California Fishing Guides
California's fisheries run the length of the state. The Upper Sacramento, McCloud, Fall, and Hat Creek for technical trout. The Sierra high country for wild goldens — the state fish. The Lower Sacramento below Redding for trophy rainbows. The Smith River for winter steelhead. The Delta and Bay for striped bass and sturgeon. Offshore, Catalina and the Channel Islands for yellowtail and tuna. It's a continent's worth of fishing inside one state.
Top waters in California
Upper Sacramento River
Rainbow trout, brown trout
Freestone with wild rainbow trout. The river runs alongside I-5 north of Redding — easy access but quality fishing. Salmonfly and caddis hatches in spring, terrestrial season through summer.
McCloud River
Rainbow trout, brown trout
Historic home of the McCloud redband rainbow — the strain exported to streams worldwide. The lower river below McCloud Reservoir is private-access through The Nature Conservancy. Upper river is public forest service.
Fall River
Rainbow trout, brown trout
Spring-fed glide in a volcanic basin. Pressure-only access (boat in). Selective wild trout. Hex hatch — one of the largest mayflies on the continent — runs from mid-June through July and into August on warm evenings, and is a west-coast highlight.
Smith River
Winter steelhead, king salmon
California's last major undammed river. Trophy winter steelhead — 20-pound fish are caught every year. Clear-water sight-fishing opportunity rare on the west coast. December through March.
California fishing by season
Spring
Lower Sacramento shad run. Upper Sac and McCloud thaw out and fish well. Smith River steelhead taper off. Striped bass in the Delta. Everything in the state is active.
Summer
Sierra high country opens — goldens above 10,000 feet, hike-in creeks. Fall River hex hatch peaks in late June. Offshore season firing for yellowtail, mahi, tuna. Most freestones fishable only in morning and evening.
Fall
Delta stripers firing. Trout pre-spawn. King salmon runs on the Sacramento, Trinity, and Klamath. Sierra high-country closes by October. Best month is October.
Winter
Smith River winter steelhead — the headline fishery. Lower Sacramento trophy rainbows continue. Delta striper migration. Northern CA gets most of its rain, so conditions change fast.
No other state offers wild golden trout at 12,000 feet and yellowtail tuna 30 miles offshore in the same week. The McCloud redband is the genetic source of rainbow trout stocked across the world — this is the homeland of the species. The Smith is the only major undammed steelhead river left in California, and its clarity makes it the most photographable steelhead fishery on the West Coast.
The Lower Sacramento below Keswick Dam is one of the most underrated trophy rainbow fisheries in the country — 18-20 inch fish are common and the guide fleet is excellent. Best fishing is actually in winter (December-February) when everyone assumes it's off. Book Redding-based guides then for the best rates and biggest fish.
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