Smoke on the Water
Many of us felt we made it through the worst of the fire season. Many of our fire-fighting patrons were talking about how much they enjoyed the down time this season not being on a wildland fire. Well that plan has quickly changed with fires to our north and the new Mosquito Fire in Placer County has shown some very aggressive fire behavior. Air quality changes daily and we’re seeing an average of 185 - 220 AQI. If you have real respiratory issues, you may want to sit this one out. The good news for the report is that our stillwater options have been firing and if you drive a little further, the Walker system has been delivering.
East Carson River:
The EC has been low, very low. It’s no secret that this is a heavy drought year and we’re seeing the results of a dry Winter. With flows dipping as low as 15 CFS, fish are congregating in the big pools but it’s day to day on the bite. Fish the buckets and cover a lot of ground, you’ll know if a hole is hot in the first 5 minutes.
Truckee River:
The Truckee is fishing that late-season low/clear water. Foot traffic has died down a bit after Labor Day and some of the recent cloud cover has been helpful for the bite. Look for fish holding in the deeper pools and don’t be afraid to throw flies outside of the typical Truckee box. These fish have seen a ton of flies this Summer. Flows are good. Cooler nights have helped the water temp stay low. We’ve been finding fish on streamers mostly because we’re tired of watching bobb… strike indicators. Slump Busters, Browntown, leach patterns - something meaty.
Little Truckee River:
Flows here have bumped up and light-tack nymph rigs have been the ticket. PMDs are pretty much done and we’re in between bugs right now. With EC running super low, look for traffic on the river with the better flows on the LT. Look for baetis bugs and some squirmies.
East Walker River:
Flows here are looking good and not a lot of foot traffic. With the cooler nights, it has helped water temps but this is still a morning activity. You’ll need to be off the water by 12:30 or 1 pm which means leaving the basin by 6 am to have time on the water.
Stillwater Options:
Stillwater lake fishing has been en fuego this past week. With Heenan opening, we’ve had a few fish catching parties out on the lake. Fish are deep - look for them around 18’ - 22’ deep using slip indicators. Have a dry fly rig ready as those occasional shallow cruisers on the shoreline are looking for easy targets. Sawmill Lake has also been solid with the same techniques as Heenan. Watermelon or black balanced leeches, prince nymphs, copper johns, chironomids are your ticket.
Hot Lakes:
Sawmill Lake - BOOK NOW! Private Lake with large rainbows and browns
Heenan Lake - IS OPEN!
High Elevation Lakes - Stop by the shop for more information
Blue Lakes - Lower is fishing great
Prosser Reservoir - Trout and Smallmouth
Lake Baron -Stocked!
Bridgeport Reservoir - Carp time. Drop a line by the dam.
Silver Lake - Stocked!
Caple’s Lake- Chance at a big Lake Trout
Tahoe - Not a numbers game but when we fish Tahoe we are looking for that fish of a lifetime
