Dave Neal Reports On 6.8.20

The time is right, right now… you outta be fishing or planning a fishing trip
in the immediate future!

Everything is firing in Northern California. Flows on all the rivers and smaller
streams are either in or near prime-time range. The weather is classic CA
right now - it has the potential to be warm/hot (wet wade) or it may also
rain (thundershowers). We can experience temps from 95 in the valley to
70’s in the Shasta region or Intermountain region. Be prepared for anything
and adjust your clothing as needed.

I’ve been fishing all over these past two weeks from the Lower Sac to Fall
River to the Pit River and Upper Sac. Variety is the spice, baby.
You might experience the summer pattern developing where best fishing is
early and late in the day. The days are LONG right now with first light
before 6am and dark after 9pm… we cannot expect the fish to chow all day
long and they don’t. Fish when the bugs are active and when the bugs
ain’t… just chill out, read a book, explore or take a nap when the river is
quiet. Evenings are always a good bet and there is no fly better than the dry
fly.

When it comes to fly patterns this time of year stick with the usual
suspects: PMD’s, golden stones, salmonflies, and especially the little yellow
stones which are everywhere, tan caddis and basic midges. Typically, we
will see these hatches begin first during springtime on the Lower Sac and
then work their way upriver into the Upper Sac, McCloud, Pit, etc, as we
move into early summer.

Everyone has their favorite fly patterns but my go-to box right now consists
of: nine different variations of the Pheasant Tail nymph #12-16 from soft
hackle versions to BH and non-BH and flash to no flash, etc. Yvon Chounaird
is right…LOL. You can fish this fly exclusively forever. Other than that it’s
Hogan’s S&M or Lance’s XMay, copper CJ’s, RL in brown, yellow and blk,

Fox’s Poopah!, Bird’s nests, Mercer’s Poxyback PMD… I like all these
patterns in Tungsten bead versions, and some flashy too.
For dry flies it’s a Parachute Adams #12 all day long!! Mercer’s Missing Link
in every color and size, some parachute yellow Sally stones (with the red
butt) and yellow and orange Kauffman’s Stimulator, big foam Salmonfly
patterns just in case and some big drake patterns on the rainy days.
Don’t forget your Dry Shake powder, wading staff, cleats in your boots,
stash away Gore-Tex, water filter, and Buff.

I have a few days open to book during end of June and early July. In the
sage advice of the late, Bill Lowe… “Stop messin’ get a lesson” If you want
get a tune-up and a clinic on effective techniques and strategies in order to
confidently hook trout in our Nor Cal waters and beyond.
View my availability calendar online at
www.ReelAdventuresGuideService.com

Anthony Carruesco Reports on 5.28.2020

We've had some outstanding fishing happening in the North State over the past few weeks. The variety in the venues and the fishing has been excellent. Early Summer conditions are great right now and the table is set for a great Summer on all of our favorite Northern CA rivers. More images on the river here!

Lower Sac - The Big tailwater is pumping out quality fishing experiences right now (SHOCKER). This is always a great venue for both beginners and experienced anglers. We've had some great opportunities to fish shallow water with the recent cloudy weather with dry flies and short dry/dropper setups. The depth charge nymph fishing has been good as well.. We are now getting into Caddis season.. afternoon/evening fishing can be superb during these hatches. The hotter the temperatures are, the stronger the hatches can be. Summer fishing on the Sac is one of the more underrated times of year for us here.

Fall River - The big Spring Creek has been fishing great for the past couple of weeks as well. We had a guest recently say after 20 years of fishing it that he had "THE DAY" with Jay Cockrum out there last week. We will expect this river to continue to fish well through the Summer months. The Hex hatch gets going here in a few weeks and can be provide a very fun and fast paced dry fly experience at last light. This is an event that every angler should experience.

McCloud River - Great start to the season on the McCloud. The dry fly fishing here has been a lot of fun over the past few weeks. This is the time of year when the bigger bugs start flying. Golden Stones and Salmonflies can create some really fun surface and dry/dropper fishing. Tight lining is another great way to fish subsurface here. Expect June to be a great month on the McCloud.

Upper Sac - The Upper Sac has been awesome this Spring as well. As we get into the warmer summer months expect your best fishing to be early and late in the day. Chase shade. Flows are currently on the high side but still very fishable. Goldens are starting to move around here as well and can make for some cool dry dropper approaches to all of that fast, pockety, oxygenated water.

Pit River - The Pit has been FUEGO over the past couple of months. The river is primarily going to be a nymph fishery but it is jam packed with plump, wild rainbows and we've been having awesome days with our guests here this Spring. Expect this freestone gem to keep pumping out the good times.

Dave Neal Reports on 3.11.2020

There are a lot of solid fly fishing options in Northern CA right now and through the months of March and April. My short list includes: the Lower Sacramento River, Trinity River, Upper Sac, Pit 3, Shasta Lake for bass.

Steelhead season is winding down. There are fish in the upper Trinity River and believe it when I say that February & March have been some of the best fishing we have seen all season long. The reason? The wild fish arrived and with the tribs too low they’ve been hanging out in the river with no place to go. That all may change this weekend when/if we see a return of rain. If the tribs bump… those fish will too! I wish them the best…it’s been a tough few months to be a steelhead in northern CA and they have places they should be.

Lower Sac is a solid option right now. Fishing has been what you’d expect in March with great weather… it’s ON. Water conditions are good, flows are good and many of the springtime bugs are active. PMD’s, BWO’s, spring caddis, along with stoneflies, large drake nymphs, midges and egg patterns rounding out the menu.

The Lower Sac should remain a top choice for anglers over the next few months…

For those walk n wade fly fishers who just wanna… the Upper Sac and Pit 3 can offer up some amazing potential right now. Flows are prime time perfect… just keep an eye on the precip headed this way this weekend. Heavy rain might affect the Upper Sac more than the tailwater of the Pit River below Lake Britton. Similar bugs to the Lower Sac with maybe more of a focus on general attractor patterns like Pheasant Tails, Price Nymphs (hard to beat the Gordon’s Prince), black midges, rubber legs, etc… along with any of your favorite tung. Czech nymphs you’ve been tying up all winter. 

Finally, Shasta bass fishing is really heating up. Yesterday, on the eastside of the lake I saw some of the warmest surface temps yet 55-58 degrees. I got into a mess of spots and some nice hard pulling smallies, too. A lot of fish still clinging deep in 30-40’ of water but plenty are willing on the float n fly as temps warm up in the shallow areas later afternoon. When I’m not trout fishing on the Lower Sac or running late season trips to the Trinity… I am out on Shasta Lake in the bass boat every chance I get right now. 

Trout rivers in the north state are looking pretty solid for this time of year.  Posted above are the updated flows from 1.16.2020.  Updated flows can always be found on DreamFlows website.

Rick Cox Reports on 12.3.2019

The recent storms have not prevented our Wild Waters guides from getting out on our nearby rivers and finding fish. The Upper Sac has got snow on it from Ney Springs down to Shasta Lake. Access is more difficult but if you are willing to put in the effort you will not only find some hungry fish loading themselves up for the long winter but a completely different landscape that will take your breathe away. With another big storm forecast later this week (3-4 inches rain) the river will probably blow out which isn’t unusual for the winter. Once it settles though your window of opportunity is there so jump on it for some fun with some big fish ready to play. The Klamath remains solid with flows up top around 1000 cfs. Even with the forecast storms this section will not blow out and is a solid option for you steelhead junkies. We have been seeing a very consistent Fall run of steelies and the rain will continue to help tickle these fish to continue their charge up river. The  Lower Sac has been money for us this Fall and continues as such. This has been one of the best years for big rainbows on this river and our clients have been smiley all day long. This amazing fishery just continues to get better and better. If you want it all to yourself and beat the crowds that are normally there Winter is an excellent time for solitude on this big river.

We are looking forward to getting over to the coast soon, the December’s storms are forecast to continue for the next 2 weeks at least, a perfect setup for the elusive beast we live for to start their migration upstream. We are booking trips from the Eel River north into southern Oregon so if you are dreaming of steelhead on these special rivers give us a shout, we have a number of excellent coastal guides at the ready.

Rick Cox Reports on 10.7.2019

Rick Cox Reports on 10.16.2019