Fly Tying 101

Loon is hosting a four part live streaming event on beginning fly tying starting Jan 6 and will run every thursday. I think this is in place of the usual "Loon Live" hosted by the alway entertaining and enlightening Matt Callies. Great way to learn if you get a fly tying kit for Christmas or have one sitting around you got years ago and have never used. 

Check it OUT!
https://loonoutdoors.com/fly-tying-101/

Last minute opening, Winter Dates, Fishing Reports

Last Minute Opening: Dec 20th 

Open Winter Dates:
Dec 28
Jan 2, 14, 21, 

*These dates are first come first serve so call 530-514-2453 or email. 

Hope everyone is ready for Christmas and have all their shopping done and are getting ready to travel to be with family or have family over. We are hosting Christmas this year I have a few days of guiding this week and then some cooking and cleaning to do. The last storm that went through really did a number on the rivers though there is still some fishing to be had and lets be honest no one is complaining about rain at this point! I have a few winter dates open still and a last minute opening this week.

Lower Sacramento River is fishable down to Cow Creek which means floats down to Anderson are fishable. Fishing has been pretty typical winter trout fishing on the Lower Sacramento which means good fish but not huge numbers on most days...that said there can be periods of really good numbers if the conditions are right.

Lower Yuba River is blown out right now but dropping. Dropping Slowly at that...it is at 7057 and is dropping a few hundred cfs a day out of Englebright. Deer Creek is at 265 and not dropping very fast...on about 30cfs today (monday dec 18th). Based on how the river and creek are dropping and all the water that is coming down the SF Yuba I can't imagine the river will be in shape to fish any time in the coming week. 

Butte Creek is dropping and is down to 1160cfs and with no rain in the forecast until early next week it should come into shape in the next day or two. Air temps are cold so make sure to get out during the warmer part of the day. Swinging flies and nymph fishing will both catch fish.

Feather River is blown out as well all the way up as Lake Oroville is completely colored up. When this happens it usually takes a while for the river to clear.

Hope everyone has a great holiday and spends time with family as well as out on the water!

Great Chico Band and really cool guys...check them out.

Tuesday...quick report.

So the rain is back...The Lower Yuba WAS dropping and around 5000cfs but I am sure will rage again very soon and in the end sense the South Fork has been ripping Lake Englebright should be blown so the river will be mud for a while but I can not confirm this...I am hoping the river is fishable by Sunday/Monday but that may be wishful thinking.

The Lower Sacramento River is fishing so that is good as much of the creeks that blow it out have dropped and supposedly clarity is good down to Bend bridge but I find that hard to believe...I would feel comfortable making the assumption fishing down to Cow Creek is going to be decent. I think fishing on the Sac is going to be a good option the coming few weeks but who knows based on the rain that is forecasted over the next few days.

Butte Creek was dropping into shape getting below 550cfs today but should pop back up with the rains but again I am hoping this should drop back down into shape by sunday/monday.

Feather River is fishable through the low and high flow and has a few fresh winter fish in it from what I have heard.

Some great Music from one the GREATEST BANDS I know...

Fishing Report, Open Dates, and Rock and Roll music for Cast Hope

Fishing Reports, Open dates, and Rock and Roll music for Cast Hope Cast Hope Benefit Concert is coming up Dec 10th! Great opportunity for people in the Bay Area that have not had the chance to make it to a Cast Hope event to show up and support Cast Hope. The event is at Slims in SF  with live music by The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band , Chuck Ragan, Rocky Votolato, Travis Hayes , and MY BAND Royal Oaks. Doors at 6:30pm Music at 7:30pm. Tickets still available CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE *Admission and Admission plus dinner tickets available A full night of live music, a great raffle, and fun! Event is Sponsored by: Lost Coast Outfitters, Skull Candy, Klean Kanteen, Echo Rods, Air Flo Fly Lines.

Fishing Reports and Open Dates Open Dates: Dec 22, 23, 28, 31 Jan 2, 3, 5, 6, 14, 16, 21 Feb 20.  Lower Feather River: River is fishing fair. The quality of fishing really depends on finding fresh water...aka fish that haven't been caught or fished over. Tough to do during the weekends and on holidays. There are a few fresh fish but not many as fishing tends to taper off during the end of November. Highest concentrations of fish are in the Low Flow and swinging small alvin flies or nymphing with eggs and nymphs will catch fish.  Butte Creek: Flows are stable at 280 which is a great wade fishing flow. There are fish throughout the system and more are moving in with every storm. This is a tough creek though with limited public access and bush whacking, hiking, moderate trespassing. Swinging small steelhead flies and nymphing with eggs and attractor nymphs is best. Fishing will improve through December and January Lower Yuba River: Clarity is about 1' with flows at 1240cfs and dropping as deer creek drops...YCWA is going to drop flows to 750-800 this saturday or sunday. Best fishing this time of year is with attractor eggs, baetis, smaller stoneflies, and swinging small olive bait fish or traditional steelhead flies in smaller "earth" tones.

Reports, sports, music...all the stuff to kill time on a thursday.

So winter is here it seems like at least today. There was a little frost this morning in Chico, Ca and the morning air temps were around 38. Haven’t seen really any rain in the last two weeks and we even saw weather this last week in the 80s! CRAZY but CRAZY seems to be the new normal with regards to weather. Here are some fishing reports and things that have been going on…you know random stuff you can read to kill time on a Thursday. 

Open Dates:

Dec: 17, 21-23, 29-31

Jan: 2, 5-7, 14, 28

Feb: 20

Lower Sac Stripers: Fishing has slowed dramatically but the river is fishable and the big fish are the ones that are eating…I mean really big. This is when you may fish all day for one grab but it will be a true trophy. I fished last week when the weather was warmer and caught plenty of 3-8lb fish and had one monster follow and tail slap a fly on an I-Line. Winter striper fishing on the river can be good or bad just depends on the weather and water

Lower Sacramento River Trout: December is traditionally one of, if not my favorite, month to fish the Sac for trout. Most of the guides and recreational anglers are gone…moving back down south or to the Trinity and while numbers are not huge we do usually catch some of the biggest rainbows of the year. Fishing small and deep is the key and with a poor salmon return it seems this small and deep approach we use in December has already started from what I hear.

Feather River Steelhead: Fishing is pretty workmen like…good numbers no reports of monsters but steady fishing if you can get a clean run and fresh water. Getting fresh water is the biggest issue on the feather. If you are the first one to fish it you will get the fish…if not can be tough.

Lower Yuba River: Lower yuba slowed down with the flow drop as the flows are back down to 775. I am really not a fan of fishing the Yuba at these flows but  good rain can push the flows back up to around a 1000cfs really quick so hopefully we get some rain soon and that happens.

Butte Creek: Is open and flows are around 150cfs…a good wade fishing flow. There should be some steelhead up in the creek with the good rains we had in October. May get out and check it out this weekend.

Sports Reports....a lot has happened. Baseball season was good…I am glad that the giants lost the way they did so they will be publicly forced to spend some money on a closer/bull pen. The total embarrassment of the way they lost game 4 is going to force them to spend some money.

Notre Dame is what they are…YOUNG. Expectations were way to high this year. We are starting on average 14 freshman a game so you get what you get with that. That said I support Coach Kelly and in no way blame him or his staff or the losses…that said I am glad Van Gormer (d-cordinator) is gone…His schemes were way to complicated and many times the kids looked lost. Hopefully Kaiser stays and all this experience for these young kids helps next year as pretty much everyone will be back.

Music: Been listening to a ton of Sturgill Simpson sense the wife and I were lucky enough to go see him this last weekend at the Cascade Theater in Redding, CA aka the Bakersfield of the North State.  By far top 5 shows I have ever seen…the musicianship was amazing. Plus Sturgill is just a bad ass…talk about the real deal man.

In other news my band Royal Oaks is heading into the studio this weekend for two day of tracking for our upcoming album…always a fun yet taxing experience. We will also be playing Dec 10^th down at Slims in SF with Chuck Ragan, Rocky Votolato, Reverand Peyton and the Big Damn Band, and Travis Hayes for the Inagural Cast Hope Benefit Concert.

Simms Delta Day: This is a great Pro/Guide/Dealer event that Simms, Hatch, Costa, Yeti all throw down in the delta…basicly my good buddy and simms rep john Sherman throws a bad ass party event at sugar barge in the delta…it started in his back yard but has turned into this multi day fiesta. Super FUN! I went down with my good buddy and guide Chuck Ragan and we worked the Costa pre party taco feed and fished Friday and then worked the event Saturday speaking about Cast Hope  and going Plastic Bottle Free in our guiding.

Reports...Fresh from the water.

Its been a while…sorry. Fall, hell winter seemed to be here this weekend! I was in flip flops and short striper fishing on Monday and Tuesday and waders, flannels, and jackets steelhead fishing on Saturday and Sunday. Gotta love northern California…when the seasons change the pendulum can swing as I will be back in flip flops striper fishing on Thursday with 83 degree weather forecasted….here are the reports as I hear them and and have experienced them.

Open Guide Dates:

Nov 25, 26,

Dec 17, 21-23, 27-31

Jan 5-7, 14, 16, 21, 28

Lower Sacramento Striper fishing has been good if you can really pick your day and time. With the weather swings of the last week I wouldn’t say I would take anyones money to go out as the weather changes really affect the fishing but if you can pick your day and hit right fishing can be down right ridiculous. Last week Monday and Tuesday were really good fishing…big fish, lots of fish, top water…all the good stuff one wants out of striper fishing! Then the weather changed…I am going to get back out mid to late week ounce the weather stabilizes again into that 75-85 degree fall weather.

Nice fall fish off the weed beds

Not all L. Sac species eat eggs in October

Lower Sac Trout Fishing – I spent Saturday in wind and rain guiding the Lower Sac. Fishing was good until the wind came up after lunch then it was tough to even fish but when we could find some shelter from the wind we managed a few fish. I floated from Anderson to Balls Ferry and we caught most our fish on nymphs in what I call “bug water” I didn’t see any spawning salmon so that was a big concerning but it has been a really late run for the most part but a late run can translate to a poor run if they don’t show up. That said I am sure the guys floating up through redding are finding fish on eggs and up on redds so who knows. I tend to avoid the egg bit madness and opt for solitude and maybe a few less fish…I had the Anderson float all to myself Saturday.

Wind and Rain but fish gotta eat

Lower Feather River – Sunday I guided the feather from Riverbend Park to Palm ave and there were spawning salmon thick from about hwy 162 to Mathews…with a few around Robinson and the Islands above. Salmon spanwing was pretty inconsistent…We would hit one riffle where they were thick and we would hook steelhead and then the next with none and no steelhead…kinda was like this all the way to Palm. So the good news is fish are spread out and not just concentrated up in the upper reaches of the Low Flow. We did see a lot of pre spawn salmon moving up riffles and around the river so there are plenty of fish that are yet to spawn so the egg bite and steelhead fishing should only improve. We actually caught most of our fish on bugs so most fish weren’t even keyed on eggs yet. All our fish were wild steelhead which is always a treat on a hatchery based river like the feather and were in the 18-22” bracket. Typical feather steelhead.

Lower Yuba River – Flows on the Lower Yuba are up over a 1000cfs which is GREAT for this time of year, giving both drift boat anglers and wader fishermen room to fish. Deer creek came up to over 500cfs on Sunday so I am not sure what the clarity fo the river is though. I talked to a buddy who guided it on Saturday and did well but he did say the river was coloring up. I am sure Deer Creek will drop fast and by mid week the river should be in great shape.

Sports Report – Overall pretty damn tough few months for me…The Irish are 2-5 and are just flat out a bad football team right now. They aren’t getting blown out by any means, the are loosing by a touchdown here a field goal there but they look bad…disheartening but I am a fan through thick and thin, not a band wagon guy. I support Brian Kelly and have a hard time bagging on the team and coach when I only watch the games on Saturday…no one outside of the coaching staff is at practice every day and knows their personal like they do. The bottom line is we are much younger then many people realized going into this season and hopefully we can get a few wins here and build for next season.

Win or Loose it is a special place...

Giants – tough way to exit the season but to be honest very fitting based on how the second half of the season went. I would be very concerned if we made it farther as I think post season success would have diminished the motivation of the management to address bull pen and hitting deficiencies. This way there will be a TON of pressure to get a legitimate closer and a left fielder that can swing the bat.

Cast Hope Video by RA Beattie and Beattie Productions

There are few things that I am as proud of as what Ryan Johnston and I have done with a crazy idea he shared with me at the Taco Bar in Tres Hombres nearly 10 years ago. He wanted to call it Cast Hope and he wanted to take what he had been given and share it with kids that hadn't been given such things. I jumped on and I don't think either of us have looked back. When you have an idea that you know is good, a problem you know needs solving, and you think you have the solution it is a powerful exciting thing.



Then when people start believing in your idea, supporting it, and as the years go by you see the affects it has it is humbling. I could go on and on, but this video does a much better job of explaining what Cast Hope is, what it does for kids in Northern California and Western Nevada, and more importantly why as anglers and outdoors people we must continue to share what we love. Share the outdoors my friends.

Sept 9th post...good stuff. Fresh off the keyboard.

So here we are in the early parts of September…Fall is definitely here. The sun is setting earlier and coming up later as well the hottest part of the day while still warm only lasts about 2-3 hours. Some people really like fall…I am not a big fall person to be honest. Personally I am more of a spring summer person but fall and winter have their positives…

I have had a pretty light guide schedule as Cast Hope and life in general have been taking up a lot of time. I have made it a point the last month to get my two boys out on the river as much as possible and in many cases taking them out in lieu of guiding or fishing myself. They are both really at a point where they are starting to functionally fish, both with the spinning rod and the fly rod. They can throw a popper/dropper rig for small bass, pike minnows, and blue gill and chuck a swim bait on a spinning rod so fishing with them is really starting to be fun. I have really committed myself to sacrificing personal fishing time in the hopes of creating future fishing buddies and more fishing time down the road…I shouldn’t even say “sacrificing” as I don’t feel I am sacrificing much as taking them fishing is pretty darn fun and I get throw the fly around a bit as well. In the end they don’t have to like fishing they just have to like the outdoors more then they do TV, Video Games, IPads, and things with screens…If they get into kayaking, mountain biking, camping, hiking, gardening, golf…I don’t really care just that they appreciate the outdoors and are in touch with it.

Reports

Lower Sacramento River Striper – I have been guiding and fishing the sac outside of chico for stripers and bass exclusively. I will focus on stripers and bass through October for the most part. Fishing has been good. There are plenty of small stripers and fish in the 4-8lb range to be caught. Traditionally this time of year is when we start to see a decline in numbers of smaller fish and increase in numbers of bigger fish but that hasn’t happened this year. My theory is usually that the large pods of chinook salmon and the anglers chasing them push many of the larger fish to the banks pushing out the smaller fish and increasing the chances that we have to catch thes fish. The bigger fish traditionally come to the banks and shallows to feed but with the deeper water occupied by salmon and trafficked by large boats usually in the fall these bigger stripers move to the banks to live AND feed. More and more salmon are showing up each day and I imagine the bigger fish will move out of the deeper holding water as they do so it is only a matter of time.

 Lower Yuba River – Flows have dropped to 756 which is pretty standard this time of year as that is the “low flow” of the fall that the river gets dropped to. I have heard over the last few days that fishing has been pretty darn good. I imagine as the salmon move up river and into the riffles to cut reds the fishing will continue to improve. The fishing over the summer has been pretty up and down and I think with the lower flows and huge food source of the egg hatch here coming up we will really get a good idea of how many fish are in the lower Yuba. I am thinking the next few weeks into October could be some pretty epic fishing on the Lower Yuba.

***Upcoming Guiding…I have a few late fall and winter dates open for the Lower Yuba, Lower Sacramento, and Feather for Trout and Steelhead. If anyone is interested shoot me and email or phone call to get on the calendar.

Open Dates: 

Nov 23, 25, 26, 27

Dec 3, 17, 19, 21-23, 27-31

Music Report: 

Been listening to some really great new music. The new BJ Barham solo record I got on vinyl and is really good. Just a simple album about his home and growing up, nothing fancy but this guy cranks out some pretty relatable good tunes……Also got some more commercial music in the Newest Lumineers album and the Chris Stapleton Album. The Lumineers album has some good tunes on it but hasn’t really grabbed me like the last album. That said I haven’t given it a huge chance so I am going to keep listening…Chris Stapleton while a pretty commercial success is a great song writer and a really interesting story. Basicly a guy who wrote songs in Nashville for all sorts of acts and stars fairly namelessly decided to record is own album of his own personal songs and ended up winning album of the year at the CMT Awards I think. The songs are solid and really heartfelt good country/Americana….

Sports Report: The Giants are brutal to watch…Casilla kills me and our playoff hopes. Amazing downward spiral post all star break but I rest on the fact that we have won the world series as a wild card so never loose hope. Just has the feeling this year that we are barely hanging on to relevance in September. The Irish…tough loss this last week to Texas. That said Texas is a much better team then anyone gave them credit. I had not designs on a blow out win and knew the game would be close. Charlie Strong is a great coach and quality human being so I knew he was going to turn the Long horns around. That said I think we played well enough to win just didn’t come up with it. I think we are a lot younger then I thought…especially on defense. Hard to overlook that that was 17 players first major college start. From Defensive line back we are all new and all of our receivers except Tory Hunter Jr. are starting for the first time. The QB debate seems to have been ended with Coach Kelly announcing Kaiser as the starter this week and giving him most of the snaps last week…feel bad for Malik but that is the breaks I guess. I didn’t feel he got a chance to do much last week but he had all spring and early fall to shine and end the debate as the upper classmen and he didn’t so may the best man win I guess. Hopefully he can graduate this year and transfer to play another year somewhere.