Lower Yuba River Fly Fishing Report ~ Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show ~ Upcoming Presentations ~ 2/28/2020

Wow, what a busy couple of weeks it has been. I’m sorry for the delay in making this post but business has been out of control, and I’m still not even close to being caught up yet. It's been the best winter guiding season in 24 years and I'm so grateful, thanks for all the support. First off, let’s talk about our weather and the dry spell of the extremely warm temperatures we’ve been experiencing. 

It’s Spring in February. On the Yuba River there are lupine and poppies blooming, and the Pipevine swallowtail butterfly is out. All signs of Spring. We have a chance of precipitation through the weekend, then warming back up again, and the models suggest a pattern change starting the second week of March where a trough may set up off the California coast. That could change as well. You just never know with California weather in this era of late, gone are the days of my youth growing up in Paradise with massive amounts of rain and snow from October to May.

Last week, Cat Toy and I floated the river with Brian Clemens of Nor Cal Fly Guides on a guided trip and did really well. As always, if you want bigger numbers of fish, floating with a good knowledgeable guide will do just that as you are covering miles of the river. We got most of our fish on indo rigs with multiple rubber leg stones and Hogan’s Red Headed Step Child. Drag free drifts are everything when it comes to being successful on the Yuba River, wet or dry.

Cat is hoping to be guiding this late spring in Colorado and I had her shadow a trip with me. She definitely has some serious life skills that make her an excellent teacher and communicator. She’s even taught me how to be more effective when instructing my guests. 

She guided our guest Pat into a very big rainbow that was being selective with Skwalas, unfortunately a death grip resulted in a break off and we did not get a chance to net the fish. I’m thrilled and excited for Cat’s future, and I know she will make an excellent guide. Check out her blog: 

https://flyfishingwithcattoy.blogspot.com/

So the Skwalas are still going strong and because of the nice weather I’ve been seeing fish eating them off the surface as early as 11am. Today I finally saw a few March Brown mayflies coming off around 1pm. They are a size 14, and are hatching downstream of fast riffles. 

The mayfly hatches overall have been pretty slim in the past few weeks. I see more of them upstream of the bridge then down below. A bigger PMD in a size 14 is out, BWOs in a size 18, and still a few of the larger brown duns in a size 10. I did see some rusty PMD spinners on the float last week near the Aquarium section with a few fish eating the spent females post ovipositing. The fish have been pretty wise when it comes to artificial imitations, and some of them are uncatchable. Just a few important tips when it comes to fishing the Skwala dry:

-A downstream fly first presentation is super important using a reach cast, or a bump feed.

-Don’t beat the water, cast less, observe more, and make your casts count.
-Don't neglect the skinny water, trout have been hooked in 8 to 12" of water right off the bank.
-Change patterns often.
-Fish the faster rougher water where a trout cannot inspect your fly as closely as the slower flat calm water.
-Check your leader often for wind knots and abrasion.
-Test your knots after fighting a fish.
-Set the hook when the fish has taken your fly and is heading back down below the surface.

The rainbows right now are so chunky and fat from gorging themselves on the Skwala stones. These fish are so pristine, hard fighting, and absolutely beautiful! 

    The 2020 Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show was the most fun and successful show I’ve ever done. With “da Dean of Guides” Frank Pisciotta absent and attending his nephew’s wedding, I ran the Truckee Guide Network booth alongside of Cat Toy, Adam Eisenman, and Kara Zambricki. I really want to thank them all for doing an incredible job, well done! 

Adam was tying flies at the booth and I’m so impressed with his skills – mind blowing! My talks went extremely well with huge numbers of folks attending. The “North Fork Yuba River” and “Creekin the Lost Sierra” were very popular, and I did not expect that many anglers to be so interested. What a great show! Thanks to all of you who came by the booth to say hi and talk about future guide trips with us. I’m excited for the upcoming season!

Celebrity tyer and winner of the 2018 Buz Buszek tying award, Bud Heintz teaching Cat Toy the finer points of tying the PMD comparadun at the Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show 2020

I have some upcoming presentations for the month of March. This coming Tuesday I will be at Gold Country Fly Fishers with the Lost Sierra program. On the 17^th I will be in Placerville speaking to the ElDorado chapter of TU presenting “Creekin the Lost Sierra." The next night I will be at the Tracy Fly Fishers with a Lake Davis and Frenchman Lake program, and the next night at Peninsula Fly Fishers with the same program as well. Back to back, to back – Boom! Also I will be hosting fellow club members from the Tahoe Truckee Fly Fishers at the UC Davis property on the Lower Yuba River tomorrow. TTFF is one of the best clubs out there with quality people, no egos, and a positive influence for fly fishing and conservation.

Well, let’s hope for rain in the very near future, but you might as well enjoy the weather and get some quality fishing in. See you on the banks of the Lower Yuba River.

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