above the bridge for a while. I hiked up around the bend where the cliff on the other side begins. There was some beautiful fishy water by the last riffle but if there was fish there, they weren't eating what I was throwing (skawala dries and a nymphing set up (fished a hare's ear as the top sometimes and bottom at others).

When I came back, Doug was fishing the area where the river begins to bend left (going up stream). There was a hatch of what appeared to me to be March browns and fish were rising but they weren't eating what I was throwing.

So for the day, we were both skunked there. We drove down to the last riffle before the first island. It was about 4 and fish were rising. Two that were rising consistently seem to always be about 1 foot outside my drift lane. Again they weren't eating what I was throwing.

Do you see a pattern here?

Friday we hiked on the Marysville side of the river all the way to where the cliffs on the Grass Valley side begin. There was about 5 fish (nice size fish) that were feeding actively. Some of these were within the tip of my rod from me. I tried everything and I mean everything. For dries I tried skawalas, BWO, Yellow sallies, PMD, march browns. I tried a skawala dry with various droppers. I tried two fly nymph set ups with a multitude of combinations. Fished soft hackles and drowned caddis. I got two takes but nothing hooked. I thought, hmmmmm hey they not eating what I'm throwing.

When fish are that active ( I know that some were eating skawalas because I watched a skawala float down the river and become dinner about 9 feet from me), what are they eating? Are they grabbing rising bugs while underwater? What would I use in that case?

Doug did get a nice 17" in that last area with a small caddis beadhead but I got the old Y skunker.