Yuba River - Optimal Flow

[plummis]

Wow. The previous post of the lower Yuba after the rains is quite impressive.

What is a fishable flow for this river and how long does it typically take to clear to 1 - 2 ft visibility?

[Adam Grace]

I think that an optimal flow is between 800-1,200 cfs. I know that I fish it when it's fishable and I have spare time, I don't plan my trips around small flow changes, only huge changes like the current flows.

I don't really know how clear it needs to be. I have caught a couple of fish in about 2 foot visibility before but I rarely fish it when it's highly colored.

[J.R. Hubbard]

I've actually been told by a guide that 2000 is prime. I think under 4000 it can fish well as long as it's steady at that flow for a while. Anything above 2000 makkes it much harder to wade in and fish though...

[DonCooksey]

It will be at a fishable flow level next Tuesday. At least that is what I have my fingers crossed for, since I'll be up for a business trip and had hoped to get in some fishing that morning. Actually, the Lower Yuba flows look promising, having dropped steadily from that unbelievable 96K down to around 15K in five days. With five more days until Tuesday, let's see... should be right at about 1,500 CFS. Always the optimist . It was 1,300 when I fished it in mid-December, but I have fished successfully when it was as high as 4,000. As stated earlier, you can't wade much at those higher levels, but you can lob nymphs into some pretty good runs from the bank or by wading a few feet in where it is safe. Fishing from the bank should also be facilitated by stripping of the willows by the huge flows of the last few days, or by redirection of the main flow away from them in some places, as we saw with the big flows last spring.

[J.R. Hubbard]

Be sure to factor in fish shock as well!

[bolden]

two or three summers ago it was at 3000 all summer and the fishing was unbelievable. elk hair caddis
and hoppers were all you need to have great days. There was a riffle and tailout above the bridge that
my dad and i fished all the time, of course that was back before trespassing was a huge issue,
so now you can't get to that run without a little trouble.

[plummis]

thanks for the information. The key will be finding those new holes where the steelies are holding up. I suspect the river has gone through emmence change over the past couple of weeks.

[DonCooksey]

Tried fishing the Yuba on 1/10, with flows down to 6,000 cfs, but that was still pretty high. The water was really muddy, with visibility less than one ft. I was surprised to see a big salmon hanging around just above the bridge. It looked pretty fresh, with intact fins and nice spots, so I'm guessing that it came in after the big flows. Here are a couple of pics:



Check out the new high water mark in the foreground.

[Adam Grace]

I asked my guide friend, Hogan Brown, about his ideal wadable flows on the Yuba and he told me that you should start fishing the Yuba once it drops down to 3,500 cfs. Hogan said that starting at 2,500 cfs the trout start moving away from the edges and spread out into their normal holding waters. A gentleman in Nevada City Anglers gave me the same recomendations about the Yuba as well.

So look to fish the Yuba around 3,500cfsand concentrate on fishing the edges until the river drops down to 2,500 cfs then fish it like normal.

Good luck out there!