Ted Fay Report : December 15, 2020

Merry Christmas. We want to thank all of you for your loyal patronage and support this last year. It’s been a very difficult year to say the least in so many ways and Bob appreciates all of you who have been so loyal and of course those of you who have just discovered The Ted Fay Fly Shop. The shop is operating at Winter hours now, closed Monday and Tuesday and open Wednesday thru Saturday 8-5pm and Sunday 12-5pm. Remember, Bob is very happy to take orders over the phone for you last minute shoppers and ship that special Christmas gift to you or yours. Here’s hoping 2021 is a brighter year for all, it’s times such as this that makes us all so appreciative of the great outdoors and what it has to offer.

Here’s a quick fishing report. Most rivers are closed now but the Upper Sacramento River here is open all year round for those of you who like to get out for some walk wade fishing. Currently the river is running very low and clear and the fishing is fair at best….. we need RAIN! On the other hand the Klamath River just to the north is producing a good run of steelhead.

Happy Holidays to all from Bob, Steven and Rick

Ted Fay Fishing Rport : October 8, 2020

McCloud River

As of this moment the smoke from all the fires is finally leaving us. The McCloud River has been giving up some beautiful bows and brownies producing big smiles from our satisfied customers. With the onset finally of cold nights we are seeing more active fish, you can currently find them taking both nymphs and dries. The October Caddis are just beginning to get out and about in the mornings and late afternoon. The fish are just beginning to key in on them and it will only get better as we get deeper into October and early November. A recent outing found us some large browns. To find them you must be near the bottom in the mud, weighted sculpins with a smaller nymph as a teaser working best.

Upper Sacramento River

Hazy skies come and go from the Zogg Fire and the Upper Sac is starting to kick in with the mornings cooling. As I said the mornings are cold and the fishing has been on the slow side but as the afternoon kicks in the fish have been very grabby. The October Caddis are just making a showing particularly from Gibson up to Ney Springs. Our outings have had more success recently nymphing but the fish should be getting tickled enough any time soon by these big caddis so start thinking about these USDA choice morsels. The Chubbys and Stimmies with a dropper will serve you well. Lots of smaller Caddis out too so think Poopahs as a go to nymph.

Klamath River

Finally the Klamath has opened back up after the devastating  Happy Camp fire closures. We recently had a boat near there and can report the half pounders are definitely in. The river will only continue to improve as the heat waves are gone, days are cooling and the water temps drop. If you would like a fun day with these early steelhead think about hiring one of our excellent guides. We offer swinging or running nymphs, your choice. The fall on the Klamath offers some excellent fishing along with an explosion of fall colors.

Lower Sacramento River

The Lower Sac is such a gem. We have been enjoying days down there with father/daughter clients and having a ball intorducing them to a fun day in the boat. For all of you feeling holed up with the family consider this as an alternative …. getting out in nature, family time, intro to fly fishing 101 (no experience needed), sharing smiles and no devices.

Cheers

Rick Cox

Wild Waters Fly Fishing

1-877-9347466

Home Grown Porn

Home Grown Porn

Recommended Bugs .... Nymphs

Dirty Bird #8-12

Posse Bugger #8

Red Fox Squirrel #8-10

October Caddis Pupa #8-10

Plump Poopah #8-10

Jimmy Legs #4-14

LBS (dig back to a certain previous report)

Gordon Prince #14-16

Copper John (red & copper) #14-16

Tan or Olive Fox Poopah #14-16

Soft Hackles #14-16

Dries

Humpy #8-16

Adams #8-18

X-Caddis #14-16

E/C Caddis #14-16

Stimulator #8-14

PMD #14-16

If you have any further questions give Bob a shout at the shop or just stop in and bug him next time in the area.

Ted Fay Report : September 16, 2020

McCloud River Report

As if Covid wasn’t enough we are now dealing with extreme fire danger here with all National Forest closed to the public. Specifically the McCloud River is shutdown. As you can see the closure will be reviewed again next week but for now the river is closed. Up until the closure the river was putting out some beautiful fish and to add sauce to it the river colored up, but not enough to keep you off of it. Smoke has been bad to manageable but with all the surrounding fires you can expect these types of days for quite some time. I don’t know about you all but I’m done with 2020, this year has been blow after blow to the gut for all of us.

The Upper Sacramento River

On the other hand most of the USac is open still except for a couple of spots, specifically Pollard Flat and Dog Creek. It’s been fishing good from above Dunsmuir to Shasta Lake. The nights are starting to cool down now and and the freaking hot weather has just about gone. The river is at its summer/fall low and running very clear so stealth is important. Think LBS flies for sure and maybe play around with a big rubber leg, the October Caddis will start their wake up call soon and the fish will start keying in on them. Most of the bigger fish are in the heavy oxygenated water and we are still seeing a fair amount of browns moving up from the lake so this river is a great alternative.

Rick Cox

Wild Waters Fly Fishing

1-877-934-7466

If you have any further questions please call the shop and when you are in the area stop in and bug Bob.