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Lower
American River - Sacramento, California
By
Bill Kiene
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LOCATION
The American River starts at the top of the west slope of the Sierras
heading west down through the foothills into Folsom Lake and then
Lake Natomas. The 23-mile stretch of river that is called the Lower
American River then flows out of Nimbus Dam, heading west to the
confluence with the Sacramento River in downtown Sacramento. The
location, size and accessibility of this river make it a popular
destination for many valley and bay area residents.
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ACCESS
The access to this stretch is very good with a bicycle and footpath
running it’s entire length. There are many car accesses and some
boat launching sites as well. Today, we see more drift boats and
other small fishing craft floating the many secluded miles of river.
The speed limit for motorized watercraft is 5 mph, which helps keep
the river a more peaceful place. The river is famous as multiuse
water way with boating, rafting, kayaking, hiking, jogging, bicycling,
swimming, bird watching and picnicking as just a few of the many
uses of the American River Parkway. See Lower
American River map or stop by the shop and we can point you
in the right direction.
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FLOWS
The flows can vary dramatically in this stretch of river depending
on the snow pack each winter. Some years it will flow over 5,000
cfs all spring and we will miss the early Halfpounders steelhead
run and the Shad run all together. We think that 2,000 cfs is a
perfect flow for fly-fishing the river. Flows below 1,500 cfs for
any length of time will cause the fish to get pretty spooky. Over
3,000 cfs can be a little harder to wade, but still OK. Flows over
5,000 cfs are very dangerous with some drownings every season.
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TACKLE
We feel that a #6 and #8 outfit will handle most species of fish
that you will encounter on the river. A full weight forward floating
line is a must for both. Then a couple of sinking lines in different
sink rates will round out your arsenal. We use shooting head systems
as well as sink tip lines in various sizes.
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WADING
This is a serious issue in fishing this size of river. Don’t go
out alone and don’t go in deeper than you feel comfortable. A good
pair of breathable stocking foot chest waders with studded felt
sole wading boots is a must. Be sure to use a belt around your waste
over your waders to keep out the water if you slip and fall. A safety
floatation devise is a good idea as well. Some will also find a
wadding staff to be a handy tool.
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SPECIES
The main species that are targeted by fly fishers are all migratory,
which include the American Shad, Steelhead, Stripped Bass and King
Salmon. At this time in the history of the river there are normally
good fishable numbers of these fish at their specific timing. Learning
when, where and how to fly fish for each of these species is the
first step in enjoying this great piece of water.
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STEELHEAD
Steelhead, sea run Rainbow trout, come in two size groups in our river smaller fish called ‘Halfpounders’ and larger adult winter run Steelhead. We have the ‘Halfpounders’ runs in the spring and fall. The spring run fish are smaller, averaging around 14”. This run can be good if we don’t have high water in March/April. They can ‘key in’ on the afternoon/evening caddis emergences in the upper reaches of the lower American River. This is from Goethe Park upstream to Sailor Bar. Trout tactics are best for these red hot little torpedoes.
The fall run fish average 16” long,
but can get up to 22” with some regularity. Some larger 5 to 7 pound
fish get caught on occasion. Sept/Oct is prime time for fall fish
with AM and PM being the best time to find them most active. We
fish for them with #5, 6 and 7 weight outfits. Many methods can
be effective for them, but trout tactics are usually the best. We
use smaller wet flies and nymphs with caddis patterns being very
popular. Later in the fall as the salmon start to spawn, we use
egg imitations. These fish will be taken on caddis dries in the
PM in the fall. These fall fish seem to hang around the lower reaches
of the lower American from the Paradise Beach area upstream to Goethe
Park. They seem to be in the river all winter as well. In January
and February they can be caught on salmon fry imitations. Our winter
run Steelhead run 6 to 12 pounds and can reach 20!! After the river
was dammed, our Nimbus hatchery introduced the Eel River strain
of steelhead to the river. Before the dams, our native steelhead
were much smaller fish kind of like the Klamath River fish. The
big steelhead normally start coming into the river in early December.
We like to use #6, 7 and 8 weight sink tip lines and weighted steelhead
patterns for them. Again, they are fished for with many different
methods. Indicator fishing with egg imitations is very popular too.
In the fall, the upper stretch of the Lower American, from Ancil
Hoffman Park upstream to the Hazel Avenue Bridge, is closed for
salmon spawning. Many of these large fish are hold up in this area.
When the river opens around the first of the year, we traditionally
go after these bigger fish. Be sure to check the DF&G regulations
before fishing the Lower American River. The prime time for winter
run fish is December through March. The first two weeks of February
can be a great time depending on the weather.
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KING SALMON
The King or Chinook salmon is native to the river, but after the
dams were built, they have been sustained with the Nimbus Fish Hatchery.
The entire Sacramento River drainage has had great runs of salmon
for the last 5 years or more. We have been catching them on flies
with great success for many years. Special bright colored pattern
and egg imitations are best with a strong tippet and heavy wire
hook. October is the top month, but some are here in September and
even earlier. Wading is very effective, but a small boat would be
of some advantage at times. We use #8, 9 and 10 weight outfits with
sinking lines for these large powerful fish. They run 10 to 20 pounds,
but fish way over 30 are not uncommon. AM and PM is the best time,
but many are caught in mid-day. These are the strongest fighting
fish we have in the river. They take a long time to land, so larger
rods are very popular.
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STRIPED BASS
We have Striped Bass in the river year round. They were introduced into the Sacramento River drainage in 1877 along with the American Shad from our friends on the east coast on the US. The summer months are usually the best for catching them on flies. We have schools of smaller fish appropriately called ’Schoolies’ that run 3 to 6 pounds. We also have a good population of fish that run 15 to 20 pound, but you have to work pretty hard for them. We have also some fish from 30 to 60 pounds that are seldom hooked and if so seldom landed. By floating the river in the daytime with polarized glasses, these 30-pound plus monsters can be seen. People snorkeling the American River also see these big monsters. They have been landed this summer by our staff to 40 pounds on flies but the largest fish in recent years was landed on a plug rod and weighed in at 53 pounds.
We use #7, 8, and 9 weight outfits
with fast sinking lines to get the flies down in the river. The
most popular patterns are locally tied, large streamers that look
like juvenile steelhead. We get some spring spawners into the lower
stretches of the river in March/April, but the warmer months like
June through September are the prime time. They seem to be in the
entire river, but in late summer, they seem to move up stream for
cooler water. We like to start fishing at ‘Dark Thirty AM’ but many
fish have been take in the middle of the day. Quietly free floating
in a boat and casting to structure and current seams is the best
method. Casting skills are an issue here as well as stealth.
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AMERICAN SHAD
The American Shad is a great game fish that readily takes a fly.
They are in the Herring family and run from 1 to 5 pounds and larger.
They can be caught from an anchored boat or by wading. This is one
of our most popular fisheries, which starts in May and is peaking
in June. Actually, they are in the river for quite a while, but
many anglers move on to the other fisheries like trout in the summer
months. Shad are taken in the upper reaches of this section of river
in September by anglers fishing dry flies for fall Halfpounder Steelhead.
We use anything from a #6 weight to a #8 weight outfit depending
on the flows. Sinking lines are needed to get to the level on these
fish which hang in the deeper, faster runs in large schools like
salmon. Locally developed bright colored flies in combinations of
white, pink, yellow, red, orange and chartreuse are very effective.
Bead chain eyes or dumbbell eyes are added to the flies to turn
them over so the shad can be hooked in the upper part of the mouth.
Their lower jaw is paper-thin and is easily torn. Nickel and gold
plated hooks are pretty standard if you can find them. Shad flies
run from #8 to #2 depending on the flows each season. AM and PM
is the favorite time for Shad, but they can be caught all day. Adding
a jigging motion to the fly is can help to entice the Shad to strike.
They seem to holding deeper in mid-day, but do come up near the
surface early and late in the day.
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RECOMMENDATION
I have been outfitting anglers for the American River fisheries
for over 40 years and things have not changed that much. Amazingly,
we still have good numbers of fish in all species and we also have
very good access. The fishing seems to be very good at this time,
but that might be attributed to the quality of the local fly fishers.
We have seminars on fishing for all species throughout the year
and we also have guides with boats on the river to help people learn
about these fisheries. With all the information available today,
you should be able to be at the right time, right place, with the
right tackle and good techniques to catch some of these great fish.
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CATCH AND RELEASE PLEASE
We recommend pinching down the barbs on all your flies for safety.
Another reason is that it is easier on the flies and the fish. If
we all try to release these fish, we can insure that they will be
here for many years to come. We recommend a camera for saving the
great moments. It is also questionable whether or not these fish
are healthy to eat?
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Lower American
Fishing Report
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