The Mount Shasta Trail Association will host a hike to see Fowler Falls in McCloud on June 4th. The hike is four miles round trip and extends through the lower, middle and upper falls along the McCloud River.
The hike will begin at the trail head at the Lower Falls; from there the hikers will walk upstream to the Middle Falls which are 35’ high and 70’ across. The slight uphill hike will continue on to the Upper Falls and will end at the waters behind Lakin Dam.
This hike is a free event, but please bring your own water and picnic lunch. All hikers are meeting at the Mount Shasta Fish Hatchery, Saturday, June 4th, at 9:00 am. For more information, please call Joan Roemer at 530.926.0647.
Upper Sacramento River
Trout season opened on Northern California rivers today. Check out the early season picks, courtesy of Shasta Trout, if you’re planning on heading up to fish in Siskiyou County. The folks at Shasta Trout said this is the time to come pick your best Rainbow trout of the season. Read on to here what they said:
“Preseason Guide Picks, Previewing the trout fly fishing season in Northern California
The general trout season opens this Saturday, April 30th. The McCloud, Fall River and Hat Creek will open after closing for the winter while we’ve been fishing the remainder of our rivers year round. Here are our picks for the opener and a brief description of what is fishing best…”
Ted Fay Fly Shop has also been blogging on conditions on the Upper Sac and Rick Cox at McCloud Fly Fishing Adventures is ready for fishing on the McCloud River.
To learn more about fishing the Upper Sacramento River, check out the Dunsmuir Chamber of Commerce fishing page. You’ll be able to learn about your lodging and dining options as well. If you’re thinking of fishing the McCloud River, the McCloud Chamber can help you explore lodging and dining.
Squaw Valley Creek Trail photo by John Soares
If you’re visiting the Mt. Shasta area in early July this year and want to go hiking, you’ll need to do some research and plan to stay low. With such a big snow year the upper elevation trails are still snow-bound, so you’ll want to find trails at lower elevations or else go post holing through the snow (not so fun). The Mt. Shasta Trail Association has wonderful descriptions of area trails. So this July, you’ll want to look at trails in the McCloud and Castle Crags areas.
The photo to the right, posted by hiking book author John Soares, is of the Squaw Valley Creek trail outside of McCloud, where the Mt. Shasta Trial Association assisted in work to complete the trial. Also in that area you’ll find the McCloud River Trail, which takes you past waterfalls and through beautiful forest. If you really want to get out in the wilderness, the McCloud River Preserve Trail is way out in the woods where you’ll walk along the gorgeous river. On my hike out there we saw butterflies and tiger lilies in bloom and took a dip in the chill, crystal clear waters of the McCloud.
To the south, the Castle Crags area offers many trails, some in the state park and others outside of it. The Burstarse Falls trail is quite popular and the falls may still have quite a bit of water in early July. Indian Creek and Flume Trials offer a nice hike through the woods and connect with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) for more mileage. You’ll find thorough information about these trails both on the Mt. Shasta Trail Association website and on John Soares’ Northern California Hiking Trails blog.
If you’re interested in hiking sections of the PCT you’ll want to check in with the Forest Service (Mt. Shasta Ranger Station: 530.925.4511 or McCloud Ranger Station: 530.964.2184) for trail conditions. Aside from heavy snow, there has also been some tree fall due to heavy storms and some of the trails still have significant debris down on them. Castle Lake and the trail to Heart Lake still have snow on them in early July to the degree that you’ll want to take snowshoes if you want to attempt to get to Heart Lake. All of these things are true for the trails on Mt. Shasta as well.
If you’re thinking about backpacking trips, the Shasta Trinity National Forest just released a 13-page report on snow and debris conditions in the Trinity Alps Wilderness. You can find the report and trip descriptions on Northern California Hiking Trials.
With many of Siskiyou County’s best fishing rivers due to open on Saturday, we thought we’d offer up the forecasts of a pair of local fly fishermen.
First, local outfitter Craig Nielsen of Shasta Trout offers up his latest fishing report, which – if you read between the lines – offers a lot of information about how his clients have been clobbering fish on the Upper Sacramento, Lower Sacramento, and Pit River.
His take? The Upper Sacramento is high but fishing well (you have to pick your spots – much of the river’s unfishable). The Pit River is fishing beautifully, but is crowded. And things are looking good for the McCloud and Fall River openers, though access may be an issue on the McCloud.
Meanwhile, local fly fishing blog The Trout Underground offers his typically quirky take on the area’s rivers and fishing prospects here, though we’ve excerpted one small portion for you:
This year – due to an above-normal snowpack in California’s mountains and rainy/snowy spring weather, a lot of rivers will likely be high.
(Note I said “high” and not “unfishably high.” The last time I pronounced the Upper Sac “blown out and unfishable,” someone wrote to say they’d had their best day ever on the river.)
What follows is a loose assemblage of rumors, half-truths, guide promotion and outright lies.
At no time should any of my readers actually believe anything they read in this forecast (I’m a fly fisherman after all), nor change their carefully laid plans based on this information.
(Void where prohibited by law.)
Click here to read his lengthy forecast on river flows, access, what’s hot, and what isn’t.
Enjoy the 2010 trout season!
Get ready for a new season of the states best fly fishing on the McCloud River – Opens on April 24th
There has been much in the news about the fall chinook run, the state of California’s fisheries, the dam removal debate raging on the Klamath River and what this means for fisherman and river-related recreation. The Nature Conservancy took a big step in protecting and restoring the health of Klamath River this week when it announced the purchase of 4,000+ acre Shasta Big Spring Ranch in the Shasta Valley. Two important tributaries, the Shasta River and Big Springs Creek, run through the ranch, which provide cool water for salmon and steelhead spawning. These waterways will now be protected and restored after years of being comprimised by grazing cattle. According the The Nature Conservancy’s press release, this purchase will bring protection for the Shasta River for up to 20 miles downstream, thus securing ” one of the last and best strongholds for coho and other salmon species in California.”
The Nature Conservancy has had a hand in several Siskiyou County projects, including its long-standing holding on the McCloud River. The McCloud River Preserve is a wonderful, 2,300 acre preserve with three miles of hiking trails and limited access for fisherman. It’s also one of the earliest trails open for late spring hiking! It’s a remote setting, 20 miles outside of the town of McCloud and requires a walk in from the parking lot at the end of the road. At the trailhead you’re asked to carry in a piece or two of firewood for the caretakers who live in this off-the-grid location.
Walking along the river you may see a host of wildflowers (usually fairly early in the season, say May-ish), dogwoods in bloom, butterflies, osprey and eagles overhead, otters frolicking and the glimmering, clear waters of the McCloud River. Think of it as a scavenger hunt – bring your wildflower and tree books, make sure the camera’s charged, pack a lunch and head out for adventure. Be prepared to be immersed in wilderness – while the Nature Conservancy does have a cabin (for the caretakers), fish cleaning and picnic structures it is othewise a setting free from the constructs of humans – you’re entering wilderness.
The McCloud River Preserve trail generally opens sometime in April (it all depends on snow pack). One way to get a sense for whether it has opened or not is to check with the McCloud Ranger Station (530.964.2184) to find out if the road to Ah-Di-Na Campground is open. You can also call the Nature Conservancy’s San Francisco office (415.777.0487) to inquire about conditions as well as to reserve one of the 5 available fishing permits (5 are available on a first-come, first-served basis for walk-ins). Check out the Nature Conservancy’s McCloud River Preserve page to get more info about this great area.
If you’re planning on heading out, be sure to stop in the town of McCloud to stock up on what you’ll need for the day. The White Mountain Soda Fountain and Chocolate Cafe (both in the Mercantile building) offer picnic lunches. The McCloud General Store and the McCloud River Mercantile provide fishing, camping and picnicing supplies. Gas up, stop at the grocery store, and pick up nature guides at the McCloud Book Gallery, if you didn’t bring your own. Be prepared to spend the day out at the Preserve, because once you arrive you won’t want to leave. Find a spot along the river to sit down in the sunshine and enjoy the peaceful quiet that is alive with the sounds of wild life. It’s a magical place.
Directions to the McCloud River Preserve
From Interstate 5:
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Take State Highway 89 east to the town of McCloud.
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Turn south at the Exxon station onto Squaw Valley Creek Road (reset your odometer at the turn).
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Follow the signs nine miles to McCloud Reservoir (“Lake McCloud”).
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Stay right, following the road above the reservoir’s west shore until you have driven 11.4 miles from the turn off Highway 89.
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Turn right onto a dirt road and follow the signs to Ah-Di-Na Campground six miles ahead (17.4 miles from Highway 89). This dirt road – very rough and rocky, narrow in spots, winding but not steep – is negotiable in a two-wheel-drive vehicle as long as it hasn’t rained or snowed recently.
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The road dead-ends at the McCloud River Preserve parking area 1.1 miles beyond the campground. Park here and follow the foot trail one-third mile to the preserve headquarters. There is an informational kiosk, staff residence and a sign-in booth at the preserve headquarters.
Events, McCloud, Recreation | Visit Siskiyou May 26, 2011 | 
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