Northern Sierra Fishing Report 9-9-14

A great brown that ate the Pretty in Pink nymph

Pretty in Pink also works at Lake Davis

Another great Lake Davis rainbow swims away after being released...

Fishing is very good right now in the Northern Sierra. Cooler overnight temperatures have begun to bring the water temps down to safer levels for catch and release fly fishing. Yesterday on the Truckee water temps ranged from 58 degrees in the morning to 66 degrees at 5 pm. Dry/dropper rigs are still my mainstay and the Pretty in Pink (PiP) nymph has been getting most of the fish. Still getting grabs on Thalkens Double Dutch Bug on the surface, but it seems the fish are nosing it out of the way or just flat out missing it. Found most of our fish in the deeper slots and pockets and tucked up tight in the heads of the riffles. The further away from the access points the better the fishing is.

Lake Davis is fishing well depending on the day. I have been getting most of my fish on the PiP nymph fished 9 feet deep in 11 feet of water. Targeting the submerged creek channel in the Fairview access area is a good choice right now. Callibaetis maflies and blood midges are hatching daily and there are snails floating around too. Water temps are in the mid to upper 60's and dropping and I expect this to be a great fall at the lake. I still have openings for my float tube clinics on Sept 28 and Oct 12. Call me ASAP to reserve your spot!

Augtober Fishing Report 8-22-14

 A sweet wild brownie from Milton Lake

Merediths' first Truckee River brown on the fly

Awesome spotting!

Forrest and a great Truckee River rainbow

What a beauty!

Augtober is in full swing here in the Northern Sierra! Cool/cold overnight temps and warm afternoons have it feeling like fall and the fish are responding. This week I've been on Milton Lake, the North Yuba River and the Truckee. Flows on the Truckee are bony in and around town at 96 cfs but with the LT dumping in 59 cfs below Boca the flows in Hirschdale are at 168. Water temps have dropped a bit and are ranging from 58-64 degrees and if this trend continues we have escaped the dog days pretty much unscathed. I still urge anglers to use a thermometer and get off the water if temps hit 70 degrees. Top flies for me this week have been Thalken's Double Dutch Bug and the pink mallard and pink pt nymphs. Still getting grabs every day on the Double Dutch! Such a great fly and the fish love em!!

Northern Sierra Report 8-8-14

Working a run on the Truckee in a downpour

Releasing a sweet lil smallie at Stampede Reservoir

Releasing a Truckee River rainbow

Welcome to Augtober in the Northern Sierra! We have had some serious rain over the past week that has led to lower water temps on the Truckee and gave us a reprieve from the summer heat. Flows are dropping around 5 cfs daily and the river is getting bony in spots. With that said the fishing has been outstanding with fish being caught daily. Ive been mostly fishing dry/dropper rigs with fish eating both. Thalken's Double Dutch has been raising some nice fish. The past few days there has been a nice baetis hatch mid morning and we have been getting some fish on small BWO and Para Adams dry flies. As we warm back up please be aware of water temps by using a stream thermometer and stop fishing when temps reach 70 degrees. The fish will thank you!

Smallmouth Bass fishing is outstanding right now at Prosser and Stampede with fish eating trout flies such as PT's and balanced leeches under the indicator.

At this time I am only doing AM half days on the Truckee. See you on the water!

North Yuba Report 7-23-14

 Wyatt with his first trout on a fly rod

Joe is all grins after landing this nice wild rainbow

 Wyatt with another sweet wild rainbow

The release...

Fishing on this gem of a freestone river remains good for small wild rainbows. Flows are still good and water temps are ranging from 64-68 degrees. Not too many bugs hatching during the day but there is a solid caddis hatch in the evenings. Rubber leg crystal stimulators (10-16), golden stoneflies(8-10), Turk’s Tarantula(10-14), EC Caddis(12-16) and Thalkans Double Dutch Bug (8-10) are all working. Nymphs such as jigged PT’s, G6 caddis, pink mallard and purple mallard hung under a big dry are also working. Concentrate on riffles , runs and pocket water from Downieville up to Bassets Station. The fishing above Bassets is stellar but the nature of the river is more of a brush choked small stream. Pressure is fairly light along the entire river. One word about etiquette; it is unnecessary to stop and fish at a pull out where another angler is already fishing as there are miles and miles of access on this river.

Carpin'

With water temps on the MF Feather getting too warm to safely catch and release trout, another fly fishing opportunity arises. Carp and bass. The river through Portola is absolutely loaded with big carp and small bass. The carp are spooky and require stealth, precise casts and patience but the rewards for these skills are tremendous. The cool thing is carp eat small nymphs readily so if you can present the fly to a tailing fish there is a good chance to hook a large fish. Call me at 530 414 1655  to book your carp adventure!

Northern Sierra Fishing Report 7-11-14

A small Truckee River wild rainbow being released

North Yuba wild rainbow

 Milton Lake wild brown trout

Andy with one of many wild browns  he caught at Milton

Guy with his first trout on a fly rod at Milton

Fishing has been pretty good over the 4th of July holiday. I was all over the place from Lake Davis to the Truckee with stops at Milton and the North Yuba as well. The rivers are starting to look like mid August with fairly low flows and higher water temps. Lake Davis was 70 degrees at 10 am on July 3rd and in my opinion too warm to safely catch and release trout at this time. I am pulling off Davis until the fall.

The Truckee continues to fish well. Ive been concentrating on the pocket water with dry dropper rigs and getting plenty of action on small wild fish. Most of the action has been on the dropper(caddis, mayfly and little yellow stones) but have moved some fish to the dry. Flows are decent around town (221cfs) and water temps are in the low to mid 60's in the am to upper 60's in the afternoon. Below Boca flows are a bit bigger (474cfs) but water temps are a bit better due to influx of water from the LT. If you are looking for bigger fish nymphing is the way to go. Tight lining with caddis, stones and crays are getting hook ups. Concentrate on the faster deeper runs and pocket water and cover the water thoroughly. Due to warming waters please land your fish quickly and and try to minimize the amount of time the fish is out of the water.

It is time to start targeting warm water species such as bass and carp.

Independence Lake 6/24/14

 The view to the west with Carpenter Ridge on the left

Brian Slusser (Four Seasons Fly Fishing) with a small Cutthroat

 Close up of same LCT

Boat schedule for 2014

Brian and I had an enjoyable day at Independence on the 24th of June. The fishing was pretty good in the morning but slowed down in the afternoon. We were stripping streamers on type 5 sinking lines with some success for cutthroat and one whitefish. Our efforts were concentrated along the northern shoreline at the color change and drop offs. We had a lot of action but only landed a few fish before the wind became a challenge to deal with.

If you havent been to ILake then its time to go! What a great lake in the Sierra backcountry with awesome fish and few anglers. Feel free to call me for more information 530-414-1655