The Shasta Fly Blog

For the most part, the lower Sac has been fishing very very well despite the crowds of October.  The salmon “run” is trickling in and a few trout always seem to be caught in and downstream of the redds.  But…that said, most of the fish we’re boating aren’t anywhere near the few redds that have salmon on them.  The really good news this fall is more steelhead are being landed this year than last.  Does more salmon = more steelhead??  Hard to say but this year seems to be the case.  Most days, we’re boating 20 to 40 trout and when we’re floating below Balls Ferry, 0 to 4 steelies a day.  Not too shabby I think.  The weather has been really cooperative, the fish are cooperavtive and all the anglers are having a blast!  Go fish!!

Hot Flies: Rubberlegs, #14 Fox Poopah (tan), #16 Copper Bob, painted bead (egg), #14 Micro Mayfly (brown)

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Spent a very fun day steelheading the Trinity with the two brother surgeons, Jim and Tom.  The fishing was a pleasant surprise!  …and a nice change from the lower Sac crowds.  The upshot is…there are fish already in the system and almost everybody we talked to hooked a fish or 2.  We were 2 for 4 on bright, wild adults.  There are numerous spawning salmon around so it’s not surprising most of our fish were hooked on egg patterns in the last couple hours before dark.  All in all, a very fun AND productive day with (hopefully) the best fishing coming soon as winter gets here.

Hot Flies:  #14 Copper Bob, Sucker Spawn (shrimp pink)

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Stormy skies greeted anglers in Redding last week but, it didn’t seem to slow the fishing all that much.  Little wind was the key to success as Todd and Ryan from Menlo Park floated the lower Sac for the first time and we had a blast.  Day one we fished from Bonnyview down and had furious action from noon on as there was an intense caddis hatch at lunchtime that had the fish feeding until we quit at dark.  Day 2, we fished below the Sundial Bridge to see  a new stretch of river and sure enough, we had less than half the bites as day 1,but the quality of the fish made up for it.  Right now, Bonnyview down seems to be a numbers float while the top is likely less fish hooked but average much bigger.  Pick your poison!  All in all a great trip with a very fun father and son duo I hope to see again soon.  Ciao/BB

Hot Flies: Rubberlegs, Silvey’s Caddis Pupa (black), #16 Pheasant Tail

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The month of January saw some wonderful  weather and equally consistent action on the Trinity for fresh, wild, chromie, bad-ass steelhead.   Most of my trips last month were very successful. We were   usually able to manage 1-3 nice fish landed per day with a few other assorted hookups. We got blanked a couple of days but all in all, I’ll take that every time! Not bad considering we haven’t had a drop of rain in a month or so.  Now that it’s over I think the key was finding an un-crowded section of river and making EVERY cast count…I mean really work hard for the few bites we got.  And man did we make a LOT of casts and changed a LOT of flies.

Me thinks it’s about over by now.  The guys at the Shop will tell you there’s still a few fish around and that’s likely true but, I think a trip to the Trinity would be a long shot at best.  There are much better options this time of year.  The good news is Continue reading →

Busy…busy…busy!  A ‘crazy good’ fall was had on a number of northern California streams this year.  Easily one of the best fall seasons I’ve had (and numerous other guides) on the lower Sacramento since I began guiding.  The top floats down to Bonnyview Ave. produced good numbers and insanely big ‘bows consistently from October through early December.  Most days, the bite was sparked by late-morning caddis hatch that usually lasted to near dark.  Any tan caddis pupae imitation and a #16 or #18 mayfly nymph dropper was ‘money’ most days.

The upper Sacramento produced several good days again this fall.  I mostly fish the lower half of the river from Sims Rd. to Delta and this year, the water remained low enough to once again fish the bigger holding water.  The lower half of the river doesn’t seem to get the thick October caddis hatches as does the upper half but, there must be enough of the big bugs Continue reading →

Fly Fishing Fair (and Swap & Sell)

[fly fishing gear only!]

at

Redding’s Caldwell Park

Saturday: October 2^nd 8AM-2:30 PM

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Forwarded from email:

Anglers,

Please join us on October 17th for a Benefit Bass Tournament at Russo’s Marina.

Have you noticed the declining weights in Delta bass tournaments?  Lack of salmon / salmon season in 2008/2009?  Reduced #s of striped bass and sturgeon?  Have you noticed sea lions in the Delta?  What do think about the precipitous drop in bait fish (Delta Smelt)?  These are all signs of an unhealthy ecosystem. Continue reading →

Freelance writer Bob Borgwat and I tested the waters of the Bollibokka section of the McCloud recently. It was, in a word….unbelievable.  7 miles of the lower McCloud that (coincidentally) no one had fished in a couple of weeks. 7 miles!?! Where do you start?!?
Those that have fished the McCloud know the beauty and lore that surround this magical northern California stream.  Bollibokka didn’t disappoint.  The Bollibokka Club property has been in private ownership since 1904 and although members book week-long stays, there seems to be so much water and so many fish that the water we fished never felt “pressured”. Continue reading →

Haven’t posted in a couple weeks…busy busy busy, and all over the map!  Good thing I guess.  In the last two weeks I’ve fished Antelope Creek Ranch (FF School), Upper Sac, Pit, McCloud, Lower Sac and Trinity (for half-pounders).  Mostly, fishing has been ‘ok’ with a few exceptional days and a couple of tough days.  Contrary to some ‘reports’ you might read, the tough days can surely happen in summer.  Pressure and warmer water can make you wonder some days where the fish went.  I think they’re there but Continue reading →

In nine years of hunting hard, my Chesapeake Bay retriever, Suzy,  lost/missed a total of seven birds.  It took her almost 2 seasons to lose the first …a winged Gadwall that hit the high tules hard and likely dove/swam underwater only to expire among the root tangles out of sight and scent.  3 humans and 2 dogs looked for 30 minutes to no avail.  Out of hundreds of retrieves on duck, geese Continue reading →