Here's a good tip. Wet your line. Fish every run you see and maybe you'll catch a couple. Make sure you go small.

Find the food and you will probably find the fish. When reading the water try to think where the "chow line" is, that's where you should concentrate your effort. Learn as much as you can about bugs, especially how the different types of bugs BEHAVE in their various nymph stages, your drift is supposed to match the behavior of what the bugs are doing at the exact time that you are standing knee deep in the river, if it doesn't you won't catch fish. In other words, don't focus on catching fish, focus on identifying and imitating bugs where there are fish and you WILL catch fish eventually.

Conditions change continuously throughout the day and bug activity changes with them, so you have to always keep your eye open and change your tactics. If you haven't done so already buy one of these http://www.anglingdesigns.com/intro.asp and use it. Any time you are NOT catching fish you should be dipping this thing in the water to see what is going on under the surface where the fish are getting 98% of their food. Hold off on buying a lot of flies until you dip this net a dozen or so times in different places, the flies you buy should look like the bugs you find. Use the net every time you go fishing and you will catch more fish, it is far more productive than walking into a shop and asking "what are they hitting". Look real hard in that net too, imitating that 5mm long skinny greenish thing that looks like a wiggling booger is likely what the fish are keyed on.

Speaking of little greenish things, in Putah you'll find that midges are a key food item. These are like bacon bits for trout, they have a great nutrition profile but hardly any calories so the trout have to eat bazillions of them to make a living out of it. That's the good new, the bad news is they won't move very far for them so your fly has to drift perfectly right by their nose, so change your configuration frequently (amt of weight, w and without indicator, etc. to get at different depths). Big fish hit tiny flies in Putah.

This hardly scratches the surface, but is stuff I've found to be important. Finally, don't worry about the latin names for anything, the fish don't know them either. They just know those wiggly green snotty things are a tasty treat if one drifts by close enough.

Im in the same boat as you, so if you want a partner to go out with that also doesn't know exactly how to fish putah, or in my case Trout well call me (707) 372-3095

Always more than glad to help...drop me a PM and lets get a few people on the water for a putah creek crash course...

I was on the class last time around and it helped me out heaps, and I will sign up again if there is another one.

I would be quite interested in the class, thanks

THE BIG PIKER wrote:

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Best thing to do is get a guide with proper paperwork for a half day or full day
And all the other guys stop guiding without paperwork !! your removing food off Bono's table MOSES

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Not everyone can afford to drop that kind of money on a day out, so a PCT benefit day is a great way to get some guys involved in PCT and raise some funds. I know it was these workshops that got me involved with PCT last year. If I was good enough I would gladly assist but I am still firmly in the category of needing assistance.

-- Edited by AfricanAngler on Tuesday 26th of January 2010 02:30:32 PM

hiring guides is a super waste of money, unless ur old and dont have much time left haha, theres a whole world of tips and tricks on the internet, thats how i learned, i even learned to tie my own flies from the FREE internet, you dont have to spend much money if you take the time to learn and study aquatic insects and their patterns if you do have the money and want to hire a guide then hire one up in the sierras where the fishing is promising. putah creek is declining rapidly each year and soon wont even be worth fishing unless sum1 cleans up the creek and closes it for a couple years, if you want to do sum REAL fly fishing then hit the sierras in the spring and summer months, google earth is the perfect place to find a creek or stream too and the top water fishing is amazing

one more thing, you can learn most everything you need to know about putah if you read all these topics and research them carefully. pick them apart with a fine tooth hackle comb , ive been flyfishing about 10 years off n on(fishing putah for 30 years) but really went full boar fly fishing only the last few years, its the most artistic and rewarding sport in the world as far as im concerned, and i think its THE sweetest science in the world. im addicted and the addiction isa festering monster. ive just got my 1st fly tying kit on xmas and i can already say i will never buy another fly again(thanks youtube: how to tie fly videos) haha, but anyway theres thousands of miles of creeks up in nor-cal and the sierras and they are all mostly holdin, good luck to ya

Here are some tips:
- learn to roll cast.  Sometimes roll casting is the only option.
- regarding flies, go to your local fly shop.  Sweeney's Sports (Napa) color codes their fly bins for Putah Creek flies.  Creative Sports (Pleasant Hill) sells "Putah Creek" fly boxes.  Usually there is someone at the shop that is familiar with the stream.
- watch other anglers you see on the stream (but don't intrude on their fishing space).  Look at where they are casting, how they are casting, how long a tippet they are using and if and how they are mending. 
- regarding where to fish, look for a combination of depth and current speed.  The water has to be deep enough for the fish to feel comfortable and the current must be slow enough where you can get a natural drift.  If your drift is too fast, try mending your line.  Also, the main current is usually the fastest; if it's too fast, fish the seams on the edges of the flow.  In general, the larger the fishable area, the better the potential for more and bigger fish.
- fish as much as you can.  The creek can be stingy in yielding its secrets, but it will eventually if you put in the time and effort.   

Just a heads up.


-- Edited by LilWhippersnapper on Wednesday 27th of January 2010 08:34:15 PM

I'll second that  Whippersnapper.

Underdog, I definitely have no ego... I just give crap to the ones with the overwhelming ego. I just love being out there. Let's put it this way. Me and Shaun drove a round trip of over 1,000 miles to fish for 1 and a half days... Although it was supposed to be a 4 day trip. We still had fun, and I don't regret nothing even though the fishing was sub par for the most part.

By the way, many people that hire guides don't know how to fish at all. It's a lot easier for us former spin fishermen to pick up a fly rod and learn on our own compared to the ones that are just picking up a rod for the first time.

No hard feelings though Underdog.

-- Edited by LilWhippersnapper on Thursday 28th of January 2010 05:47:14 PM