A good beginner's water

Kaju · Member

A good beginner's water

mx19 · Senior Member

Any water is good water..Just get out there and have some fun ...I taught my self how and I did it on putah...

drifter · Senior Member

i think a good place to learn how to fly fish is a place where there are a lot of fish.� Such a place allows you to learn water, to see where fish hold and where they dont.� If theres a lot of fish, and their feeding, it allows you to see if your presentation is right.� I think somewhere like deer creek is perfect for a begginer, although its small and youll get hung up in the trees, its a great place to learn how to fish with constant action.� If your cathing a lot of fish you also learn how to fight them on your fly rod (even if they are small).� Learning how to work the reel and the line and landing fish are almost as imoprtant as your presentation, especially when fishing barbless.� you can learn how to dry fly fish and nymph on somewhere like deer creek all in one, guranteed fish on both.�

Eric · Veteran Member

I generally recommend small water because I think generally they are easier to read. Pools and tailouts are more obvious, water depths are more obvious, underwater structures are more obvious, etc. If you understand where fish hold, small creeks are super easy. Many of the Sierra streams fit this description.

To me big rivers are much more difficult because layout can appear much more uniform and unless you have a local directing you, it can be difficult to know what is going on underwater.

I agree that Putah is at least to me not very representative in that generic flies are not the best place to start (I can show most local people my Putah box and without saying anything they'll comment, "Hey that's your Putah box, eh?") , underwater structures can play a big role, and one style of fishing generally dominates (nymphing with lots of weight).

Eric

shon42073 · Senior Member

I agree with all of you. Like Mx19 I too taught myself basically how to flyfish on putah. If I was going to take a beginner fishg it would be a smaller sierra water were attractor fly's are all that is needed. My first choices that come to mind are the clark fork of the stanislause or the north fork yuba, both excellent fast action fisheries, The fish may be smallish but its still a blast, And you learn alot about were the fish like to hang. But then again just get out there and wet a line !

Flying Dutchman · Senior Member

Beaver Creek--small stream, lots of room for casting, slow moving runs, and shallow pools.

-- Edited by Flying Dutchman at 00:05, 2008-06-22

windknots · Senior Member

Any creek that's a reasonable drive from where you live that has trout in it, preferrably wild trout with normal behavior/eating habits.� Just about any trickle in the Sierra has trout.

Just as important for a newbie you need to learn a couple other things, some basic knowledge of bugs (learn�what's on�the trout's menu�menu in the waters you fish), how to read the water (where to look for the "chow-line"), and some basic casting techniques for getting a good delivery.� Some local shops offer things like nymphing clinics, that will save you�a lot of time and you'll learn a lot very quickly.

It's a lot harder to try to figure out all of this stuff on your own, if you watch someone who knows what they're doing they make it look ridiculously easy.

Go when you can, where you can, as often as you can, and do your homework before you leave.

Try checking out this guys web site, he spent some time capturing aquatic insects and photographying them and video taping how they move in the water.� This was an eye opener for me, I caught a lot more fish when I started bouncing around mayfly nymphs (high-stick tight-line nymph fishing)�like the�bugs I saw in his videos.

http://www.troutnut.com/

If you can swing it, hooking up with a guide is a great way to get introduced to a water and to fly fishing in general.

Packrat · Senior Member

If you want to be guaranteed fish and lots of them I'd suggest making a weekend out of it and head to Yosemite. There are lots of small streams that can be reached with a short hike. All have lots of fish, they will be on the smaller side but are very willing to eat flies, especially dries!

Psyfisher · Veteran Member

I'm not sure I would bother with troutnut for a while. The information on that site can seem slightly overwhelming, and honestly an in depth knowledge of entemology, while helpful is not necessary to catch fish. Invest in a book that is designed for beginners and written by an American. The brits like Goddard are extremely good fishermen, but their advice isn't geared towards just getting out on the water and catching fish, plus they are used to extremely picky European wild browns so their techniques are often overkill. Any good beginners book will have a section that will explain what you need to know about insects, gear, casting, reading water, fly selection, and playing trout. The more information you can absorb the better. Get ahold of as many dvds as you can so you can watch things put into action. I learned to fish on the spring creeks of Minnesota and I never hired a guide or took a class, or had anyone to teach me. I have yet to be skunked for trout anywhere but Putah. I should knock on wood. Almost got skunked today, but managed to pull out three browns in the nick of time. Find a creek with as many stupid fish as possible. Browns are the smartest, then Rainbows, then Brookies and Cutthroats are the red headed step children. Planters are usually stupider than wild fish. Small fish are usually stupider than big fish. Trout that live in secluded places are stupider than more cosmopolitan trout.� Even small trout are really fun to catch and they'll teach you the skills you need for large trout.

-- Edited by Psyfisher at 01:17, 2008-06-25

shon42073 · Senior Member

psyfisher, You left out the almighty golden trout, our california state fish.

Kaju · Member

Thanks to everyone for their advice. I have a few books on fly fishing in N. Cal and I have got a lot of good ideas from them. So, armed with the book knowledge and the tips from those who answered this post, I'm going to go find the DUMBEST trout I can!!!

shon42073 · Senior Member

Do it Kaju. Just go man, Its the only way to make it happen. This is a passion were success is measured over a period of years, not days. Theres a huge chunk of granite called the sierra neveda mountains, and its rivers, streams, and lakes are calling you !

Eric · Veteran Member

Kaju,

One truth that you will discover is some days you will swear trout are the stupidest fish on the planet (brookies especially!) and some days you will swear trout are the smartest fish on the planet....

Eric

Bugger · Senior Member

I would add that the timing is just as important as the place...�not every water in Nor Cal is at its prime at the same time. Ask�the guys at the fly shop and read�message�boards like this one to learn�what's hot right now.�The Sierra are an excellent target for the next couple months... I just wich I had time to go more often.

shon42073 · Senior Member

Eric wrote:

Kaju,

One truth that you will discover is some days you will swear trout are the stupidest fish on the planet (brookies especially!) and some days you will swear trout are the smartest fish on the planet....

Eric

you never step into the same river twice. I think thats a john Geriach quote.

Flying Dutchman · Senior Member

Gierach might have used that line...but the credit usually goes to Heraclitus...

"You could not step twice into the same rivers; for other waters are ever flowing on to you."