Lake Almanor

Overnighter On Lake Almanor

The hex hatch has begun on Lake Almanor but it hasn’t quite peaked yet. I was lucky enough to get up to the lake and do an overnight trip to catch the hatch but was left fishless along with the majority of the anglers there. I talked to the few anglers who were catching fish and they said they were dragging the bottom with a type 2 and type 4 sink-tip with the latter catching the most and biggest fish. Both anglers had been on the lake for a couple of nights so they were keyed in on what was working and what wasn’t. Getting your nymphs down with no retrieve seem to be the ticket. I was using a Teeny-200 but I was retrieving so I wasn’t successful.

The hex hatch can be a hit or miss depending on the night making it a tough hatch to fish for a simple overnighter. If I could have had one more night I probably would have been successful but keeping the AC running is kind of important. It was fun to watch the bugs come out as well as beat the Valley heat but it would have been more fun to hook a few fish.

I’m not too disappointed about Lake Almanor whereas I have a few nights fishing and camping at a place I have yet to experience, the legendary Manzanita Lake.

Yuba River

Summer Scouting The Lower Newba

Summer has officially begun and the weather this week is forecasting record breaking peaks with several triple digit days. It’s time to put the waders away and start wet wading again. The flow on the Lower Yuba was at a high ~3500 CFS when I visited but it was fishable despite the limited wading. The water was nice and cool and had a beautiful blue hue to it. The bug life is slowly making a comeback as I observed midges, two or three golden stone adults, and small PMD nymphs and duns.

Fish of the Day

I spent the morning scouting and prospecting different runs and holes around HWY 20 bridge with a streamer rod and a nymph rig. I fished every fishy spot that I could cast to and was successful in finding a few Yuba bows. The fish I found were holding around solid structure and in seams that were relatively deep. Most of the fish I caught were on PMDs and were small compared to what I’m use out there however they looked healthy and fought hard like they usually do.

The flows have been upped +400 CFS which is a bummer but it’s getting there…

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