Fishing Report,    Upper Sacramento

A Quiet Night on the Upper Sacramento River

By Tom Chandler 8/19/2007

The reports from the Upper Sacramento haven't been great. People have been catching fish, but -- in guide parlance -- they've been "working" for them, and the trout have been a little on the small size.

heliosrodrock

It's a bad sign when I've got time to shoot pictures like this.

Even though it was Saturday night -- and I tend to avoid the Upper Sacramento on weekends -- I gambled and headed for an upriver section. Word was there aren't many fishermen on the river, and -- hot damn -- I found this stretch empty.

It was also barren of rising fish, and surprisingly murky. This far upriver, the water's typically pretty clear, but a brown-green murk obscured the bottom. Not a promising start.

I did what I always do on slow-moving, rise-ring-free water -- I tied on a terrestrial to see if I couldn't scare up a trout or two. Sometimes it works, and this time it worked to the tune of a single, 10" trout. That's better than a sharp fly rod in the eye, but after a while, I decided to sit back, watch the water, and let the evening unfold around me.

The temperatures were perfect, the sky directly overhead was overcast (first we've seen in a while), and the whole thing was almost unbelievably peaceful. If you can't sit on a rock and enjoy a green, calm, slow-moving kind of evening, check your pulse -- you could already be dead (or you're a glamper , in which case you're doomed).

The hatch never really got going, and I had to settle for two more small fish, and a handful of missed fish (it happens).

The details aren't particularly important, except that -- after a very hectic, kinda nauseating, low-energy week -- I got to sit on a rock and just groove on the concept of my home waters.

That ain't bad.

I also put a few more miles on the field test of the Orvis Helios rod, and I'm writing up a review of the thing now. It wasn't bad either.

I'm also considering writing "A Duffer's Guide to Fly Fishing the Upper Sacramento in Fall" -- an article which will reveal the truly important details, like where to head when you get off the water late and you're out of beer.

You know, the critical stuff.

See you at the beer cooler, Tom Chandler.

fly fishing, fishing, upper sac, upper sacramento river, trout


AuthorPicture

Tom Chandler

As the author of the decade leading fly fishing blog Trout Underground, Tom believes that fishing is not about measuring the experience but instead of about having fun. As a staunch environmentalist, he brings to the Yobi Community thought leadership on environmental and access issues facing us today.

For answers, we have to look upriver -- above the dam. I'd guess Lake Siskiyou is dirtying up a little, and that we're seeing that in the river. I'm told that Fred Gordon in Dunsmuir said the river murked up briefly a couple weeks ago. Sounds similar. Just something to keep an eye on. I don't think it affected fishing much; the hatch was too light to move only the small fish, and only small fish rose...
0
0
I know that rock! By the way, I'm always looking for a new job. Anything open up your way for a camp butler / fishing caddy? Seems a guy could make a buck or two catering to folks with lots of money and no sense.
0
0
I also noted the murky water yesterday. How does that happen?
0
0

Discover Your Own Fishing and Hunting Adventures

With top destinations, guided trips, outfitters and guides, and river reports, you have everything you need.