Advice on which fork of the American to fish

[Alosa]

Hi folks,

I've only ever fished the lower American River, but wanted to give one of the upper forks a shot. I'd like to target trout, and I was wondering which of the North, Middle, or South (Silver) forks provided the best opportunities. Advice on general access is helpful (i.e. if pull-offs are available, or if bush whacking is needed).

Thanks!

[Mike O]

South and Silver are two different forks. South Fork continues on past Silver. I like the Silver Fork this time of year. China flat CG and above. Easy access, and fun to fish.

[JasonB]

I'd say all of the forks are worth exploring, depending on what you're after. Some of them have some pretty sizable fish, though I'd say that in general those are more the exception than the rule. Access is the big deciding factor really when fishing up here. The South Fork has lots of access up along hwy 50, and the Silver fork is also pretty generous on access, the Middle and North forks, not so much. If you're ok with some big downhill hiking (then back UP at the end of the day of course!), the North fork has some absolutely gorgeous canyons to explore. Really nice water, but a serious grunt to fish any of it. Don't even get me started on the Middle fork, let's just say it's frustrating (not the fishing, just the access issues). Then of course there are some tributaries up here as well. Grab a map, hard to go wrong honestly; lot's of really pretty water to fish and lots of eager fish. If you're looking for more sizable fish, then things get a bit more specific, though to my mind that's not really what makes the American drainage special.
Enjoy,
JB

[TaylerW]

South fork is very high at this moment.