"What?" "You didn't bring your fly rod!"

That was the response from a few friends when I told them I went to the North Yuba River and the Lakes Basin area without bringing any fishing gear.  I've been guiding and fishing so much that sometimes I need to get away spend some quality time with my sweetie the biologist.  I have so much fun with her identifying bugs, flowers, trees, and so much more.

By not fishing and seeing all this juicy water around me I get the "stoke" back, salivating like a rabid dog looking to kill.  The North Yuba is a real gem and if you have never fished it - Just do it!

I've visited many mountain ranges in North America but the Sierras are some of my favorites with their sharp sawtooth silhouettes.  The Sierra Buttes are breath taking and oh so beautiful!

As I get older I've come to appreciate the finer things in life, like wildflowers.  Each one is so unique requiring different habitats, soils, and the right amount of sunlight.  With all the water we had over last winter and spring there is still so many flowers to see.



If you have never been to the Mills Peak Lookout it's a must do!  The view is out of this world.  From the tower one can see Mt. Lassen, Graeagle, Mohawk Valley, the Sierra Valley, the Sierra Buttes, the Nevada border peaks, and Gold Lake just to name a few landmarks.  Located off the Gold Lake highway it is a 3 mile drive up a good gravel road to the summit, and while your in the area check out the "Red Fir nature trail" - A very impressive old growth stand of "Snow Trees".

"Yep, I didn't bring my rod, but I had so much fun just being out there in the thick of it!"