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ademocrat · 5 years ago

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He’s Saving California’s Oldest Weekly (Mark Twain Wrote for It)

DOWNIEVILLE, Calif. — The night before his first deadline, Carl Butz, California’s newest newspaper owner, was digging into a bowl of beef stew at the Two Rivers Café, the only restaurant open in town.

“Tomorrow I have to fill the paper,” he said with only mild anxiety. “The question is, will it be a four-page paper or a six-page paper?”

At 71, Mr. Butz is trim, with wire-rimmed glasses and a close-cropped silver beard, and he dresses in flannel shirts and cargo pants. Since his retirement and his wife’s death in 2017, he considered traveling — to England or Latvia, or riding the Trans-Siberian Railway. But here he was, a freshly minted newspaper proprietor, having stepped in at the beginning of the year to save The Mountain Messenger, California’s oldest weekly newspaper, from extinction.

The Messenger was founded in 1853. Its most famous scribe was Mark Twain, who once wrote a few stories — with a hangover, the legend goes — while hiding out here from the law.

Newspapers across America, especially in rural areas like here in Sierra County, have been dying at an alarming rate, and Downieville was about to become the latest “news desert.” The obituaries for the paper had already been written. Don Russell, the hard-drinking, chain-smoking editor with a blunt writing style who had owned and run the paper for nearly three decades, was retiring, and he seemed happy enough for the paper to die with his retirement.

And then one night Mr. Butz was watching “Citizen Kane” on cable and thought, I can do that. He made the deal quickly, paying a price in the “four figures,” he said, plus the assumption of some debts, without even looking at the books.

Still, Mr. Russell, an old friend of Mr. Butz’s, was a reluctant seller. “His position was, it’s a losing proposition and someone who’d want it would be crazy,” Mr. Butz said. “He called me a romantic idealist and a nut case. And that’s not a paraphrase, but a direct quote.”

For the residents of Downieville — and there are not many; the population is about 300 — who for generations counted on The Messenger to arrive every Thursday, through wildfires and power outages and economic booms and busts, Mr. Butz has become an unlikely local hero, a savior of a cherished institution.

“Thank God for Carl, he stepped in,” said Liz Fisher, a former editor of the paper who lives across the street from its office and runs The Sierra County Prospect, an online news site. “It was devastating for everybody that we were going to lose The Mountain Messenger.”

A cluttered, smoke-filled newsroom

On a recent Wednesday morning, facing his first deadline, Mr. Butz was staring down a blank computer screen in the newspaper’s cramped two-room office above a beauty salon on Main Street. Mr. Butz, a fourth-generation Californian and a former computer programmer and labor economist for the state, readily admitted that he had no idea what he had gotten himself into, and it did not help to learn that the paper’s publishing software was from the mid-1990s.

One of the first things he said he would do after buying the paper was ban smoking in the office, but next to his keyboard was a package of unfiltered cigarettes and an ashtray.

“What is the lead story?” Mr. Butz asked.

“The front page is blank,” replied Jill Tahija, the paper’s only other employee, sitting at an adjacent computer.

Ms. Tahija, who has worked at The Messenger for 11 years, might properly be called the managing editor, but on her business cards it says, “she who does the work.”

Her small black-and-white dog, Ladybug, a Boston terrier-Shih Tzu-Chihuahua mix, bounded around the cluttered newsroom. On every surface were books and trinkets and junk — Civil War histories, annals of the county, dictionaries, empty beer bottles, packages of ramen noodles.

In the archives section are old papers dating to the 1850s, and on the walls are pictures of Mark Twain and some slogans — old saws of newspapering, like “If it bleeds, it leads.”

Mr. Russell, who was on vacation, driving his R.V. up the coast with his wife, when Mr. Butz took over the paper, once told The Los Angeles Times that Twain had written a few unremarkable stories for The Messenger. Mr. Russell had read them on microfilm at a library. “They were awful,” he said. “They were just local stories, as I recall, written by a guy with a hangover.”

At his computer, Mr. Butz was putting together one of his first new features for the paper, a “poetry corner.” (He selected “Thoughts,” by Myra Viola Wilds, an African-American poet from Kentucky who wrote in the early 20th century.) As Ms. Tahija worked on the front page — the next day it would be filled with stories about a local poetry competition, the upcoming census, wildfire prevention and a local supervisors meeting — Mr. Butz shifted his focus to finishing his letter to readers.

In it, he explained why he bought the paper. “Simply put,” he wrote, “the horrible thought of this venerable institution folding up and vanishing after 166 years of continuous operation was simply more than I could bear.”

The newspaper, he wrote, was “something we need in order to know ourselves.”

‘Like losing a friend’

Making a newspaper in Downieville is strictly an analog, ink-on-paper affair; there is no website, no social media accounts. It loses a few thousand dollars a year, and relies mostly on publishing legal notices from the county and other government offices, which brings in about $50,000 a year, for the bulk of its revenue. It has about 700 subscribers and a print run of 2,400 copies, just below the county’s population.

“I’m not going to lose a million dollars but I know I’m going to have to subsidize some of it,” Mr. Butz said. “My daughter is already aware that her inheritance is shrinking.”

Downieville is a remarkably well-preserved old Gold Rush town, perched at a fork in the Yuba River in remote western Sierra County. History is its pitch to tourists, and it has the feel of a backlot for an Old West movie — in its corner saloon, in the one-lane bridges over the Yuba, and in the second-story offices of The Messenger, next to the Fire Department. (A painted message on the door says it is the “oldest volunteer fire department west of the Mississippi.”)

With the demise of gold mining and the shuttering of the sawmills that were once an economic engine for the region, Downieville reinvented itself as a destination for mountain biking and fly fishing, with an abundance of Old West charm.

Residents reacted to Mr. Butz’s last-minute purchase of the paper with a mixture of relief and gratitude.

“A real sense of relief,” said Lee Adams, a former Sierra County sheriff and a current member of the county’s Board of Supervisors.

The paper was always an important institution, but it had become more so in recent years as Northern California dailies like The Sacramento Bee and The San Francisco Chronicle stopped distributing in the region, and rarely sent reporters to cover Sierra County.

“We would have to fall off the face of the earth to make one of those papers on a normal news day,” Mr. Adams said.

The Messenger is more than just a chronicle of weekly happenings — government meetings, births and deaths, the police blotter, the weather — but also a repository of the county’s history. The paper is just a year younger than Sierra County, which was founded in 1852, the year Wells Fargo was established to serve the Gold Rush and the riches being dredged from the river.

When Bill Copren, 76, a local historian and a former county assessor, wrote his master’s thesis on the political history of Sierra County in the mid-19th century, he relied on The Messenger’s archives.

More recently, when officials secured a spot on the National Register of Historic Places for a local school built in the Art Deco style in 1931, they used the paper’s archives to confirm the details of how it was built and who paid for it.

The paper’s closure, Mr. Copren said, would have been “like losing a friend.”

Under Mr. Russell, The Messenger had a distinctive attitude and a brusque, straightforward style. He was averse to political correctness and not immune from using curse words in print.

Mr. Butz said he did not plan to own the paper for long, and wanted to find a younger person who could take over. He said he was thinking about bringing the paper into the digital age, with a website, and was thinking about turning it into a nonprofit publication, accepting donations and grants to keep it running.

But on a recent Thursday morning, the day after deadline, he was just happy to have his first issue under his belt.

His Thursday routine is now established: He gets up early and drives about an hour and a half to a printing plant in Quincy, Calif., to pick up the bundles of freshly printed newspapers. On the way, he and Scott McDermid, the paper’s longtime distribution manager, stop at the Express Coffee Shop for waffles and eggs.

And then, with a truck full of papers, they crisscross the county, past the tall cedars and Douglas firs of the mountains, and across the Sierra Valley, dotted with junipers and cottonwoods, stopping at every shop and gas station, emptying newspaper machines of last week’s edition, collecting money and dropping off fresh bundles of The Messenger.The story around town is how Mr. Butz saved the local newspaper.But Mr. Butz, a still-grieving widower — his wife, Cecilia Kuhn, the drummer in an all-female punk band, Frightwig, died in 2017 — sees it another way.“It’s saving me,” he said.

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lostcoastoutfitters · 6 years ago

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Yuba River Fly Fishing Report

Jordan Romeny reports on 4.4.19

Currently just over 6000 cfs the Yuba has been inconsistently firing. One word to sum up the spring so far “volatile.” The windows of fishing open and shut quickly right now. When the window is open the river is an all-out numbers game. The trout in there are hungry and eating well. But even the weakest of storms are charging the flows to un fishable flows. I’ve always claimed the river to be a decent but inconsistent on foot wading river. The runs are big and take a long time to fish.

Plus, the fish move around a bunch so chancing that you are in a good run on foot is throwing chance into the wind. You may have had success in the past in a certain section but the next time you are there the run can only have a small percentage of fish in it that day. The fish seem to move around almost daily in the Yuba. I get the question a lot about what is too big to fish the Yuba. Flows are always relative to the drainage so even know normal fishing flows are 1000-2000cfs, 5000cfs is still a go. As long as there is clarity to the river you can always find a nice soft edge where they like to lay up. The bigger the flow however, there won’t be as many edges to find. Now add a busy day out there with other anglers you may wait in

line to fish it. Decent river on foot yes, EXCELLENT river in the boat. In a full day drift boat cruise, we fish every section on the river. We cover so much water that we will find the fish. I floated the river two days ago and had an above average grab. I am really bad at keeping trac of fish numbers but I would venture a guess that we fed over 20 fish. We found the one two punch with our nymph set up and didn’t need to change it. An olive and yellow sz 10 rubber legs, and a march brown emerger were the ticket. It seemed like every other fish was on either bug. I was surprised with the lack of rising fish due to the amount of March Browns and PMDs hatching. The birds were on them but the fish were reluctant to come to the surface. We did manage a few dry fly eats in one key section. I think its only a matter of days before the dry fly bite gets really good. For those who are wondering how long the bite will last? I think it’s going to be a tremendous year out there. The bugs are back, the fish are strong and healthy. As long as the river stays where it is or less it’s going to be really really good.

#fishingreport #fryuba #fryubariver

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megadavestewart · 3 years ago

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WFS 284 - Fly Fishing River Stripers with Hogan Brown - Striped bass, Barbless Podcast

Show Notes: https://wetflyswing.com/284

Presented By: Anglers Coffee, Trxstle, Fly Fishing Film Tours, Togens Fly Shop

Sponsors: https://wetflyswing.com/sponsors

Hogan Brown, the host of the Barbless Podcast is here to break down some tips on fishing river stripers. We also get into a little bit of his background on how he first got started guiding and some of the species that he's still focused on today. Hogan shares who were his biggest mentors and how he made that transition from guiding for trout to stripers which was his smart move at the time.

Discover Hogan's Top 3 Tips for catching stripers. Find out the gear he recommends - resources and the best times to fish Sacramento CA waters. Hogan also shares some of the remarkable guests he's had on the podcast and how his style of podcasting makes you relax and do some other stuff while you listen.

Fishing River Stripers Show Notes with Hogan Brown

05:50 - Brian Fischer was on the podcast at WFS 274 where we talked about Sierra Nevadas fly fishing

05:58 - Sierra Nevada or Sierra Nevadas? Hogan explains why he calls the mountains Nevadas and not Nevada

07:07 - Hogan tells the story of when he first started working in a fly shop

09:02 - Hogan got his guide license when he was 17/18 years old

12:17 - Hogan became a Lower Yuba Driftboat guide

12:51 - He moved to Chico California and started working in a fly shop there, then he met some of his mentors

14:05 - Mike Costello introduced striper fishing to Hogan - a smart move to keep a family while fishing

16:41 - The difference between striper and trout in terms of behavior

19:30 - What to do if you want to DIY a striper trip

22:17 - Fishing stripers on a kayak - is it possible?

24:40 - Nick Hanna and Chad Alderson was on the podcast at WFS 119

24:46 - Hogan tells the story of how he met Nick and Chad - the Barbless Podcast transition

29:50 - George Revel owns a fly shop in San Fransisco California (Lost Coast Outfitters) - George's goal is for people to fish locally and not drive miles away to find fishable waters

31:03 - The Short Bus Diaries - these guys turned a school bus into an RV

33:39 - According to Adam Hudson, from the Short Bus Diaries, North Alabama has the most species of freshwater fish of any other state

34:42 - Check out the Barbless Podcast episode with Adam Hudson from the Short Bus Diaries here

35:35 - Hogan tells us the best time to go fishing for stripers in the Sacramento Rivers

37:42 - What you need to prepare for before you fish stripers

39:18 - You have to strip set stripers

40:55 - Three rods a client - intermediate, type 3 and type 7 shooting head (Tip: have a line with a braided core, not mono)

42:00 - The Airflow Sniper lines were designed by Hogan and a couple of guys in northern California, Delta and River striper guides

42:34 - The swivel importance in your leader setup

45:21 - You can find Delta Clouser flies in Northern or Central California, anywhere around the Delta area

46:13 - Steve Adachi ties flies for George

46:18 - Dan Blanton is the father of a lot of the flies for Delta

46:34 - Enrico Puglisi was on the podcast at WFS 210 where we talked about his flies for striped bass

47:00 - How Hogan and his partner Chuck find where the bass are (going where the bass eats)

51:29 - They catch other species like smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, spotted bass, carp, salmon, steelhead, etc.

54:04 - Hogan had a boat built by Rogue Jet Boat Works

59:08 - California is leading the way in the bass fishing world

1:06:04 - We talked about Striped Bass with Al Quattrocchi at WFS 219

Fishing River Stripers Conclusion with Hogan Brown

Hogan Brown, host of the Barbless Podcast, shared some tips on fishing river stripers. We learned about his background - how he first got started guiding and some of the species that he's still focused on today. Hogan shared who his biggest mentors were and how he made that transition from trout to stripers guiding.

We discovered Hogan's Top 3 Tips for catching stripers. We found out the gear he recommends - resources and the best times to fish Sacramento CA waters. Hogan also shared some of the remarkable guests he's had on the Barbless podcast.

Show Notes: https://wetflyswing.com/284

Check out this episode!

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fishing-exposed · 4 years ago

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@DouglasNvDA: Had a memorable weekend fly fishing with three of my buddies. @ChiefDave_RFD, Lamont and Dan. Successful catch & release of Steelhead on the Trinity River and Rainbows on the Yuba River. https://t.co/ZM3uS726mv

#baffinbay #baffin bay #baffin_bay #Baffin Bay #baffin bay rod and gun #BaffinBayRodandGun #Baf

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big5world · 4 years ago

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Yuba river in the Sierra foothills. Near Grass Valley. The water starts getting cold. Time for fly fishing and salmon. https://www.instagram.com/p/CGtQP9Glk6F/?igshid=dye04uws4e9u

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flyfishingjobs · 5 years ago

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FishFirst!: Director of Fishing Programs, Head Guide Position Available

FishFirst! Chico Location:

Previous fly fishing instructor and fly fishing guiding experience, including guiding out of a drift boat. FFF basic casting instructor certification. Current or previous California guide license. General knowledge of flyfishing in Northern California. Specific knowledge of flyfishing and guiding the Lower Sacramento River, Feather River, and Yuba River. Previous…

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benjonsen111-blr · 6 years ago

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Lake Tahoe area fly fishing update 6/9/2018

We are having a blast right now, fishing is really picked up the last week or so. Starting down south the East Walker is back down to about 400cfs and very fishable. Streamers, nymphing under indicator, and some dry fly action in the evening I’m sure will all produce at these flows. Word is there are some big big browns being caught lately. I drove over the West Walker a few days ago and although it’s still a bit high and a little off color nymphing the slow froggy water with big attractor nymphs Would be my go to. Up on the Carsons the East is absolutely fishable just maybe not crossable at these flows similar to the West Walker nymphing and streamers in the slow froggy stuff is the go to until she drops a bit more. The West Carson is absolutely the place to be on the South Shore rite now with all tactics taking fish. A few years of good flows and we are seeing more quality fish again besides just the fresh stockers. Unfortunately the regulations are still set up as a catch and keep fishery and the quality will go down hill through out the summer but bows a great time to go poke around one of our prettiest rivers. Up in my backyard The Big and Little Truckee are as good as it gets overall it’s still fishing and everyday is a bit different but overall we have all the normal players for this time of year. Evening dry fly action on PMD’s and caddis, our mid day flying ants and of course the dirty old incator. Our private Sawmill Lake is also very good right now. A bonus this year is also the South Fork of the Yuba which literally flows through my backyard. Good flows and early stocking thanks to the community of Kingvale has really got it going. Kingvale is absolutely private property and off limits but there is plenty of public access down the old 40 after Kingvale exit. Another one of our prettiest rivers in the area worth fishing. There are also countless smaller streams and stillwater options to explore. If you are interested in getting off the beaten trail a bit call the shop and book a trip! Myself and a few other guides have a lot of places we would love to share with you that are not along an interstate highway! -see you on the water, Jay

The post Lake Tahoe area fly fishing update 6/9/2018 appeared first on Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters.

from Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters https://ift.tt/2LF1a0i via IFTTT

#IFTTT #Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters

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lostcoastoutfitters · 6 years ago

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Yuba River Fly Fishing Report

Jon Baiocchi reports on 3.7.19

Yuba

Not much of a report as we are entering our 6th week straight of fluctuating high water levels and varying degrees of turbidity. Currently, the Yuba is flowing at 17k, and Deer Creek is at 1,750 cubes. Englebright dam is still spilling and the reservoir is at 106% of capacity. The Skwala hatch was short-lived this year, but if the flows come down to at least 3,000 in a few weeks we could have some March Brown mayfly action to comfort the soul.

Regardless, when the flows do come down the best strategy is going to be swinging streamers in the side water, even if the visibility is a foot or so. The only other game right now is bass in the foothill reservoirs, Bullards Bar, Englebright, and Lake Oroville will be your best bets. I'm not that into it, but if you want to learn more about foothill bass hit up Hogan Brown or Chuck Ragan.

On the 19th of March I will be presenting my "High Water Tactics" program to the Diablo Valley Fly Fishers in Walnut Creek, Ca. This event is free and open to the public. I encourage you to come check it out, you'll learn much and it will help you to prepare for fishing the high flows we will be encountering from now through spring. See you there! Jon Baiocchi578 Sutton Way #255Grass Valley, CA 95945(530) 228-0487 Visit my Fly Fishing blog; http://jonbaiocchiflyfishingnews.blogspot.com/ The Premier Fly Fishing Guide Service for the Northern Sierra; http://baiocchistroutfitters.com/

#fishingreport #fryubariver #fryuba

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lostcoastoutfitters · 6 years ago

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Lower Yuba Fly Fishing Report

Jon Baiocchi reports on 1.31.19

Fishing is not nearly as good on the Lower Yuba River after the last series of big storms rolled on through, but fish are still being caught though. Flows are running at 1,228 cubes as recorded at the Parks Bar-Bridge gauge. Deer creek has not fallen all the way down and I assume it’s because of the releases from Scott’s Flat reservoir, currently the creek is at 106 cfs with a slight ramping down. Water visibility is about 3.5 feet and turning slightly green. Fishing pressure has been heavy in the more popular areas, but still plenty of spots to fish if an angler is willing to walk for it. Just because an angler has fished a run doesn’t mean it won’t produce again, especially if you use different tactics and flies. I read a lot of fishing reports for the Lower Yuba River, some are spot on, while others provide false information.

I always report accurate information whether it is good or bad. Skwala stoneflies are a hot topic right now since they are out and available for the trout drifting downstream in the foam lines. My article above "The Skwala Hatch" which was featured in the December 2014 issue of California Fly Fisherman is a great source of information. Behavior from nymphs to adults fly patterns, and strategies are covered in depth. The info is from decades of being on the water studying this special stoner by my colleagues and I.

If you already read it, it's worth going back and refreshing your memory. Skwalas do not hatch in the afternoon, they hatch (metamorphosis from nymph to an adult) in the middle of the night.

Skwalas become active around 12pm or when the air temperatures warm up, they are most active during the warmest time of the day and continue for a few hours more. They can live over a month or more because they can eat (pollen), and drink water. The female can also mate multiple times. There are some fish already taking the adult off the surface, and you can expect more action in the weeks to come. Look for the hatch to peak around the third week of February, and wane during the middle of March. Before the last series of storms we had BWOs, PMDs, Pinkies, and a few Gray Drakes. I have not seen very many mayflies since the last high water event, but I’m sure they will be back very soon. There is a tremendous population explosion of Glossosoma caddis (Little Brown Short-Horned Sedge) in the river right now. You can expect many evenings in spring into summer being thick with possible blanket hatches. I feel sorry for these little caddis. Once they make their home of fine pebbles, they are permanently fixed to that rock until pupation is completed. When water levels drop naturally, or man- made they die. Unsettled weather will be moving in starting late Tuesday through Thursday with a good size storm Friday through Saturday with heavy rain in the forecast. Sunday we could see a much colder pattern drop down the coast with falling temperatures leading into a possible dry spell. The models have been inconstant looking into the long range forecast. My Skwala Workshop for the 9th of February is booked up. The Dry Fly Workshop on March 2nd has 4 openings left and the Skwala Workshop on the ninth also has 4 openings available.

#fishingreport #fryuba #fryubariver

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lostcoastoutfitters · 6 years ago

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Lower Yuba Fly Fishing Report

Jon Baiocchi reports on 1.22.19

Lower Yuba River Update

The past week has seen some gnarly weather here in Northern California. Big wind, heavy rain, and as of Monday morning low elevations snowfall like here in Nevada City. Before our last round of storms, the Lower Yuba River was fishing well with consistent mayfly hatches from noon until 3pm, and the start of seeing Skwala stoneflies drifting downstream in the foam lines. Nymphing with small dark flashy nymphs, and swinging soft hackles and salmon fingerling patterns was productive as well.

Currently, we are waiting for the flows to come back down and the river to clear, which the Yuba does quickly when Englebright dam is not spilling over the top, and Deer Creek is not pumping in sediment. At this time Englebright dam is at 93% of capacity and not spilling, but Yuba Water Agency is dumping water. Deer Creek keeps on rising from all of the low elevation snow melting into micro watersheds that eventually add up to larger flows. I’m thinking by this coming weekend the river should be fishable, and even if it is a little stained it will be better fishing as the trout and steelhead aren’t so shy and spooky. I’ll know more when I scout the river later in the week. If you’re looking to improve your skill set, or learn more about the Yuba River, give me a call at 530.228.0487 or shoot me an email at

[email protected]

to set up a date on the water. See you out there…

#fishingreport #fryuba #fryubariver

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lostcoastoutfitters · 6 years ago

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Lower Yuba Fly Fishing Report

Jon Baiocchi reports on 1.17.19

What a storm! The wind is howling outside here in Nevada City and those conifers are flexing back and forth way too much. There has already been periods of heavy rains on Tuesday night, and as we head into the Wednesday evening we are bracing for the second wave. Up until this storm the Lower Yuba River was fishing pretty damn good. The good news is the Skwala stones are beginning to hatch and I caught my first Skwala eater last Sunday in the foam lines below a major riffle. My guest on Monday raised 4 on the Unit Skwala, and a couple more on the Pinkie mayfly. The fish will start to key in on Skwalas in the weeks ahead and head for the side water where the largest percentage of Skwalas are found from noon to 4pm. Look for the hatch to peak near the third week of February, and don’t forget the Skwala stone lives for a about a month or longer, unlike a 24-hour mayfly life cycle. Not as many trout rising as a few weeks ago and it seems the mayfly hatches are waning, or maybe in between broods for now. The more bugs, the more a rhythm riser will be at station and feed consistently.

After a number of trips with my guests, I would say the two most critical mistakes are not making the correct mends for a dead drift while nymphing, and inaccurate casting to rising fish, or over casting and lining them. The dry fly game is much tougher on the flats and you can put down a rhythm riser with bad presentations. It’s much easier in choppy water or riffles as it masks your mistakes.

There are good numbers of salmon fry and fingerlings in the system and the trout seem to be keyed in on them. I’ve been using the single bunny fly with a gray top and white bottom of Rabbit strips with pearl krystal flash down the lateral line. This is a great pattern as it has life like movement and is super durable compared to marabou. The fly is about 2 inches long. Also last Sunday I swung up to Joey’s, those 10 to 12” sliver bullets that put a good bend even on a 6 weight. My rig for swinging these minnows is a RIO 1.5 - 4ips Versi-Tip with about 4 feet of 4X floro.

The Yuba blew out this morning with Deer creek rising sharply and adding in too much color. The river forecast shows the Yuba River reaching near 9,000 cubes on Thursday afternoon. If Yuba Water Agency does not make any large releases from Englebright dam the river will clear quickly once the rain stops. If you’re looking to improve your skills set or learn more about the Lower Yuba River and the Skwala hatch, I have some open days available in the next month. Give me a call at 530.228.0487, or shoot me an email at

[email protected]

See you on the water…

#fishingreport #frloweryuba

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lostcoastoutfitters · 6 years ago

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Yuba River Fly Fishing Report

Jon Baiocchi reports on 1.4.19

Happy New Year! After a couple of rough months, I'm back in the saddle doing what I love, instructing anglers on the finer points of fly fishing and sharing my passion. What a turn of events, but thanks to the Lower Yuba River, sunshine, and good company I'm super stoked right now and in a better place mentally.

The river has been fishing pretty decent depending on the day (typical Yuba) and I've seen numerous anglers hooked into a few in the last week. For whatever reason, there have been reports of some very large steelhead being caught with some landed. I know of 5 reliable reports of fish between 25 to 30". Serious athletes are in the system. It's been a long time since we've seen nice big steelhead in the river, and it's so awesome to see. The flows have been stable since the 27th of December running at 860 cubes, but on New Year’s Eve they were ramped up slowly to 1,050 cfs, just a slight bump with nothing to worry about.

Yuba Water Agency plans to run these flows for the next fifteen days or so unless we receive some major precipitation and the outlook looks wet into next week. Fishing pressure has been heavy above the bridge, yet my guests and I have had no trouble finding multiple spots to fish. With the clear low water the fish are playing small ball so use smaller mayfly and midge patterns. Eggs are still being consumed and most of the steelhead caught have been egg eaters.

Skwala nymphs are pre-staging in the idle side waters below riffles to prepare for an emergency. With that said they will be in the drift so a smaller rubber leg stone will become more effective in the weeks to come. In the last few days I have found a few shucks so there are a few adult skwalas out. I'm thinking by the 3rd week of January the trout will be keyed in on the adults ovipositing in the side water from noon until early evening. I'm really looking forward to it. The skwala hatch is often over hyped, but don't get me wrong, it's awesome and why I moved from Graeagle down to Nevada City - To play the best game in winter for wild trout! Day in and day out in the last week PMDs and BWOs have been hatching from 12:30 to well that depends on the day. The 27th saw light north winds and there were bugs and rising fish for a few hours. On the 30th the PMDs started off strong with a few fish working the surface and 20 minutes later the switch was turned off. On the 31st the north wind was much stronger and only a few bugs popped with very few fish rising. One key to watch for is a small black and white bird known as the Black Phoebe (pronounced pheebee). They will sit riverside on a willow branch and fly out to capture a mayfly, then return to sit on its perch. If they are really active they're telling you there is an ample amount of adult mayflies flying about. Also when playing the dry fly game from the bank, do not beat the water over and over. Find an active feeding fish and make good presentations to it, if you don’t get a grab rest the fish and possibly change your fly pattern, or try a fly first presentation. Remember with a lower sun in the sky your shadow is much longer and may spook your quarry if you're not careful.

Moisture will be arriving this weekend though the Canadian model and the European model are in vast disagreement with just how much precipitation will fall. We may see up to 2 feet of fresh pow by Sunday evening. I've got some open dates through the end of January, so if you're looking to improve your skill set, and learn more about the Lower Yuba River, give me a ring at 530.228.0487 or email me at [email protected]. Let's hope 2019 is a good one! See you on the water...

Jon Baiocchi578 Sutton Way #255Grass Valley, CA 95945(530) 228-0487

Visit my Fly Fishing blog;

http://jonbaiocchiflyfishingnews.blogspot.com/

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