Fly Fishing for Salmon in the Fall/Winter on the American?

[Pvillarr]

I see a lot of post about fly fishing for Steelhead in the American River, but what about for Salmon? I am mainly a Trout (& recently now a Shad guy) but I have never fly fished for Salmon.

Do people fly fish for Salmon in the American? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[JasonB]

So, I have yet to fish the American for Salmon, but I have fly fished quite a bit for salmon elsewhere. They can be spectacularly exciting to fish for when they are fresh out of saltwater, but they do degrade rather quickly in fresh water. Their willingness to take flies tends to drop pretty fast too, especially if they are being constantly “flossed” and pelted by chunks of lead...
Lots of folks end up resorting to some pretty lame “angling” methods, in part due to how lock jawed Salmon can get after a bit of this.
Getting away from crowds helps a lot, but is often not possible once the word gets out that the salmon are in.

There can be a lot of negativity in general when there are a lot of salmon in the river, which turns a lot of fly fisherman away. I know that there are salmon to be had at times on the American river, but I would suggest that you look further north if you’d like to experience some more quality salmon fishing. Timing is everything! Good luck.

[Darian]

I agree with Jasons' assessment of fishing Salmon on the American River. When the full run arrives, all of those large fish get a case of lockjaw and the fishing seems to bring out some bad behaviors among those fishing for them. Not to mention those who're just waiting for you to leave your parked car/truck so they can break-in.

It's close quarter fishing while boat to boat and shoulder to shoulder in most areas of the river. In spite of having to run the gauntlet, Salmon still make it to the hatchery. Of course, it's pretty much the same on the Feather (maybe worse in places like the afterbay outlet) and in places on the Sacramento.

There are a few die hard fly guys that still try for Salmon on the American if they can find the space. Pvillar, You might try to talk to Andy Guibord at Kienes or any of the guides at Fly Fishing Specialties to find some decent prospects.

[Pvillarr]

Thank you both for your input.

I will probably contact Andy to see if they can do a guided trip for Salmon for my father and I. I haven't been to Fly Fishing Specialties yet but so far the guys at Kiene's have been great in giving advice and being overall friendly and helpful. In fact, when I bought shad flies at Kiene's, they told me where I could go wading on the American and locked me into my first Shad caught ever. Pretty cool!

[STEELIES/26c3]

Thank you both for your input.

I will probably contact Andy to see if they can do a guided trip for Salmon for my father and I. I haven't been to Fly Fishing Specialties yet but so far the guys at Kiene's have been great in giving advice and being overall friendly and helpful. In fact, when I bought shad flies at Kiene's, they told me where I could go wading on the American and locked me into my first Shad caught ever. Pretty cool!

I'm a gear guy and I manage to land 40-70 salmon per season on the AR. NO FLOSSING and 90% swinging spinners and spoons where there are no other anglers... Good luck getting solid advice from local fly guys... and not a knock... it's just that they simply don't fish for them...

[STEELIES/26c3]

I'm a gear guy and I manage to land 40-70 salmon per season on the AR. NO FLOSSING and 90% swinging spinners and spoons where there are no other anglers... Good luck getting solid advice from local fly guys... and not a knock... it's just that they simply don't fish for them...

One exception... you might wish to PM Aron (aka, winxpman) from this board...

[JasonB]

I'm a gear guy and I manage to land 40-70 salmon per season on the AR. NO FLOSSING and 90% swinging spinners and spoons where there are no other anglers... Good luck getting solid advice from local fly guys... and not a knock... it's just that they simply don't fish for them...

Just in case my wording suggested otherwise, I didn’t mean to suggest that there weren’t salmon being legitimately caught in the American. Nor did I mean to fan any flames between fly anglers and gear anglers. Just trying to give some warning regarding what kinds of people and behavior one might expect to deal with. I think that’s more the issue for a lot of fly fisherman. Having fished for salmon in coastal streams I have also become pretty particular about how “fresh” the salmon are (especially for fly fishing), so much so that if I were going to show a friend what salmon fishing can be like I would definitely make it a trip, probably the Oregon coast...or better yet, Alaska! Hence the recommendation to consider heading north.

Pvillarr, good luck if you do make it out for some salmon...and really, DO put it on your bucket list to go fish for them along the coastal streams at some point. Steelhead too of course ��

[STEELIES/26c3]

Just in case my wording suggested otherwise, I didn’t mean to suggest that there weren’t salmon being legitimately caught in the American. Nor did I mean to fan any flames between fly anglers and gear anglers. Just trying to give some warning regarding what kinds of people and behavior one might expect to deal with. I think that’s more the issue for a lot of fly fisherman. Having fished for salmon in coastal streams I have also become pretty particular about how “fresh” the salmon are (especially for fly fishing), so much so that if I were going to show a friend what salmon fishing can be like I would definitely make it a trip, probably the Oregon coast...or better yet, Alaska! Hence the recommendation to consider heading north.

Pvillarr, good luck if you do make it out for some salmon...and really, DO put it on your bucket list to go fish for them along the coastal streams at some point. Steelhead too of course ��

I didn't take it that way at all Jason... the caps were to emphasize my own issue with the method. And to be perfectly honest, I used to do it when I was younger. I grew up though and learned how to fish for salmon ethically. Thankfully, CDFW FINALLY passed the 6ft leader length law so there should be less of that going on this year...

And yes, north is always better for quality and numbers but I would argue that much of the reason dark fish are caught on the American (especially before October) is based on location and method used. Fishing the basin (which is no longer allowed) or Sailor Bar or even Sunrise where fish are at the end of their migration and in spawning mode is almost certain to yield more fish but of a lesser quality.

Fishing lower on the river and in spots where fish are moving through rather than holding greatly increases your odds of catching chrome salmon. Also, using a fly, a spinner or spoon or a plug... will usually catch the brighter fish because eating them requires the fish to have enough energy to stalk, chase and grab it in current.

[STEELIES/26c3]

I know you're a good dude JasonB... probably even well more than half the man your dog thinks you are...

Thanks for taking the time.

Nemaste

[STEELIES/26c3]

In hindsight, I think the board could do without some of my my 'colorful' language... I deleted it from my post. Perhaps, you can delete at least the profanity from your "reply with quote" portion of your reply?
Thanks
Mark