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Lower Sac

An angler with a wild trout caught near the Sundial Bridge
Guided Float Trips
Full Days: $600 for 1-2 Anglers or $650 including hotel pickup and shuttle
Half Days: $450 for 1-2 Anglers or $500 including hotel pickup and shuttle
  • Year-round
  • Drift Boat Trips

The Lower Sacramento River between Redding and Red Bluff is California´s premier wild trout fishery. It is one of the few destinations where anglers can expect to hook into 18+" fish on a regular basis. Clear, cold, consistent flows coming out of Lake Shasta provide excellent conditions for the aquatic insects that trout eat. The Lower Sac is open to fishing year round. The Confluence Outfitters guide team can get you hooked up with quality wild trout on the Lower Sac at any time of year!

Lower Sac guide trips usually start between 7am and 9am depending on arrangements made with your guide. Most of our Lower Sac guide trips are drift boat trips, although we also do a lot of jet boat trips for folks who want to use Trout Spey techniques. Most of our guests opt for the shuttle-included rate, which means your guide can pick you up at your hotel and then drop you off again at the end of the day. If you opt to not include a shuttle, then plan on following your guide to the river in your own vehicle and assisting with shuttling the guide's vehicle to the take-out. You can hop into the boat in regular street clothes most days - waders are only necessary in inclement weather. Our guides can put more fish in the net by keeping their guests in the boat all day, but will definitely accommodate you if you want to do some wade fishing. Most days we fish nymphs and indicators all day long. Lunch is served on the river and trips usually wrap up by 5:30pm. On any given day you could be on one of six full-day floats - well over 60 miles of river. If fishing is red-hot in one area, our guides will sometimes do the same short float twice in one day.

Dry fly fishing can be very good almost any time of year. Our guides are always on the lookout for splashy rises in shallow riffles and stealthy risers in the flats. The best time for dry fly fishing is usually after lunch when water temperatures are warmer and there is more bug activity. If you have an interest in dry fly fishing please let your guide know so he can plan the day accordingly. The fish don't rise everywhere - you really have to be in the right place at the right time.

Lower Sac Guide Team

Our Lower Sac guide team includes Andrew Harris, Brian Kohlman, Kevin Kay, Luke Geraty, Ben Thompson, Peter Santley, Colin Coogan, Mike Wright, DJ Spivey, and Andreas Fuhrmann.

Recent Lower Sac Fishing Reports

Lower Sac Fishing Image
March 13, 2024
Lower Sac Report by Ben Thompson

I have been chasing trout and steelhead almost every day over the past week and the rivers are kicking into spring mode. We have great weather over the next week and I am looking to fill the 17th, 18th and 19th. It is going to be 80 degrees in Redding on Sunday the 17th. Bugs are already hatching and we will see our typical springtime hatches with the nice warm steady weather. 

Lower Sac Fishing Image
February 28, 2024
Lower Sac Report by Luke Geraty

Flows on the Lower Sac got up to nearly 40,000cfs over the past week, but the good news is that they are going to be dropping down to 19,000 this Friday. That means that it's time to start planning your Lower Sac spring fishing! Just before the flows spiked, I took a buddy out to do a little recon trip and the fishing was great. BIG fish... fair amount of mayflies around (BWO's and PMD's too)... plus we saw some caddis. The weather was sunny and then got a little cloudy, so everything had it's prefered climate! And geez... those Lower Sac trout are BIG and can pull hard. I hadn't been on the Sac for awhile since I've been basically living on the Trinity, but I can't wait to get out there and chase more of those native trout! Now's a great time to put a day on the books. Let's go! First time or millionth time, we got you covered!

Lower Sac Fishing Image
December 15, 2023
Lower Sac Report by Luke Geraty

Despite the colder weather, we've had some days where the sun pokes out and even the caddis start moving. If you are on the Sac when it happens, the fishing can be REALLY good. When it's colder, we have to work a bit more for them. For the most part, the fish have been eating midges, mayflies, and caddis. Fish are being caught in the morning but the prime time seems to be from 11am until just before dark. Taking people fishing is a lot of fun and I hear it's a lot of fun to actually catch the fish too ??

Lower Sac Hatch Chart

Mayflies
March Browns
Baetis
PMD
Callibaetis
Caddisflies
Brachycentrus
Rhyacophila
Hydropsyche
Stoneflies
Golden Stones
Giant Stoneflies
Little Yellow Stones
Other
Salmon Eggs
Steelhead Present
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Lodging Recommendations

The Lower Sac runs right through Redding and Red Bluff. Please visit our Redding Info Page and Red Bluff Info Page for ideas on lodging, logistics, and other activities in the area.

Lower Sac Photo Gallery

A very large trout on the Lower Sac
Fishing the edges of the current from the drift boat on the Lower Sac
Fishing some interesting water on the Lower Sac
A guest with a great wild rainbow trout from the Lower Sac
Wade fishing can be very productive on the Lower Sac
Guide Andrew Harris lands a Lower Sac rainbow
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