Weekend Report

Spent Saturday on the Lower Feather with two long time clients. We floated from the Out let down to the Gridley Boat ramp. So the whole length of the high flow that most people can access via drift boat. Fishing was great considering what it has been previous years. There were spawning Salmon all the way down to Gridley and we hooked fish throughout the entire drift. We hooked about 9 or 10 fish and landed 3. Which is great fishing for the high flow considering previous years. It was great to see salmon spawning as far down as we did and we saw fresh salmon rolling in some of the big deep holes so there are still salmon that are going to spawn which is great for early November steelhead fishing on the feather. Hot flies were eggs and san jaun worms in various colors
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Also check out my buddy Keith Westra's new clothing line "Nature Boy Designs". They are making some cool shirts and have plans for many more cool designs. I will be rocking this gear for sure and encourage everyone to keep tabs on what Keith has in the works on his website.
http://natureboydesigns.com

What a weekend...

If you were not aware it pissed rain in nor cal this weekend. Not sure what the totals are but it seemed to rain all day saturday and sunday. I was on the lower Sac and didn't see the river conditions change much as it is really the first big rain of the year and the ground is DRY. Butte Creek did come up from 100cfs to 1300cfs but is dropping right now. The Yuba on the other hand just blew out last night and came up to 2827cfs from 804cfs. Deer Creek peaked at 2410cfs last night and is dropping so hopefully as it drops the main river will as well.

The Lower Sac this weekend was fair. Not the normal sac for October. We fished from Possie Grounds to Bonnie View (doing double floats) the egg bite was very poor even with the rain and over cast conditions. All our my fish came on small mayflies (S&M's and a new fly called the Little Bastard). The afternoon baetis hatch was one of the best I have seen in a long time. Waders in Posse Riffle seemed to be catching a few fish but most I talked to said they were small fish. Throughout the float the redds just didn't produce fish most of my fish came in what I call bug water with only maybe 3-4 fish coming off redds and even then they ate the nymphs. End result was I will definitely not be heading back to the upper floats any time soon. I think with this rain the feather and Yuba are gonna get really good again...move some fish up and around and stir things up.

In sporting news...the giants winning the pennant and going to the World Series has over shadowed the slaughter that my Irish took at the hands of Navy. I can't even bring myself to watch the game. I dvr'd it assuming I would be in a media bubble until I could watch it but the score flashed on the tv as I was watching the giants game...Brutal. It is a rebuilding year officially. Looks like more weather coming in later in the week and maybe this weekend. Looks like good weather to move steelhead up rivers and get some things going. Over and Out

Quick Report

Lower Yuba: The first egg bite has slowed down. If you got out there mid sept to early oct. you hit it and fishing has slowed sense. That said there are fresh redds in the lower river (Hammond Grove down) with fish actively eating eggs behind them. Most fish in the upper river have moved off the redds and are hunkered down digesting a months worth of egg protein. There are still fish in the middle river eating eggs behind some redds but no where near the numbers there were a week or two ago. The fish that are eating bugs are eating small mayflys (flash back PT’s, Military May in Olive, S&Ms, and Micros Mays all in size 16 and 18) and a few caddis (Yuba Pupa, olive no bead birds nest, and Olive fox’s pupa in 16 and 18).

Lower Feather: I haven’t fished it personally but a few close friends have been guiding and fishing it and report salmon numbers like they haven’t seen in years along with good numbers of larger “half pound/juvenile” and adult steelhead. While the crowds are also thick in the low flow the high flow has come down and with all the salmon we should see a good salmon spawn throughout the high flow. This will keep steelhead fishing going through October and well into November. Hot flies…Eggs…eggs… and if you are hitting up the deeper runs in the high flow…eggs and mayflies.

Lower Sac: Egg bit has not started…Some say it is late some say the returns of salmon are way down. Talking to the salmon fisherman around Chico there are not a lot fish moving through and the ones that are are pretty beat up. If it happens it is going to happen in the next two weeks…cross your fingers. The lower river is producing a few adult steelhead and good numbers of Juveniles.

I still have some November and December days left and with all the salmon still moving into the feather and Yuba November and December are going to be a great months for trout and steelhead fishing in Northern California.

Nov: 7, 21, 22,

Dec: 18, 19, 22, 23, 29

Weekend on the L. Sac.

Spent the last few days on the Lower Sacramento. Fished from Anderson down to Los Molinos and fishing was fair to good. Saturday was the opening day of catch and kill salmon fishing from Deschutes Bridge down river and it was a freaking zoo at the boat ramps but once we got on the river I didn't run into nearly as many boats as I thought. Every salmon guy I ran into was catching fish and most seemed to think the bite was pretty good. Saw one boat pull a good 20lb buck outta of a hole below Cow Creek and was amazed that they kept it based on its black color. Maybe they needed a pair of shoes, who knows.

Discouraging news: I saw about 4 redds with salmon on them the last few days and caught only a handfull of fish on egg patterns. The salmon are just not there and the fish know it as they are still hanging in the typical bug water eating small mayflies, fall caddis, and stones in the lower river. Talking to a few guys who have been fishing the upper river (redding to Anderson) the egg bite is not happening up there either. There is a handful of redds and if you are the first boat down the river you'll hit the 10 or so fish behind them but that is it. FISHING is tough up there. There is just not the fish spawning to get the egg bite going. Maybe its late? I don't know.

While on the L. Sac we did catch a few adult steelhead and a bunch of fin clipped half pounders in the lower river. All days we hooked good numbers of fish but not the stupid numbers we should put up during the middle of October and what is usually the peak of the egg bite. This week I am heading back to the L. Yuba and gonna go check out the Feather as the high flow has dropped and there is good numbers of salmon around dropping eggs.

In other news: Giants I love you....but Philly really scares me. I am gonna enjoy the series win for the next few days. Notre Dame, Way to get it done.

Oh how good it feels....

I was completely prepared to host a dumpster fire and burn every piece of giants and notre dame gear I have and give up being a sports fan for eternity if my Irish lost to Boston College and the Giants couldn't win one damn game. Fortunately, both succeeded and Life is back to good. GO GIANTS!!!!!

Now on to fishing. If you are not fishing now, sell your fly rods and get a new Hobbie cause October is where it is at.

The egg bit is going off on the lower yuba with good and great days this last week. There are more salmon in the Lower Yuba this year then I have seen in years. All normal spots are full of salmon and fish are having to spawn in other or "new" areas. That said there are still tons of salmon in the deeper holes in the lower river and pods at the base of Daguerre waiting to move up river. Should be a great fall and winter on the Yuba. As for fishing instructions...fish beads or what ever egg pattern you prefer if you are oppose to beads. Fish are concentrated in the riffle eating eggs in the upper and mid river. Couldn't find fish in what we call bug water in the upper or mid river. Once you get down to about Sycamore the redds are not as thick and salmon have yet to pair up in the riffles so fish will eat caddis and mayflies with more regularity.

BE CAREFULL on the Yuba to stay off the redds. I saw multiple people over the weekend tromping through fresh redds...this is my pet peave, don't be "that guy".

Lower Sac is getting started with a few fish up on redds in the upper river but early reports are that the egg bite has yet to get going strong. Heard some mixed reports from the feather as well but with good salmon returns on the feather I expect that we should see improved steelhead fishing over there over the next few weeks.

I still have some winter dates available so if you are looking to do some winter steelhead fishing on the Lower Sac, Yuba, Feather, or Butte Creek pick one and give me a call or shoot me an email. Or just shoot me an email and ask for an up to the minute fishing report.

Winter Dates

November: 21, 22, 24, 26, 27, 28

December: 11, 12, 18, 19, 22, 23, 29

January: 2 - 9

Thanks for reading and get out there and Fish