July Fishing Report

The summer is here in full force. It’s time to ditch the waders and head to the hills, we have some lights out fantastic fishing going on in Nor Cal right now. Our walk n wade fisheries have been the highlight this week, with the McCloud, Upper Sac, and Pit firing on all cylinders. The Lower Sac, with a slight flow increase, is also fishing better than the previous week.

Lower Sac:

We have plenty of water this summer on the big river. Flowing at 14,700 cfs right now, the river is moving lots of water for the farmers downstream. This doesn’t mean bad fishing, in fact quite the contrary. We prefer it at this flow rather than slightly lower even, because it concentrates the fish. It definitely hasn’t been “easy” cast anywhere and get bit style fishing, but it has been outstanding at the right place at the right time. The softer edges of riffles and current seams have been very very productive, especially when the bugs are hatching. The bites are very “quick” meaning you could have tons of bites in a day but only hook some of them if you are super slow on the hookset, so pay close attention. The caddis are still showing themselves, and from the sounds of it, classic flies like the Tan Birdsnest (#14-18) or Cinnamon Pupa (#14-18) are getting plenty of love. The smorgasbord of flashy pmd nymphs, Perdigons, and the occasional Pat’s Rubber-leg are of course getting some bites as well. Now is a good time to fish the late evenings or downriver floats. Yesterday we received an outstanding report from the stretch below Anderson, huge numbers and complete solitude. If you’ve traditionally fished the stretch in town, now is the time to see it down low. It’s a totally different river down there, lots of wildlife, scenery, and less-educated trout.

Upper Sac:

The Upper Sac is flowing around 300 cfs on the Delta Gauge. Our latest guide report: “It’s on fire”. One of our guides reported hooking dozens of fish in a short stretch of river during a full day trip today, with many rising to the dry fly. 300cfs is perfect shape for wading this river. You don’t want it any lower or higher, and you DON’T need waders. Wading boots and Neoprene socks are perfect, it’s time to get wet and enjoy the cool water on a hot summer’s day.  As always on this river when it’s in shape, go hiking and find happy fish and solitude. Fish are still taking the surface chubby chernobyl dry fly (golden stone imitation), as well as CDC style Jigged Mayfly Nymphs below it. One report we heard that the Rubber-legs are not working as well as usual, and it’s been more of a mayfly game during the daytime. In the evenings, the Caddis emerge which makes it time for dry fly fishing a missing link, or nymphing with classic prince patterns. 

McCloud:

The McCloud report from this week is that it is also “on fire”. It seems like less fish are rising to the surface for the Chubby dry fly, but the CDC style mayfly nymphs with large beadheads are getting down in the fast water and getting bit constantly. Focusing on the pockets amongst the fast water, with a broken surface, has been the key to success. We have also heard that the stonefly nymph imitations aren’t working as well here either, and that a small jigged mayfly is almost a sure thing in the right spot. The evenings have been seeing much more dry fly action, with some unusually large Caddis already hatching for this early in the year. The clarity is reportedly back to the “Glacial Blue” the McCloud is known for. Not gin clear but plenty of vis for them to see your flies.

Pit River:

July might be our favorite month on the Pit. The fish that live behind every rock on this river seem to all be feeding! Our last few guide days out there have been outstanding. Nymphing reins supreme here, no doubt about it. The CDC style mayflies and other jigged mayfly variations have been the top producers. The river is in perfect shape for wet wading, which is really nice because if you fall in, you just get cooled off. 

Fall River:

The Fall is still cranking out consistent results day in day out. The quality of the fish lately has been impressive. For most of the day, various types of Baetis have been the top game, whether it be small pods of fish sipping spent spinners, or tiny size 18 or 20 two-bit nymphs (or other small Baetis) under a small indicator. Moss has been a problem here lately, which requires much more fly maintenance. A stripped leech has also yielded a few results lately. 

Lake Shasta:

Lake Shasta bass fishing is still absolutely a thing. It is more specific now that the surface temperature of the lake is rising, meaning finding the cold water influence is key. The McCloud, Upper Sac, and Pit arms have all been producing great fishing in the upper reaches. Additionally, many trout have been getting caught during our guided bass fishing days recently.