The first big storm of the season arrived last week with rain that provided freshets and improved fishing for steelhead on the Klamath and Trinity and trophy trout on the Lower Sac and Fall River but dampened the bite on our local freestones, the McCloud, Upper Sac and Pit. The storm passed on Monday and the National Weather Service is forecasting warm sunny weather this week which should make for very pleasant fishing conditions and hopefully spark the October Caddis bite as well.

The Klamath River has a good number of early steelhead in and fishing has been good to great. Flows have been ideal at just above 1,300 cfs and water temps are holding in the mid fifties making for ideal conditions for tossing eggs behind spawning salmon & nymphing as well as swinging flies. The Lower Sac has also been outstanding, though catch rates are a bit below the norm. The size of fish has more than made up for few numbers with a good percentage of fish in the upper teens and twenties. Some King Salmon have arrived along with some Steelhead on the lower reaches and with the water clouding a bit, the bite hasn't been as technical since storms arrived. Some dry fly fishing with hatches of BWO's in the afternoon along with a few caddis hanging around. The river has been busy but will lighten as the Trinity River takes off with some fresh steelhead moving into the upper river.

Fishing on our local freestones, the McCloud, Upper Sac and Pit Rivers slowed significantly last week from the hot bite earlier in the month with the cold weather as air and water temps dropped dramatically. Flows on the Pit and Upper Sac also increased making conditions more difficult. We hope and expect the bite will pick again up this week, particularly for the dry fly October Caddis which was just getting in full swing. The weather got the Blue Wing Olives going and with both bugs in action it will be a good time for a send off trip on the magical McCloud who's season closes November 15th. While fishing on the Fall River has just been fair, last week the dry fly action picked up and our guests enjoyed a couple of hours each day casting dries to big fussy Rainbows. A reminder that the Upper Sac and Pit are now open year round.

For a complete report and photos from our trips, visit the ShastaTrout.com. Please drop a line if you are headed our way, we are always pleased to point you in a direction you might most enjoy whether you are seeking guide service or not.