Ted Fay Report : April 14, 2012
The early spring nasty streak of rain and snow continues. The sun is out today (finally) after steady wet weather most of this last week. The Mt. Shasta Ski Park has almost 3 ft. of new snow and a few inches are currently on the ground here in Dogpatch. The Upper Sac is running about 3500 cfs (more than the lower Sac at 3300 cfs) and fishing is problematic with wading shaky ...... no high sticking, tight line, pocket water game going on. If you are considering fishing I recommend sticking to the edges and inside seams using copius amounts of weight (wear your hard hat with all that lead flying). The weather for the coming week looks like it will be more favorable for those eager to get out, at worse light showers forecast a couple of days and temps in the low 60's. This will translate into the river continuing to drop and offering more user friendly conditions. I did manage to get out on Monday just ahead of the storms with pal Rocky and we found some hungry fish (see pics). The river was running just under 2000 cfs offering up some of my favorite high water spots to access. It looks like the exclusive club of winter larger fish is getting replaced with a full compliment of sizes, we got into fish ranging from 8-16 in. with some great aerials shown by some. With the forecast of better weather and the flows dropping keep an eye out for some of my favorite spring time hatches of March Browns and Salmon flies. The USac from here out should only get better as we march through April ..... remember 2 weeks till the "opener".
Speaking of the opener I ventured down to Ash Camp a few days ago. The road around the lake and below the dam is passable but drive slowly, the typical debris from slides and fallen branches are scattered about. Ash Camp (see pics) looks to have survived the winter quite nicely for any of you planning on being there for the opener. The river flows above Ash Camp to the dam are fine but below is running big due to Hawkins Creek pumping in a lot of water. McCloud Reservoir is about 60 ft. from the top so there appears to be plenty of runoff storage capability.
Stay tuned for up to date reports on both the USac and McCloud in the coming weeks.
Zen Thought Of The Day......Most of the world is covered by water. A fisherman's job is simple ......... pick out the best parts.
USac Dunsmuir 12,000 cfs
McCloud River @ Dam
Sleepy Ash Camp
Hawkins Creek
Recommended Bugs ...... Nymphs
Mega Prince #6-10
Golden Stones #8-12
Jimmy Legs (brn., blk. & olive) #4-10
Prince #8-14
FB Pheasant Tail #14-16
Copper John (copper & red) #14
Soft Hackles #14
Micro Mayfly #14
S&M #16-18
Possie Bugger #8-12
Dry Flies
Stimulator #8-12
Adams #10-14
Royal Coachman #10-14
Humpy #10-14
If you have any further questions please call the shop and when you are in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : March 29, 2012
The weather that has started up since my last report continues its dumping of rain and snow. The shack has received 15 in. of rain and about 10 in. of snow and it's pouring rain now ..... for those concerned about the "D" word forget it. This of course has put a lid on fishing the Upper Sac lately, it's blown and running about 3000 cfs and looks like it will stay big until all this weather passes. The forecast for the next 3 days is a lot of rain, the good news is there is (should remain to be) very little low elevation snow. This of course means the spring runoff should not be too bad still ..... I hope.
For those looking for some recent fish porn I've included some shots of my recent steelhead trip last week. I traveled up to Forks, WA to fish the Olympic Peninsula with my pal Buster and local guide Troy Dettman. We fished the Hoh and Sol Duc rivers. These are beautiful coastal rivers nestled in the wild rainforest of the Olympic National Park and support steelhead in excess of 30lb. ...... Enjoy!
If you have any further questions please call the shop and when you are in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : March 11, 2012
Looks like this great run of weather and fishing is unfortunately about to end for a bit. All the weather folks are saying storms over the next 7-10 days bringing rain, rising rivers and snow ...... or as we say in Dogpatch "it is what it is". In any event bring it on, the whole state can use a major dose at this stage including the rivers which need a bit of the old purge. Those who have had the opportunity to get out on the USac continue to have excellent results. As mentioned before winter fishing here offers you the opportunity to get into a large fish. The numbers will not be a lot for the most part but size is impressive ..... still a mystery though where those dinks of summer go though.
The warmer weather this week initiated hatches of caddis and baetis up and down most of the river. Top action was sporadic but the emergers had the fish keyed. Recent clients this week hooked and landed some gorgeous bows with a few actually showing off their spawning colors. Yep, the bows are spawning now so heads up on those redds. Pics below of Ted and Chuck with their fish clearly show the color change of the spawn cycle. Not all fish though have morphed as noted by the bright hog below. Ted's girlfriend Beverly and Chuck's pal Rick each got into smoking fish that handed them their lunch ...... a break off and a straightened hook. Runs seem to be the best producing water at varying depths. Soda Creek to Gibson are currently the most productive beats. I would recommend attacking the runs at various depths moving your indicator and playing with adding/removing weights till you find the working fish in the proper water column location. One run may require very little depth whereas another may require dredging. As I always preach......be patient and work the likely water thoroughly, the fish are there. The best bugs have been the olive micro mayfly, S&M, Bob Grace soft hackle, olive birds nest, Jimmy Leg, and Golden Stone.
Ted's Bow
Chuck's Bow
Spawning Colors
Bright Toad
Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part 1
Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part 2
If you have any further questions please call the shop and when you are in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : February 25, 2012
Whoo-hoo, 67 degrees in Dogpatch yesterday.... gotta love these early hints of spring which, by the way, is a little over 3 weeks away. Our mild non winter continues to barrel forward and the Upper Sac remains in fishy shape. Flows today are at 560 cfs. To give you some perspective the average flow this time of the year should be 1400 cfs which held true the last two years extending (as we all know) well into June but not this year. Excluding a miracle March of wetness (I don't see it in the cards) the Upper Sac seems to be headed towards a very fishable river for the "opener" at the end of April and beyond. The snow pack is about 30% currently which translates into bad for the white water people and those of you south of here. Shasta Lake does have enough water stored to take care of you city dwellers but you irrigators, from what I hear, are only getting 50% of your allotment. Oh yeah, for those of you wondering about the Upper Sac and McCloud Rivers there should be plenty of water in the aquifers and all the springs seemed to be charged up nicely thanks to the last two winters.
The fishing this week has been some of the best I've seen on the Upper Sac since the fall. I had Dave and Kay down from Seattle out Tuesday and they had nonstop hookups from the get go. We worked mid river from Soda Creek to Sims. It was warm, probably low 60's, and a BWO hatch got started about 11 and lasted till 3. Not many fish were working the surface but boy were they on the emergers and occasionally a nice big rubber leg. The pics below tell their story. My pal Woods reported excellent success the same day on the lower river and Bob was up around Cantara having a ball too.......bottom line the whole river lit up. Woods reported a magical day the next day on the lower river getting into a trout heaven BWO hatch ......big fish on small dries. I suspect we are in for one of these springs that we get every 5-10 years .... mild weather and very fishable river conditions. I am already starting to see early caddis hatches and a few stones. I would think about the Upper Sac as a location to fish if this non winter continues to carry forward.
Dave and Abbey
Kay Hooked Up
Kay's Bow
Thank You Jimmy Leg
Chasing The BWO Hatch
BWO Hatch
Recommended Bugs.....Nymphs
Jimmy Legs #8-10
Mega Prince #6-10
Micro Mayfly #16
Soft Hackle #14-16
S&M #16-18
Gordon Prince #12-16
Copper John (red & copper) #14-16
Tan Fox Poopah #14-16
Posse #8-12
Dries
Parachute Adams #16-18
CDC Emerger #18-20
Stacked Hackle #16-20
Stimulator #8-12
If you have any further questions please call the shop and when you are in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : February 12, 2012
This crazy winter I now call "Charlie Sheen crazy". It's so whacked it continues to go down the path of the absurd. It's February and current forecast are showing a little snow tonight and tomorrow with rain next weekend, nothing really threatening so weather shouldn't be an excuse not to fish. The whacky meter currently is showing bulbs popping up in Mt. Shasta, Robins are back(I really don't think they ever left), people wearing shorts a few days ago were spotted, and the USac has remained fishable so far without missing much of a beat.
I have managed to get out a couple of times since the last post. I guided Mike from Grass Valley who had never experienced the Upper Sac and we covered a fair amount of water from Conant to McCardle. The shots below show the two different scenarios the river is offering. Right now above Sims it's winter like scenery but below Sims it's spring like. Mike stuck a big 20 in. bow at our first stop using a size 18 S&M and after a nice battle he expertly guided it into my net. Yours truly then reached for his camera and a big "awe shit" exploded ..... I had left said camera in the truck. My Bad! The river is a bit on the high side so be careful wading and use that staff. Reports of sporadic BWO action continues for those who prefer chasing them. The action is best on those overcast/drizzly days.
Got together with Wayne Eng (The River Zen master) for a guides day off steelhead trip a few days ago. His company is always appreciated and his way of starting off the day is right up my alley. Come to find out he's a closet donut whore, not a oneZ or twoZ type of guy, he's a bring it ALL on monster. The shot below is before the carnage and you know what.... I only had one so there you go. Wayne's signature fly, The Eng Thang, has now gone full circle to donuts, I call it the Eng Fang Thang syndrome. For a skinny guy he can pack it. BTW he hooked a steelie with his signature fly.
Took a run yesterday down the McCloud Reservoir to check things out. The lake level is down but the ramp is still usable. The water was like glass and pods of fish were cruising nearby sipping emergers..... and I didn't have my rod with me. Checkout the shots and enjoy.........this place can be an off the radar gem this time of year.
If you have any further questions please call the shopand when you're in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Coc
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : February 2, 2012
Since last week most of the rivers around Dogpatch have continued to run on the high side and snow has limited access to the river from Sims upstream. That and a case of tendonitis in my knee has put the kibosh on any serious fishing for yours truly for awhile. Got a report from Uncle Fester and Wayne Eng of a good afternoon of fishing a couple of days ago on the Upper Sac at mid river. Flows for them were around 600 cfs but are now back up to 800 cfs after a shot of rain the other night. Once they blazed a path through the snow to the river they found fish, up to 18 in., on both nymphs and BWO imitations. With the mild days the opportune window still holds from 11-4pm. The river should continue to drop slowly into more friendly conditions and with no rain forecast for the next 10 days it will be ready for ya all.
No fish porn to show this post but here are some pics from the pre opening gala I attended last Thursday night of the fly fishing exhibit at Turtle Bay Museum in Redding. It's entitled Fly Fishing : The Art Of Deception and is being presented by The Fly Shop. It showcases the significance of the north state fly fishing with its beauty and history. Some features include fly tying demonstrations presented by the Shasta Trinity Fly Fishers, casting demos, a collection of historical rods/reels and waders, the life cycle of trout, stewardship and conservation subjects, and more. There's an old McCloud River map that's pre McCloud Reservoir that's very cool too. It's a wonderful experience for family and friends and for further information go to www.turtlebay.org It's scheduled to run until April 15 along with another fabulous exhibit next door..... The Art Of Doctor Seuss.
Last week also gave Buttercup and I the opportunity to take advantage of a sunny blue bird day. She called it a "get your buns in the sun" day so I hobbled to the car and off we went up to the Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge for an afternoon of watching/spotting the wintering birds. Spectacular is all I can say. Currently wintering there are Canadian Geese, Snow Geese, Bald Eagles, Golden Eagles and White Pelicans. The shots below tell it all.
Ted Fay Report : January 25, 2012
Over the last week Dogpatch got a GOOD dose of snow ..... first of this bizarre winter and the NorCal/Southern OR rivers went from being on life support to flood stages. It's great to see a snow pack (as feeble as it currently is .... 1/3 of normal) and more would be appreciated. It's all good though, skiers are happy at the Mt. Shasta Ski Park (see recent pic below), the local economy which is dependent on the snow recreators this time of year is just starting to see some life (see Mt. Shasta City pic or as we call it up here the "Alpine Community") and all rivers from here to the coast are receding after shooting up and are getting into fishy shape. Buster, my wacky buddy who's on the lunatic fringe of steelheaders, put some time in during the worst of the worst weather chasing the elusive beast as noted in the pic below ...... this isn't for the recreational "I'm getting cold" sort.
Just prior to the storms I was able to get out and chase a few trout and steelhead. The Upper Sac was very kind to Rocky and the result is shown below. He hooked up on this fish using a rubber leg/Rick's Special combo. A larger fish was lost shortly after landing this ......... nothing but a memory. Currently the river is a bit on the high side but dropping and I suspect by this weekend it will be in excellent shape. Weather forecast is showing a good stretch of clear and mild through next week ..... good time to be here for fishing and skiing (kinda poor man's Aspen gig). Rocky and I spent the next day chasing steelhead near Dogpatch on one of my nearby favorite rivers. I was blessed with this fresh chromer who gobbled my rubber leg and made two explosive runs before surrendering. As reported from most NW rivers this is and has been a good year for returning fish. Again starting this weekend steelheaders, I'm saying the time is right for hitting the rivers. Stop by the shop and stock up, the shop has all the right bugs, leaders, and tippet for your needs. Also if you stop by checkout the newly opened RavenZcall coffee/expresso shop next door..... excellent java, pastries and soup........ and great host.
Mt. Shasta Ski Park
The Alpine Community
Snowrise From The Shack
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USac Winter Bow
Winter Steelhead
Just Having Fun Chasing The Beast
Recommended bugs.....see my list from December 10 for Upper Sac
Call the shop with any further questions and when you are in the area stop by and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : Janurary 12, 2012
This winter of non winter weather marches on and believe me my heart isn't broken. Not having to deal with snow around the shack, slip sliding on ice, no ice on on my rod guides, no finger tips turning blue is a treat after the last two winters of snow dumps. But weather is weather, always a talking point, always impermanent, and as John Fogerty sings " change in the weather" starting next week ...... the storm door is opening in Dogpatch.
In the mean time the USac continues it's run of excellent fishing for big fish. Bob Grace, who never gets a chance to fish during the "regular season" (that happens when you own a fly shop) has been getting out a couple of days a week on a regular basis since Thanksgiving and having successful outings topped off with a 21 in. rainbow last week. Uncle Fester reports good fishing results from mid river on his day there yesterday. Nymphing and stimmie/dropper are working best from Gibson to Ney Springs (sounds like a broken record). BWO hatches are bringing sipping fish to the surface on the lower river. I anticipate this run of excellent fishing to continue through this weekend, beyond that who knows ..... it's up to Mother Nature.
Bob and I managed to get together earlier this week for a steelhead excursion, we had been trying to make it happen for some time and finally pulled it off. This of course met satisfying our spiritual aversion to donuts to start the day so a quick stop to load up was in order. We then drove off down the road getting high on the bad boys (do they still use Crisco, lard, etc.?....who gives a flip) and listening to Dire Strait's sleeper CD, On Every Street, as we drove west. I guess it was the donut Gods..... we each had a great day on the river. Bob's pic below was his smallest fish of the day and he ended up landing 4 steelies up to 22 in.. The chromers also shown below were a couple that I landed. All in all it was an excellent day and excellent company ...... thank you!
Zen Thought Of Day .......... The man who coined the phrase "money cannot buy happiness" never bought himself a good fly rod.
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Winter Magic USac
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Winter Mosaic
Bob Grace
Bob Grace Hooked Up
Winter Steelhead
Winter Steelhead
If you have any further questions call the shop and when in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : December 31, 2011
Ended up 2011 infirmed for 3 weeks with the cold that kept returning like those pesky telemarketers and a bout of sciatica......all's good now. Got a chance to fish last week with my neighbor Rocky on the USac prior to some much needed rain over the last few days. This is a bit scary, the D word is lingering in the back of my brain .... drought. There is no snow on the ground around the shack and Mt. Shasta just has a dusting. Hopefully January, February, and March bring something. We fished prior to the rain on an overcast day at mid river. Nymphing was our method of choice fishing that magic window this time of the year from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.. A half dozen fish between 16-18 in. were landed using the typical winter flies listed in my last report. The dinks of summer have flown south and are no where to be found....just big fish are hanging out now. Flows were at 260cfs making access and wading a piece of cake. Flows spiked to 600cfs yesterday but are dropping and are at 375 today. Day temps are running in the low 50's with water temps in the low 40's. Some October Caddis were observed ........ still. Reports from those using the stimmie/dropper setup continue to report good results from mid river up to Ney Springs.
The rain did juice up all the steelhead rivers from here to the coast and in turn they all should be getting a new pulse of fish. Am looking forward to chasing some steelies after New Years.
Zen thought of the day ......For 2012 nurture that inner trout bum ..... he/she needs more attention than you are giving it. Go chase those fish you always dream of more often, you have my permission. Happy New Year ya all!!
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If you have any further questions call the shop and if you are in the area drop by and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : December 22, 2011
Sunny days, cold nights still offering great conditions for fishing the USac. No weather on the horizon so now's a perfect time to think about some winter fishing here in Dogpatch. In the meantime.........
Merry Christmas from Bob, Steven, Rick &
Scamp
And of course Santa .....
Ted Fay Report : December 10, 2011
Am on the downhill slide after dealing with the ravages of a nasty cold pandemic sweeping through Dogpatch faster than a deacon in a whorehouse. Sweet Pea and I have demolished a case of Kleenex and sound like a chorus of baritone swamp frogs singing Old Man River. The only motivation I have is contemplating Homer and Plato (or was it Homer and Jethro) while playing my kazoo. But as Buster says "this will pass my son......when is the question".
Did have the opportunity to get out and do some steelhead fishing since the last post prior to this ass kicking. As noted below Woody had his day made with this beautiful wild fish. Good reports on steelies have been coming in from the Trinity, Klamath, and Rogue.......all of which are within 2 hrs. drive from here. All of these rivers though could stand a good shot of rain. On the USac the river is at summer like flows. Weather has been very mild, unlike the last 2 yrs., thus producing great conditions for anyone eager to get out. Noon till 4 p.m. seems to be the best window. Uncle Fester reports good fishing in and around Dunsmuir. Lower river BWO hatches are strong as well as above Dunsmuir. This is the time of year too when the spent October Caddis will entice a big fish so don't neglect a stimmie/dropper in the area from mid river to Ney Springs.......yep, there are still some flying around and fluttering on the water.
Weather forecast for the next couple of weeks shows no major storms, temps up to 50 degrees and nights into the 20's. Not too shabby for this time of the year contrary to the National Weather Service long range winter forecast of another BIG winter here the Farmers Almanac is forecasting a mild and dry winter (see below). We'll revisit all of this in April but I'm pulling for an opener that doesn't have blown rivers like the last two.
Checkout the spectacular fall colors that Lithia Park in Ashland was showing off at the end of November below. This park is a gem and worth a visit any time of the year. Also checkout Mix on the Plaza, great pastries and homemade ice cream.
A reminder, Christmas is just a couple of weeks away. The Ted Fay Fly Shop has many choices of gear, clothing, and tying accessories for that special angler in your life. As an option gift certificates are available too. Give Bob a call (530) 235-2969 or stop in, he'll be more than happy to help you out. He can package whatever you desire and ship to any location.
Zen Thought Of The Day (for you ladies) ...... Give a man a fish to eat and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish and you get rid of him for a weekend.
Recommended Bugs.......Nymphs
Jimmy Legs #8-10
Mega Prince #4-10
Copper John (red & Copper)(# 14-16)
Soft Hackles #14-16
S&M #14-16
Gordon Prince #12-16
Dries
Stimmulator #6-10
BWO #16-20
If you have any further questions call the shop and when you are in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
Ted Fay Report : November 20, 2011
As a wrap up note for the "regular season" the shop is closing from 11/21 to 11/29 and reopening 11/30 with it's winter hours .... open each week from Wednesday thru Sunday. This is our "winter season" here in Dopgpatch. Winter season offers fishing on the USac, various nearby lakes and of course steelhead fishing. Contact the shop or myself for details on any of these. I will be posting reports throughout the winter but not as frequently so stay tuned. In the meantime here are some final day memories from the McCloud taken by myself and woody Lowe over the last few weeks ...... Lady McCloud struttin her stuff ..... until next year sleep well and Thank You!
Zen Thought........Thank You! Show the rivers your appreciation for the enjoyment they give you by occasionally giving them a big thanks as you walk or drive away after a day on the water. They are truly medicine for the soul.
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If you have any further questions please call the shop and if you are in the area stop in and say hello.
Rick Cox
www.mccloudflyfishing.com
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