Current Fishing Report

Had a really grabby day on the Lower Sac yesterday with guests Derek and Mark. Things started off quickly with three quick grabs that brought two smaller fish to the net and the fishing AND catching just kept on until pretty much the end of the day. There were few lulls in the action and we steadily netted fish with a good number of healthy 15 to 17 inch trout and one that was a hair over 18. Plus we had a couple of doubles and in one run, we hooked up every single time we went through it. Eggs, rubber legs, and midge patterns were on the menu. We were very fortunate that the wind stayed down throughout most of the day and we were able to enjoy some beautiful scenery, river fowl, and chucky 'bows!

An egg eating 'bow.

A handful of #troutslab.

This is the tale of two floats. I spent two days with two great guys and we ended up doing two different floats on two different days and had two very different experiences! On yesterday's float, it felt like we couldn't do anything wrong. The weather was phenomenal and we shed sweaters quickly and then enjoyed the northern California sunshine all day long. The wind was non-existent and the fish were willing participants all the way up to the late afternoon. Tom and Mike hooked a lot of fish and as is typical with a good day, we put some in the net, had some nice battles only to LDR (long distance release), and missed a bunch of grabs too. It was a really great day. Mike caught three fish in a row that were all around 18 inches and Tom hooked a fish literally on his first cast and two minutes into the float!!! All that is to say that yesterday was... well... awesome.Today was a different tale. Though the sun was out and the temperature was really nice, the wind blew for most of the day and the fish were not nearly as grabby as they were the day before. It's always interesting how when it's great, it doesn't seem to matter what flies you are using and when it's slow, the same thing seems to apply. Tom definitely hooked two really good fish that we never saw but we know were heavy fish... but all in all the grab was NOT like yesterday. Theories abound about why the bite can turn off and since I've yet to interview a trout, I can only speculate. The good news is that Mike and Tom had great attitudes and kept at it the whole day... which is why we boated a couple fish at the very end of the float and ended on a high note! As far as what the fish have been eating... we've been hooking fish mostly on eggs, secondly on small midge type of patterns, and then thirdly on black rubber legs. The water is dropping down and is currently at 5,300cfs and it's starting to feel like the Fall / Winter river. I'll be back at it again tomorrow... 

18 inches of butter!

Tom caught a lot of these!

Mike smashed it from the back of the boat!

A handful of trout brings the smiles!

Hooked up!

Spent an absolutely stunning October day fishing with my long time scouting partner Jeff on the Lower Sac.  We drifted a lower drift to avoid the crowds and basically had the river to ourselves excpet for a few salmon fishing boats.  Fishing was a little slow in the morning, but we found a steady pace of fish is some favorite spots.  Our fish came on a mix of egg patterns and nymphs. We both would have been happy if that was the entire fishing report, but as luck (and a little skill) would have it, we ran into a pretty special fish.  At first both of us thought we may have run into a salmon, but after about a 20 minute fight we landed a beautiful, wild 27" fish.  We spent the rest of the float just reflecting on the battle and the prize.  Its a beautiful time of year to fish Northern California.  Lets go fishing everyone!!!!

27 of pure joy!!!

Though it's the middle of October, the weather could hardly be much better. Sunny and only a little wind here and there, today's trip was hard to top. Today's guests were a father and son team, both named Chris, so we came up with the super creative "Front" Chris and "Back" Chris, ha ha! Though blood is thicker than water, these two had one of the most entertainingly competative relationships I've experienced and it only took a few minutes to figure out that we were going to have a lot of fun. "How was the fishing?" you ask... it was great! We hooked three fish in the first five minutes and then continued to hook fish, land fish, lose fish, hook some more fish, give each other a hard time for losing said fish, put a few more in the net, and shared a LOT of laughs. There were only a few times during the day where I'd say, "Hmm... seems like it might have slowed down" But then, almost on que, we'd get a grab. We saw a TON of salmon and the fish are definitely starting to key in on the eggs. We caught a couple on a rubber legs and some other nymphs but the majority were on the good 'ole egg. A couple highlights from the day were when we hooked a couple BIG fish and, sadly, lost them. But that wasn't the highlight. The highlight was listening to them give each other such a hard time for doing "everything" wrong - ha ha! Seriously though... today was such a great day. They were great anglers and the fishing was great. Plus, we hardly saw any boats on our float. I don't have any open dates this month except on Oct. 23, but the Trinity is right around the corner and I imagine the fishing will continue to be awesome in November too! If you want to get out soon or next month, hit us up at www.confluenceoutfitters.com and book a day today!

Back Chris with a beautiful trout.

Guess what this one ate?

Front Chris with a fatty.

Back Chris with a California extension.

The Lower Sac is a great place to introduce people to the sport of fly fishing.  I got to do just that today with Jake.  He was a quick study and figured out the casting right away.  It was really windy and it took a while for the fish to get on the grab.  When the fish started to participate, Jake began to hook and land them like a pro.  He landed fish by stripping them in and reeling them in.  Grandfather Frank did well too, landing some of the biggest fish of the day from the back of the boat.  Nice job on your first day of fly fishing Jake!

Jake with his first-ever trout on a fly

Frank with a hot rainbow

My guest Bob had such a great day yesterday that we both thought it would be pretty hard to top – well, Bob didn’t top it – he crushed it! In the end, Bob landed three very hard fighting adults and one really feisty half-pounder. The stars were perfectly aligned at the same time the steelhead gods shined down and Bob had what every steelhead angler hopes for – an EPIC trip! If you’re into chasing unicorns, reach out to us at www.confluenceoutfitters.com and let’s do it!

Bob getting his morning workout

First fish of the day!

Look at the size of that tail!

Bright and ready to fight!

I spent a few days swinging flies for steelhead up on the Trinity river earlier this week with fellow angler Joel. After weeks of smokey conditions it was a welcome relief to finally breath some fresh air. We started off in the lower river and it didn't take long to get a rod bent. Joel swung up a nice half pounder in a good run and then hooked into a hot adult that gave us a solid two minute steelhead rodeo before bucking itself off the line. Heading furthur up river past the gorge we were greeted with ideal water conditions and stunning fall colors beginning to pop on the sourrounding ridges. I fished my muddler religiously but never got a proper fish to blow up on it by the end of the first days fishing. Joel fished an assortment of more standard Trinity patterns; sz 6 rubber legs and buggy soft hackles. Day two started early but it wasn't until the sun was high overhead that we got into fish. We targeted heavier water with sink tips in tow and were rewared with multiple half pounders and a nice rainbow colored adult. By the end of the second day we found ourselves back down in the lower river were we each did well swinging small leech patterns for chrome bright half pounders. All in all the Trinity is fishing well from top to bottom. We found fish in more runs than not. The water temps have finally dropped in the lower river, giving the fish a reason to slow down a bit. We caught the last day of water releases of 450 cfs coming out of Lewiston. They have ramped down to winter flows of 300 cfs as of this week. There is still no public access to Big Rock in Willow Creek but the gravel bar at Kimtu is now open. We stopped by the fish counting weir to chat with the fish biologist on duty. He said that morning they had counted good numbers of adult steelhead in their traps. The biologist was excited to see larger sized adults coming through the weir, something he said he had not seen in the same numbers going back a few seasons. Going into the second half of October fishing on the Trinity should only improve as more fish come out of the Klamath and Hoopa valley. I have plenty of prime dates available for anyone looking to get out on the water and swing some of the best spey water in Northern California. Swing season is here folks! 

A beautiful wild hen that crushed a swung soft hackle

You know you're in the right spot when you see him

Fall colors on full display

Joel bent to a nice half pounder in a good riffle

Fall fishing at it's finest.

Today was my second early season trip on the Trinity and both trips have been very successful! During my first trip a couple weeks ago, my guests hooked two adults, landed several half-pounders and a decent tweener. Today, my long-time guest Bob, landed two really nice adults, one tweener, and a half-pounder! Throughout the day I spotted a handful of steelhead on the move, which is very encouraging as I look forward to our upcoming season on the Trinity. I am completely booked through the end of October but have openings in early November. If you’re considering a fall steelhead trip on the Trinity, reach out to us at www.confluenceoutfitters.com and we will pair you with one of our professional guides.

Bob was rewarded with this beautiful wild steelhead!

Bob with a very nice hatchery steelhead!

This tweener faught way above his weight class!

Had a great day on the water with Mike and Chris. The fish seemed to be actively feeding all day and it was very enjoyable. They were definitely munching eggs but also a variety of bugs. Hard to beat this fall action with this nice weather to go along with it. 

Had a great day with buddies Dave and Mark on the Lower Sac. The forecast was for wind so we got creative with our choice of drifts. They both caught some great fish but Mark had the biggest trout I have ever seen on the Sac right next to the boat when he popped off (sigh)..... Later on Dave hooked another really big fish but it turned out to be a giant, very healthy looking King salmon which we then intentionally broke off (can’t fish for them this high up). Good times!

Secret location.....

Opt for the shuttle and we’ll pick you up!

Regular guest Alan came to fish two days on the Sac. He brought his son Noah the first day and we did a lower float that had been on fire the day before. Somebody put out the fire overnight, as the grab was just not the same. It might have been a change in the weather as we had some cloud cover and lower temps along with a small drop in flows. We got some nice fish, just not as many. The second day Alan fished solo, and we braved the crowds on an upper drift and landed some real beauties. It can be very crowded on the river this time of year, so do unto others etc. Plenty of water and plenty of fish to go around!

Hooked up by the bluffs

Not a lot of spots

Nice fish from our first day

Lots of spots

No, they’re not all this big......

Fish on!

We have an angler looking for a fishing buddy to split a guide trip on the Trinity River on Nov 28th.  He is open to fishing nymphs, spey rods, or both. 

I’ve been on the lower Sac quite a bit recently and it’s been fishing pretty darn good, but today was one of those really special days that everyone hopes for! My guests Jesse and Julian have become great friends over the years and today will be one those – “remember that day?” days. They both hooked a ton of fish, albeit most were the typical cookie cutter size, but Julian had his big fish mojo working today!  They both landed some really nice fish and had several “doubles” throughout the day. The “egg bite” is just getting going and so is the boat hatch – which is why this is one of the best times to fish the Sac. If you’re thinking about a fall float on the Sac, give us a call! 

Fly fishing isn't all about numbers of fish, but sometimes you have days where you can say that the hooking and catching of fish was literally all. day. long. Yesterday was one of those days again and we brought dozens of fish to the net. Kevin Kay and I had a group trip with Mike, his son, and some buddies. Three of the four had fly fished before and one was brand new... so we did the standard casting lesson and Corey was catching fish in no time. By the end of the day he was a great caster and expert at mending, which is probably why he went home with a sore arm from reeling in all of those fish, ha ha! We hooked fish from the start of the day until the very end, primarily on bugs but with a fair amount on eggs. Things are seeming to slow down by 3pm, but even after the "feeding cut off," we still managed to get a few more. Salmon are spread throughout the system and it will only improve as we move forward. We're starting to see more boats on the river but there is so much river to fish that it's pretty easy to get away from the crowds and have the river all to ourselves. As you can tell by the photos, lots of beautiful trout caught and some beautiful scenery to match! Hard not to love days like yesterday because the weather was pretty great all day (minus a moment of wind), the people were cool, and the fish were willing. Book a trip now because Confluence can put you on fish! 

Corey caught this fish despite keeping a tight line... because he's the luckiest person I know.

Another gorgeous fish caught by Corey.

Mike's fly rod was bending all day long.

Look at that fish!!

Egg eaters!

Doubles!

Green back 'bows!

Don't judge my small boat... it floats through the skinny water!

Kevin holding one of his guy's trout. Look at those colors!

The Sacramento River and surrounding scenery is amazing.

Sturmer and John, 91 and 81 respectively, had a good day today on the Lower Sac. The morning was a bit slow for us, but the fish got a lot grabbier in the afternoon and stayed that way all the way to the takeout. We got some fish on egg patterns but most came on nymphs. It’s not all about the egg grab! Let’s get out there and fish!

Note secret fly.......

John with another hookup

I had a chance to fish with Walt and Don today, two excellent anglers who I have guided in the past. I've got three words to describe our day: Off. The. Chain. It was game on the minute we got going and the fishing was great all the way until 3pm. Lost count on how many fish we landed and we also lost a decent amount of fish, many REALLY close to the net (the good 'ole SDR -- short distance release). The bite was awesome. Highlight of the day may have been catching a salmon on a nymph... yes, you read that correctly! Walt hooked a monster salmon that ATE his oh-so-tiny-and-secret-nymph and we were able to actually land it before quickly letting it go. Thank God for a 7 weight Sage fly rod! Low point was probably the moment we realized that it wasn't a big mean rainbow trout, but fighting a fish with such power is a good consolation prize! The egg bite has started and there are salmon all over the river now, so it would be worth your time to book a trip! The trout are eating! Hit me up for next week... I've got some openings.

We like 'em fat!

One of many trout caught today.

Fishing was really outstanding today on the Lower Sac from 8am until 2pm.  We had tons of grabs starting with our first drift and the action was non-stop.  The last two hours of the day were a different story as the bite shut off almost completely.  We saw decent numbers of salmon on redds today and that's where we found most of our fish.  The sky was nice and smoke-free for the most part.  It was a really beautiful day to be out on the water in northern California!

One of Dan's fish

Pete with a good rainbow

Brain Kohlman and I spent the day with a great family. Jon, who is an experienced angler, brought his son, daughter, and son-in-law up to see if they would like to take up fly fishing. Yesterday they were on the Upper Sac and today they got their introduction to drift boat fishing on the Lower Sac. They all learned the essential basics and were hooking fish in no time. After a few missed grabs and long-distance releases everyone landed some nice fish. The grab wasn’t “wide open” for us today but everyone caught fish and went home happy. Catherine hooked and landed a real hog of a fish at the end of the day and played it like an expert.

Catherine’s first fish

Catherine did a great job fighting this big guy

Token Sundial Shot

Big Boy

Let’s go!

Lunch Under the Bridge

Yesterday, Brian Kohlman and I had an exciting day on the Upper Sacramento River with Jon and his family! Besides Jon, the adult "kids" were all new to fly fishing, but they picked it up really quick. The Upper Sac is a great river to learn how to fly fish on because it's beautiful, provides lots of great locations to fish, and the fish are generally pretty willing! The fishing started off fairly slow but that's pretty usual this time off year and it always seems like the fish don't start getting active until the sun hits the water a bit and the bugs start moving. We fished dry-dropper rigs as well as nymphs under indicators and hooked fish on both. In addition to seeing an otter and some birds, we noticed a few October Caddis fluttering around and it will only be a matter of days before you'll see a lot more of those getting the trout going, so keep your stimulators and other big caddis patterns handy! Our group had a lot of fun! Family, friends, and fly fishing... what more do you need on a Tuesday?

Where are those trout at?

Upper Sac trout are gorgeous.

What's not to smile about?

It's called walk and wade for a reason!

Caddis everywhere.

One last cast...

Some of them are tiny, but they are all beautiful.

The egg bite has started and it will only get better as the salmon continue to show up. I think in the next two to three weeks we should see it start to go from good to epic. For today, Brian Kohlman and I did a two boat trip and had a great time with our guests. I had fun with father and son duo, Ben and Cooper. It started off a bit slow in the morning with just a couple of early grabs and then we lost a certified trout pig that crushed our egg and then gave us a few head shakes before breaking off. With these big fish you have to definitely let them take off and if you happen to be reeling in when they decide to go, you've got the perfect recipe for disaster. A couple of lost fish later, Cooper put a nice 18incher in the net that put up a greeeeeeaaatttt fight. These wild trout on the Sacramento River are gorgeous fish! Ben hooked a decent amount of fish -- missing some, losing some, and putting a few in the net. In the late afternoon we tied into a fish that pulled REALLY hard and then decided to just sit there for a bit. "Is it a big trout? Wait... maybe it's a salmon... OH NO!! IT'S A SUCKER." Ben and I, being the trout fisherman that we are, gave a sigh of disappointment but Cooper put that big 'ole fish in the net. Twenty-four inches of the infamous California Golden Bone, ha ha! Typically a trout fisherman would shake that thing off and hope it didn't slime the net, but Cooper dove in and wanted a photo. He made a good point in noting that it *was* the biggest fish of the day and he was there just to enjoy himself ??(couldn't argue with that). The river clarity is infinity and there wasn't any particular bug that stood out. We caught fish on eggs and the typical nymphs (caddis, PMD's, more caddis, and some TBS). It would well be worth your time to get a day on the books because for the next month and a half I imagine there are going to be some big fish put in the net and there's always the Trinity River if you want to try your hand for some steelhead. I'd love to get you out, so hit up Confluence and ask for Luke or get with one of our other excellent guides!

This 18 incher put up a great fight!

Them rosy cheeks are gorgeous!

Brian Kohlman's boat put some fish in the net too!

Feisty 'bows are fun, no matter the size!

Annnnnnnd, we got the biggest sucker I've ever seen on the Sac (24 inches).