Hi all: I’m about to leave for the Twin Falls area of southern Idaho. Does any one have experience on the Malad River, Billingsley Creek, or the Shoshone Falls area of the Snake??? How about other Magic Valley spots slightly less intimidating than Silver Creek and close to Twin. Ponds are cool along with the rivers! Thanks for the input ahead of time, Bryan.
Because of the high flows on the river and the bad weather we have cancelled the clinic on February 19th at Hammon Grove.
Frank and Clay
I’m getting ready to help out with a Gold Country Fly Fishers’ club techniques clinic on the Lower Yuba River on Saturday, February 19th, There’s been some cancellations so we have some spots available if anyone wants to attend. You can sign up by sending me an email at hashcon@comcast.net
Being it’s February, we’ll be focusing mainly on nymphing techniques and with nymphing it all starts with an indicator a big plunk of lead and mending.
With that said, the techniques you employ depend on the water type, depth and speed of the current. So let’s attempt to break it down a little bit. Let’s start by looking at one of the different water types you will encounter when walking and wading the Lower Yuba River and start with riffles.
Riffles
You will find riffles, which are the bug factories of the river, spaced at intervals as you move up and down the river. The riffles are almost always directly below tailouts from the runs above them. The water in the riffles are usually the places where the current speed is the greatest. In general the midst of the riffles are not the most productive or desirable places for fish to hold or to present your flies. The edges and pockets are the exception to this, especially when steelhead are moving through or the resident rainbows are staged in the holding spots when caddis, mayfly, or stonefly hatches are happening or the bugs of are participating in their daily downstream seasonal drift.
So let’s look at the three main components of the riffles that are of importance to the fly fisher. (1) The edges and pockets at the main body of the riffle. (2) the drop off at the base of the riffle, and (3) What I consider the most important section of the riffle where the riffle transitions from the riffle to the run below.
This is the introduction to the article and you can see the whole article at www.flyfishingtraditions.blogspot.com
Clay
There has been quite a bit of noise out there about the Skwala Hatch on the Lower Yuba River with comments like “The Skwalas are going off!” I thought I’d post some of my reflections. For the records, I haven’t been out this past week, so my observations and comments are from what I’ve experienced through February 5th.
(1) The recent word on the street. The Skwala Hatch is going off.
My Opinion: I have been on the river quite a few days in the last 4 weeks, prior to February 5th, at least twice a week. I have searched the rocks and bushes each time I get out and there are very few Skwala cases. When the hatch is full bore there are cases everywhere. In a full day of drifting the river we may see 5 or 6 skwalas in the drift, in the water. This does not constitute a hatch.
Last year when the hatch was going off you could sit it one spot and watch the parade of Skwalas in the drift, one every 2 or 3 feet. They would end up in the eddy pools or soft water below and to the side of a riffle and the fish would be podded up and eating them.
So in my opinion, Skwala event is not happening yet.
(2) Is there a difference with the Skwala Hatch above or below the Parks Bar Bridge.
My Opinion: Maybe. In waters in Montana the stonefly hatch moves upstream as it progresses. This may also occur on the Lower Yuba River. Ralph Cutter has chimed in on this and beleives this fact to be true. Most of my observations have been above the Parks Bar Bridge.
I have friends that guide the river and they have been having big days throwing Skwala Dries below the Parks Bar Bridge. Does this mean the hatch is on there? I still don’t think so. When asking them if they’ve seem many Skwalas in the drift they have replied, no.
(3) Why are the fish hitting Skwala dries?
My Opinion: I believe the Yuba fish are being opportunistic. I believe the high flows in December rolled the river and the bug population has taken a hit. When drifting the river I have seen very few bugs on the water. Few Skwalas, few PMD’s, few BWO’s and no March Browns. Again this is above the Parks Bar Bridge. I have heard reports of seeing March Brown’s on the lower river. How many? No one has said.
When doing screen samples and rolling rocks, there have been very few bugs stirred up. When picking rocks up and looking underneath, the rocks look like they have been sandblasted (rolled) and there are very few bugs. This may be different down stream further where the current spreads out and is less channelized.
I believe the fish are actively hunting for food. The fish have continued to eat Troutbeads, Rubber-leg stones, and attractor patterns under indicator. They have eaten streamers swung in the runs (salmon smolts). They’re hungry. They’ll eat something big and attractive floating over their heads.
These are my observations, anyway.
The Big Kahuna http://www.flyfishingtraditions.com
I was fortunate enough to have someone take me to drift the Lower Yuba above Parks Bar Bridge. It was my first time ever drifting the Yuba, and the people I went with were experienced fly fishers. I know this because they knew exactly what to do and they had a lot of patience teaching me how to cast in a drift boat. I was slow to set a couple of takes, but was able to catch a very nice rainbow on a troutbead. There where Pale Morning Duns out about 3 in the afternoon and saw an adult Skwala and Skwala nymph. Hope tomorrow will be just as fun on the UC fishout.
Yesterday was a tough day on the river the fog and colder weather has seemed to effect the fish bite. Late yesterday I compared notes with seven fishermen on the river and it was the same story.The best fishing has been in the afternoon when the the air and water temps started to rise. The few hatch’s we are having now are starting then, the BWO,s 16 and PMD’s 16 and a few skawalas are what we are seeing but will few fish working on them. The only execption seems to be fishing skwalas drys in the areas below the 20 bridge the fish are taking a well presented fly even thought there are no naturals on the water. Nymphing with rubber legs, eggs and attractor mayfly nymphs is still your best bet.
Tight lines
Frank
Wednesday morning Clay Hash, Mike Williams amd I headed down to fish the Lower Yuba, the morning air was cool and there was an over cast and no sun. This type of morning can be slow on the lower river and it was. We hit the shore line and the three of us decided to go off in different directions and meet back in about a hour and a half. Well it was the river being the Yuba that morning, and when we gathered back to tell our tales Clay hooked and land landed the only fish. We regrouped changed out even more fly patterns and headed down river, a very short time later the sun gods were with us, we had some blue sky and the fish went on the bite. We ended up with a very good fish count and had a lot of fun and story telling. For me thats about as good as it can get on the river. Our fish took brown rubber leg stone, eggs
and small mayfly nymphs. In the afternoon I went down a size or two on all my bugs and eggs and that worked very well. For me it was a rare day I was running three flys and land fish on everone of them, lucky guess’s. I got a report from some other club members fishing the Sycamore /Hammond Grove area who were getting fish on Skwala drys. Fish those skwalas down the willowed edges. Try to get out before the flow change this coming Monday, if not give the fish a day or two settle in again after the flow reduction.
Tight Lines
Frank
I recieved word today from YCWA that the Lower Yuba River flows will be dropping starting Jan. 31st. The first reduction on Jan. 31st will start about 8:00am and the river will drop 400cfs. The following Monday Feb 7th about 8:00am the river drop another 400 cfs This information is being given to us so we can plan a good and safe time to fish. My guess is that this reduction may only take the fish off the bite for a day or so. The lower flows could have a positive effect on the hatches water temps should go up a little. Water flows are always subject to change alway check the web for current flows before heading out.
Frank
Because of poor fishing on the Feather river we have moved the Feather river Steelhead trips to February or March. We do not like to change event dates but because the fish are not in the system we felt it would be best to roll the trip over to a time when they are in and on the bite. We will keep you informed at the meeting, by email, or on this new site as to when we have set a new date.
Regards
Your Fish Masters
The lower Yuba has started fish well and the bugs are now beginning to show. This past mid week some of our members were out every day and catching seemed to get better as the week went on. The skwalas are out in small numbers with a few fish rising to them, PMD’s and BWO’s are making up the rest of the hatch’s. Your best bet is still nymphing with rubber leg stones, eggs, and prince nymphs. The flows are scheduled to stay around 3,000 cfs, this will change with our next storm event. Remember when checking the Yuba flows on line to always check DCS Deer creek Smartsville and add that number to the Yuba flow, in a storm Deer creek can run up to 5,000 cfs over night.
Frank
