Otter, AfricanAngler and myself headed up to the Yuba yesterday. It was hot and humid all during the day. We were soaked through pretty quickly. We hit the egg bite pretty hard. Fishing was decent. I lost a couple of nice fish and one huge something that shot off like a cannon. It had me in my backing in about 10 seconds. Must have been a real steelhead. We did get into several smaller fish. Similar results for Alistair and Chris.
I was surprised to see fewer salmon in the system than two weeks ago. It looks like the spawn is petering out and may have been an early one this year. Flows were down, but the river was clear. We did rin into Arman from Oakland on the river. We were talking about fishing and Putah came up. He must read the board as he recognized our handles. As a sign that true fly fishing Diva status has been achieved, he asks us if we know Brian Clemens?????!!!! I should e-mail a signed autograph of the picture I have Brian with his Tahoe Tan. Brian, you are now truly a river legend!!!!!
Thank God for Chili's in Yuba City. Alistair and I had lost about 2 gallons of water apiece while working the river during the day. We quickly replenished with a couple of tall ones at Chili's and were revived for the ride home. I am looking forward to December 1st, when the upper river opens!!!
brian clemens who is that guy, i hear he is a man, i hear he is a myth, i hear he is a legend but have never seen him in action. lol.
anyways the yuba has been fishing pretty well, alastair is loving that river, and is now a true fly fisherman. he called me up the other day after fishing with me and george 3 times on the river, and said that he is now addicted and is even dreaming about fishing. now he knows what is feels like to be addicted to something so wonderful. but back to the action on the yuba, egg bit yes as well as nymphs. been gettin into some really nice fish over the past 3 weeks on the yuba. smallest of about 8"s and i think so far the biggest was about 21"s, many fattys in the 16-20" range, hooked a few that reminded me of putah fatty footballs, even a few hooked but never landed over the 20" mark. i landed my biggest yuba trout/steelhead yet of 21"s, and hooked on well into the mid 20s he jumped like no white man ever could and came undone. oh well glad i had my chance at him. ill be out there tomorrow slaying away. seems like every time i go out and fish the yuba that day is me best yet. starting out at a few fish ending up with 10 my last outing which was thursday.
well maybe ill see that brian clemens out there on the river. lol or maybe one of you guys as well.
post pics soon of some yuba trout
__________________
Fishing isnt about catching fish, its not about who caught the most, or who caught the biggest, its about the experience that you have on the water, and the life long bonds you make with others on the journey to becoming a better person inside.
The addiction... just like any addiction it sucks up money, you do it and want more, each time feels better than the last, and fly fishing is a gateway addiction to other ones such as fly tying, rod building, drift boat making, spey casting, sal****er fly fishing, and river entomology.
I'm looking forward to my first steelie; that should be the beginning of an entirely new addiction.
V
Edit: I'm cracking up - Bono's forum censored a word inside the word "sal****er"...
-- Edited by vince on Sunday 18th of October 2009 12:14:29 PM
-- Edited by vince on Sunday 18th of October 2009 02:04:52 PM
Vince technically you have caught a Yuba steelie. Any fish over 16" is considered a steelhead by DFG. Since the 22" fish was caught on a dry even better. The trout/steelhead do vary quite a bit. Some are very silver, some look like leopards and some look like Putah trout with only a few spots below the lateral line. One thing for sure is they all fight great. I have attached a few photos, since Brian asked to see photos. I have also attached a photo of a nuclear device set off near the UC property.
It was nice fishing with you Bob and Alistair.
I have decided Saturdays are not the best on the Yuba too many Drift Boats and pontooners.
I am sitting in Redding, since it is raining so hard that I can't make it to the Trinity. Looks like it may be some tough fishing tomorrow. Lightning, thunder and about an inch of rain every ten minutes.
Otter, my avatar is from the Yuba. Do you think it's a steelie or resident? To me it looks like a resident... Compared to the other steelies I have caught.
Little whip it is hard to tell from a photo. A fisheries biologist we talked to from Cramer Fish Sciences says the only way to know for sure if the trout has been out in the ocean is to kill the fish and examine the operculum (fish eardrum) or something like that.
The DFG biologist PCT talked with thinks that many of the fish in the Yuba go out to ocean come back in a few years then never leave. He thinks this is due to the amount of food in the Yuba. There are tons of aquatic worms, caddis, mayflies and stoneflies in the Yuba. Oh yeah and a few huevos. Hence resident trout/steelhead. Basically the only difference between a rainbow trout and a steelhead is that they have been out to the ocean, and the steelies are much bigger.
There are some definite steelhead in the system they can be distinguished by a clipped adipose fin. These dummies are from the feather river hatchery and missed a turn. These fish will snap your line as well. Just ask MX 19
I saw one jumping around on the Yuba yesterday. It was dime bright with a dark grey-blue back. Looked just like a steelie. Not much to report other than that. Pontoons, drift boats, and kayakers... oh my.
One tidbit I forgot . . . Alistair and I had worked about a mile upstream from where Chris was set up. As the day was nearing an end, neither of us were looking forward to the hump back downriver to our vehicle. Like a mirage out of the Sahara, Chris pulls up in his Durango along the area of river we were fishing and joins us.
Good times on the river, as well as a ride back to the car were happening!!!!!! We were ready to send for a camel if Chris didn't saunter along.
been fishing the yuba for a few weeks now, went from fishing the LT for big browns to the hunt for the chrome, so off to the yuba we went. the egg bit has been great as well as pupahs, and mayflys, with a special nymph that has done well for me and my buddy since june, and we have thrown one ever since. have pretty much covered most of the upper stretch of the river from sycamore to the 20 bridge and then some more just to make sure we didnt miss anything. i bet one day i walked atleast 6-7miles just to fish some areas that dont get hit all that often. the egg bit is definitely slowing down so if u want to hit it get out there now, before the salmon are gone, but once they are gone by that time the bridge will be open and the fishing hot and heavy. here are some pics including alastair with a beauty from past weeks.
__________________
Fishing isnt about catching fish, its not about who caught the most, or who caught the biggest, its about the experience that you have on the water, and the life long bonds you make with others on the journey to becoming a better person inside.
that sage is a really nice rod, very light for an 8wt, but to rich for my blood, only draw back to sage. wanted to try it out for a day though, its bigokies rod (george). i just cant get off my 10ft 6wt scott sts, the rod weights 3.4oz. i love it, i have high stick that thing almost all day. i remember someone breaking their tfo switch rod and i let him use my scott, and he loved it too.
__________________
Fishing isnt about catching fish, its not about who caught the most, or who caught the biggest, its about the experience that you have on the water, and the life long bonds you make with others on the journey to becoming a better person inside.
Scott makes a damn good rod. I love my 8ft 4wt Scott E2. And now I'm looking in to Scott 8wt spey rods. I was thinking an 8wt may be to heavy for a beginner steelhead spey rod, but if your single hander is an 8wt, maybe it's not...
Vince
-- Edited by vince on Wednesday 21st of October 2009 05:24:24 PM
that sage is a really nice rod, very light for an 8wt, but to rich for my blood, only draw back to sage. wanted to try it out for a day though, its bigokies rod (george). i just cant get off my 10ft 6wt scott sts, the rod weights 3.4oz. i love it, i have high stick that thing almost all day. i remember someone breaking their tfo switch rod and i let him use my scott, and he loved it too.
The Sage Z-Axis rods are top notch and super light. My buddy has an 8wt that he uses on Pyramid with a full sink line and you can throw that thing all day without your arm getting tired. My Sage SLT 5wt is really light too.
Scott makes a damn good rod. I love my 8ft 4wt Scott E2. And now I'm looking in to Scott 8wt spey rods. I was thinking an 8wt may be to heavy for a beginner steelhead spey rod, but if your single hander is an 8wt, maybe it's not...
Vince
-- Edited by vince on Wednesday 21st of October 2009 05:24:24 PM
Vince, An 8 weight Spey is overkill for Nor Cal waters. You can do well with a 7 weight rod for all of Nor Cal and Southern Oregon. Actually in our local waters (Yuba, Feather, American, Sac), you can do well with a 6 weight.
