Truckee and Little Truckee Fishing Report

Richard Loft Reports on 7.28.2016

Hey Everyone- last week I went with a couple friends up to Truckee and fished east of town. The flows seemed to be about 130 CFS- lower than I prefer and I just wasn’t feeling the love! only one grab for about 2 hours of fishing so we drove over to the Truckee River RV Park to eat and recharge before hitting the Little Truckee my personal favorite. We started at the Bat Cave and in short order I had hooked 2 or 3 trout- one over 15 in. The whole day there were a couple different serious hatches going on; one looked to be a PMD hatch and the other some sort of midge. I hiked upstream a bit and immediately hooked a 17 or 18in torpedo Brown Trout, but it went the way of the others and got away in short order which doesn’t surprise me as it was down stream thirty feet and I am always barbless. Remember I never give up and in short order its game on again with a 15in bow that almost ended the day with no fish to net but as I mentioned I dont give up and add a bit of luck, and me following that very spirited fish into deeper water, around the rocks, and downstream about 200 feet while Sarah followed me through the bushes, yelling, with the camera in hand; I landed my bow back at the Cave. She took a #18 black zibra midge. It was an awesome fight! Pics are below. All the things I learned on Putah Creek work on other rivers.

• Leader length is critical when nymphing
• Add weight accordingly depending on hydraulics and depth of water
• Trying a variety of flies is important; don’t just stay with one
• Stealth, especially on a clear-water, open river like the Truckee, is paramount
• Spend lots of time on the water, getting to know the patterns
• And remember  to appreciate the beauty of our wild rivers of california its been 3 years since the last time I fished the Truckee and it felt great!