Tahoe Truckee Fly Fisher's Cliff Frazier Memorial

Every Summer I look forward to Tahoe Truckee Fly Fisher's Cliff Frazier Memorial, a youth program that introduces kids to every element of fly fishing. Many members from the club volunteer their time at the actual event including professionals like myself, but what people do not see is the many hours of behind the scenes work that takes place. With no money to profit from, we simply do this for the kids with a hope they will become stewards of our rivers as they become adults.

During the two and a half day event the students learn casting, knots, equipment selection, entomology, rigging, fly tying, and the process of hooking, fighting, and landing fish. We also teach them about conservation, how to properly handle fish, and stream side etiquette. The Cliff Frazier event is one of the best kid's programs in the entire country.

On day two I lead the entomology workshop which starts with a simple PowerPoint program as an introduction to the world of aquatic insects. This year we had live specimens during the program which were projected digitally on the screen in real time. After this phase of the class was done we headed down to the river to take a thorough sampling from the Truckee River.

The kids really enjoy this segment of the program, and they get so excited while collecting bugs because simply, bugs are fun. The amount of aquatic insects collected and the diversity was astonishing. The new restoration work that was completed last year on the San Francisco Fly Casting Club's property included "W", "U", and "V" weirs which created not only better habitat for trout, but also for the bugs. The stonefly population has quadrupled since the weirs have been put in due to the fact that there is more aeration which stone flies thrive in.

Day 2 and 3 was all about the catching, and the kids were dedicated to doing such. All types of rigs worked, nymphing with indicators, streamers, dry flies, and dry/dropper rigs. A record 272 trout were brought to the net! - Many hundreds more hooked but never landed. It was incredible!

For many of the students this was their first time holding a big trout, their faces hurt at the end of the day from having perma-grins from ear to ear.

I'm already looking forward to the 2019 CFM event, if you would like to enroll your special little soon to be fly angler, please contact the Tahoe Truckee Fly Fishers HERE.

Special thanks to Mike Brugh, the many volunteers, TTFF club members, our sponsors, and lastly the San Francisco Fly Casting Club for the use of their facility - Which is world class! See you next year kids, I can't wait!

http://tahoetruckeeflyfishers.org/

North Fork Yuba River Fly Fishing Report /6/25/2018

It’s that time of year when I’m done with the stillwaters of Plumas National Forest and switching gears to guide on the North Fork Yuba River, and the Little Truckee River. My first two trips on the NFYR were beyond awesome due to the fact that my guests love small water and wild trout on light weight rods. The flows are a tad high in the upper watershed which actually bodes well for the upcoming summer months. Water temperatures in the morning are 55 degrees and reaching 59 by afternoon. 

Currently there is a bumper crop of caddis on the river ranging in sizes from 10 to 18. Body colors include brown, amber, gray, tan, and olive. Golden stones are out as are the yellow sallies, and a few salmon flies are in the mix as well. There are good populations of numerous species of beetles out, and never forget those ants. 

Notice how much larger the Salmon Fly (Pteronarcys) shuck is on the left then the Golden Stone (Perlidae) shuck. The golden stonefly is the most prolific stoner in the NFYR watershed.

This is your typical wild rainbow of the NFYR, brilliant colors with orange white tipped fins and clean distinct spotting and par marks. They a strong for their size, eager for a well presented dry fly, and acrobatic. 

This rainbow is a stocked variety, and most likely came downstream from Salmon creek and the Sardine Lake system. The stubby fins and tail is a dead giveaway of a trout raised in the confinements of a concrete rearing pen.

With the flows being a little high, the current can be a lot stronger than you think. Using a wading staff is very beneficial, especially if your balance is not up to par.

Dry dropper rigs to 5x is your best bet, and cover water – The more you cover, the more action you will receive. You can expect at least 50 to 80 strikes per 5 hour session with feisty small wild rainbows 4 to 10 inches. The springs are running strong and there are a few new ones I have never noticed before. Fishing pressure is light during the week, with a few more anglers on the weekend.

For a guided remote wilderness fly fishing experience contact me at 530.228.0487, or email me at baiocchistroutfitters@yahoo.com, keep in mind I'm the only legal and authorized guide from the USFS Camptonville Ranger District for the North Fork Yuba River. See you in the canyon water...

A California Sister butterfly, and Checkerspot butterflies eating some River Otter poo.

Lake Davis ~ Frenchman Lake ~ Creeks ~ Fly Fishing Report 6/17/2018

This morning I woke up at my usual time of 4:45 am next to Lake Davis, and cloudy skies hung low on the surrounding mountains. Just as predicted the rain started to fall minutes later. I proceeded to my daily routine, coffee, email and internet work, followed by my trek to Graeagle where I pick up my gourmet lunches from the Graeagle Mill Works. I streaked across the Sierra Valley with the boat in tow up to Frenchman Lake for a guide trip, and along the way thunder and lightning showed it's ugly face. Boating on open water with such conditions is a very unwise thing to do, and so the trip was cancelled. I'm quite bummed when such conditions occur, but it's out of my control, and Mother Nature always has the last word. Today I'm making the most of it by making a blog entry, paying bills, and returning trip inquiries. Life on the road has its limitations, and believe it or not I actually miss being in the office sometimes.

Lake Davis - I've done a few trips on the fertile waters and the lake is full to the brim at 98 % of capacity, and surface water temps are at 64-66 degrees. It will cool down a little and stabilize from the past few days of big wind and cooler air temperatures. Fishing pressure is moderate, and 10% of the habitat is holding 90% of the fish - Simply put those trout are scattered. There is a good blood midge hatch in the morning with trout feeding on ascending pupa, and adults. You'll also find in the early morning hours fish eating leftovers (dumpster divers) from the night before in scum lines over very deep water by the Seagull Island. The damsels are out, but I still feel it has yet to peak. There is a big population of back swimmers this year, and throat samples confirm the trout are eating them. I have not seen any hexes or concentrations of birds and bats feasting on them - which means the Hex food supply has not really turned on yet. There is two ways to increase your number of hook ups right now, finding pods of rising fish and working presentations by casting to rise forms, or by sight fishing to individual cruisers. The other method for increased numbers is covering lots of water. This can be done by trolling lanes in your personal water craft with an intermediate line, or drifting with the wind making multiple casts with either a floating, or a sinking line depending on the level of the fish. From dawn to about noon the trout are in the upper water column, after such you can find them 10 to 20 feet down off ledges and in creek channels. If you're camping at the lake, make sure to stop in to J&J Grizzly store for the latest info, flies, supplies, or for a juicy cheese burger. Jim and Jeanne sure do a lot for our visitors, and I appreciate their support of my guide service, and for letting me store my boat there.

Frenchman Lake - Compared to last June, Frenchman is not the same lake. Numbers are way down, which puzzles me until I think about just how many bait and gear anglers keep excessive amounts of fish. The lake was planted last week as my guests have been catching smaller fish around the 9" mark, not really what we are looking for though. Water temps are running 64 to 67, but as mentioned above they will cool down a bit with this current low pressure that produced huge winds up to 35 mph, and rain this morning.

There has been a decent callibaetis hatch and it comes off either in the morning to mid day. The trout are looking for them whether your throwing dry fly imitations, or stripping the nymph. Once the wind comes up you're screwed, so make the most of ideal conditions. The bobber rig has been just ok, hanging chironomids and callibaetis nymphs 3 to 6 feet down seems to be the most effective from morning to 1pm, deeper vertical presentations to 15 feet in the afternoon is a must. Don't forget to strip some bigger streamers and buggers as well - Not all the trout are playing small ball. We have a few more weeks at the little desert lake, once surface temps reach 70 degrees, those trout will move into deeper water during the hot months.

Master Fly Tier Bud Heintz hooked up to a callibaetis eater

Creeks - The creeks in Eastern Plumas County that feed the Middle Fork Feather River, and the creeks of the North Fork Yuba River just came into shape in the past few weeks. Water temps and levels are near perfect. You'll mostly find small wild rainbows, and in some creeks you'll find little butter browns.

There's nothing better for the soul than a remote creek that provides complete solitude, unbound beauty, songbirds, wildlife, and gorgeous trout. I really love this time of year exploring creeks, and the best thing is, it's all dry fly or dry/dropper presentations, add a 2-3 weight rod and it's a real hoot. Attractor dry flies and when it come to droppers, do not ignore sunken beetles, ants, and hoppers. Many of these creeks are spring fed and remain good all summer long. If you have an ego for big fish only, don't even bother with these jewels of the Northern Sierra.

For those that love creeks I'm offering the Graeagle Creek Tour on July 19th which encompasses the major creeks of Eastern Plumas Co. Jamison, Frazier, and Gray Eagle are really cool little fisheries. I'll cover access points, flies, rigging, techniques, tactics, handouts, and a creek side lunch. $150 per angler, 1 spot taken, and 5 spots open at this time. I have hundreds of hours on these creeks and nobody knows then better than me. To sign up just give me a call at 530.228.0487, or email me at baiocchistroutfitters@yahoo.com

It's prime time, so get out there, the outdoors is free!

Lilium lancifolium - Tiger Lily

Northern Sierra Observations; Mother Nature Is Late

Mid March through the end of May the weather was cold, gloomy, and with lots of precipitation. Because of such the Sierra is about 3 to 4 weeks behind schedule. Depending on the fishery, things were good to just fair. During the last week of May rainbows were still on their redds on the Little Truckee, Grizzly creek at Lake Davis, and Little Last Chance creek at Frenchman Lake. Also during that time frame most Canadian geese had yet to have their chicks. Aquatics on the stillwaters had yet to show any significant hatches as well. Warblers and songbirds showed up early in the upper elevation meadows, yet stalled their migration north.

Conditions have changed in the last week and a half with normal sunny weather and warmer temperatures. I'm embarking for the next 16 days of guiding on the road and anxious to see what the current conditions hold. Keep checking in and I'll update you with what I find. See you on the water...