If I remember right, the flows will start to drop steadily from now on.  They use this time to do maintenance on the Putah South Canal.  It seems a little too early to me, especially since trout season doesn't close until November.  It leaves some big trout pretty vulnerable. 

Wrong person bud, Only log i keep is in my head . I do think as long as we dont have any hot weather that lasts more then a few days the flows will continue to drop. Hopefully they dont get down to like 45 like last winter, that didnt make for very good fishing for me. Yes, Browns are fall spawners, But we shouldn't fish for em when they are on redds, I beleive there may be  a few around access #4 and #5 soon. Last winter I recall someone reporting that they found some redds that were high and dry along the creek, We need to take pictures of this and submit them to DFG. There needs to be min. flows set for winter time.
-- Edited by thecaptain at 16:35, 2007-09-18

-- Edited by thecaptain at 16:37, 2007-09-18

Sorry Captain, I thought you were the man with the log. In any event, thanks for the info on the spawning fish. I don't really know how to identify redds so I will just stear clear of certain areas on the creek

WytErup,

If you put dead weight on a leader (e.g., hanging the fish from the leader) the tippet will pop. Also grabbing the leader an pulling it to you will often lead to a busted tippet. To reduce the the chances of your rig popping at the leader/tippet connection, use a triple surgeons knot for this particular connection. Oh ya, a net would help you land fish.  I personally don't carry a net because it snags constantly when bushwacking. 

-- Edited by SCM at 20:11, 2007-09-18

-- Edited by SCM at 00:22, 2007-09-19

Check this out:
http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/monthly/?referred_module=sw&site_no=11454000&por_11454000_2=2209915,00060,2,1930-06,2006-09&format=html_table&date_format=YYYY-MM-DD&rdb_compression=file&submitted_form=parameter_selection_list

This is the monthly flows by year.
It looks like the current flows are pretty close to normal.

Mike

-- Edited by Brundoggy at 07:24, 2007-09-21

Yes this is right on track for the flows this time of year,they will continue to very gradually drop as the weather cools and the demand from the farmers decreases.As far as the spawning browns are concerned ,yes they do spawn in the fall but I've personally seen a pretty drastic drop in the number of fish over the last few years.In fact last fall I saw zero browns in the areas where they normally spawn,I questioned the DFG about the browns on Putah and thier future.They responded by saying that they have no interest in the browns and the plantings of these fish has been discontinued because they are a non native species.My guess is the numbers of browns will steadily decline over time and this will be accelerated if people harass the few remaining spawners on their redds and if the flows leave the redds high and dry.Concerning the flows we are starting the wheels in motion to try to work with the water agencies to keep this from happening.If anybody see's a redd that is above the water line please take a picture and call me if you can.Happy fishing to all.  Bono

The redd is where the fish lay the eggs.  The female builds a redd usually in small gravel I think. No expert. I can identify them in the river though and its a really good thing to know so you dont wade all over them really you should stay away from them all together.  Look for areas that have clean depressions on the river bottom.

As far as redds go, tailouts and riffles are popular spots, because they usually have the gravel that the fish need to lay their eggs in.  Wherever you see shallow, flowing water with clean gravel, fish will probably spawn in it.  If you see fish hanging in these shallow areas, they are most likely spawning or getting ready to.  Please don't harass them.  Definitely don't walk through these areas.  I usually stay out of the water during spawning periods.  I tend to focus on the deeper pockets and holes when the fish are spawning.

To prevent more stress on the fish I use a net, unless the fish is just too big.  That hasn't happened on Putah yet, though.  If buying a net for Putah, make sure to buy one that will accomodate a BIG Putah Rainbow.

-- Edited by JT at 11:51, 2007-09-19

How long do you guys ussually have a net last ? I bought a nice teakwood brodin net about a year ago and its all tore up from bushwackin. Ok, if you do not know what a redd is you really need to go out and get yourself some reading material on trout. When the rainbows start spawning I like just going up and watching em, You will be amazed at how big of fish there are in putah and just how many of them there are, Last december I personally witness several trout in the high 20's (inches), possibly pushing 30. When ya watch em and pay attention you will find that not all fish are there to spawn, There are plenty of egg robbers out there as well, I don't see any problem fishing for these egg robbers. As far as handling fish goes, I try not to, just grip the fly with your foreceps and shake em loose, If you must handle the fish always wet your hands first, this prevents you from removing there protective slim. I dont catch very many putah trout that are net worthy, It just wastes time trying to untagle everything from the net. I figure as long as you get a hand on the leader the fish is considered landed. It's pretty amazing how strong todays modern tippet material is, I can pull pretty darn hard on 5x with no problems.

Oh, it bit on a #22 green WD40