Yuba Fest 2018 ~ Conservation Awareness

This coming October 13th, the Yuba Fest is a transformation of the Yuba Jubilee that focuses on purely a conservation theme instead of self promotion of guides and businesses. What the first intentional thought from myself, is now becoming a reality. The Yuba Fest is for individuals who recreate, fly fish,  and protect and enhance the Lower Yuba River. Yuba Fest is co-hosted by Fly Fishing Traditions  Gold Country Fly Fishers, Reel Anglers Fly Shop.

The festival will run from 9am to 4pm at the Sycamore Ranch County Park on the Lower Yuba River. Yuba Fest will showcase fly clubs, local guides, and conservation orgs that I'm involved with like Trout Unlimited, and the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL), and other non profit environmental groups, and state agencies that are connected to the Lower Yuba River.

The Lower Yuba River is a great place to recreate, fly fish, hike, and drift. We want to protect the Yuba watershed ecosystem for future generations. The most significant aspect of the Yuba Fest is educating all those involved for a healthier environment of the river.

Admission to Yuba Fest is free to all who would like to participate! We will have workshops to learn about fly fishing and to enhance your fly fishing skills. Our “Fly Fishing for Kids” element will include fly casting, fly tying, and lessons about the bugs that trout eat. Yuba Fest is for those individuals who recreate, fly fish, protect, and enhance the Lower Yuba River.

I will be providing an entomology class for both the kids and adults, and also technical rigging for “Tight Line” nymphing, and for dry flies. I will also be offering a Dry Fly Workshop on Sunday the 14^th from 10am to 2pm in conjunction with the Yuba Fest. A special price of $40 (all proceeds go to conservation measures through Gold Country Fly Fishers) per angler will get you an informative handout, rigging supplies, and complete instruction. Limited to 6 anglers on a first come, first serve basis. Contact me in person at the Yuba Fest on the 13th to sign up.

Fly Fishing Resources ~ Baiocchi's Troutfitters

This link will hook you up to all your needs when fly fishing in Northern California. From fly shops, fishing reports, fishing licenses, road conditions, stream flow data, Northern Sierra visitors information, and much more. Also included on the Baiocchi's Troutfitters fly fishing  resource page is specific areas including the Graeagle area, the North Fork Yuba River area, the Truckee area. and my home town of Nevada City near the Lower Yuba River. Great information for the fly fishing angler on the road!

http://www.baiocchistroutfitters.com/flyfishing-resources/

North Fork Yuba River Fly Fishing Report 8/22/2018

Conditions remain the same for the North Fork Yuba River with a few slight changes. There is a Trico spinner fall when air temps reach 65 to 70 degrees. The trout are rising to spent spinners in the film, Also, the little western Green Drake is out in very small numbers. Now that the kids are back in school there is very little fishing pressure on the river. Another consideration now that the days are getting shorter is starting out at around 9am. 

It’s weird, those rainbows actually prefer sun on the water, and your catch rates increase because of such. I’m finding more trout in idle calm frog water just slowly finning and looking for terrestrials. To catch these fish one must be extra stealthy. I tested the Sage Dart 0 weight rod last week and what a sweet little rod! You can read my review here; 

https://jonbaiocchiflyfishingnews.blogspot.com/2018/08/sage-dart-0-weight-rod-review.html

As we creep into fall, you’re going to want to focus on the middle and lower sections of the NFYR watershed. There are bigger October caddis hatches in these areas, and overall bigger fish in the system. In late October into November brown trout will be swimming upstream to spawn downstream of Downieville to sections of the river that follow the Cabin Creek trail. A good tactic is to spot fish in the tail outs of runs using binoculars high up on highway 49. When the sun is overhead, they can be easy to spot in the gin clear water. I hope I have some time to do this myself. See you on the water…

Lewis's Monkey Flower ~ mimulus lewisii

Sage Dart 0 Weight Rod Review

I’m a huge fan of lighter weight fly rods, small wild trout, and complete solitude while picking pockets in Sierra canyon water. A day off during the summer grind is an invitation to lose myself and explore more unknown sections of the North Fork Yuba River. But this trip was even more special because my small water weapon was the Sage Dart 0 weight. Thanks to Sage and RIO Rep Alex Ramirez of Outdoor Specialty Products, he offered me the opportunity to test and review this awesome little rod.

The Sage Dart series features a short-range fast action for chasing wary trout in still and clear water, close quarters, or obstacle-ridden streams. This innovative rod is specifically designed to drive precise loops under the branches of a conifer while still providing delicate presentations and delightful feedback to the angler. The KonneticHD materials combined with performance-friendly fast action gives fly anglers the ultimate competitive advantage against highly selective trout. The 0-4wt models at 7'6" provide the backbone of this family with ultra-light performance. These rods come in 3 piece sections allowing for a truer action without sacrificing a ferrule in the middle of the critical flex zone.

In the first 5 minutes of fishing it was apparent that this was not like any other small water rod I had ever casted. The overall flex pattern felt a little less than full action with a softer tip, yet a hearty butt section. The first noticeable difference was the pin point accuracy. I could deliver my #10 Stimulator with a dropper to technical pockets with ease, over and over again. Secondly the rod was perfectly balanced with the smallest Sage Click reel in a 0/01/02 size. While holding the rod in the center of the Snub-Nose half wells grip it was as level as can be. 

The rod was so much fun to cast and make presentations with, but the real pleasure was playing small fish. I could really feel the weight of the fish and the rod was bent over in a beautiful arc, yet the backbone was powerful enough to land each wild rainbow quickly and easily. I never knew fighting an 8 inch trout could be so exciting!

The Sage Dart 0 weight exceled even more with higher performance, matched to RIO’s new Creek line. This line has an aggressive head which loads the rod quickly at a shorter distance, but keeps a nice loop while casting at a greater distance. It was a breeze to be able to cast 40 feet with the little Dart. The Creek line will open doors for any lighter weight rods. I plan to buy this line for my vintage Walton Powell first generation graphite 8’ 4 weight and cannot wait to see the difference. For the 7’6” Dart I used a 7 foot leader to 5x which made a big difference with effective turnover rates.

The lightest, most precise casting small water rod I’ve ever fished, the Dart is destined to become a cherished tool in the small water trout angler’s quiver for years to come. I rate this rod at 5 stars.

Dart Features:        

-KonneticHD Technology

-Sapling Green blank color

-Bronze thread wraps with Gold trim wraps

-Fuji ceramic stripper guides 

-Ultra-Light hard chromed snake guides and tip-top

-Tan rod bag with brown logo and model tag

-Portobello colored powder coated aluminum rod tube with Sage medallion

http://www.sageflyfish.com/

https://www.rioproducts.com/

Alex Ramirez ~ Outdoor Specialty Products

North Fork Yuba River Fly Fishing Report - 8/16/2018

It’s been fun on the North Fork Yuba River, especially with guests who were visiting from upstate New York. They were pretty blown away at the beauty of the canyon, the watershed, ample amounts of small wild rainbows, and not seeing any other anglers – The complete opposite of our previous day fishing the Truckee area. The flows on the NFYR have dropped even more, it’s better to concentrate on areas that have sufficient holding water and passing up those super skinny areas.

Attractor dry flies with a sunken terrestrial dropper has been very productive, the fish have been crushing ants, beetles, and hoppers. Caddis flies are the most prolific aquatic insect out right now and a standard Elk Hair caddis in gray or olive is ruling. 

Seasons are ready to change, the tussock caterpillar is out so using a Buzz Hackle or Renegade in black and yellow would be a good choice. October caddis have currently sealed up their cases as they undergo the pupation cycle into an adult. If you haven’t been up to the NFYR yet, put it on the list as time is running out. See you in the canyon water…

Tussock Caterpillar ~ Lophocampa maculata

North Fork Yuba River & Eastern Plumas Stillwater Update

Water levels in the upper watershed of the North Fork Yuba are at their summer lows. The wild rainbows and occasional brown trout are now concentrated in the deeper pools, slots, and runs. Still plenty of caddis out, especially in the evenings. Terrestrials are receiving lots of love now and become an important diet for trout during the dog days of summer. Hoppers, ants, beetles, and inchworms. Sometimes these patterns are even better if they are drowned as a dropper off your main dry fly. Water temps are 58 in the morning rising to 65 in the afternoon. Fishing pressure has been extremely light. I still have a few open dates before summer runs out. The earlier you book, the better chance you have to come explore the canyon water.

I received some great news last week from the Department of Fish and Wildlife. They stocked Lake Davis with 12,000 pounds of catchable rainbows! This will bode well for late fall into spring of 2019. They also shared with me that they planted Frenchman Lake during the 3rd week of June of this year, and that makes sense as my guests were catching 10 to 12 inch rainbows from then until the end of June. If you want a stillwater trip, I would advise booking now - They go quick. I'm excited to get back on the boat once the weather cools down, and the water temperatures start to drop. See you on the water...