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Current Fishing Report

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I had a great day today chasing stripers with my guests Ron, Don, and Steve. The morning was really slow for us, but the afternoon showed promise.  After lunch, Steve got grabbed as we drifted over a pod of 5-6 decent fish.  Steve then hooked into a decent schoolie, but it came unpinned as I was lipping it so we missed our photo op.  We saw fish in the afternoon, but they just weren't on the job.

View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
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I had a really fun day with my guests Nate and his daughter Paulina.  This was their first time fishing the McCloud and I think they were overwhelmed by the beauty.  Fishing a dry-dropper was very productive in the morning with a pretty equal number of takes on both flies.  After lunch, there were lots of caddis around so we switched to an Elk Hair Caddis and the number of grabs was insane!  Even for as hot as it was today, we found the best way to beat the heat was to wade the McCloud!

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Temps have been well over 100 in the afternoon here in Redding so Nathan and his daughter Paulina wanted to do a split day. We fished from 7am until noon, then they hit the pool at their hotel until I picked them up at 5pm for a late afternoon/evening session. This turned out to be a mixed blessing as the bite was very slow early in the morning, picking up around 10am. They did enjoy their break from the blistering heat however! The evening bite was much better, with Nate scoring a 22” hog to cap off his day. Paulina did great on her inaugural drift boat trip, and was casting like a pro by mid-day and caught some nice native rainbows for her efforts. The Big River remains a viable and reliable option for summer fishing so book a trip with us and get out of the house!

Early morning launch
Early morning launch
Caddis eater
Caddis eater
Fishing in 2020
Fishing in 2020
All smiles
All smiles
Paulina is smiling behind that mask
Paulina is smiling behind that mask
A picture of me taking a picture of a fish
A picture of me taking a picture of a fish
View Kevin Kay's Calendar
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I had a really fun two days with my guest Jeff, and his father Russell. Yesterday was a half-day float, but we started late afternoon. There wasn’t a lot of action, but the fish they landed were very nice. Today was pretty slow all day. Jeff and Russ hooked into some nice fish, but there were some long dry spells between grabs. The action picked up a little after lunch, but it never really turned on for us. Caddis and PMD nymphs were the flies du jour.

Jeff with a beautiful fish
Jeff with a beautiful fish
Russell with a nice one
Russell with a nice one
Jeff with another beauty
Jeff with another beauty
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
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Hopper season is in full swing on the Yuba River! I was out there three times in the last week and each time they have been looking up taking big hoppers and attractors off of the surface. They have also been eating a wide variety stones, caddis and mayflies sub surface. We should have this good action continue on top and July is a great month for it. There is no better way to fish hoppers than from a drift boat.On a side note- those who have had to cancel big fishing trips out of country/state this year may want to consider doing more local trips instead. The Lower Yuba is just over 45 minutes from most parts of Sacramento, and less than 2 hours from many parts of the Bay Area. To throw these big dries for fiesty wild trout mid summer feels a lot like Montana. 

Fishing Report Image
Fishing Report Image
Fishing Report Image
Fishing Report Image
View Ben Thompson's Calendar
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Peter Santley and I hosted a fun group of guys (and one gal) today on the Lower Sac. We got a very early start in an attempt to avoid the heat but also seemed to avoid the fish as well as the bite didn’t heat up until the temperature also heated up (go figure). The Sac has been a bit fickle lately but if you put in your time you will catch some beautiful wild rainbows, and maybe a sucker or squawfish if you’re really lucky. Don’t forget to bring your lightening quick hookset as that always helps!

Beautiful wild rainbows
Beautiful wild rainbows
Rubberlegs again?
Rubberlegs again?
Tony hooked up
Tony hooked up
Fred, Peter, and Courtney doing lunch on the Big River
Fred, Peter, and Courtney doing lunch on the Big River
Keep ‘em wet!
Keep ‘em wet!
Home grown!
Home grown!
View Kevin Kay's Calendar
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How’s everyone doing, you all hanging in there? Man, I’ve got to say, it’s been rough. To get some reprieve, Lura and myself and the dogs went out on the Lower Sac. The dogs hunted fish and birds, Lura sat and relaxed and targeted some rising fish while I threw some Spey. Swinging up rising fish was a nice topper to the day. Swinging flies isn’t going to be as productive as following the bobber, but I find it to be more productive in mending the mind. When it is pushing 100 degrees, the cold water and watching the juvenile Eagle test his wings brings its own rewards. Be safe and be kind.

Happy dogs and gal.
Happy dogs and gal.
Keep em wet.
Keep em wet.
Chairs available upon request.
Chairs available upon request.
Make the Hardy sing.
Make the Hardy sing.
View Andreas Fuhrmann's Calendar
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Fellow Confluence guide Luke, his buddy Steve, and myself braved the 105-degree heat to go hunt striped bass downriver on the Lower Sac. We managed to find some decent fish! Man these guys can pull. They make great fish tacos if you’re so inclined! Our guides Andrew and Brian are licensed Coast Guard Captains and can take you on a jet boat trip in search of these great fish. Maybe you’ll find a lunker, they’re in there!

Fishing Report Image
Fishing Report Image
View Kevin Kay's Calendar
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It was a hot one today for my guests Matt and Bob! I fished them a few weeks ago on Hat Creek and the Pit River, but today they decided to float the Sac. The grab started a little slow and remained spotty throughout the day. We hooked several fish on a combination of rubberlegs, caddis poopahs, and PMD nymphs. On these really hot days, we try to beat the heat by finishing up between 3:00 and 4:00.

Bob with a chunky one
Bob with a chunky one
Matt with a nice one
Matt with a nice one
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar

Leslie and I had a great weekend with some good friends on the historic Bollibokka beat of the famed Lower McCloud.  After fishing and guiding on the Mac for 18 years, this was my first opportunity to fish this private and remote property.  What an amazing stretch of river, with every water type you could ask for in a trout stream.  The upper beat is limited to the six anglers who stay at the Pumphouse cabin, which is an monumental amount of water to explore.  Like every stretch of the McCloud, the catching of fish is totally dependent on if the fish are eating.  If they are, you get em, when they aren't, you don't.  If you are lucky enough to stay overnight on the Mac, take a break in the day to enjoy things other than fishing.  Perhaps a mid day siesta, hiking the trails to find new water, or relaxing under a tree with a book between 1-5 is a good program.  On hot sunny summer days, focus on fishing first light to lunchtime, and the last 3 hours of the day.  That still gives you 9 hours or so to fish!  It also gives you an opportunity to take a moment and experience the magnificent wilderness that you are in.All freestone techniques work very well on the McCloud, especially dry flys in the evenings or cloudy afternoons.  Classic dry fly patterns bought at brick and mortar fly shops actually work the best.  McCloud fish never eat flies bought online, or from big box stores like lame Cabellas and Sportsmen's Warehouse.  When the sun is on the water, fishing a dry/dropper is very efective if you can wade aggressively and cover the rugged pocket water short line fishing.  You can break out your trout Spey rod in the appropriate water type and productively swing streamers, which like dry fly fishing is most productive when the sun is off the water.  You can high stick nymph or Euro nymph all day long and find fish if that is your thing...use lots of lead to get your flys deep.  Bring lots of rubber legs and bird's nests, you will go through them.  The McCloud is the perfect western trout stream, with the most famous and historical strain of rainbow trout on the planet.  It has a wonderful wilderness aspect to it that reminds me a lot of New Zealand, except for the daily encounters with rattlesnakes and poison oak absolutely everywhere....but its worth it.

Leslie in a classic McCloud pool
Leslie in a classic McCloud pool
Old school Sage gear
Old school Sage gear
Fishing Report Image
Evening New Zealand style upstream dry fly fishing
Evening New Zealand style upstream dry fly fishing
Sightfishing is possible on the Mac
Sightfishing is possible on the Mac
Bring a wading staff...
Bring a wading staff...
High stick dry fly
High stick dry fly
Fishing Report Image
The remote beauty of a perfect trout stream
The remote beauty of a perfect trout stream
View Dax Messett's Calendar
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My guests John and Bruce had two really good days swinging flies on the Lower Sac! I fished John last fall on another trout spey trip, and he was overwhelmed with the beauty of the lower river. They had to cancel their tarpon trip in the Florida Keys, so they decided a trout spey trip was the next best thing! With the flows at 12,000 cfs, it was a little pushy in some spots, but the fish were eager to eat their swung flies. I learned a good lesson yesterday - John was getting multiple grabs in one run but struggled to hook the fish. When I checked his fly, I discovered his hook was actually bent closed! We’re not sure how it happened, but I started checking their flies anytime they missed a fish. Wading in the river when it is really hot outside is so refreshing! 

John rewarded with a nice hatchery steelhead
John rewarded with a nice hatchery steelhead
Bruce hooked up
Bruce hooked up
John with a wild one
John with a wild one
John getting after it
John getting after it
Fishing Report Image
Fishing Report Image
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
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The Williamson River is heating up! The first good push of Redbands from the lake have made it into the Williamson River just in time for the Hex Hatch. This week we will see our first good hatch of Hex coming off. During the day we are picking up good fish by swinging small leeches and Damsel nymphs. Pelican Bay and The Wood River will fish well this week with daytime temperatures reaching the 90's. Fish throughout the Klamath Basin will be seeking the cooler temperatures of the river and springs. Summer fishing has begun!

Williamson River Redband
Williamson River Redband
Williamson River Redband
Williamson River Redband
View Dylan Woodrum's Calendar
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With the summer flows running at 12,400 cfs, floating larger sections of the river is much more realistic. Yesterday we covered nearly fifteen miles of the Lower Sacramento River and had a great day! The weather was sunny throughout the day and the temperature on the river never passed 95 degrees, so while everyone else was roasting at 104, we were happily surrounded by views of Mt. Lassen and Shasta (not to mention all of the bluffs and wildlife such as deer, eagles, and other birds). The morning was sllllooowwwww but we broke out the box with a couple of nice fish, including a nearly 18 incher on a Peaches n' Cream. While there weren't a lot of bugs in the morning, by the time we got into the afternoon, bugs were coming off steadily and we did well on PMD's, rubber legs, and some caddis. Lots of the grabs on the PMD flies were subtle, so you really have to be on the watch or you'll miss those fish but when many of these trout eat a rubber legs... THEY EAT THE RUBBER LEGS. The afternoon fished really well and we had plenty of grabs and caught a good number of fish in a few hours of time. While we had plenty of back to backs, we never doubled up, so there's something to shoot for next time! Get out soon and fish this fantastic northern California fishery that pumps out some really nice fish! 

Look at the colors on this gorgeous trout.
Look at the colors on this gorgeous trout.
Jason put this beautiful fish in the boat on the mighty rubber legs!
Jason put this beautiful fish in the boat on the mighty rubber legs!
Lots of these were caught.
Lots of these were caught.
This one ate a PMD imitation.
This one ate a PMD imitation.
View Luke Geraty's Calendar
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Today I had some of the coolest guests ever! Justin brought his 11yo son Conner, and his 9yo daughter Taylor, to learn to fly fish at Burney Creek. And what a fun day it was! Conner and Taylor learned to cast very fast and were able to get some really nice drifts. After a few hours we took a break and walked over to the Burney Falls overlook – which is always amazing. We finished our day fishing one last run and had a blast! With our Learn to Fly Fish program, we offer free wader and boot rentals for kids, and charge a very fair rental fee for adults.

Conner and Justin
Conner and Justin
Conner working the run
Conner working the run
Taylor getting another great drift
Taylor getting another great drift
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
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I just finished up a couple of fun days with longtime guests Rich and Kathleen.  They landed an impressive variety of species in two days: rainbows, browns, and brookies on the Mac plus rainbows and shad on the Sac.  Dry flies were the name of the game on the Mac.  There were three different sizes of stones flying around, including the 2" long giant stoneflies.  Most of our fish were keyed in on golden stones, though.  On our Lower Sac day we fought with the wind but still caught some really nice rainbows, mostly on caddis patterns.  There are a lot of shad in the Red Bluff area and we managed to hook a bunch of them in the evening.

Three sizes of stoneflies on the Mac!
Three sizes of stoneflies on the Mac!
Lower Sac rainbow
Lower Sac rainbow
Rich hooked up on a shad
Rich hooked up on a shad
View Andrew Harris's Calendar
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I had a great day fishing with clients Brian and Mike today on the WilliamsoN River. We are seeing more fish moving up from the lake daily on the Williamson. Lots of BWO''s and PMD's coming off the past two days. We should see our first sightings of hex's coming off next week. This fishery will only get better as the summer progresses. Woody

27” Redband
27” Redband
24” Redband
24” Redband
View Dylan Woodrum's Calendar
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I had a fun day with my guests Ron and Dave while exploring the upper Sac. We fished different spots with the morning being slow. After lunch the action picked up and our day ended on a great note when the fish began feeding on the surface and we got to fish big stimulator patterns! Dave and Ron had several grabs each which made for some very exciting moments.

These are everywhere!
These are everywhere!
Dave working the seam
Dave working the seam
Ron hooked-up
Ron hooked-up
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
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Today was really fun with my guests Rich and Linda. The grab was pretty spotty throughout the day and that could have been affected by the weather system that moved through yesterday afternoon and last night.  They both landed some really nice fish on a combination of rubberlegs and PMD nymphs.  

Getting it done
Getting it done
Linda with her first of the day
Linda with her first of the day
Linda with another very nice fish
Linda with another very nice fish
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
Okay

Spent Monday on the Upper Sac with a couple guys and had a great time wading around on the Upper Sacramento River in search of some trout! We used a variety of tactics, including indicator nymphing, double dry flies, hopper-dropper, and some tight line nymphing as well. We caught a bunch of 10 to 14 inch fish and one 16 incher with the majority of fish being caught on rubber legs or copper johns. For dry flies it didn't seem to matter as long as it was something size 16. Going from indicators to dry flies back to indicators is pretty fun, though you have to retrain your mind on just how quick (or slow) you have to set the hook! All in all the time on the Upper Sac was great and there is plenty off water to discover. If you have a case of wanderlust, why not book a trip to fish the nearly 40 miles of excellent trout water? The views of Mt. Shasta, Castle Crags, and crystal clear water are a great companion to the trout!Anyway, after a day on the Upper Sac, things switched up to the Lower Sacramento River for a day in the drift boat. Kevin Kay and I both guided father / son guests and though the fishing was slllllllooowwwww, we still managed to boat some really good looking trout. But before we got to the trout, we spent some time teaching Max and Patrick how to cast bobbers and weights and flies and to anyone who thinks it doesn't take a bit of skill to sling those things around the river, think again! I can't speak for those in Kevin Kay's boat, but I can say that Patrick, a 6th grader who LOVES fishing, picked it up and was pretty impressive with his stellar casts and pro-level mends. And he definitely owes his dad, Doug, a huge "thanks" for taking the back of the boat, ha ha! By the end of the day we put a handful of pretty fish in the boat, including a 19 inch 'bow that Patrick hooked on a Peaches n' Cream! It was a slab of a fish for sure and Patrick even took a photo like a pro before we watched that fish dive to the depths and return home. The fishing was definitely on the slower side of things but we kept searching and trying various bugs until we bent some rods! We didn't see many bugs throughout the day, a change from previous days on the river where PMD's and caddis abound. But like I said... if you keep casting and keep changing flies, you're bound to hook up eventually!

Patrick's 19-inch slab of a fish!
Patrick's 19-inch slab of a fish!
One from Kevin's boat. These trout are feisty!
One from Kevin's boat. These trout are feisty!
A 16-inch trout from the Upper Sac.
A 16-inch trout from the Upper Sac.
Doug caught some really healthy 'bows!
Doug caught some really healthy 'bows!
This one took a lot of line.
This one took a lot of line.
Patrick kept at it until the very end and it paid off.
Patrick kept at it until the very end and it paid off.
View Luke Geraty's Calendar
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It was a beautiful day on the Sac with my guests Jim and Bill. The grab was a little spotty in the morning, but things picked up by late morning. The first half of the day it was all about PMD nymphs, but that changed after lunch and they were only interested in eating rubberlegs. The cooler temps were a welcome relief!

All day long!
All day long!
View Brian Kohlman's Calendar
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