A little cooler temperatures after a quick moving cold front push through last night, Nevada City received about a half inch of precipitation. Sunny skies again today and extremely pleasant weather. The Lower Yuba River is flowing at 1,050 cubes and the clarity remains clear. With the lower flows a walk and wade angler can now cross easily in many sections of the river, but be careful where you step and avoid walking through salmon redds. Fishing pressure has increased especially above the bridge, I counted 7 vehicles there today and that’s quite a few for a Wednesday. Fishing conditions remain the same and I would rate it as good.
There are some bigger fish being reported from reliable
sources. A 22 inch rainbow was caught at the Yuba Drifter’s private water, Yuba guide Jordan Romney hooked into an 18 incher, and today I C&R a 17”
rainbow. What a fish! It’s been a while since I’ve hooked into a larger Yuba
River rainbow, and I had my hands full while fighting it in fast water near
some treacherous snag piles. The take was a thing of beauty. I was making
upstream presentations using a BWO sparkle dun in a riffle when a large back appeared with a slow arcing
motion, I set the hook late and it was game on. It’s great to see some larger
fish in the mix.
Nymphing
in the morning is getting it done using Jimmy Leg stones, eggs, red squirmies,
and X Mays and S&M’s in olive size 18. Hatches of BWO’s, Pseudos, Pinkies,
and a few PMD’s start around noon time and go until about 3 pm. Some days the
hatch is stronger than others, but it has been consistent. Above the bridge I have seen a few Brown Dun
mayflies (Ameletus) flying overhead
and they are huge. I’ve yet to see any on the water though. A good tip when
targeting rising fish in rhythm, is to make a few presentations and if they are
not willing to play the game, rest them and try a different pattern. Another key to success is to set the hook a little later, I’ve seen many of my guests in the
last few weeks get a grab, only to pull the fly out of the fish’s mouth too
early.
Swinging Alevins, minnows, and soft hackles are getting some
decent results as well. It’s been fun on the Lower Yuba River, and the dry fly
action during the past month is a great reminder why I moved down to Nevada
City in the first place – Winter fly fishing for trout at its finest. Give me a
call and let’s set up a trip, I can shorten the learning curve with a regular
guide trip, or a custom tour complete with handouts.
530.228.0487 ~ Baiocchistroutfitters.com
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all. See
you out there…
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