Fly fishing through California runoff

The original plan was to go swing flies for steelhead, but I misplaced my rain jacked and called an audible. Decided to nymph my local water when the flows were double their normal and see what we could figure out.
Extended fishing recap video: • FISHING RECAP: Califor...
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[@FreeFormFlyFisher]

Glad to see a new video. Whether catching or not. Can't wait to get on some water myself. Tight lines 🤙🏾

[@driftstone]

Thanks bro, looking forward to seeing some of your upcoming adventures!

[@thedanceingbear]

I needed to see this. Started feeling like I was the only one getting skunked lol. Glad to see new videos.

[@BeyerOutdoors]

Great video! That's the kind of water I want to be fishing in. Thank you for sharing & good luck with the boat & job.

[@blueridgeflyguy9551]

Savage day. It’s always good to take the chance and go rather than dealing with the regret from not doing so.

[@brandondooley5091]

Great video as usual Eric. Beautiful area. Ready for that guided boat trip..

[@driftstone]

Ha, thank you. I'm sure you'll see the updates as they come out. I hope to be ready to roll in June/July.

[@jaredrichardson917]

That's a good spot. I've caught a pretty decent sized fish at the end of the narrower section where the river opens back up again

[@markfischer1012]

Changing flies is a great idea see which menu options the fish are looking for.😂

[@Gbow17]

Nice to see you get out. Always fun to watch fish or no. Can't wait to see the members review. Interested in seeing where you were at. The club is planning a Spey Clave for next year if you are interested in that.

[@driftstone]

That companion video will be out later this evening. I'm definitely interested in the Spey Clave. When I drop this side job, I hope to get more involved with the club!

[@kevingarrett9694]

Eric, I was elated to see that you had a new video! Your content is always impressive! Thank you.

[@driftstone]

Thanks Kevin, I appreciate you

[@flyfisher530]

Nice video, beautiful section of river. New subscriber!

[@driftstone]

Thanks bro, looks like you've got some cool local content too. Checking it out now!

[@daveschlom4033]

Way to persevere brother! Getting out there was definitely the thing to do. You may not have done much catching but the fishing was good for you and fun to watch. Adverse conditions but you're gonna get em next time! I will think of you while stripping your red leeches on Easter Sunday!

[@driftstone]

How'd you do on Easter? Been thinking of getting my float tube wet soon!

[@daveschlom4033]

@@driftstone It was great. Started out cold and no action. Thought I was gonna get skunked for a while and reminding myself that fishing is way more important than catching. You can control the former, not the latter! Red leech under an indicator produced the biggest fish (16-17") of the day but the really fun ones were on dries! PMDs, BWOs and a Griffiths Gnat. Your flies are definitely going with me to the McCloud soon!

[@s_shake]

Cinematography is beautiful as always 🙌

[@driftstone]

Thank you 🙌

[@keithmccann6019]

Great looking water!

[@andrewexon3358]

Back at it, catching fish, catching sticks, and catching trees. Seems like we have a similar use case fly fishing at times. Hopefully you get that boat here soon.

[@driftstone]

Ha just keeping it real. We all do it :D Looking forward to new floating adventures to come!

[@paulpohopien709]

Glad to see you got out, skunked but beautiful water albeit a little higher/faster than one might like. Great B-Roll as always…

[@driftstone]

It's part of the game this time of year. Next time we'll get'em!

[@AlaskanJake]

Great video. Cool seeing the different watersheds holding fish around the country.

[@driftstone]

Ha well you'll have to trust me that there are fish here ha. It's just a tough trib when the water is high.

[@AlaskanJake]

Ha. Maybe I'll make a trip down and you can show me 😂

[@AlaskanJake]

@@driftstone We get high water a lot in Alaska too. Makes fishing tricky if not impossible on some of our watersheds.

[@driftstone]

@@AlaskanJake only if you'll do the same with me up there 😂

[@AlaskanJake]

@@driftstone Deal. I'm no expert but I can find the fish

[@guyquinton2413]

Botanical garden drifts lol

[@richmoore8070]

I knew exactly where you were from the parking lot. That run at GR is pretty tough, Even moreso with high flows. There's usually a fish hiding out just above and to the right of that upstream rock. The river is too fast right now. Best to wait until it gets

[@driftstone]

That's awesome Rich, it's a pretty stretch of water when we settle into normal summer flows. Good spot to learn too, wide up and plenty of room to cast.

[@madone07]

Know that section well. We decided to fish elsewhere as we thought flows were too high. Had some luck in some of your other rivers/creeks but it’s tough this time of year

[@driftstone]

Definitely a tough time of year. Maybe it's time to explore some lakes until things settle down :D

[@colbymyers6278]

Nice video! At least you got out there. That spot looks awesome. Might be streamer time

[@driftstone]

You're probably right, I should have tried some streamers. I'm not super confident with them here, I should fix that :D

[@colbymyers6278]

@@driftstone it’s suppose to be the go to in high water. I’ve been watching a lot of old Kelly gallop videos. It makes me want to throw big streamers everywhere

[@driftstone]

@@colbymyers6278 haha nice. I just started playing with trailing hooks, hoping to have better hookup rates.

[@colbymyers6278]

@@driftstone I just saw a video of a 25” rainbow from your area caught on a jig sculpin. Not sure where it was posted.

[@genedavella9817]

some of that water looked treacherous for wading. At least for this 62 y/o !

[@driftstone]

This was really high water and there are plenty of options to wade is slower water, especially at regular summer flows.

[@genedavella9817]

@@driftstone I would really like to drive up from SoCal for a guided trip. When is the best time? Can you reccomend any campsites in the area

[@driftstone]

@@genedavella9817 I think May is one of the best months. The temps have come up and we're through runoff (usually) and it isn't super hot like it will be in June. Simms campground is right on the river, there is another one at Castle Crags which is great too. DM me if you have any more questions.

[@rachfish]

I change flies more often than I move. Perhaps a side product of aging and arthritis rather than any real strategy. 🤷‍♀️

[@driftstone]

Haha, the few flies I rotated through I have a lot of confidence here and have caught many fish with. I get into ruts with my flies though and use the same 10 patterns.