TCO Fishing Report - November 15th, 2024 for the Truckee River, Little Truckee River and Pyramid Lake
While the weather may be cold this week, with snow on the ground here in town and more on the way, the fishing remains red hot. The bite on the Truckee, the Little Truckee and Pyramid Lake are all fantastic right now. Despite these great fishing conditions, the pre-holiday crowds on these waters have been very light as most fair-weather anglers look to avoid the cold. We are firm believers that there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing. So, bundle up to get out there and land that fish of a lifetime! If you are in the market for a new piece of outerwear, stop in the shop or check online for our new cold weather clothing selection from Patagonia, Simms, Howler Bros., and more. Our shop is currently more stocked with great gear than ever before, and we got you covered from head to toe on every aspect of fly-fishing gear - just in time for the holidays!
Truckee River Fishing Report & Forecast
The main river continues to kick out some great fishing this week as the browns begin to finish up spawn and the post spawn bite starts up. This is when fishing streamers will really pick up, especially with the mix of overcast days in the forecast and the fish beginning to transition into tail outs. As is typical for this river, especially this time of year, the nymph game will be your best shot at finding consistent fishing on an otherwise inconsistent river system. We are huge fans of indicator fishing this time of year as the fish spread out from the faster water they’re found in during the warmer months.
The indicator will give you the ability to cover more water, which is important this time of the year. The ability to fish further away from the bank, adjust your depth or easily add and subtract weight will help. Additionally, the ability to really slow those drifts down in the slower sections of a run while keeping those flies in front of the fish longer are some of the main reasons we recommend putting away the euro rod and dry dropper rig this time of year. When indicator fishing this week, we found good success on worms, stones, and eggs as well as baetis nymphs and midge larvae. The use of a larger “junk fly” up top with something in the size of 16-18 imitating BWO’s (baetis), or midges will be an absolute go-to during the leaner months. So, make sure you’re well stocked on these winter staples!
Some great Truckee River patterns this week have been San Juan worms in red and tan, gummy worms in red or purple, Pat’s rubberlegs in brown, juju baetis in purple, olive micro mays, and black or red zebra midges. With flows good along most of the river system, we have been getting good reports everywhere from here in Truckee through downtown Reno. So, consider getting out and trying some new water this week. Exploration is a big part of what makes this sport fun!
Little Truckee River Fishing Report & Forecast
The Little Truckee has been fishing very well this week with some very large lake fish in the river right now. However, we are still seeing quite a few browns on redds out here. So please remain very aware of where you’re wading, and avoid crossing around, fishing to, or being near these vulnerable fish. There is a good chance that the spawn was delayed here due to the low flows, and we could see fish spawning through the rest of the month. Please give these fish their space during this time!
During days with no wind, we are seeing a good hatch of mostly baetis. But there are also midges, mahogany duns, and a small olive stonefly. The baetis (Think Jujubaetis and RS-2’s) are around a size 18-20, the midges are 20-22, the mahogany duns (Pheasant tails are a great imitation) are a 14-16, and the little olive stones are also a 14-16. With baetis being the most consistent, the best chance of getting a fish on top would be using small mayfly imitations. Especially when fishing the emerger stage.
The use of long leaders and 6x tippet will be vital for success when attempting to dupe these selective trout on small flies. When hatches aren’t present, using nymphs will be best. We are catching fish on the usual suspects, such as worms, eggs, BWO nymphs and midge patterns using 5x-6x fluorocarbon tippet. Both euro nymphing and indicator fishing have been working well out here because of the smaller size of this river. Even still, we have been leaning towards the indicator so we can fish small, unweighted flies with greater ease. Be sure to use small indicators in white or clear and one small piece of split shot in a size 4 or 1 when indicator fishing out here, these small details can make a big difference.
As we got a few good dustings of snow, take caution while driving the road out here, as it does not get plowed. We recommend 4wd or AWD vehicles with good tires out here right now.