A new species added to my list.

Andy and I have both purchased new two weight rods this year. We have some new and amazing trips planned this year. We will be traveling all over the state fishing tiny creeks looking for unique and rare fish.

We hit a small creek this week and I broke mine in already with a super rare (for California) Redeye Bass.

Its funny how many people think they are catching redeye bass when in reality they are just catching spotted bass or smallmouth bass that have red eyes. This is a perfect example of a true redeye bass (Micropterus coosae).

Stay tuned for more tales of our two weight adventures.

Local Ponds

The  creeks are not quit ready yet. We have been having a blast catching bluegill and small bass from our local ponds.

 

Even my sister Barb made it up to catch a few small bass.

Christy managed to fool this monster on a dry fly.

This redear sunfish couldn't resist the red midge.

A nice bluegill, one of my favorite fish to catch.

Marvins first bass of the year.

One of the many bass we caught that day.

Andy getting worked by a big bluegill.

Andy with his first green sunfish.

My new home

Just in case anybody is wondering where I have been. I got a new job working at the Orvis in Roseville. Its a great gig and I am really working to promote fly fishing in the community. We are having a special fly fishing day coming up with refreshments, seminars and great sales. I will post all the info down below. If you are in the neighborhood come by and say hi.

Orvis Days Troutfest

April 28^th & 29^th

Why battle the crowds on trout opener when you can join the Orvis team for 2 days of fun filled trout seminars. We will be covering a variety of topics and have plenty of refreshments on hand. No registration is required for any of these events but feel free to call us at (916)783-9400 with any questions.

Fly Fishing Small Streams

Saturday April 28^th 11:30 a.m.

The Sierra Nevada’s host hundreds of miles of small streams, many of which hold wild trout. Small stream fishing is a great way to beat the crowds and catch a lot of fish. Join Orvis Fishing Manager Jason Cotta as he talks about how to fish these little gems. 

Native Trout of California

Saturday April 28^th 1 p.m.

            California boasts 13 different species of native trout. Join native trout expert and Orvis employee Frank Seifert as he talks about California’s different species of native trout, where they live, how to catch them, and how they have evolved. This is a fantastic seminar for those that are pursuing the California Heritage Trout Challenge.

Fly Fishing the Lower Yuba River

Saturday April 28^th 2:30 p.m.

            The Yuba River is a great year round fishery located just an hour and a half outside of Sacramento. The Yuba River holds resident rainbow trout, as well as runs of steelhead. Orvis associate Mike Folden will be covering fly selection, equipment, access points, and presentations to catch fish on the Yuba all year long. 

Stillwater Basics

Sunday April 29^th 1 p.m.

When spring run turns the rivers to chocolate milk, try your hand at fishing a few lakes. Stillwater fish fight hard, grow big, and once you know how, can be relatively easy to catch. Join Orvis associate Frank Seifert as he talks about everything you need to get started fishing for still water trout.

Reading Moving Water

Sunday April 29^th 2:30 p.m.

Finding fish in moving water can often times be very challenging. This seminar is designed to help take the guess work out of fishing rivers. We will be covering how to read and fish moving water, allowing you to consistently catch more fish.

We also have some great fly fishing classes:

Orvis Roseville

Upcoming Classes, Schools, & Seminars

Free Fly Fishing 101

Now’s your chance to learn fly fishing basics in one of our free fly fishing 101 classes. Free fishing lessons on fly casting and outfit rigging. Registration is required and class size is limited so call to reserve your spot today! Cost: FREE!!!

Event Dates
May 5 May 6 May 12 May 13 May 26 May 27		June 2 June 3 June 16 June 17 June 23 June 24

Fly Fishing 201

If you’ve already completed Fly Fishing 101, you’re ready for the next step. Join us for a short outing on local water for a chance to catch your first fish! Registration is required and class size is limited so call us and get signed up today. Cost: $20

Event Dates
May 19 May 20		June 9 June 10 June 30 July 1

Warm Water School

April 14^th Location: TBD

Join the Orvis team for this great on the water school that will teach you all you need to get started in the world of warm water fishing. This class will cover tackle, techniques, fly selection and fisheries to target bass, bluegill, and crappie. All equipment and a sack lunch will be provided. Location TBD with a max of 8 students. Cost: $100

Nymphing 101

April 21^st 2 p.m. In-Store

Join the Orvis team for this free in store seminar that will teach you all you need to know about nymphing for trout and steelhead. This seminar will cover equipment, rigging, fly selection, and presentation. Eighty percent of what fish eat is sub-surface making this a great opportunity to learn the skills you need to improve your catch rate.

Please call Orvis Roseville to sign up for any of the above events.

Orvis Roseville

(916)783-9400

Back to our winter hot spot.

Finding stillwater WILD trout can be a bit tough in the winter time. While most people are chasing the DFG planter truck. We are still managing to scrounge up a few fish that were not born in a cement tank.

Mike caught the first fish within minutes of putting in. I was still putting my waders on when I heard him yell "In your face Frank". I knew he was going to be on them today and I was going to hear it all day.

Mike fighting a fish while we are still getting ready. 

With Mike catching the first fish of the day ,within a couple of feet of the bank it told us to fish shallow. Mace brought his fish finder and it read a water temp of only 37 degrees .The fish would take just about any fly as long as it was thrown on an intermediate line.

Mace with a typical brown from this lake.

My first fish of the day, a small but pretty rainbow.

My next fish was a brown.

This one tried to jump in the boat.

Each cast could be a brown or rainbow.

Mace stopped looking at his fishfinder long enough to catch one.

 The storm rolled in around 2:00 and we decided we were cold enough and it was time to head out for some lunch and few cold beers.

A good day for brownies.

Now that I have slowed my life down a little bit. I seem to have much more time to fish. Life is very good right now. I have managed to get out three times already this month and it is only the eighth.

Mace and I were planning a trip this week to a lake not too far from Placerville. This is one of my favorite lakes this time of year for brown trout. We both thought it would be a great idea to give Mike a call and see if he wanted to join us. Mike was in for a fishing trip and we volunteered him to drive. After a  fairly short drive to the lake, we were in the water and we were into fish, well at least I was. Within minutes I had caught my first beautiful wild brown trout followed by a few more in short order. Mike and Mace were getting a little frustrated and the fact that I was rubbing it in pretty thick did not help. 

We decided to head towards the inlet to see if we could catch some bigger fish. The bigger fish seemed to be pretty thick in the inlet and we had numerous double hook ups.

Mace doing battle at the inlet.

An average one for Mace.

Mace with one of the many brown trout caught that day.

Mike working the inlet.

An average brown for the day.

Trout food and why we think these fish are so healthy.

We played around the inlet until about two o'clock and then started paddling back towards the put in. On the way in Mike and  I stumbled upon a pod of small green sunfish. We were really surprised that they were so active this time of year.

Mike with a green sunfish, he also caught the only rainbow giving him the hat trick for this lake.

Mace was enjoying the sunfish a little too much.

The three of us casually played with the green sunfish for awhile and headed out for some Mexican food and beer.