Verona - 5/8

[BradW]

Fished the Sacramento at the mouth of the Feather from 11:30-4 and 6:30-8:30. Caught two shad in the afternoon and two more in the evening, plus one small striped bass. There were half a dozen boats in the afternoon and three or so in the evening. They did much better. Seems like a wave of fish would come thru and most of them would hook up over the span of a few minutes, then it would go quiet for a bit, then start over. Wading on the ever shifting sands was a bit of a challenge. The wake from a boat going thru would wash the sand out from under your feet!

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Wading can be dangerous there but I love to do it.

For Shad in the day time in warm weather many wet wade.

It is a really interesting place to fish.....SMB all the time, Salmon in the fall, Stripers, & Shad in the spring.

.

[hwchubb]

Have been out there 3 or 4 times this spring, it's fishing well when boats aren't in the way, but they usually are. Went out this morning, got there at 6 and there were already 5 boats, no way to cast to the seam. Tried upstream a couple hundred feet, nada. Would recommend hitting it weekdays.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

One evening in the 1970s Craig Ziegler and I took my VW bus, with our two 8' prams on top, up there to the marina at the mouth of the Feather River. Craig recommended we sleep until about midnight, then get up and launch our prams. Craig said most of the angler in the boats go home at or before midnight and then it gets very quiet.

Funny, I don't remember if we caught anything or not?

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

This is an old post from a few years ago.......

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We started fishing there for Stripers and Shad at the mouth of the Feather River when I worked at West Capitol Rod & Gun in West Sac around 1970.

Joe Shirshac, Bill King, Harry Boley, Ronny Knopp, Frank Pullen, Galen Geller, Mel Jeffs, Cecil Wilder, Walt Bennett, Neil Hansen.......hell, all the fly guys I knew went there back then.

We caught Stripers and Shad wading there but we had to be very careful to not walk off the downstream end of the sandbar which puts you out in the middle of the Sacramento River and in trouble.

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I just talked to old Joe Shirshac on the cell phone and he and Charlie Gonzales are in Charlies boat there right now. Joe said he just had a Striper on and lost it this morning. Early they were busting the surface and Charlie had one chasing his popper to no avail.

Joe went there yesterday morning and landed two Stripers while wading the sandbar.

You park ($5.00/car) in the private marina right at the mouth of the Feather River and walk about 100 yards upstream and then wade out to the sand bar.

You can catch Stripers and Shad there wading now for about a month as long as the Feather and the Sacramento flows stay down.

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This is were Don Rotsma and I hit them big time wading on night back then. We landed too many to count from 10 to 20 pounds. Just the two of us. Don got cleaned out buy a really big one too. Larry Cullens was out there in the dark in his pram really whacking them.

Geller would go up there by himself and fish all night long. Maybe he will tell some of his stories?

Ron Hayashi caught his over 40 pound world record Striper there too.

Professor Bill King caught a 30 pound plus fish there while wading back then. He drove you to the front door of my old fly shop with it in the trunk(front) of his VW bug.Quit a sight.

A group of old fly fishers from Lodi where wading for Shad back in the 1970s and a big school of Stripers showed up. they landed something like 26 Stripers mostly on Shad flies.

Cecil (Jr) Wilder and I would take a portable Coleman stove out with us so we could cook up Shad roe right on the bar "back in the day." We would smoke the rest of the fish.

Not too many years back (~5?) Marilyn and I took our portable barbeque out there with some friends to Shad fish and cook up some "hot dogs".

[SeanO]

We were there at the confluence on Friday as well. Seemed like a really nice bite right around 6pm.

There was also a line of anglers up on the East bank on the Feather about 1/4 mile up from the confluence as well. Looked like they were slaying, but kinda far to see much detail. Anyway, if you are wading, it may be an easier and safer spot than the confluence itself?

[BradW]

Thanks for the tip about the east bank of the Feather. We had originally parked up there but had heard that the mouth was the place to be. Next time. Thanks.

[Larry S]

Bill,
Boy, how I miss Galen (OregonSalmon.) He could sure brighten up one's day
Newbies to the Kiene forum should do a search for "OregonSalmon" to read his gems.
Here's a sample with Geller and friends -
http://www.kiene.com/forums/showthre...t=OregonSalmon

BTW, we had a 1/2" of rain last Friday and are expecting another 1" tomorrow and Friday.
Best to all,
Larry S

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I miss Galen Geller a lot. He grew up around my shop as a teenager but died at around 52.

He had a degree from UC San Diego in Econometrics? He had a very high IQ.....

He was a great fly fisher and wonderful fly tier.

Supported himself by tying flies his entire life.

Even having a short life, it was a good one.

I am sad that now that we are retired, we can't go up to Seaside, Oregon and visit with him.

.

[SeanO]

Good thread there, Larry!

Thanks for that.

Seemed to be a good guy with a quick wit.

Bill,
Boy, how I miss Galen (OregonSalmon.) He could sure brighten up one's day
Newbies to the Kiene forum should do a search for "OregonSalmon" to read his gems.
Here's a sample with Geller and friends -
http://www.kiene.com/forums/showthre...t=OregonSalmon

BTW, we had a 1/2" of rain last Friday and are expecting another 1" tomorrow and Friday.
Best to all,
Larry S