Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3823 Oct 25-Nov 8 | Page 16

14 Oct 25 - Nov 8, 2019 FRESHWATER VOL.38 • ISS. 23 Catch & Release Fishing! Hook More & Bigger Fish With Flies... Sponsored by Kiene’s Fly Shop 916-483-1222 • www.Kienesflyshop.com 9550 Micron Ave. Suite B • Sacramento, CA Hat Creek: Lava Country Trout! By Cal Kellogg Hat Creek is one of Northern California’s premier trout fishing destinations for anglers working with both fly and conventional tackle. The creek bubbles to life in the high country on the eastern shoulder of Mount Lassen and flows in a northward direction for roughly 40 miles. The creek picks up tributaries and grows larger steadily until its waters are impounded in Lake Britton. From Old Station downstream to Bridge Campground, a distance of approxi- mately 15 miles, lays the “middle section” of Hat Creek. By the time the stream reaches Old Station it has picked up a lot of additional water from tributaries. In its middle section, Hat Creek still maintains the fast-flowing pool and riffle character that it had while flowing through the confines of Lassen Park, but while the creek is still fairly narrow the flows are much stronger and many of the pools are 8 or more feet deep. Basically, the middle section looks like the upper section’s big brother. Much of the middle section is easily accessible from Highway 89 featuring several campgrounds and day use areas, in many locations the stream is mere yards from the road. This section of the river is heavily planted with both rainbow and brook trout. With both easy access and big numbers of truck trout ranging from 10 inches to 4 or more pounds the middle section is very popular with conventional tackle anglers. Yet the fly fishing on this section can be good too. Mixed in with the planters there are solid numbers of smallish wild rainbows and a sleeper population of wild reclusive browns ranging up to and beyond the 20-inch mark. These “trophy” browns spend their time lurking beneath undercut banks and in areas where streamside brush makes presenting flies or bait nearly impossible. Fly fishing Hat Creek’s middle section is challenging and rewarding. Streamside brush and water that is too deep and fast to wade make things tough on the fly guys. In most spots, traditional casting is impossible and fly anglers are restricted to drifting nymphs and stripping streams. There are a few areas that feature open riffles and a limited amount of terrain that is shallow enough to wade. These areas provide good dry fly action for anglers working hoppers, humpies and stimulators in sizes 8, 10 and 12 during the afternoon and evening hours. When it comes to nymphing, mayfly and stonefly patterns Hat Creek offers something for every fly angler, from deep in sizes 10 freestone stretches crammed with planted trout in its upper through 14 reaches to trophy trout water that holds large highly educated trout in its lower section. work well. My Photo courtesy of JACK TROUT, Redding. FRESHWATER REPORTS: CONTINUED FROM PG 13 LAKE DEL VALLE J. of Hayward caught a seven-and-three- quarters pound catfish while fishing with anchovies by the dam. cont. lure that creates lots of top water action.” “The stripers are being caught in the Lower Narrows just before Swallow Bay, the Upper Narrows and near the dam. During the mornings we recommend throwing top water lures. Towards the afternoons you should aim for frozen baits that can hit deeper into the water.,” he stated. Stanley H. of Castro Valley caught a 10 pound catfish while fishing in Swallow Bay with anchovies. Russell L. of Livermore caught a six-and-a-third pound largemouth bass while fishing in the narrows with night crawlers. Finally, Mike LAKE DON PEDRO Fall Trout Bite Takes Off SACRAMENTO – The trout bite took off in a big way over the weekend as Kyle Wise of Head Hunter Guide Service found the schools at a depth of 60 feet in 400 feet of water in the main channel off of Willow. He said, “The trout are chasing shad, and we ran Speedy Shiners in copper/gold coated with Smelly Jelly at 60 to 80 feet. After picking up a 14- inch kokanee on a Speedy Shiners, we dropped down Apex lures as deep as 175 feet for some additional kokanee. These all-time favorite nymph on the middle section is a black AP tied on a No. 10 hook. The middle section is home to lots of stone- flies and the black AP imitates them well. For streamers, Hooked Up! This angler met the challenge of hooking one of Hat Creek’s highly selective clear water trout. you need Photo courtesy of THE FLY SHOP, Redding. look no further that Muddlers or woolly buggers in sizes 8 and 10. The most famous section of the creek is known as the Powerhouse 2 riffle. The name refers to the PG&E powerhouse that sits at the upstream boundary of the special-regulations section and supplies a steady flow of water to the creek below. The section flows over lava substrate for about 100 yards and then flattens into a wide, slow-moving flow—a classic spring creek—for a couple of miles until it becomes a freestone flow again at the lower end. It is accessible by car, with a parking lot overlooking the riffle. About a mile downstream from the powerhouse section is Carbon Flats, also served by a convenient parking area. Most of the lower stretch, which is north of where Highway 299 crosses the creek, is no longer accessible by vehicle, so to get to the riffle at the lower end of the creek, you turn north onto a dirt road just before you get to the county park next to the bridge. After a short distance, you will come to a parking area, from where you will have to hoof it for about 0.25 mile to get to the riffle. This big Hat Creek rainbow came to the The 100-yard-long freestone section surface to slurp a big stonefly imitation. of water just below the powerhouse Photo courtesy of THE FLY SHOP, Redding. holds some of the biggest fish-mostly Rainbows and some Browns - along with lots of aquatic food to sustain them. It gets lots of pressure from both the knowledgeable anglers who drift nymphs through its seams and pockets and those who take advantage of the relatively shallow water to cross to the other side. Hat Creek is famous for its multiple hatches, and the fish can rapidly switch from one insect to another or one life stage to another. fish were missing scales, but they were in “Spooning or G-Money jigs with a good shape.” 5-inch twin tail trailer on a 3/4th-ounce For spotted and largemouth bass, Ryan head along with Ned Rigs. We picked Cook of Ryan Cook’s Fishing said, “We up numbers on custom Dead Stick Bait put together an 18-pound limit with no Company plastics from David Coy of kicker fish with the best fish found as deep CONTINUED ON PG 15 as 60 feet. The bass are scattered from 5 to 75 feet, and you have to search around to find them Trout • Mackinaw as we went to at Kokanee • Salmon least 35 spots and found all of our Bright, Durable, Unique fish on only two of these spots. When we were on them, it was hot, as we must Glass Lures Handmade In Northern California have landed 50 bass on these two www.shallowglasslures.com locations. 3810 w llo a h S G laSS l ur eS (530) 386-8064