October 30, 2022 Fly Fishing Report Report for the Truckee River and Pyramid Lake
With daytime temps in the 60’s and nights dropping down into the 20’s, a few days of snow on the way, and the color on the trees, fall is in full effect here in the Sierra. This is a great time of year to be on the river just as much for the fishing as the sightseeing, just be sure to dress warm and focus on getting out mid-day through the afternoon once both the air temps and water temps warm up a few degrees.
Truckee River Fly Fishing Report
The Truckee continues to fish well, with the best sections being from the confluence of Boca reservoir to the Nevada state line on the CA side, as well as the entire Nevada side as the state takes less water this time of year with the agricultural season ending, keeping great flows down here all the way to Derby Dam. Here in California, we have mostly switched gears from the tightlining game to indicator fishing as fish begin to mostly push back into the slow deep runs with water temps continuing to drop. The primary reason for the switch is due mostly in part to the angler’s ability to adjust weight and depth and most importantly the ability to fish further out that you can wade. The California side has an abundance of runs that are 10 feet or deeper and getting near the bottom of these with a tightline setup is challenging to say the least. On the Nevada side however the terrain changes and more riffles and shallower pocket water are present and euro nymphing stays good most of the winter, especially east of Sparks. We’ve still seen a good mix of bugs and are not just fishing the winter bugs quite yet so continue to play around with fly selection. This last week we’ve caught fish on stoneflies, smaller caddis pupa, BWO nymphs, midges, worms, eggs, and crawdads and even a few streamers.
Little Truckee Fly Fishing Report
The Little Truckee has had a steady flow of 125 CFS coming out of Stampede for a month or so now and while the fishing has been good, expect to fish around other anglers if opting to fish here for the day. If you’re looking to try some quieter sections of this tailwater, consider fishing from the inlet up to the bat cave or around the Boyington Mill campground, while there may be less fish you could very well find that one big lake run fish that hasn’t been inundated with fake bugs all day every day. The dry fly fishing here has seemed to slow with the shift in weather over the last week and most anglers are doing best fishing nymphs, in particular when used on a tightline setup to maintain a stealthy approach and have improved strike detection. As per usual, 6x tippet has helped when fishing here, especially when fishing your size 18’s and below.
Pyramid conditions are changing as the weeks pass, and the stormy weather will make things even more interesting.
Pyramid Lake Fishing
Pyramid has been in the in between stages of fishing currently. This causes the bait balls to be a bit more scattered and no longer right on the surface, bringing the trout higher in the water column, but still pretty far off the shoreline, making it tough for shore anglers. The best way for fly anglers to find fish right now is to get out on a float tube or pontoon with a fish finder and locate the remaining bait balls, drop your flies below them and pick off the trout feeding on the Tui Chub. After this storm system expected Tuesday, we should see the bite pick up significantly with a good possibility of shore fishing.
We have a full supply of cold weather gear in stock, and rod/reel combos for Pyramid Lake excursions too. Hope to see you soon.
-Miles
Check out our 4-part Article about fishing at Pyramid Lake
We have a nice assortment of winter gloves at the shop.