Skunked again by the Lower American

Again, I got my gear ready & made a 5 minute drive to the Lower American. And again I did get skunked. However this time I observed some positives on this trip. First, after tinkering with my leader a couple days ago, I was able to get my fly down to the rocks with my sinking line. I didn’t lose any flies, but I helped the environment, by pulling out some snags left my some baitfishermen. Secondly, I did see some fish jumping around me. If you read the gloom and doom of some of the local fishing message boards, you would get the impression that the apocalypse has started and that we have seen the last of the Lower American fishery. Actually, I am under the belief that there are resident trout in the Lower American. Many will say those fish are Steelheads. However these fish are like 8 to 12 inches long. The Californian Fish and Game state that a Steelhead is a trout that is longer than 16 inches and migrates from freshwater to saltwater. I guess we can argue about that all day, but I believe that many trout in the Lower American spend their entire lifespan in the river. Lastly, it was a perfect day on the river. It was quiet once I got there. Birds were everywhere. Again there were fish jumping. The only thing I didn’t see was any type of bug hatching. Again, this is a great sign, cause if I can make it when those bugs start to hatch, I am sure the fish will be willing to bite. Lastly, I didn’t take any picts. My camera is not regenerating properly. I hope this is not the end of my digital camera

Shutout on the Yuba again

The Lower Yuba River is a place I always dream about, but when I get there it is always a nightmare. True, my first outing of 2009 was no different; it was awesome for the people I met there. People like Bob, who used to own a Fly Shop in Yuba City. Or David, who provided me some secrets to area surrounding Hammond Grove Park. Also, I met another fly caster, who I rapped w/ on FishSniffer.com. Darrin has been fly-casting for about the same amount of time that I have.

Scene on the Lower Yuba this time was pretty awesome. The river was flowing, but not raging. The water was very clear. I did see some hatches and I did see some fish. I believe my problem for this shutout was two fold. First, I couldn’t seem to get my flies down deep enough in the current. At first I was using a sinking line, but my leader was too long. Secondly, I don’t think I was using the proper flies. I was trying to use nymphs, but I think the ones that I was using were too big. Also, I didn’t match the hatch. The gray mayflies that were over the place, I didn’t produce anything like them. I shall return the Lower Yuba however, a bit more confident & ready to finally snag one out of this awesome place. Also, I need to get a picture of this place for my blog. My camera was out of juice, so I couldn’t have a picture w/ this entry.