Pit River

Pit River Fishing Report: 1/31/2012

Best fishing is going to be found below Britton Dam, in Pit #3. Flows in Pit #3 are around 330 cfs. Be aware the river is high (between 400-600 cfs) in Pit #4 and #5. So, maybe not the best conditions for fly fishing, but a few rainbows can be found if you go. The great thing about going is you will have the place to yourself. Solitude comes at a premium…sometimes. 

Hot Flies: #6-8 Pats Rubber Legs, Red San Juan Worms, #10-14 Black A.P., Brown TB Pseudo May, Red Licorice, #16-18 Copper Zebra John, #14-16 Pheasant Tail Nymph, 

Contact me about winter guided fishing on the Pit River Contact Me!

ABOUT

It’s winter on California’s Pit River offering 12-15″ rainbow trout on one of the wests best trout streams. Not an easy river to wade, a staff should always be at hand. With the higher flows that started this year, it’s a great idea to wade with an inflatable personal floatation device. The Pit is strewn with pockets, pools, runs and glides. The Pit river is amazing, the fishing is excellent! Winter fly fishing on the Pit river offers some solitude and wild, native rainbow trout. Check with The Fly Shop about road conditions! 800-669-3474

Pit River, CA.

All the fish here are tough. They are the rainbows others are measured against.  It’s true!  The Pit’s remoteness makes this river less crowded than the Upper Sacramento or McCloud Rivers.  October Caddis hatches drive the feeding trout through the fall months, but the party does not end on November 15th like it does on the Pit River or Hat Creek.  We can fish here well into December or until the first major winter storm of the season shuts us out.  For anglers wanting a break from it all, away from the throngs of anglers attempting to catch steelhead, the Pit is a great choice!!  The Pit River is fishing great by the way!

The Pit River is open all year long.  It is the most tedious river to wade.  Bring the cheapest wading staff you can find, because if you bring your nice one, it will get folded in half!  I slip, slide, stumble and fall on this river!  But,  the Pit River has some of the best Fly Fishing I have ever experienced on a trout stream!

The rainbows here are 100% wild.  They go from small to 20”.  Some section offer high populations of fish no smaller than 16”!  Great for that river photo of you and a few rainbow trout!  This river is remote, like the McCloud.

The Pit River is a demanding river to wade.  A wading staff is a very good tool for any angler, any ability!  Expect to deal with irregular rock formations all day long in and out of the water.  Wading boots and diamond cleats are the best way to go about walking.wading the Pit.  Waders are recommended by the end of September.

The Pit River can be fished using 9′ 5wt fly rod. Floating lines and indicators are the most popular method of suspending various nymphs between 3-5 feet below. Some anglers prefer studded wading boots on the Pit, but I will be the first to tell you that on this stream, it does not matter. A wading staff is a must, but don’t bring your $110.00 Simms wading staff unless you are okay with folding it in half after it gets wedged between a couple boulders as you begin to fall. Try to find an old ski pole. In the summer, expect to wade wet (no waders). In the winter months, dress warm, wear waders and be prepared for snow. The Pit is a remote river with few if any services nearby. Expect to be out of cell range all day. It’s a long walk out of the Pit River should you get snowed in.