Upper & Lower Sac, McCloud, Fall rivers and Hat Creek Reports
Springtime weather has finally arrived in the Northstate in time for the fly fishing weekend season opener and the fishing has been fantastic. The catching has been pretty good too, we had three guests gain entry into the Shasta Trout Hawg of Fame this week! After a little squall it looks like we will be returning to sunny days this week as well.
The Lower Sacramento River has been fishing exceptionally well, if you are considering a trip, we recommend you get here now. Unlike most every other river in the state, flows are actually a bit lower than the norm, we expect they will be going up soon as agricultural demands increase in the coming weeks. The fish have been active most all day with afternoons sometimes being just silly good. Guests have enjoyed multiple double hook ups in recent days along with an average large size and some trophies to hand. Most fish are coming on rubberlegs, eggs and size 14 & 16 mayfly nymphs.
Flows on the McCloud and Upper Sac are high but clear and fishable though only in select spots. The key is knowing where to find fishable runs. We've found fish both nymphing deep runs with rubberlegs, stonefly, mayfly and caddis nymphs as well as a few while casting attractor dries with droppers. The landslide on the road to Ash Camp has been cleared and some adventurous souls have made their way to Ah Di Na and the Nature Conservancy through the snow drifts.
Fall River and Hat Creek have been little affected by spring run off making them a popular destination for anglers in the know. We have been a bit surprised that more anglers have not opted to check them out. Hatches on both rivers have been a bit hit or miss rather than the clockwork rhythm that can be typical in the spring. Hatches seem to be starting a bit later than usual and have been short lived on most days. Nymphing with small may fly nymphs and streamer fishing with leeches and small nymphs has been effective during non hatch periods but with stable weather patterns in the forecast we hope and expect hatches to begin their progression and the dry fly fishing to improve as a result.
The flows on the Pit, Klamath and Trinity River have made them unfishable. It looks like it may be a few weeks or more before they come into shape.
For a complete report with pics visit our website. Drop us a line if you are headed our way seeking guide service or not. We are always happy to share all we can.
3 Attachment(s)
Surprises on the lower Sac
I guided a beginner flyfisherman yesterday. He is 62 years young and looking into retirement property in the north state. I was happy to meet and guide a new fly fisherman. He was thrilled to land his first wild rainbow trout. We saw a few fish and even a mated pair of swan with signets. It was a lovely serene site even if the male was posturing to defend his family....
We also caught a quick glimpse of some otters but they were too quick for my camera.
We even caught a few trout!
Curtis Cole
norcaldrifter56@yahoo.com
Guide in training
"I Fish, Therefore I am"
