Happy Holidays!

Life has been busy for us all lately, holidays and such. It's good to see the family again. Typically a bottle of scotch will appear and past fishing stories tend to surface…it never gets old. There is a little gem in the near Chico area that offers fishing for a select few months of the year. Flows are low, due to the lack of rainfall.
I've been working long hours, but see the light at the end of the tunnel. With no snow in the long-term forecast, fishing continues to exceed expectations! Give them your best drift and ease up on the drag when you hook them. Big fish will be had this winter and future seasons to come! Happy Holidays!

Evan getting it done

Stone cold

It's cold all around town, but lacking any significant snow on the ground. Good or bad? At this point, the locals are actually bumming on the no snow factor, unlike last year… Things on the NV side are good. Some local fly fishing waters have also been producing some fish, but nothing like October. Small is better at this point, size #20-22; midges, baetis, cripples, and emergers are making it happen. Jay got this nice bow on a #22, well done!

Brisk and Refreshing

Inspiration to hit the river…

Flows are perfect in the Tahoe area. BWO's have been coming off, along with the skwala's. Streamers produced the past few days. Temps are cold, but the fish are still feeding actively throughout the day. Flows seem to be steady. Have faith in the flies you tie on and fish them with a purpose. Tightlines!

Birthday Brown

Yep.. yesterday I turned a year older. I gathered the sticks and headed to the river. Fishing started slow, but then surely enough it was on! Sandwiches and brew fueled the activities. Fall is definitely my favorite time of the year. Amazing colors, the ever so slight transition from green to brown, yellow, and orange encompassed my field of view. This was the only place I wanted to be; with good company & amazing fish. A good friend of mine landed his first brown on the fly - 20 inches of pure beauty!

Look at those spots!

Cast and Blast

Great Salmo Jim!

Can't Stop

Some people have hung up the fly rod for the winter, where as, I can't get enough! With perfect winter conditions, I headed out in hopes of some grabs. Fishing was excellent. Flows were perfect. I couldn't of asked for a better day. With no one in sight, it practically felt like I had the sanctuary to myself. Tie on anything small right now and I bet you will start hooking fish. Look for fish holding in fast water, seams, back eddies, and behind big objects (rocks, etc). Landed 12, then headed home after a nice sunset photo shoot. Life is good!

Day off

Had the day off, so with little to no snow on the ground ( no skiing yet…)- I headed to the river. Flows were up, bugs were coming off, and there were some clouds overhead. With those prime conditions, things were looking good. After the nice stroll down to the riverside, I cracked a brew. Typically, I don't crack the first brew until AFTER the first fish, but I decided to do things differently today. And did it pay off! Second cast, hooked and landed a nice wild bow. Noticing that there were several anglers upstream, I headed down. Run after run, I was hooking fish left and right. A pretty good day off indeed!

Africa - Part 2

Part two was the second part of the trip. Destination - South Africa. One of the largest sport events in the World was about to begin - THE World Cup and some fishing of course! Durban, South Africa was the next destination. Again; good food, people, and amazing views everywhere!

Durban Harbor

Brazil vs Portugal

fish on

very large Scotch bar

Africa Revisited...

Last year my brother, father, and myself headed for a trip of a lifetime to Africa. First stop was Kili. After a hard push, that was concluded with much success all around! After testing the body, we headed down to South Africa for a chance to catch the big bows in Dullstrum, South Africa. Here are some flicks..Amazing people, food, and hospitality.

sunset from 12k

E with a nice bow

Guide company - Mavungana





Saturday/Sunday are open for some guiding if you can handle old man winter…

It's..Too good to be true

Sorry for the belated update…been busy fishing of course! Last weekend I dusted off the ol' drift boat and floated the Yuba with my family. Bows, steel, kings occupied the best runs in the river. Big rigs, 10-15 ft leaders and 3-4 size AB's to get the flies down. Egg's and legs as they say, did the trick. The LT has been producing nice fish as well. A lot of brightly colored bows in the 16-19 inch range are being netted. You can't go wrong with BWO's or caddis. Dry fly is still hit or miss, were just waiting for the temperature to drop a bit more, high 50's is prime. On Thursday, I headed down to the NV side (east of Sparks) to find some big fish. Temp's were ideal, as well as the water clarity. Big stones, anything with legs, and very small BWO emerger patterns netted several decent size fish. Hard fighters down there…don't go lower than 5x. Here are some shots from the past few days.

The weather forecast looks great for the next week! Nymphing & streamer fishing has been productive lately. Be sure to get that dead drift with your flies. Mending is king! Below is a nice healthy male, check out that kype + teeth combo! Throw your stuff in the car and head to Tahoe for some supreme fishing!

Fall Colors

Had a few hours to kill yesterday, so I poked around in some foreign waters… Can't tell you where, but I can show you...Plenty of trout to go around! Scuds, micro mays, baetis, & soft-hackle oct caddis did the job. The rivers are starting to cool off a bit, which is excellent for consistent feeding throughout the day. As the fish prep for winter, so are us folks in the mountains. Mornings and nights are chilly. Crowds have vanished, but the fishing is still on fire! Book your trip before Friday, October 21 and receive 10% off your half/full day trip!

Fall Colors

Spawned out Kokanee

Indian Summer

It looks like good weather for the next week or so..fishing or should I say catching, has been great lately! Small caddis #20, BWO's #20, small olive stones #20, & soft hackle oct caddis have all been producing fish. Big fish have to eat ALOT of small stuff to maintain their diet, so throwing on a streamer or a big stone pattern can get some big takes that might snap you on 4x. If you toss on a streamer, get a nice medium sink tip and fish the edges. You'd be surprised, but most of the big fish being landed are near the river edges, back eddies, fast water, & slicks. Go see Andy Burk at West River Fly Shop for the hott streamer pattern!

Brownies

Some fish porn from the last few days…

Gary w/ lake brown

What do you think I was about to say?

Phat

Bent Rods All Around

With this NBA lockout still being figured out.. someone has to be slam-dunking something! Rich and crew were landing some nice fish today. Overcast weather, full moon last night, and a scheduled BWO hatch were factors that all contributed to a great fishing session. The browns are officially headed up river looking for a mate. I've noticed several spawning beds in the river that have already been cleared, but no fish "sitting" on their redds yet… The Truckee is fishing well at the moment. Streamers seem to be the ticket… but don't forget those october caddis on the swing. Now is the time of year for a trophy brown of a lifetime, so don't hesitate... Book your trip today!

Pro Tip - Replacing your leader each time you go out is a great idea this time of year, because any nick or abrasion on your leader could potentially break off a trophy fish... The big ones always seem to find the weaknesses of your rig...

B.W.WHAT?!

The second storm set off the BWO's (#20)! Today, we got a gentleman start and fish were hooked within minutes of fishing. Trout are opportunistic feeders, so gear up and cast some dries to rising heads… can't get any takes? Drop your tippet a size and buff the fly with some floatant. Browns are starting to come up the river with full spawning intention. If you can, stay on the sides of the river; to not only protect spawning redds, but also for stealth purposes. Things are looking good from here on out!

First Snow

Yep, last night it snowed in Tahoe. Just a dusting, but cold temps none the less. Sunday/Monday was good fishing. Tuesday, the barometric pressure dropped and the fish weren't having it. Some say, air pressure has no effect on the fish… yesterday proved that wrong. This cold spell hopefully should trigger the BWO hatch.. caddis are still coming off, just in smaller numbers. October caddis are out - saw one the size of a small hummingbird the other night. Fishing should only get better from here on out. Grab a jacket and get your gear together and head to Tahoe for some good fishing!

Quick Facts - "Barometric pressure varies with altitude. A higher elevation will have less atmosphere above it which exerts less pressure. To keep readings standard across the world, barometric pressure is to be indicated at sea level. Therefore, readings at elevations other than at sea level will require a correction factor which is based on the elevation and the air temperature (colder air weighs more and will require a greater correction)."
Reference - http://www.quickoneplus.com/fish/articles/page.asp?page=barometric

Temperature Swing

The weather is changing up here in Tahoe…for the best! The nights are getting chilly, but afternoons have been on the warmer side, low 80's. Water temps on the LT have been prime (48*) for feeding fish. Small flies have been working best on the LT. Olive stones #18, BWO emergers, EC caddis, PMD's, soft hackles, and of course midges. The Truckee has been fishing quite consistent with an average of 10-12 inch fish in size. Water temps in town are a bit warmer at 58* and down near boca, about 54*. Streamer and dry fly fishing in the morning have been working well. Toss on a nymph rig during the midday and switch back to the dry towards dusk. Caddis dries #18,20 are hooking fish. Soon the temperatures will be prime with a brief cold spell coming through Truckee in the next few days. With cold temps come the big BWO hatch, so get ready! Here are some of the last few…