Spring is Here
Hard to believe today is the first day of Spring. We’re having a little glitch in system with some rain and snow this morning, but after two weeks of warm weather we need it. It would be nice to get a couple more snow storms before summer, but the way its looking, that’s iffy. Good news is that the fishing will be good all Spring. We will have some usual run-off periods on the river. I’m feeling this year will be like last year. Last year, I didn’t miss a day on the river because of water conditions. I like it when it’s high and fast. The snow is melting slowly right now, mainly because it’s still below freezing at night. The river has been staying in good shape. If you come up have skwalas, blue wings, march browns and some caddis. Spring is a great time to streamer fish and use big attractor dries. Get out and have some fun this Spring on the Truckee River.
Truckee River Fishing Report 3/16/13
All is can say is the fishing has been outstanding this week with the warm weather on the Truckee River. This is how it goes: On the East side of the Truckee River through the Conservancy and such, we are talking blue wing olives of epic proportions. Through Reno, and on the West side, skwalas, some march browns, and blue wings. In California, we are still waiting on the big spring blue wings and march browns, but skwalas are out, and yes, there are fish looking up. Of course, you want to have drys and nymphs of the mentioned bugs. I use my own patterns, which you can get at Mountain Hardware in Truckee. They are designed specifically for the Truckee River and produce fish. I’ve spent my time fishing in both states and both states are good. Yes, the California side is now fishing, which is good because of less people. Folks there are just as big as fish on the Cali side as on the Nevada side, they are just harder to get. Yesterday, I rowed my friends down the river. This is Chris from Montana with a streamer eater.
Blue Wings
Man, the blue wing hatches have been gnarly the last few days down on the lower Truckee River in Nevada. Funny though, if its blue bird, fish will stay down, and cloudy they’ll be up on top. This week will be sunny and warm. I’m sure we’ll also see descent hatches of march browns and skwalas throughout the entire system. Bugs galore I guess. Feels like spring has sprung up here in the mountains, the cheeseburger birds are out, and winter just doesn’t feel like it has much left. Wind kept us off the river most of this week, but we’ve been catching fish the last few days on top and down below. Ed tore into this one yesterday.
Truckee River Fishing Report 2/15/13
Hard to believe it’s already the middle of February and we haven’t had a significant storm in over six weeks. I guess I shouldn’t get to worried. We had a dry spell like this in 2010 and then look what happened. Next week we will get a good cold storm, we need it. Despite the lack of storms the Truckee River is still up, above 400 cubes from the Hirsch all the way down into the desert. It has been like that for days. Fish are strong and healthy. Lots of blue wings out each and every day now, streamer fishing getting better. Most fish are still in slower softer stuff, especially in California and down through Reno. Skwalas should make an appearance shortly with this warm weather. Remember, overnight lows are still in the teens here in the Hirsch, and we are behind on hatches compared to the Nevada side. East of Reno, trout are spreading out and you can now find them all over. You can also find a lot other anglers out there too. If you see some dude fishing, have some respect for your fellow fly fisherman, go kick rocks somewhere else.
Early Spring?
Good mid-winter fishing is happening right now on the Truckee River. Feels like spring in the greater Truckee-Tahoe-Reno area. I would like to see some storms roll through. We need them. For now though, the window is open, and you should get out there. Flows, and weather are perfect for this time of year. Nympher’s-worms, eggs, stones, baetis, and midges. Dry flyer’s-midges, and baetis. Streamer’s-good and slow through the holes. Lets hope the storm doors open again.
Truckee River Fishing Report 1/23/13
Descent winter style fishing has returned to our area. The negative-negative temps look like a thing of the past, at least for now, and fishing on the Truckee River has been good. Good is relative, hooking a few fish can be good, sometimes you hook more, but winter timey fish are usually pretty big. If you missed the winter clinics, there’s always next year, but look out for my Spring Fling clinics sometime in April, or even May. I’m going to do a one time, High Water Clinic as well, when the river is good and pumping. I will tell you this, you do need to change your game plan up this time of year. A flask of whisky for starters, a good midge box, some worms, eggs, and some rubberleggs. I always bring a dry fly rod with me, and starting next month get a little more serious about the streamer fishing-swinging side of things. We’ll see big hatches of blue wings in the desert next month, fun stuff I tell ya, and before long, march browns, skwalas, and then it’s spring. I reckon the Cali side will start fishing soon with this average seasonal weather. 22 degress this morning in the Hirsch, balmy. Most of the Cali side has been untouched since the deep freeze and big storms of December, fish should be nice and stupid for a while. Look for the right water this time of year and you’ll probably get rewarded.
Back in the Saddle
Good to get back in the saddle again. Warmth has returned to the region, at least relative warmth, and the river is putting out some fish. We still have ice in the guides, but at least you can fish. Yesterday and today have been good. The class today was awesome. Hopefully it’s a sign for the rest of 2013 on the Truckee River. I’ll put out a more detailed fishing report here in the next few.
Thawing Out
We’re thawing out at least for now, but another cold snap is on the way. Highs for Truckee this weekend won’t make into the 20′s. What’s that mean for the Truckee River? Well, it means ice in the guides, anchor ice, and the river probably resembling a slush puppy. The Nevada side won’t fare much better with Reno barely hitting 30. We are having a winter this year, and the last couple weeks of December was about as cold as it gets. Fishing at times has been a futile attempt. I haven’t had the energy to do much fishing, or guiding. I’ve been at this to long to have my fly line freeze in mid-air, and pick ice out of the guides all day. It’s just not fun when it’s that cold. I got out the last few days, and because it had warmed up to the 40′s, I did catch fish, but it looks again like the river will shut down until it warms up again. At least we’ve made it through December, the coldest shortest month.
Truckee River Fishing Report 1/2/13
The word is cold. We just haven’t managed to get out of this cold snap. I really don’t think we’ve made it out of the 20′s for nearly two weeks here in the Hirsch. -10 here at my house this morning. Usually it would be warmer down on the Nevada side, but it’s been cold there too. Good news is that warming is suppose to happen this week. 45 in Truckee by this weekend. Access on the Cali side is still an issue in some spots -there is just no where to park because of all the snow. You might want to bring the snowshoes to get to the river in certain areas. On the Nevada side snow is not an issue. We have caught some fish lately, though it’s been cold, and ice in the guides all day isn’t that rad. I’ll be much more stoked to get out there this week when it warms up. Nymphing of course is the way to go. Hit them trouts on the head. There is no need to walk miles of river-pick a run, work it thoroughly. This month looks like we will warm up and dry out. The festivities are over, and it’s time to gear up for 2013. The fishing should be pretty darn good.
Old Man Winter
Winter has reared it’s ugly head. Thank God we haven’t been skunked. Some photos from the last few days on the Truckee River.
Truckee River Fishing Report 12/27/12
Man, we got a shit ton of snow this last week here in Truckee. 3-4 feet in the Hirsch. We sit at 5,550 feet on the East side of Truckee, so that is a lot of snow for us. On top they got over 6-7 feet. That’s really great news for next years water situation. If you come up and fish on the Cali side-good luck. Due to snow there is no place to park and get down to the river yet unless you go further down towards the state line, or in Nevada. Spots will get cleared out, but it should take a few more days. Flows on the Truckee River are in great shape, and fish are in their wintery fishy state. It is cold out. We haven’t made in out of the 30′s for well over a week. Force feed those flies to the fish. It’s ice in the guides all day long time. We’re suppose to have a dry January, go shred some pow right now and then line up some rods.
Truckee River Fishing Report 12/14/12
Winter is upon us. Snow is the forecast for the next few weeks and it is cold out. Hirschdale shouldn’t venture far out of the 30′s for daytime highs at least for the next month, or so. At night we will be well below zero at times. Whatever, fish still need to eat. If you need to wet a line, remember, start later in the day, fish the frog water, and become friends with your midge box, those little ass flies that you can’t see to tie on. Right now access on the river is not a problem on the Cali side, but that could change once we get a lot of snow. Basically, you’ll have no place to park until the plows catch up and make some access for fisherman. Hopefully, the road to the Little Truckee will become inaccessible until spring. In Nevada it’s much warmer and snow is usually not an issue. It’s a desert and that’s pretty much where I winter. Fish a run for a while until you hook up. Nymph up, swing some streamers on the two hander, fish a dry dropper rig. Have fun, you’ll pretty much have the whole place to yourself. Fishing has actually been pretty good this last week despite the drop in daytime temps. Flows on the Truckee River are perfect. A bow from yesterday.
Situation Averted
Situation averted. Flood stage never happened. The monsoons came and went. If we’d had more snow up top and it had rained like it did, things would be different. I know a lot of water pushed up through town, but for Hirschdale and below, 2000 cfs is nothing. That could be typical spring flow for us. Right now the Truckee River is dropping. There’s about 3 feet of vis here, 1100 cfs or so, and above average day time temps. We are getting rain again, not snow, so the river should rise, but the forecast is for a two week stretch of dry weather. The River will drop as fast as it came up. If you do go out and fish, at least in the next week,or anytime after a good soak, think spring type tactics. Don’t fish your normal winter set up. Big and gnarles are the way to go. Stones, worms, streamers, etc. Fish the Cali side until she clears a bit more down below. Give them something that they are going to notice and move to eat. Sometimes a one fly set up is best because you will get hung up a lot as the water is high in the banks. It was a trip watching the weather from Mexico, where I’ve been all week. Everything is intact, and if you can fish in higher than average flows you will stick some nice fish. I got some nice fish today.
We’re Going to Get a Little Wet
It’s going to get wet. We have some strong Pacific storms that are hitting Nor Cal starting today into the weekend. Snow levels will be high which means rain for anything under around 7500-8500 feet. With all this rain the Truckee River should be pumping by this weekend and probably every other river in Nor Cal. Good news is that the Truckee clears fairly quickly, at least on the Cali side, but it could take a week or more to come down to fishable flows. Look at the gauges. Right now it’s at 385 cfs in Hirschdale, and 430 cfs at Mogul in Nevada. I’m betting it will get up to at least 2000-3000 K, depending on how much rain we get. Hopefully the rain falls as snow, but the storms look warm. A good weather blog to check is Tahoe Weather Discussion. Been good on the river the last few days, balmy is the word. No matter what time of year the fishing is always good after a strong push of water comes through then clears. Some pics on the Truckee River the last few days.
Truckee River Fishing Report 11/21/12
Not a bad week to get out and do some fishing. Cloud cover and warmer than normal storms have kept temps above average for this time of year. Flows are up a bit from this last weekend storms on the Truckee River through California and Nevada, and clarity is not an issue. All the usual winter suspects should catch fish. Worms, eggs, stones, baetis, and midges. Now is also a fun time to get out and swing some streamers on the switch rod though the deep runs, steelhead style. Looks like we’re in for on and off again weather pattern, with most of these storms being on the warm side. Keep in an eye on the flows if you do get an itch to fish over the holiday weekend. If you’re new to the area and don’t feel like skiing and have no clue where to go, head into Mountain Hardware and Sports in Truckee. See the boys, talk shop, get a map and some flies. I’ll be taking the week off from fishing, a first since last year. Have a great Thanksgiving.
The Storm Door is Open
We are beginning to see the Jet Stream move south over California and a first of Pacific storms are rolling in. On an average winter, Tahoe-Truckee gets a lot of snow. On average more snow than anywhere in the lower 48, except Mt. Baker Wa. We also get a lot of rain being so close to the Pacific. If you’re a fly angler on the Truckee River, snow good, rain bad, rain on top of snow, worse. If you come up and fish the Truckee this winter use the USGS stream flow charts. The Truckee blows out often. Last year was the exception. It clears quicker in Cali then in Nevada, and sometimes East of Reno the river will stay muddy for weeks on end. Basically, you’ll have windows to fish in. Some weeks will be good, others will be bad. We’ll see how the river holds up after these storms roll in. This week was good, it got warm and flows were stable. If you haven’t done any winter fishing, look for a winter clinic in January this next year. I’ll set you up with some winter skills to catch trouts. Eric from yesteday.
Fall to Winter
It got dam cold here the last few days. The other day, zero for a morning low here in the Hirsch, 25 for a high. I’ve been down lower on the river and I can tell you it was cold down there too. The cold snap forced water temps to plummet, and honestly the last two days were tough. We stuck a few, but not many. The forecast is for warmer weather this week and fish should get settled into the colder water temps. Time to change the game plan, fish the frog water, tie on the small stuff, and crack the hand-warmers open.
Truckee River Fishing Report 11/4/12
In Cali on the Truckee River it is cold in the mornings. Mid-twenties with a thick fog bank. The fog usually burns off around lunch time. Water temps are getting cold, 49.5 here in the Hirsch at noon. Whats that mean? Means fish are not sucked down in fast oxygenated water like they were in summer. They’re back in the softer stuff, in runs and pools. Change your tactics a bit. No need to get out on the water early. Nymphing wise, stones, baetis, midges, worms, and eggs. Streamers can still be good, and look for hatches of b-dubs mid-day. Flows are still up a bit through Hirschdale for so late in the year which is fine by me. In Nevada on the T it feels like fall has just begun. Trouts are very active. East, and West of town have been producing. Flows are good through Nevada as well. 450 cfs through Mogul. For this time of year that is pretty awesome. Be cautious and look for browns up on their beds spawning if you’re anywhere West of Reno. Give them space and let them do their thing. My guests and I have had an awesome week on the river.
Truckee River Fishing Report 10/29/12
I’ve been on a hiatus, more like a trout fest. I’ve been in the great state of Montana this last week in the troutopia known as the Bighorn River. I had a blast with some good friends in some awesome country. Things here on the Truckee River are about the same as when I left. Nymphing wise, baetis, midges, worms, eggs, stones, and some oct. caddis. Flows are still good, down a bit in the Hirsch and up a bit through Nevada. It is 70 degrees out today in Hirschdale. There is a sparse blue wing hatch, but overcast weather will kick them off. Streamers, though it’s sunny, can produce all day this time of year, but cloud cover is better for that game too. It’s good to be back home and back on the river. It will be a busy month for me. Got this guy today on a test run, bigger than any fish I got all last week in Montana, figures.
Truckee River Fishing Report 10/19/12
Fall is here in Hirschdale California on the Truckee River. Cold overnight temps, morning fog, cottonwoods dropping their leaves. Daytime temps have been mild though and by next week they are calling for rain and snow. Brown trout are on their annual fall pilgrimage and are very active through the Cali side, and West of Reno on the Nevada side. East of Reno through the desert and the conservancy that should be happening in November. Fish are spreading out now, some are still sucked down in fast water mid-day, but that will change soon and fish will get in much softer winter time type water. In California fish are eating blue wings, mid size stones, mahogany duns some evenings, and on occasion October Caddis. It seems to be best from about 10-2:00. Sunny days have not helped the streamer fishing much, but that will shortly change too. You should be fishing nymphs to emergers accordianly depending on the time of day and bugs you see hatching. In Nevada things are a bit different. There are still some pmds in and around Reno, blue wings, small crays, and stones. I’ve been mostly down East in the desert and hatches have of anything have been sparse. The good news is the rainbows down there are still just as big and gnarly as last year. Flows wise they are still up and perfect form the Hirsch on down, a bit skinny up on top. Perfect for the dry dropper crowd up along the ‘Shire. I’ll be in Montana all next week then back home for a busy November. November is always a great month on this river, if you booked a trip you’ll be stoked.
Fall Colors
Gotta love fall. Brown trouts, streamers, beer, baseball playoffs. It’s full on fall mode here in Hirschdale. The river is fishing about is good as it gets. Cold in the mornings, nice during the day. Look for a detailed fishing report tomorrow. Some photos from in and around the Hirsch.
Truckee River Fishing Report 10/11/12
We went from summer to fall in what felt like two days. Ah, the crispness of fall. Thought I was going to die last week in the sun, today, had the pataguchi on-all day. The Truckee River in both states is producing fish. Nymphs, streamers, and sometimes drys are getting ‘er done. October caddis, and baetis are the main bugs. Streamers, well, they can be good this time of year. This is the time browns make the big push to spawn. Stay committed. The Truckee is not the best streamer producing river. I like my streamers with lots of bunny and a bit of flash on a sink tip. Put your nymph rigs all over. They’re not just in the fast summer stuff anymore. Some nice stormy weather will put fish on top mid-day. Have your favorite blue wing patterns ready. It has been, and will be cold in the mornings anywhere on the Cali side of the river now. Here in Hirschdale we usually have fog to the sun burns it off around mid-morning, be prepared. This is Blake with a fatty.
Truckee River Fishing Report 10/3/12
The heat wave continues, but fall weather is in the forecast. That should mean blue wings, october caddis, and streamer fishing. It would be nice to get some rain and move some fish around, but the cool weather will help. It just seems that we haven’t had any fall weather yet. The water is a little skinny up along Glenshire, but still pretty perfect down here in Hirschdale and below. East of Reno the water is around 350 cubes, perfect too. Fish are still in summertime type water, but that will change quickly with some cool weather. Look for them to move back into the soft stuff shortly. There’s no excuses, now is the time to get up to the Truckee River and get into some fall action.
Truckee River Fishing Report 9/27/12
Full on Indian Summer has kicked in. Nights are cool again, but warm sunny days have kept the nymph rigs busy. The dry fly, and streamer fishing just hasn’t been that good for us this week. Down and dirty and you will get some head shakes. Baetis, October Caddis, stones, and worms will all get you fish on the nymph rig. In fact, you can have some good number days all day long on under the indo rig this time of year. I’ve been fishing in both states, and they have both been consistently good. I would like a few cold fronts with some rain to come through and shake things up a bit, but for now, I’ll bask in the sun while we have it. Husbands, don’t be bummed if your wife out-fishes you.