N Cal Flyfishing Report 26 Mar 97

[Leo Siren]

What's Hot and What's Not (updated 26 March 1997) - The Fishing Report
from Fish First !

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Fishery
Water Conditions
Fishing Conditions, Techniques, and Hatches
Flies
Comments

American River, below
Nimbus Dam
Good clarity, moderately
high flow (4500 cfs).
Fishing is fair to good for half pounder steelies running
12-18". Swing #12 caddis pupa on a floating line early and
late in the day. When the sun is high in the sky, try
indicator nymphing in the deeper runs. Good areas have
been Watt Ave, Lower Goethe Park, and behind Cal Expo.
Some smaller fish are working the caddis dries in the
evening.
Caddis pupa (see Lower Sac River).
The upper section of the
American (above Ancil
Hoffman Park to 300 yds
below the Nimbus
Hatchery) opens 1 Apr 97,
and should be quite good.

Baum Lake
Clear, cold, weedy.
Fishing is fair and can be good on calm, sunny days.
Indicator nymph with small midge pupa or BWO nymphs
on 7x tippet between the weedbeds. From 1 to 5 pm the
trout are rising to BWO's and midges. Streamers fished on
both floating and full sinking lines are enticing a few
rainbows and browns in the 16-20" range. Crowded on
weekends. Look for callibaetis hatch in coming weeks.
BWO (blue winged olive) nymph - Mercer's poxyback, biot
poxyback, Burk's leg nymph, DB baetis nymph, hunchback PT,
brassie, olive disco midge, barr's wet emerger, RS2 (#16-20).
BWO emerger/dry - floating nymph, foam floating nymph,
Harrop short wing emerger, DB baetis emerger, Lawson's
halfback emerger, marabou cripple, cdc transitional dun,
Stalcup biot dun, hi-vis parachute, cdc parachute, Harrop
hairwing, sparkle dun, Shimazaki cdc dun (#16-20). Midges
(see Putah Creek). Streamers (see Pyramid Lake).
Areas to fish are the inlet
from Cyrstal Lake, Tule
Island, and the old dam.
Pram needed to fish the
water effectively. Float
tubing also productive.

Frank's Tract
Slightly off color, high
50šF's to low 60šF's.
One day the fishing is good and the next is lousy due to
strong winds. Many of the stripers are being found near
the cuts of Frank's Tract on both an incoming and
outgoing tide. Use light and dark streamers that push a lot
of water on medium to fast sink shooting heads. Vary your
retrieve from fast to slow until you figure out what the fish
want. Good numbers of black bass are showing near the
tules and weedbeds.
Flashtail whistler, flashtail clouser, sea habit, deceiver, sar-mul-
mac (#2/0-4/0).
Some larger fish to 15 lbs
are starting to show as they
stage for their annual
spawning run. Boat needed.
Chuck's Bait & Tackle
rents boats.

Garcia River
Low and clear.
Fishing is slowing for the year. Best action is within the
first mile upstream of the ocean. Use shooting heads and
dark flies. Most fish are taking the fly on a slow swing or
dead drift.
Skunk, winter's hope, purple peril, skykomish sunrise, freight
train, Megan's delight, silver hilton, lite brite zonker, popsicle,
boss, comet (#4-10). Streamers (see Pyramid Lake).

Gualala River
Low and clear.
Fishing is spotty. A few fresh steelies are showing, but
action is slowing. Use slow to medium rate shooting
heads. Try both dark streamers and smaller #10 hares ears
and birds nest nymphs.
Skunk, winter's hope, purple peril, skykomish sunrise, freight
train, Megan's delight, silver hilton, lite brite zonker, popsicle,
boss, comet (#4-10).

Indian Creek Reservoir
Clear, high 40šF's.
Fishing is fair. Best action is with streamers fished floating
or Stillwater sinking lines in the shallows. Walking the
banks or wading is very productive. If float tubing, fish
back toward the shore.
Streamers (see Pyramid Lake).
This lake is located east of
Markleeville and fishes well
in the spring. Rainbows run
10-17".

Mad River (near Arcata)
Off color, 680 cfs at Arcata.
Fishing is slowing. Mostly downstream steelies showing,
and their numbers are dwindling. Use 24' 225 grain sink-
tips with large, dark steelhead patterns early and late in the
day. The run is almost over for the year.
Skunk, winter's hope, purple peril, skykomish sunrise, freight
train, Megan's delight, silver hilton, lite brite zonker, popsicle,
boss, comet (#4-10).
Fish during the week to
avoid crowds near the
hatchery. Blue Lakes road,
and upstream of the
hatchery.

McCumber Lake
Slightly off color, high
40šF's.
Fishing is fair. Water levels have been drawn down,
slowing the action. Slow to medium rate sinking lines with
dark streamers are the ticket. Some midge action in the
afternoon on warmer days. No Callibaetis yet. Good areas
to fish are near the dam, and in the flats near the creek
mouth.
Streamers (see Pyramid Lake). Midges (see Putah Creek).
This lake is located west of
Manzanita Lake about 20
miles.

Lake Nacimiento, near
King City (off Hwy 101)
Good clarity, mid 50šF's.
Fishing is very good for white bass running 2-3 lbs. Fish
the creek inlet where the fish are staging to spawn. Also,
the narrows are producing white and smallmouth bass.
Use sinking lines or shooting heads with #2 streamers. 10
to 40 plus fish days are being reported. Fishing will hold
up for the next 2-3 weeks throughout the spawn.
Streamers (see Pyramid Lake). Flashtail clouser (#2).
Boat is needed to access the
Narrows and creek inlet.
The Nacimiento Marina
rents boats and has camping
facilities.

Putah Creek
Moderately high, off color,
low 50šF's.
Fishing is slowly improving. Unfortunately, water levels
were raised this week, moving the fish and making wading
more difficult. Best set-up is a large beadhead (#10-12)
with a smaller BWO or caddis pupa dropper. Fish the
medium speed runs, the faster runs are hard to get your fly
down to the fish. Also, try some streamers on both floating
and sink tip lines.
Midge pupa/larva - disco, Kaufmann's midge pupa, red worm,
gray midge pupa, brassie, beadhead brassie, midge biot pupa
(#18-22). Midge emerger/adult - ICSI midge, Bett's midge
emerger, Harrop midge adult, standard midge adult, griffith's
gnat, palamino, CDC hatching midge, Harrop CDC transitional
midge, parachute adams (#20-22). BWO (see Baum Lake).
Streamers (see Pyramid Lake).
Putah Creek is just one hour
from the Bay Area.

Pyramid Lake (outside of
Reno)
Clearing and warming.
Fishing is fair, and is quite good on warmer days. Most
cutts are running 14-18", but look for larger fish from 5-10
lbs to start showing shortly. Use 7 to 9 wt rods with
medium sink shooting heads and dark streamers. Use a
slow retrieve.
Streamers - Lite brite zonker, Janssen marabou leech, beadhead
mini leech, woolhead sculpin, egg sucking leech, krystal
bugger, articulated leech, matuka, muddler minnow, lite brite
minnow, mylar zonker, beadhead krystal bugger (#4-10).
Good areas have been
Warrior Point and Howard
Bay.

Russian River
Off color, moderate flow (475 cfs @ Healdsburg).
Fishing is fair. Most adult steelies are downstreamers, but
a few fresh fish are still showing. The bluebacks (2-3 lb
juvenile steelies) are starting to show and will run through
the middle of April. Best fly fishing action is at Wolher
Bridge and Cassini's Ranch. Also, try the mouth of Dry
Creek. Use type II or III shooting heads, or 225 grain 24'
sink tips in the faster water.
Skunk, winter's hope, purple peril, skykomish sunrise, freight
train, Megan's delight, silver hilton, lite brite zonker, articulated
leech, popsicle, boss, comet (#4-8).

Sacramento River,
Lower in Redding
Muddy, low 50šF's, 5300 cfs.
Fishing is poor. Water levels are perfect, caddis are
hatching, but 6" visibility is making fishing tough. A trout
or two are showing, but we cannot recommend going up
yet. Clarity should improve in the next couple of weeks. If
you give it a shot, use a 2-nymph rig with a large
beadhead caddis pupa and a smaller caddis dropper under
a yarn indicator.
Caddis pupa - SRI glass bead caddis, SRI mono-eye caddis,
Ligas' scintillator, Fabini terror, Pettis' glass bead, LaFontaine
sparkle pupa, Nori's pupa, z-wing caddis, serendipity, glass bead
pupa, peeking caddis (#12-18). Caddis emerger/adult -SRI glass
bead caddis emerger, Bett's The Fly, Harrop slow water, elk
hair, goddard, SRI real, CDC buck , emerger/diving, Matthew's
x-caddis, King's River, SRI hi-vis (#14-18).
Good areas to wade fish are
the Posse Grounds, Turtle
Bay, Sewer Treatment
Plant, and Anderson River
Park. Trout run 12-20" plus
,and are super charged.

Spring Lake, in Santa Rosa
Clear, mid to high 60šF's.
Fishing is very good for largemouth bass and panfish. Fish
along the tules and around the islands. Use floating or
Stillwater sinking lines with streamers and dragonfly
nymphs on a twitchy retrieve. Try poppers early and late
in the day. This is a small lake that is fun to fish when the
bass are on their spawn. A rumored 24 lb (that's right)
bass was weighed and released here this year.
Skunk, winter's hope, purple peril, skykomish sunrise, freight
train, Megan's delight, silver hilton, lite brite zonker, popsicle,
boss, comet (#6-10). Radden's single and triple glo-bugs
(champagne, cheese, pink) (#6-10).
Spring Lake is only a one to
one and a half hour drive
from the Bay area. Float
tube needed to access good
water.

Stony Creek
Clear, moderate flow, low 40šF's.
Fishing is spotty. Insects and bugs are sparse, the key is to
keep moving to find the 6-10" rainbows that occupy this
neat piece of catch-and release, spring-fed water. Best
action is with stonefly nymphs fished under an indicator.
Try some attractor dries in the afternoon even if the trout
are not actively rising. Fish upstream from Red Bridge.
Stonefly nymph - brownstone rubberleg, poxystone, SRI
rubberleg, bitch creek, biot poxystone (#8-12). Beadheads
(prince, hares ear, pheasant tail, danger baby, lite brite, yellow
stone) (#12-16). Attractor dries (adams parachute, humpy,
yellow stone, royal wulff, stimulator) (#12-16).
Stony is located 3 hours
from the Bay Area, west of
the town of Maxwell.

Other reports - Smith River has a few fresh fish, but low (1900 cfs) and
clear water are making the fish spooky. Eel and Van Duzen Rivers closes to
fishing the end of March. Mattole River is fishing fair from
Honeydew downstream for 3-7 lb steelies (mostly downstreamers). Use 225
and 325 gr sink tips with dark leech patterns. The section below
Stansberry Creek closes 31 Mar. Davis Lake has just iced out, a few people

fishing with spotty success. Try the east side of the lake near the
campgrounds. Use streamers on floating or Stillwater lines in the shallow
coves. Stanilaus River near Knight's Ferry has dropped to 450 cfs in the
last
couple of days. No fishing reports yet, but the Stan is worth a try. Use
caddis and mayfly nymphs under an indicator. Check with us on the latest
fishing report. Low flow section of the Feather River in Oroville is at
normal winter flows (600 cfs), but clarity is only a few inches. Yuba
River above Hwy 20 bridge is 4,000 cfs and off color; very few bugs or
fish showing. Lewiston Lake is muddy. Manzanita Lake should ice out in
the next week or two; expect excellent fishing when it does. Use streamers
on Stillwater lines in the shallow water. Boca Reservoir is fishing well
with streamers on sinking lines at the mouth of the Little Truckee
River.

Attention Macintosh Gurus - Fish First ! needs a consultant for a
FileMakerPro database we're building as part of our fishing travel
agency. If you can help, or know of a fisher who can, email
Do...@FishFirst.com.

Fish First ! is looking for a part-time employee. Benefits include travel,
discount fishing tackle, and eventual full-time employment. Candidates
should have good people skills, knowledge of Northern California waters,
and computer experience. Stop by our shop, email us, or call us if you
are interested.

This fish report would not be possible without the help of Art Teter/Art's
Guide Service/Redding, Alan Barnard/Kiene's Fly Shop/Sacramento,
John/Powell Fly Shop/Chico, Shawn/King's Western Angler/Santa Rosa,
Randy Johnson/Johnson's Guide Service/Gualala, Garcia, Russian Rivers,
Herb Burton/Trinity Fly Shop/Lewiston, Mike/Eureka Fly Shop/Eureka. Help
keep this report updated - call in with your own experience !