The State of the Underground Address: Fly Fishing the Upper Sacramento in Winter

While second-rate politicians bloviate about things like world peace and global warming, here at the Underground we’re deeply concerned about what’s really important.

That’s the State of Fly Fishing (natch).

Winter’s been hard.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say I’d been looking forward to this winter’s fishing with something approaching childlike glee.

Two years ago, the river fished well on dries until late January. It was the first winter the river was open to fishing, and several of us assumed it would always be that good.

We were wrong.

Last winter was warm and wet, so the river was largely unfishable (all but 150 feet of it anyway) and the spring runoff lasted a long time.

Whining about it didn’t lower the flows, and whining required a pretty short memory anyway.

The prior year had been so good that I knew it couldn’t last forever, and when it stopped, it wasn’t so much the end of something as a return to normalcy.

Still, I expected better this winter.

Where Are the Bugs?

This winter’s seen excellent flows and often perfect conditions - the only missing element being the BWOs.

I’m beginning to suspect the high peak flows of last spring hammered the bug population a little bit.

Still, everything in nature is cyclical, and the good news is that high flows revitalize the bug habitat, so while the hatches are a little low this year, we’ll see more bugs in the coming years.

Consider it an investment.

Naturally, I’m looking forward to next winter with an almost childlike glee.

What’s Next?

This winter is far from over, and a fly fisher without ideas is a man bereft of hope.

There are fish in the river, the flows are good, and I we’re only a few bugs away from at least a couple rising fish (which - when you reflect on the minimalist painting that is winter - is all you really need).

And even if the winter remains a bust, we’re looking at a short runoff period and faster access to the backcountry this spring.

And to be sure, I’m looking forward to that with a childlike glee. Who wouldn’t?

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