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RETURN to Putah Creek Trout -> Putah Creek Fly Fishing Forum -> Other Rivers, Streams and Lakes -> SAC'in UP
Post Info TOPIC: SAC'in UP
dtp916


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SAC'in UP
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Been visiting a lot of new waters now that I moved to Chico. Living in Roseville I was attached to the Truckee and Little Truckee to the point it was where I fished regularly. Good times it was.

But the Northern part of CA has some truly incredible trout fishing opportunities, namely the SAC. Upper and Lower. So far I'm dubbing these the hardest fighting rainbows in the state. Pound for pound (or inch for inch biggrin ) these guys get down.

The Upper Sac is really a gem. Absolutely beautiful. I can't wait for it to warm up and come down to better levels. From Early January (with snow on the ground).

My buddy got lucky with this pretty fish:



This guy made it 20 yards into my backing and made my sharkskin line buzz, til the end of it at least....



The Lower Sac is just nuts. Its so big, and I like the smaller streams, but hey, free ride in a drift boat, why not? This was President's Day, 35 degrees high and snowing like mad in Redding. Portable heaters in a boat are sweet!



And this was on Sunday, but man, it was slow. This guy got under a rock and somehow I managed to get him out. Then he decided to make a blistering run and I had to get back in the boat and chase it. 80 yards into my backing, at least, and my buddy thought for sure I was going to break it off. I thought I snagged a salmon. Very strong fish.



Anyone that has a chance to fish these great Northern CA waters I highly recommend it!

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brian clemens


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nice fish and post, some day i will make it up to those waters.

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JT


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That little guy took you 80 yards into your backing with a 6wt?  That must have been some fish or you've gone soft on us.  Nice report.  I especially liked the pictures.

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shon42073


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Nice dog. The fish are cool too.

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ChucktheDuck


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Hey DTP nice report and great pics!! So I'm confused... the first two fish are from the upper sac and the second two are from the lower sac right? Those are some sweet looking fish man every time I see pics from either of those stretches it makes me want to get out there!! By the way I love the dog trippin out in the last pic! Dogs are hilarious when you have a fish on... from my experience anyways.
chuck

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SK60


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Ounce for ounce those lower Sac rainbows are the most powerful fish in the state-they are supercharged and many of them are shaped like a football- small head, wide and deep bodied-all due to that high protein caviar they eat day in day out.

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Packrat


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SK60 wrote:

Ounce for ounce those lower Sac rainbows are the most powerful fish in the state-they are supercharged and many of them are shaped like a football- small head, wide and deep bodied-all due to that high protein caviar they eat day in day out.





You got that exactly right! I haven't hooked a harder fighting fish than those in the Lower Sac. There are some real pigs in there too. It's best fished from a drift boat as most of the year flows are too high for wading, it's a very big river. There are limited access areas for wading but there are a few good spots if you do your research. Fall/Winter is when it's best for wading. Normal summertime flows can be as high as 16,000 cfs and higher. Winter flows come down to 4000 cfs and less. Fall is also when there is a big run of chinook salmon and the trout gorge on eggs. Think October....lots of fish!

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Swinger


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The upper and lower sac is my favorite california river. If I had to choose one river to fish the rest of my life that would be it. My goal is to fish every mile of the upper, I've covered about 1/3 of the 40 or so miles. And I 've drifted the lower from Redding to Red Bluff(not in one day). I totally agree with you, the lower sac has the meanest hardest fighting rainbows in the state(IMO) and steelies too. One day in the fall I anchored behind a bridge column and caught 6 monsters 17" to 23" all on a tan caddis pupah in about a half hour. I've fished that same spot about 10 time since then and haven't hooked a fish.

Those are some nice fish. That first one was really dark. They were all healthy, strong looking fish.

On the lower sac, I think the spring and fall months are the best. Just wait for the summer on the upper sac. I'm jealous.

caught this hog in the fall

-- Edited by Swinger at 20:13, 2008-02-14

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When you drift the lower, do you prefer the Redding area or the Red bluff floats?

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Guppy


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i will be there tommorow

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1MoreCast


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Which part?

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Swinger


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I like it all. Sometimes posse to bonnyview can get crowded but the river so big there's plenty of room. The closer you go to redding the cleaner the water when there is run off from heavy rain.

Hey DTP916 how did you like drifting under the cypress bridge, did you have any close calls?

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Lahontan


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Please forgive me, but that's FISH PORN right there!

That is one handsome dog, and if the last fish were a girl,
I'd be sending flowers and chocolate!

Great post!


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SK60


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These fish are spring spawners, so watch your feet if you are wading April-May; after that you probably won't be able to wade. California Flyfisher has had several articles on the LS, with info on best wading areas. FlySHop and others have guided drifts, but they are pretty pricey.

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dtp916


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JT wrote:

That little guy took you 80 yards into your backing with a 6wt? That must have been some fish or you've gone soft on us. Nice report. I especially liked the pictures.




LOL. He tore me up, dude. I was tripping.


SWINGER: My buddy was rowing and he's awesome, it was a walk in the park under Cypress Bridge. I on the other hand, suck at rowing and we defintely would have capsized! And that is a hell of a fish!

1MORECAST: All the guides and hardcore Lower Sac anglers hit the lower part from Anderson past Red Bluff. Make sure you check before you go, as the water can be nice in Redding and then chocolate down in Red Bluff.

PACKRAT: October/November is prime time hands down.

 


 

Thanks for the comments guys! smile



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cole


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Nice pics DTP.  You're in a much better place for fishing than you were in Roseville.  Now you have rivers to the north, south, east and west.  You have merely scratched the surface with those two bodies of water.  You could probably be happy fishing them for the rest of your life though, they are tremendous fisheries.  Do some exploring around Burney and that's all I'm saying.biggrin

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Swinger, sorry it took so long but this was hooked on one of your BH rubberleg black, on superbowl sunday.


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