OPENING DAY

[jhaquett]

Hey guys I'm getting prepared for opening day next Saturday, I was kind of curious if you guys had any suggestions on where to go? I'm looking for an area that's not going to be so crowded, so I'm looking to hike in or take some crazy dirt road or something like that, considering that is the absolute only way to even get a chance of getting away from other people, especially on opening weekend!

I live in Chico so I want to fish Battle Creek, Deer Creek, Hat Creek, Burney Creek, Fall River, etc. But I am also open to suggestions anywhere North of Sacramento (2 hours of less from Chico), maybe Putah Creek or something? Thanks.

[David Lee]

The bottom 5 miles of Pit #4 .

Make sure your insurance is payed up . Best Trout fishing on the planet , IMO . 12-inchers will take you into your backing ......

Try a #10 Larry Green Bomber (I wonder how many people out here know just how good that fly is .....????) . You can thank me if you LIVE

David , who wishes he was there right now .

[East Fork]

Hey Daivd, is that green bomber an old Ted Fay fly?

[jhaquett]

Hey David,

Thanks for the advice, I can't even find what a larry green bomber is! Could you provide a picture or a recipe or something? Thanks.

P.S. What is the best way to access pit #4? Is it in the Burney area? I have been hearing a lot about the pit lately, I have never been to the wild portions of it but I hear it is pretty hairy, sounds interesting....

[bigtj]

Another piece of advice on the Pit. Be sure to learn to identify both stinging nettle and poison oak if you don't already know them. Most people know what poison oak looks like but those who don't know about stinging nettle are in for a rude surprise.

The rattlesnakes, of course, are self-explanatory.

Have fun...it is worth it down there.

PS here is a brief description on the Pit. If you dont' already have it, the Delorme Atlas and Gazetteer for N. CA is really helpful, as is topozone.com.

http://www.troutsource.com/RiversFolder/Pit.htm

http://www.flyfishnorcal.org/php-nuk...sort/1/cat/517

http://www.topozone.com

[JT]

I was fishing in Utah a couple of summers ago with my dad and learned how to identify Stinging Nettle the hard way. I was walking along the creek and slipped. The bank was steep and I grabbed for the nearest plant to keep from falling off of a drop-off and into the water. The plant happened to be Stinging Nettle. My forearm and hand swelled up and burned like crazy for a few hours. If the fishing hadn't been so good, the day would have totally sucked.

[David Lee]

Hey Daivd, is that green bomber an old Ted Fay fly?

Kind of .......

The bay area writer Larry Green , who died a few years back , came up w/ it in the Ted Fay style .

Hook - Mustad 3906/3906B - size 6-12 (the 8 catches the most , strangely ...)

Weight - yes , lots of it .

Tail - short tuft of Black Marabou .

Butt - copper wire , large .

Body - Peacock herl . Wrap it with thread BEFORE wrapping the shank .

Hackle - stiff Black saddle .

It looks worse than nothing ..... but you better have some for the early season on the Pit . Freakishly effective pattern .

David

[bigtj]

Nothing strange about that pattern at all and it's effectiveness. Does a good job imitating big cased caddis, which are migratory in the early season, and also Green Drake nymphs. A similar patter, the Kaufmann's simulator (not stimulator, simulator) is far and away one of my most effective early-season patterns throughout the west. Guess what...I only tie it in Size 8.

[jhaquett]

My parents have some stinging nettle in their backyard, that stuff is crazy! I barely brush an ankle by it and it stings and itches for a good 15 minutes!

I am not allergic to poison oak, I've blown my nose, wiped my face off and rolled around in the stuff to prove a point before

[brun0]

When I lived in WA, there was a fiddle head fern that grew next to stinging nettles. If you pulled that fern out of the ground, broke the stem and rubbed the juice on the sting it would ease the pain. Don't know if that is something found in CA or not.
Mike