Middle Fork Feather (Wild & Scenic)

[Kyle C.]

I am planning on doing a 2 day, 1 night backpack fly fishing trip into the Feather River Canyon this summer. I was wondering if anyone with experience in the area knows the best time for hitting a nice evening caddis hatch? I was thinking of maybe going mid to late June. Also, I was looking at the maps and thinking about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail to the river. Is there good fly fishing water near the Pacific Crest Trail bridge? Just looking for some general info on the middle fork as I have never fished it. Looks like a beautiful area.

[dude02]

I am sure there are others here that can help, but the following book by guide Andrew Harris breaks down the MFF river very nicely and gives lots of access info. I have seen it at most fly shops so check your local shop for a copy.


http://www.amazon.com/Plumas-National-Forest-Trout-Fishing/dp/1571881751

[Troutstalker55B]

Kyle,

Your time frame for a good caddis hatch is spot on down there. You could see some sulfur mayflies as well. All the water down there is good but the further you can get away from access points, the better the fishing. There are also some big brown trout down there, an express sink tip with streamers at first and last light are your best bet. They are tough to catch. good luck and please post some pics!

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Call Lincoln Gray at the Sierra Stream & Mountain fly shop in Chico, CA.

[Kyle C.]

Thanks for the responses guys! I am definitely looking forward to this trip.

[Kyle C.]

Couple more questions, what length and weight rods do you guys usually take to the MFF and what size are the bugs? Are the caddis about a 14?

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Thanks Jon Baiocchi.......I bet you know that river well.

I have had many customers over the years who love that MFF which is a very remote river.

[Troutstalker55B]

Bill, I know the upper watershed intimately and your right about the solitude and the beauty of MFFR: it's a real gem! I've only ventured down in the canyon a few times and it's so wild and remote down there. I'm only allowed to guide in the recreational section on the Middle Fork with my USFS permits so I rarely get down in the "Wild & Scenic" sections anymore.

Kyle, 9' rods, 3,4, or 5 weight. E/C Caddis or X-caddis #14-18, Olive, bright green, gray, and brown. Don't forget your little yellow sally stone fly #16 - Very important bug!

[Kyle C.]

Thanks so much! yeah i was planning on tying up some E/C caddis flies in 14. great fly. I'll have to look into tying some little yellow sallies as well. thanks again!
-kyle

[Ralph]

John is right on. Wild and remote and a gem. Fishing is okay, but not really the reason you go in there. Not too worried about exploiting the place. Very gnarly hike/swim/canyoneering. Hartman Bar to Bald Rock is an epic. My buddy drowned 15 feet away from me in the canyon. We could only watch.

[Troutzilla]

I was hoping to plan a two day backpack with my son on the MFF, what is the best tralhead to get access? With my son, I need to keep it safe. Thanks

[Mark Kranhold]

Troutzilla, how old is your son? That canyon can be wicked ! Big steep descents which make the ascents brutal. Kyle & Troutzilla keep your eyes out for rattlesnakes guys! This is one place you do not want to get hit by a snake. Plumas National Forest has a fairly new map out of just the MFFR and souronding watersheds. The map is called (Wild & Scenic MFFR) The Beckworth ranger station has them just outside of Mohawk by hwy 70 & the railroad tracks. This map has a ton of trailheads and access points. Here is there # 530-836-2575

[Ralph]

Agree with Mark. Not really a backpacking river. Mostly a (steep) down and up or canyoneering event. You might want to go down the Bald Rock trail for an overnight. It's only a couple of miles in, but probably has the best up and down river access once you get to the bottom. Hike upstream (includes one mild river swim) to Curtain Falls.

[Mark Kranhold]

Here are some photos of a spot in the canyon. Complete solitude once your down in the canyon... nothing but the sound of wild life and wild water. Not sure how the car got there? The furthest road is miles away.659265926593659465956596

[Mark Kranhold]

A couple more659765986599

[Troutstalker55B]

Cool Mark, great photos and thanks for sharing! For those anglers who are looking for something a little bit less wild but still scenic can find solitude and unbound beauty in the upper part of the river as well. There is plenty of access points between Nelson Creek and Clio. Most every time I share the river with someone else one of their first questions is "where is everybody?"

Here are a few shots of the upper MFFR to get the juices flowing;

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/i424/moto55b/middle-fork-2-W_zps7baad7ed.jpg
20 Mile House area

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/i424/moto55b/middle-fork-12-W_zps8e24ca22.jpg
Velvety Stick Seed Wildflower

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/i424/moto55b/Middle-Fork-Feather-34-W_zps797d696e.jpg
Graeagle area

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/i424/moto55b/middle-fork-13-W_zps7154c2f3.jpg
Blazing Star wildflower

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/i424/moto55b/middle-fork-feather-505-W_zps853c06cc.jpg
Graeagle area

FYI - The MFFR has an early opener from county road A23 to Mohawk the first Saturday of April. If water temps cooperate the fishing can be good.

[Jeff F]

Been down quite a few times in different areas. My favorite is the Oddie Bar / No Ear Bar area. Fishing was great as the fish down there are not the sharpest tools in the shed. They'll basically eat anything you throw at 'em.

The only problems I encountered with the MFF, besides the steepness of the hike out is.....maneuvering up and down stream once you're down to the river. If it's summer time and hot, you can just swim across the river to fish more water. But if you're not into that, I would strongly suggest doing a little research with aerials and topos to find which access offers the most river to fish. There are lots of steep rock cliffs which can block your path, so find some flatter areas and you should be fine.

The PCT area has good access upstream and a little bit below the bridge, mostly rock hopping below. Upstream is much flatter and wadeable/crossable. Excellent water up there. We went down on the Big Bar Trailhead on the south side of the river. It's only a mile and not too steep. Good campsites down there too.

The MFF canyon is definitely not for the faint of heart, but it's pretty awesome and loaded with fish. There is one drive-in access at Cleghorn Bar. Never been there, but I'm sure you'd need a reliable 4x4.

~J

[Frank R. Pisciotta]

JB----This topic is a great segue to announce the inaugural Native Sons Fly Fishing Tours's June 1 event that you will lead on the Middle Fork Feather River. We'll have info on the event at the Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show in the Truckee Guide NetWork booth.

I feel this BB should have a seperate category for self-promotion events....

Frank R. Pisciotta

[Troutstalker55B]

Frank,

I totally agree that a separate category should be implemented for self promotion events! It could be a one stop shopping/info area for individuals who seek such. I hope the moderators here will seriously consider this.

[Troutzilla]

Frank, I'll look for you at the show this weekend, that sounds like a good introduction. My son is 12 years old and after looking at the pictures and reading the stories, this may not be the best place for him (at least not until I scope it out first). I'll look into other backpack options as well.

[monahan100]

A previous poster was right, Andrew Harris's book is probably still the best resource on that area. Most that canyon is not accessible without a jeep or 4 wheeler and experienced driver just to get within walking distance of the river. Once on the water, the sections are generally seperated by box canyons, buge boulders, and very steep canyon walls. Not an area to venture into unprepared. There is a campground at Milsap Bar that you can drive to, but I've never personally been there. I hear it gets fairly crowded, especially compared to the rest of the river.

[JasonB]

I've spent a lot of time in those canyons on kayaking trips in the spring, and one thing I can say is that the warnings about it being tough are right. If anything they are a bit understated, depending on which areas you're trying to explore. There are some easier options, but these are still more about the adventure than the fishing. I'm sending you a PM with more details than I want to bore everyone with, but the short version is that if you're looking for a nice fishing trip or a nice backpacking trip there are better options. If you want adventure, there's plenty to be had here, and it really is a special river to experience if you're willing to put some real effort into it.
JB

[wineslob]

The streams near the first bridge (from Brush Creek) are not-too-bad........

[Fly Guy Dave]

I backpacked into the area along the PCT a few years back and did quite well. Nothing huge, trout-wise, but fun fishing, decent numbers of fish, in a very beautiful and remote canyon. Two memorable things: LOTS of bears and signs of bears when I was there. Seeing large eyes reflected in the light from my headlamp at night was rather unnerving, as was the still wet bear track on a rock when I was fishing upstream one day. Plenty of scat too. The second was that someone hauled down a twelve pack of beer and then left a few of 'em behind. All they needed was a bit of chilling in the river and all was good. :)

[FRSam]

I've been in this area for quite a while long before it was recognized for the fine flyfishing it provides. That's definitely changed over the years. We had an old, very old, right hand drive Land Rover that my dad picked up for $600.00 back in the sixties. And we took that old rover everywhere...Cleghorn Bar was one of the trips we did on a regular basis. Definitely not for the faint of heart as mentioned - four wheel drive a must and just prey you don't meet someone coming out while you're driving down or visa versa while you're driving out.

There is a nice camp ground at Cleghorn and the fishing is pretty good but like so many other sections of the canyon you are somewhat limited unless you're willing to do some major rock hoping, climbing and / or swimming. And yes there are some big fish down there both rainbow & browns. It's a great area to explore and as a kid I loved it, I think any kid would with the old mining sites and just climbing around the huge rocks looking back down on that beautiful river.

Rattlesnakes are definitely a concern and there are lots of stories about various encounters...climbing up the steep canyon walls with your fly rod in your mouth to reach that ledge and as you pull yourself up to be met eye to eye with a buzz tail. True story...but if you're careful you shouldn't have too much of a problem. It's not somewhere you'd want to be if you did get bit.

I haven't been down there in years, we sold that old rover unfortunately. I did take my Jeep Grand Cherokee down there once with no problems but I'd check with the forest service on road conditions before attempting it again. I got into Stillwater fishing which we have plenty of in this wonderful area but I must admit as I age the thought of getting an old jeep to get back into these areas before I'm just plain too old has been very much on my mind these days.

(Sorry for rambling so much...when ever I hear Cleghorn Bar those good old memories always begin to surface...)

Pete

[Notch]

I posted some pictures and info a few years back about the Bald Rock section of the MF Feather. Here's the link...should be some other good stuff in there too: http://www.kiene.com/forums/showthread.php?20093-MF-Feather