The Northern California Fly Fishing Board

Got a sitter and headed to the Lower American with a friend to pursue the poor man's tarpon, aka Shad. After two hours I had not picked up a fish and was feeling like I might repeat my amazing feat of the past couple years... not landing a single shad and botching the job on plenty... two outings and I was 0-2... in the first two hours I was still sans fish... then things opened up... ended up landing 9 and we had two doubles... we were in a drift boat and got most of the fish jigging the fly below the boat. Good time on the water.

B-

Nice to know that you got them this year Bjorn,

Looks like Summer is here, Shad fishing sounds offer great fun. This weekend is a no go for me, but try to make it up there next few weeks.

Kevin

Hi Bjorn,
Some guys are slamming fish and some guys are having so so days. It's just a matter of being at the right place at the right time. Congrats on getting your fish.

There are lots of theories that explain why the bite has been inconsistent. If there are schools, they are spread out. Or the schools are broken up into pods. Maybe the flow drops of 400 cfs here and there plus drops in temperature had their effects. Maybe we can have better action as days get warmer.

I've had some great days on the Lower Yuba (between Daguerre Point and Marysville). It started 5 weeks ago when the flow was at 4K cfs. Talk about tough wading. As the flows dropped, my sinking spey tips got lighter. In some stretches, I use an intermediate tip. Let me tell you, shad in shallow water are more fun than those in deeper water. Maybe next week I could be using a floating tip.

I have been doing well using Pinkies, Bangers, and Bleeders.

AB

Talked to a guy working at American Fly Fishing last Sunday on our ride back from Lake Davis that claimed smaller shad patterns did the trick for him on the Yuba. They were running sleds up the river from Marysville. Have you experienced downsizing the hook size increased your hookups? We saw plenty of shad in the riffles on our trip, but they were tight lipped when we located them there. Did not see any sturgeon this year. What are the flows now days on the Yuba? As of a week ago, the shad had not spawned we noticed when one guy was filleting his catch and the females were still full of eggs.

As for Lake Davis, plenty of fish, but there are a few fish covered with parasites. Anybody have a handle as to why? Rained Friday night for about three hours straight- good time to see if the tent leaks. Any birders out there that can ID the evening birds slamming the trico hatch- flycatchers maybe? Got off the water just before dark and the truck was just covered with shucks.

Smaller flies and longer and finer leaders helped when the shad got selective on the Lower Yuba. (that's funny... a selective shad). The largest fly that I use is tied on a size 8 Targus 3908T. The smallest fly that I use is tied on a size 12 Tiemco TMC 3761. Pinks and reds have been the best colors. I used roughly a 9 foot tapered leader tapered to 6 pound test (3x on the Umpqua mono scale).

AB

Bjorn,
Joey and I have struggled getting the Shad dialed in but our success increased when Jeff Cheng showed us his flies. It's called the Bloody Maria and you can search Kienes for more info. Here's one of Joey's ties. We have only used these on the American.

Hook: 2457 sz 8-10
Tail: White antron with 2 strands pearl flashaboo
Body:Red, Blood red, Orange & Chart floss or thread
Rib: Chart wire for reds & black for others try silver too
Head: White thread ball or use White painted beads

Joey used a brass bead with a thread head. Red and blood red have been my best colors.



Good Luck,

Jet

Thanks all. I don't have that many chances to go after Shad... such is the life as the stay-at-home dad... at least for me. While we were out there I saw a dad with his girl... maybe 11 or so, fishing... very cool to see Dad and daughter out there having a good time and catching some shad. Hope that's a vision of my future.

It was great being out there and feeling the pull of those fish. Strong little buggers. Probably be my only trip for Shad this year... glad it was a good one.