TCO Fishing Report - February 19, 2021
Truckee River Report and Forecast
Fishing remains very steady on the river this week. The trout are holding in a variety of water and fishing “the in-between water” is highly recommended when walking to the next big bucket, even if its just a few casts into potential holding water. Often fish will move from the more pressured buckets into this water and this could make the difference between a 1-2 fish day and a 5-6 fish day. Look for riffles, seams off boulders, and pocket water and fish it all. The best water will continue to be from the Boca confluence down to state line, but even there the flows are on the low side. Let’s continue to pray for some more snow to keep the creeks and rivers running cold all summer. A couple more storms like we had last month could make all the difference for our snowpack.
We have been mostly fishing under an indicator as this will be the best way to effectively present nymphs in a variety of water as you are able to add or subtract weight and fish deep or shallow water, in close or on the other side of the river all without changing your set-up, retying any knots, etc. While euro nymphing can be effective when fishing faster water and is a great way to target trout in the summer months, when fish are spread out in various water types the indicator is king. On another note, streamer fishing remains a solid option if you are looking to head hunt for those larger fish eaters. Sculpins are the name of the game here and a variety of sizes and colors work but a good place to start would be something in the 2-3 inch range and in olive, black, white or natural. As with the indicator, toss your streamer in any likely holding water and expect a fish on your first couple of casts. If there is no response then move on, covering water is key on this river. Don’t expect to stay at one run all day and continue to pull fish out of it. Fishing will be best mid-day and being on the water by 11 and fishing until 5 will give you plenty of time to find a few fish.
Fly recommendations for the Truckee River
Pat’s Rubberlegs in brown #8-#10, Tungsten Trout Retrievers in chocolate #8, Gummy Worms in red or pink #12, San Juan Worms in red or pink #12, Flexy Floss Worms in red or pink #12, BH Lightning Bugs Pearl or purple #16-#18, Tungsten Juju Baetis in purple or Baetis #16-#18, Micromays in olive #16-#18, Pheasant tails in natural or purple #16-#18, Copper Johns in Black or purple #16-#18, Prince Nymphs #16-#18, Zebra Midges in red or black #16-#18, Sculpzillas in olive or black #4-#8, Mini-Loop sculpins #8, Conehead Ziwis in white or olive #10. We offer a great set of Truckee River Flies online that has a great selection of these for best winter fishing.
Little Truckee River Fly Fishing Report and Forecast
Access has opened up on the Little Truckee as snow has began to melt and those with high clearance vehicles break trail. We still recommend you use caution when traveling back here with ruts and patches of ice. Bring a shovel and tow strap and keep in mind cell reception can be spotty. Fishing the lower river by the inlet is a good option when you’re not feeling daring enough to head up the hill. When fishing the inlet, there can be limited space for anglers, please be mindful of others and spread yourselves out to the best of your ability, the fish here are very spooky and it’s easy to unintentionally put them down when someone is fishing for them. Dry fly fishing can be good here on any given day and you should carry a good assortment of midge, BWO and winter stone dries. Nymphing when hatches are not present is also a great way to find fish. The upper section of the Little Truckee has been fishing very well, just like down below using dry flies when hatches are present and nymphs the rest of the time will be best. Here the euro nymph set up can be deadly as you are mostly fishing 20-30 feet away and in depths of 2-4 feet. Look for fish in a variety of water, these pressured fish will sit in most every viable nook and cranny. Using 6x tippet and flies in 1-2 sizes smaller than what you would fish on the Truckee is strongly encouraged to up your bite rate. Dry fly hatches will most likely happen around mid-morning to mid-day so be sure to have your dry fly rod at hand if and when they start coming off.
Recommended Flies for the Little Truckee
Zebra Midges in red or black #18-#22, Flexy Floss Worms in pink or red #12, San Juan Worms in red or pink #12, Bead back midges in black or gray #18-#20, RS2s in olive or gray #18-#20, WD40s in gray #18-#20, Juju Baetis in purple or Baetis #18-#20, Copper Johns in black or purple #18, Griffiths Gnats #20-#22, Dandelion Midge in RS2 #20, Hackle Stacker in BWO #18, Mole Fly In BWO #18-#20, Para BWO #18-#20, Elk Hair Caddis in black #18.
Pyramid Lake Report and Forecast
The bite at Pyramid has been getting more consistent in the last few weeks as we see more small storms make their way through the Sierras. We recommend looking at the forecast and timing your trips during days when overcast skies and moderate winds are present ideally out of the east. As usual, they are taking a variety of techniques and having two set ups with a floating and a sinking line at your disposal will be best. Under the indicator, midges and balanced leeches have been catching fish almost equally so don’t be caught without a variety of both to see what they prefer for the day. Stripping with various buggers paired with either a beetle or booby has been good especially during low light conditions or when heavy swells are present, once again have a good variety of flies and be willing to switch them out until you find consistent success. Check out our pyramid lake fly selection on our website for a good go-to assortment for out here. Also, please check out our write-up about Pyramid on our blog for everything you will ever need to know about this lake!
Recommended Flies for Pyramid Lake:
Moo Midges in red or wine #8, Patriot Midges #10, Cutbait midges in #8-10, Pyramid Beach Leeches in Black #8, Tyler’s Balanced Leeches in midnight cowboy or olive #10, Flashabou Woolly Buggers in Black #8, Pyramid Beetles in chartreuse/white or black #8, Estaz Woolly Worms in pearl or chartreuse/black. We also have a ready-to-go set of our favorite flies for Pyramid online here.
Please stop by the shop and say hello – and – we have a great new coffee shop next door called Drink Coffee Do Stuff.
Tight lines!
Visit www.TroutCreekOutfitters.com to see more gear and read our stories.
Miles