Fly Fishing – McCloud River Opens

Get ready for a new season of the states best fly fishing on the McCloud River – Opens on April 24th

Fly Fishing on the Klamath and Upper Sac

Trips on Northern California Rivers

February 9th – 15th

What a week!  We started out with an epic afternoon on the Pit River which during any other time of year would have been fantastic.  To experience catching fish after fish in the dead of winter was just too good to believe.  On an afternoon on the Upper Sac we did not have the epic proportions, finding fewer fish but all were sizable, most well into the teens.

This week the bite on the Klamath turned on for us as well, particularly when we swung flies, on a few runs we enjoyed multiple grabs. We are in the midst of prime time with increased water temps and spring like weather.  Just before the weekend, Scott and George found several fish including a couple brutes.

Wading Staffs: A Northern California Fly Fishing Guide’s Review

February 10, 2010 – 3:02 am

Fly Fishing Guides in the Mount Shasta area have some of the most challenging wading on the planet.  Rivers including the Pit, McCloud and Upper Sacramento are located in canyons with steep gradients creating strong currents which combined with bowling ball sized slippery rocks offer a great testing ground for waders, boots and wading staffs.

The Upper Sacramento River – Snowless in Winter (That Will Change Soon)

The Upper Sacramento River has been high, though it’s coming back down – just in time for a series of storms.

Stay tuned for reports on its fishability over the coming weeks (the BWOs were still hatching as of last week).

Fly Fishing Guide Lands 27″ Upper Sacramento Brown Trout (Yes, There Are Big Fish Here)

While fly fishing the Upper Sacramento River in winter can be a humbling experience, local fly fishing guide Wayne proved it’s sometimes worth it.

On Tuesday, he landed a 27″ Brown trout on the upper half of the river, and managed to snap a couple photos of what some would consider the Brown Trout of a Lifetime.

He was fishing a #2 black woolly bugger (a streamer type fly) just as the river was starting to come up (due to rain and snow melt). With the rising waters stirring up the fish, that’s not a bad time to fish a big streamer and see what’s biting.

In this case, what was biting was plenty big enough.

Winter Fly Fishing in Siskiyou County Can Be Excellent

While many of the state’s best fishing waters are closed, Sisikyou County offers anglers several great fishing choices, including:

• Catch & release fishing on the Upper Sacramento
• Good fishing for big, stocked trout on Lake Siskiyou
• Steelhead on the Klamath River

Solitude is common in winter.

Rumors of a 27″ brown trout caught (and released) by an Upper Sacramento River fly fishing guide seem to be true.

Meanwhile, on the right days, the Blue-Winged Olive (BWO) hatches remain steady, though the recent cold temperatures have kept the fish from moving a lot.

One local blogger

Local fly fishing guide Craig Nielsen has done well recently for Klamath River steelhead (read his fishing report here), and the reports of good-t0-great fishing on Lake Siskiyou keep coming in.

In other words, winter in Siskiyou County isn’t limited to skiing and snowshoeing (though the skiing on the mountain is supposed to be excellent). The fishing is often worth a trip too…

Tiny flies catch big trout on the Upper Sacramento in Winter

Winter Fly Fishing on the Upper Sacramento River Challenging, Fun

While many of the state’s trout waters are closed until next year, the Upper Sacramento River is open to catch & release fishing during the winter months.

While winter fishing can be challenging, local bamboo fly rod builder Chris Raine proves big fish can be caught:

Right now, the remnants of the October Caddis hatch are still flying, and on certain days you can catch trout on tiny Blue Winged Olive dry flies. And yes, the Upper Sacramento River is largely deserted.

See you on the water!

Shasta Trout’s Siskiyou Fly Fishing Report: The Fishing is Excellent

According to Shasta Trout (a Mount Shasta-based guide service and outfitter), the fly fishing’s been excellent on the Upper Sacramento, McCloud and Klamath Rivers.

They provide a comprehensive fishing report (it’s aimed primarily at fly fishermen, but others can use the information too), and it’s worth a read if you’re after Siskiyou County’s big, colorful trout. Here are a couple excerpts from their latest report:

Upper Sacramento River

“The October Caddis are popping and the fish have been on them! More will start showing in the next few weeks. With the cool weather bug activity has increased including the tail end of the Tricos and…” (click to read more)

McCloud River

“The Lower McCloud is our favorite place to fish this time of year and it has been outstanding.  Though with the weather change flows increased and it was tough for a couple days. . We’ve enjoyed the fall beauty in near solitude and have found some larger fish including some nice Browns recently.   We expect increased traffic until the season ends November 15th, particularly on weekends.”

It’s looking good for Siskiyou Fly Fishing – but then again, fall fishing is almost always good here.