Weekend Report

Busy weekend on many fronts…

Lower Yuba - Spent Saturday on the Feather. Feather is full of salmon from the top all the way down to Palm. We floated from the outlet to Palm and then came back up and floated from Shit House to the Outlet. The high flow fished well. We hooked good numbers of steelhead, breaking off a few, loosing, and landing a few as well. There were decent numbers of salmon up on redds in  all the normal spots. I still think there are still a lot of salmon staging in the deeper water and below the riffles to move up and spawn. The Low flow is full of salmon, more then I have seen in years. The first push of salmon have filled the riffles in the upper stretches spawning and sitting on redds while the next wave is schooling up in the riffles and staging below them in the riffles. Past Mathews it seemed that most fish were staging in the riffles and had not dropped eggs yet. This is a tough stage as the salmon are REALLY aggressive and will hit any egg that comes their way. We lost probably 40 rigs trying to fish through many of the low flow riffles, salmon after salmon slammed our eggs. We did manage to hook a few fish lower in the low flow, but not as good as the high flow. This rain will change things and I expect in the next few days the whole river should really get good.

Overall though it is a late start to things on the Feather which bodes well for a long season hopefully stretching into December for the whole river. Hot flies Eggs.

Lower Yuba – Lower Yuba has gotten a late start as well, but finally there are good numbers of salmon up on redds from about mid river down. The overcast weather Sunday really helped keeping the trout up on redds longer through the day. Where there were active salmon there was good numbers of fish behind them. There were some caddis and grey drakes around as well and if you wanted to fish some dries there are still a few opportunities. We didn’t get many fish on bugs as we focused more on egg water.

Most Importantly GO GIANTS AND GO IRISH!!!!!!

Some new Fall/Winter Gear

Fall means many things...one is it is usually time to get some new gear. Fishing shrits are getting a little stanky and stained, I sweat a lot in them all summer and like my sandwiches with lots of mustard and mayo dripping out. Also I always need to replace some warmer clothes and check out what new fall clothing is out from Simms. Also it is always time to get some new rods for the fall and winter.

As a Scott pro staffer I am fortunate enough to work with a great company and put some of the best rods around in my boats. I picked up 2 A4 9ft 6wts for trout nymph fishing and throwing big dries out of the drift boat. 9'6" are great for wade fishing or nymphing out of the boat where longer casts and bigger drifts are needed but a 9' stick is nice when clients are just fishing 10-15' off the boat. I think begginners have an easier time swinging the indicator rig around on a shorter rod to...who knows though we'll see how it goes. I also picked up an A4 9'6" 6wt for steelhead season to compliment my S4's. The A4 is a great middle range rod and a great value for the dollar.

I also finally bought a switch rod...now I have not been a huge switch rod guy. I love spey fishing and have plenty of spey rods but the switch thing just never excited me. That said I fished one a few days this spring and summer swinging flies for shad and steelhead and I must admit it was pretty fun. I picked up a L2H 11' 6wt for the feather, Yuba, and Butte Creek this fall/winter. I have not matched it up with a reel or line but will most likely throw the Airflo Speydacator line on it.

A Few New Arrows for the Quiver

I have also become a Simms Fishing Products Ambasador. I started my fishing carrear wearing Simms gear and then wore some other companies for a while and in the last few years have come back to Simms and believe they make the best gear around. Just this year I was lucky enough to become a Simms Ambassador and will start working with simms in a formal manner to help design and create even better gear. That said I picked up some new cold weather gear for the coming weather.

The thing I am excited the most about is the New Fall Run Jacket. It is made with Prima Loft synthetic down and is super warm and super light...and most importantly you will not look like the Michelin man wearing old school down.

No more Michelin Man

I also picked up one of the new Kenia Shirts. I love this thing as it is a great fall fishing shirt. It has the sun protection benefits of Core3 technology but it is a bit thicker so a cold breeze does not just blow threw it and some new kind of fibers they created help trap heat.

I also picked up a new boat bag. The Dry Creek Boat Bag in size large. This thing is big. I love it as I now can carry everything not just fly boxes in my boat bag, I could stuff a few layers in there or what ever else I may need. It is a given to say it is completely water proof - any boat bag has to be.

Quick Friday Report

Lower Sacramento River

The fishing is good to very good right now. Many of my buddies have reported ridiculous numbers and size of fish up through Redding and few steelhead lower in the river. The word is the egg bite is early 2000’s status and fish are chowing!!! Usually does not last long so book a bath tub to float down the river and get after it.

 Lower Yuba River

Flows are still up around 1000cfs and fishing is good. More and more salmon are moving up on redds, but fish still are spread out in the various types of water. Day and evening temps have cooled off drastically the last few days so the caddis hatch should slow a bit or be pushed to midday. Heard some good reports from a few buddies who likes to swing flies out on the river so with the higher water and the fish being spread out swinging flies is a fun way to fish this time of year. I like to swing smaller flies in olive or tan…Aram’s Little Kim in Silver, Hickman’s Skiddish Smolt , and the Partridge soft hackle flies have all pulled fish for me the last few weeks.

 Lower Feather River

There are great numbers of salmon in the Low Flow Section of the river with reports of steelhead mixed in. With all the salmon spawning in the riffles it can be tough to fish for steelhead but if you don’t mind loosing a few rigs they are mixed in there. The High Flow section came up to 6000cfs for about 8 days and now is dropping, down to 4789cfs as of today. Once the flows in the high flow get down around 2500-3000 it is time to get out and fish the high flow. The flow drop should suck steelhead and salmon up river. Mid October through thanksgiving is going to be good on the feather this year.

 Available Dates:

Oct: 21

Nov: 10, 11, 18-21, 25

Dec: 2, 8, 9 14-16, 19-23, 27-31

Broad Ranging Report with other random news...

Fall Fishing is off to a slow but steady start. Weather is suppose to cool off over the next few days and I even saw some rain in the extended forecast. This should help kick things into gear. With all the salmon in the rivers we should see spawning salmon through November and fishing on the L. Yuba, Feather, and L. Sac should be good to great through the end of the year.

 Lower  Yuba – Flows are higher then usual this time of year. The egg bite is slow to start but there are salmon up on redds and trout behind them in a few areas. There are also plenty of trout still holding in bug water eating nymphs and feeding on evening caddis hatches. Look for fishing to be good through the end of the year.

Lower Feather – The low flow and high flow has TONS of salmon in them. Talked to a few people whom have gone over and fished the feather and they had trouble fishing the riffles with all the salmon. The flows in the high flow should drop soon and fishing through out the river for fall and winter steelhead should get going.

Lower Sacramento – There are a ton of salmon moving up the L. Sac this fall and many have made it all the way up to Redding and the egg bite should get going any time now. Fishing on the L. Sac for trout on steelhead should be great this year through the first of the year.

Fall and winter are great times of year to get out fishing. Below are some available fall and winter dates. Also check out hgb fly fishing on facebook.

Nov: 10, 11, 18-21, 24, 25

Dec: 1, 2, 14-16, 19-23, 27-31

Jan: 4-6, 12, 13, 19-21, 26, 27

New Toons for dark drives to the river and lonely drives home in the twilight

Fall always signals  a lot of new music. Not sure if it is the approaching holiday season or just the approaching dark and rain that make artists realease new albums. Here is my list of must listens:

Out Now: Patterson Hood “Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance” , Band of Horses “Mirage Rock” , Mumford and Sons “Babel” , Ryan Bingham “Tomorrowland” , Dinosaur Jr. “I bet on sky”

Oct. 16 Ben Gibbard “Former Lives”

Oct. 22 Gary Clark Jr. “Blak and Blu”

Drinks that were at one time illegal due to the Volstead Act

Time to go dark on the beer and the water…

I cracked a bottle of 18year Glenlivet the other night and bought a 12 pack of Sierra Nevada Tumbler. Tumbler is a great fall beer and there is nothing bad about 18year glen. I have yet to buy a handle of Jameson but a few more weeks and I am sure it will be sitting top shelf in the pantry.

Fall/Winter Drinks

 God’s Team

Yes the Irish are 4-0 and ranked in the top ten. It is a great feeling!!! We got a bye week and then we got the convicts of Miami at Soldier Field. Great to renew the Catholics vs. the Convicts bowl. 

Lower Yuba Weekend

I spent this weekend out on the Lower Yuba guiding. I have not been out in a few weeks as I got the flu that turned into bronchitus and a double ear infection...I was a mess. Fever like an acid trip and snot production that would rival a day care. Finally got my feet back under me this last week and after rescheduling a bunch of trips I got back out. 

Lower Yuba is hanging just over a 1000cfs. This is a good and bad thing, but I think the good out way the bad. Usually by now the flows have been dropped to around 700-800cfs. This seems like a trivial difference, but it makes a huge deal. Good things are there is plenty of water for the fish to spread out in the runs, flats, riffles, and banks. This is a huge deal as it provides plenty of options for wade fishermen and boat guys and even with boats and waders on the water one can always find fresh spots if you know where to look. Once the water drops to 700-800cfs it turns into a riffles/runs game and the fish get pounded by wade and boat guys. Making it tough if you are not getting first licks on a run. Tough part about the flows being what they are is the salmon are slow to get going and seem to be few in number. I think the higher flows have pushed more fish up above the bridge then in previous years and fish are holding in the deeper water both above and below Daguerre, moving up river at a much more leisurely pace. Most years when the water drops from summer flows to 700-800cfs it forces the salmon up river in a big push and out of the holes into the riffles to spawn all at once. This results in the trout packing into the riffles and gorging on eggs for about 2weeks. Resulting in an epic egg bite of about 14 days and then fishing gets pretty tough.

Based on what I have seen over the last two days I love this flow and program the river seems to be on. There a few, and I mean a  few – like 2-3 spots, salmon up on redds and where they are on redds there is fish behind them chowing eggs but in other spots fish are holding in bug water eating bugs. Really what it boils down to is there is a lot of options for how someone can fish the river and I think good fall fishing is going to last longer and be more consistent then previous years. Add some of the best caddis hatches of the year during the evening and you have some great fishing.

Also word on the street is the low flow and high flow on the feather are packed with salmon which has the makings of a great steelhead season over on the Feather. 

Up date and the Yuba house

Spent the weekend on the L. Yuba. Saw the first few dead salmon and some decent size pods in the pools and caught a few fish on egg patterns. The egg bite should be about a week or two away on the Lower Yuba. Prime fall fishing is still a few weeks away but there is some good fishing to be had right now. I have heard of a few steelhead caught on the L. Feather, and the Lower stretches of the Sac are kicking out some half pounders and a few adult fish.

I have also began working with a couple who rents a cabin/house about 8miles from the highway 20 bridge on the Lower Yuba River for those that would like to stay close to the river. It sleeps up to 5 people comfortably and even has a private 2.5 acre bass pond on site. For prices and availability check out the “Yuba House” at www.hgbflyfishing.com.

Sept. 22, 23

Oct. 7, 21, 27, 28.

Nov. 10-12, 17-21

Dec. 1, 2, 14-22, 27-31

Fly Tackle Dealer show...new stuff

I was fortunate of enough to spend the last weekend at the Fly Tackle Dealer Show in Reno Nevada. I have been going to "the show" for the better part of 12 years...the first time I went it was in Salt Lake City and I had my first run with JaegerMeister and the security of "The Temple"...bad mix. I was  21 years young and have never touched Jaeger again...thats how bad it was. The show moved to Denver and I made that jaunt for a number of years, missed a year or two, then the show went to New Orleans, and now landed in Denver.

The size of the show, number or dealers (brands), and retailers that show up has gone down like a 747 with out engines at 32000 feet. The reasons are complex and not something that I concern myself with but it was an eye opener as to how small the show has actually gotten in the last 5 years.

My main reason for going this year was that Cast Hope (www.casthope.org) was hosting a happy hour at the Scotts Fly Rod booth and as a Scott, Echo Rods, and Air Flo pro-staffer I needed to make an appearance to support the brands. The Happy Hour went great!!!! We handed out 200 Klean Kanteen Pints and killed a keg in 30minutes...impressive. Cast Hope got a lot of much needed promotion, was able to thank those that have supported us over the last 4 years, and we were able to introduce ourselves and our organization to much of the industry. Great event and one I am sure will help Cast Hope grow.

I was also fortunate enough to see all the new product coming out. Here is a quick summary...

Scott has released a 8' 8wt, 9wt, and 10wt in their S4S series...They are sick! great striper or largemouth rods for Northern California. I will ordering the 8 and 9wt to hopefully throw fall top water flies for the bass and stripers. Also the new L3H spey line of rods was a big hit. I am not a big spey guy so I can't talk to inteligently about them but I did cast them and liked them a lot.

Echo Rods has some really cool new new one piece salt rods in echo 3 line and value switch rods for 200-400$. Also the echo ion reel is a deal for the price! I ordered a few my nymph rods and basic trout rods.

Air Flo Lines has some cool new stuff as well. The Sniper Striper line is by far the best shooting head line I have ever fished and their Range Floating lines are pretty sweet as well.

Simms as always had some really cool new gear out as well. All there new gear is up on their website but the new Ocean Trek boot is pretty slick for wading for carp and over rocky bottoms like possibly the Yuba. The cold weather shirts are pretty sweet as well. May get in touch with my inner lumber jack this winter and role one of them on Butte Creek. The Fall Run Jacket (synthetic down jacket) is pretty sweet and warm looking as well.


NRS had a sweet inflatable drift boat on display and Adipose skiffs were there and they look really cool...not sure they could hang in the swirls on the Sac but they look great for the Lower Yuba and Feather.