California Delta Fly Fishing Report

Captain Bryce Tedford Reports on 

Prime Delta Striper fishing is starting to happen! The leaves are changing colors & the fish are coming in! Oct.-Dec is typically very, very good on the Delta & it’s nice to have such an amazing fishery in our back yard. Fall is my favorite time of year on the Delta as it is the most predictable time of the year weather wise & the fishing is generally pretty good.

As for now, Striper fishing continues to pickup, schools of smaller fish can be found throughout the Delta. These fish are generally feeding on Threadfin Shad 2-4” long. I like to use various crease flies or gurglers on top when I find feeding schools of fish. In addition to Crease flies, smaller Chartreuse/white clouser flies will always get the job done. This time of year is great for boating around the Delta & looking for feeding turns & seagulls. Underneath these birds will be bait balls of Threadfin Shad & under those will be Stripers & Largemouth feeding! These smaller Stripers/Largemouth (12-18”) are super fun on light rods & a great way to get into Striper fishing! In addition, some Large Stripers can be found here & there if you are willing to work for them & go hunt for them. Some days I have got into plenty 3-5lb fish with some larger 5-20lb fish mixed in, other days the larger fish have been tough to locate. For large Striper hunting I like Intermediate, type 3 & type 6 sinking lines with large Steve Adachi rattle style Clouser flies in various colors.