I'm going to be up in the Burney area at the end of March and want to fish the Pit river below Lake Britton. Once again I will rely on some of you experts who have fished the Pit for some advice on where to go. Best access, stuff like that. I'll be up there for 5 days so I'll have time to explore the river. Thanks. Tug.
The most popular place is the first stretch below the dam at Lake Britton. Drive across the dam and park on the far side. Then you walk back across the dam and there are stairs that lead you down to the water. That's going to be the most crowded area most likely. If you drive across the bridge and keep going on the road for a couple miles maybe, you come to a crest and there is a small hill on the left with a tall pole that has a big speaker mounted on top and a small parking area. If you park there and follow the trail down to the water there are lots of good spots. Access looks tricky since you really can't walk along the shore, it's tree and brush lined. There are openings where you can get in the water then just move up and down once in the river. It's a must to have studded boots and a wading staff. The wading is tricky but if you go slow, use the staff it's not too bad. I had really good action with rubber legged hares ears last time there.
You'll have a blast up there. Mostly high sticking so warm up that shoulder before you go. Baum Lake is also open so hit that too. I'm not sure what the flows will be. The average flows used to be 150 but they have bumped them up to around 350-400 at certain times of year. It's going to create more habitat for the next few years but it has made for some seriously challenging wading. Check with "The Fly shop" in Redding for a stream report and what bugs to use. There's not a flat spot in the bottom of that place.
I've heard that the wading is treacherous but there are some big fish there. I understand that you can fish the river all the way down to Shasta. I plan to fish Baum lake as well. I have a place in Cassel on Hat creek where I'm teaching my son to flyfish. I won't have any kids on this trip so I'll be able to explore the Pit. Thanks for the advice.
I may check it out this weekend depending on if it is fishable. I just spoke with Vaughn's and they said before the last storms it was fishing great with even some dry action. No one has given a report yet this week so they don't know if it is blown out.
I have to concur, the wading is tough. I fall everytime I fish this river, it's a given. Usuauly it's in the summer and I'm wet wading. I highly recommend spikes. One summer day last year I was fishing with my buddy on the Pit. I forgot my staff but I had spikes. My buddy had a staff and no spikes. He fell twice tying to follow me to out 1st hole while I didn't fall once(at least till later that morning).
I am a very agressive wader so I feel if your not falling your not trying hard enough.
During colder months I try to always wear a wading jacket because it usually saves my wader from filling up.
While they advise you not to I fished the pit alone many of times even #5(the most remote).
After the dam there is a rode that goes up the hill and then follows the pit. Depending on how adventures you are you can hike down some of the steep hills and get to some great spots that won't have to many fisherman. Be careful as many pointed out the river is hard to wade and tons of poison oak.
Nymphing is the way to go, prince nymphs can work great.
Hey Tug I was in Redding over the weekend and read this article and thought you might be interested. I would for sure check with Vaughn's before heading up there.
PG&E to ramp up Pit River flows this month By Thom Gabrukiewicz (Contact) Sunday, March 2, 2008
Courtesy of Diane Gaydos
COWABUNGA: Daniel Brasuell runs the right side of Pit Falls, a Class 5 rapid along the Pit River near the Highway 299 bridge. Increased flows begin Saturday on the river. Dubbed "freshet," Pacific Gas and Electric Co. will increase water flows on a 22.5-mile stretch of the Pit River this month that will help maintain a healthy ecosystem - while opening up some of the most spectacular whitewater paddling runs in the north state.
The increased flows will begin downstream from the Lake Britton dam, also known as the Pit 3 Dam, on Clark Creek Road north of Burney. The releases will mimic historic natural flows and will help scour the banks to create a healthy riparian, or streamside, habitat.
The whitewater, well that's just gravy on fries.
PG&E will make freshet flow releases into the Pit 3, Pit 4, and Pit 5 river reaches, which are sections of river between dams and powerhouses. The freshet flows are a condition of PG&E's new license for the Pit 3, 4, and 5 Hydroelectric Project that was issued in July 2007.
"That's always been the issue up there, that there's been very little flow information to see if it is runable, and it's a drive out there if it isn't," Dave Steindorf of Chico, the Northern California representative for American Whitewater. "We're also working with PG&E on getting that flow information up, not only for whitewater boaters, but fishermen, too."
The freshet flow release is scheduled to start in the three river reaches Saturday and will continue through March 27. The flow release event has been scheduled so that the peak flow magnitude, which is about 1,500 cubic feet per second, will happen on the weekend, to let whitewater paddlers get the most out of the increased water.
Steindorf said he hopes to get the information up on the American Whitewater Web site - www.americanwhitewater.org - before the time PG&E begins the freshet flows. In addition to photos, put-in/take-out and flow information, the site will have maps of the runs - including all the names to all the rapids within each reach.
"We worked with search and rescue to get that information up," Steindorf said. "That way, everyone will be speaking the same language."
Historically, before the hydroelectric dams, flows along the Pit would run around 2,000 cfs.
"And that's in August," Steindorf said.
Part of the licensing agreement will include recreational flows during the fall, too.
"That'll come about in about three years," Steindorf said.
Boaters said they are looking forward to this first spring recreation flow release.
"I can't wait to get out there on the Pit 3 reach," Steindorf said. "There's lot of Class 3 stuff, a lot of fun stuff."
The peak will be on the weekend of March 15 and 16. After the peak, river flows will decrease in five equal steps of magnitude and duration over the remaining days of the freshet period, ending at the current minimum flow for the reaches at 150 to 200 cfs.
"Pit 5 is my favorite," said Redding paddler Mark Twitchell. "At lower flows, it's just continuous steep Class 4 stuff. Lots of eddys to catch so nothing is all that terrifying."
For more information, visit www.awetstate.com/PitFalls.html or www.americanwhitewater.org.
Thanks for all the good info. This is exactly why I love this forum so much. There are so many people willing to share such good information which enables us to feed our addiction to this great sport. I would like to thank Bono for providing us with this website that is so helpful for so many of us.
Cole, I'm heading up to the Burney area on the afternoon of the 26th. I'll be up there until the the 31st. They are releasing water from the dam at about 10 times the normal flow and reducing it gradually until the 27th. I'm going to check it out but it might not be fishable. I'll fish Baum lake and maybe take a road trip over to the upper Sac.
