Northern California Steelhead On My Mind, Will I Make It There On Time.

STEELHEAD ARE HEADING  UP THE TRINITY AND KLAMATH RIVERS, IF YOU CAN’T FIND THEM, WE KNOW WHERE THEY ARE!   

INFO@JACKTROUT.COM  OR 530-926-4540.   🙂

 We decided to head down to Chile after Christmas, we’ll be guiding all November and December in Shasta!

 Lots and lots of sun this fall, boy I sure wrong in predicting record rain storms… I guess I’ll just keep to guiding as weather forecaster is not in the cards. We’ll see later on this winter if my hunch was correct.. Sure has been great out on the rivers in all this great weather and temps and the fishing has been off the charts.

 Here’s a huge hopper Carola took a picture of out in our backyard, I see these big greenies on the Upper Sac quite often, they like to hang on the Elephant Ear plants. What a beautiful creature, some things in life are worth taking notice of.

This time of year is my favorite time because of all the beautiful fall  colors and great steelhead fishing. November is the best month to fly fish for steelhead on all of the best north state rivers.

I enjoy taking folks on the Klamath River it can be a delightful day and when you take into account all the fascinating history of gold mining, past settlers and the characters that lived and carved this territory. I guess I’m just grateful it didn’t end up being in Oregon, you know it could of easily been but lucky for us the gold miners kept it in California with a mini local gold rush on the Klamath River and of course Sutter’s Fort in the 1850’s after we had bought up the west from Mexico a few years previous. Now that’s what I call good dumb luck, that gold is what put the United States on the map from then on.  (Kind of like if you listened to Forrest Gump back in 1994 and went out and bought a $1000 worth of Apple Stock a few years later after you rented it again.)

Some years later we learned the destruction that gold mining could do to rivers and precious lands and now mining with your hands only, no power equipment is the best policy for the rivers & creeks. 

So there we were taking it all in, the crisp morning air, the colors of bright red, yellow and pale greens and the sounds of Stellar Blue Jays off in the trees trying to bark up a storm. The thrill of knowing there are salmon reds in this run and the the anticipation of how many steelhead lie up ahead. To say the least, this is a great time of year people!

That’s why when Burt Hadlock & Al Hagerdon called me for their annual steelhead roost, I made sure to put them in the best places to hook great steelhead. Over the years I learned the times of year to be at the right places on the Kalmath River, I can take you there too.

Klamath River Fly Fishing Info

We hit this section and caught over 7 adult steelhead in one spot!!

A real beauty of a fight always goes along with a lot of hooting and halloween!

Way to go Al, thanks for coming up again.

I don’t think I enjoy anything more than being out and seeing these wonderful creatures being caught. If you catch a wild steelhead it must be released unharmed. Burt enjoyed this steelhead and caught others about the same size as this batch that’s in now is incredible.

Then Al hooked a lunker in the fast water and the fight was on!

What a cromer wild steelhead, this just made my month! These steelhead are like magic, there’s nothing I like better than guiding for these incredible trout that swim amazing distances to do what they do.

Carola and I are so fired up, we are heading for 2 days on my two off!! That’s when you know you are a sick puppy and love this stuff so much, got to share with the wife and dog!! See you there!! 🙂 

 Never had this happen before, two guys named Barry on a guide trip. Sounds like it should be a hoot!

 Down river on the Upper Sac where Shasta Lake is suppose to be, we have been floating and catching great trout on both dries and nymphs. Come on up and well do a one day trip fly fishing for trout and one day for steelhead as both places have been superb.

 Not long after that Barry Blue caught a nice trout too.

 One after another, that was an epic day on the Upper Sacramento River for big trout on flies.

  Yawsa! That’s a nice trout folks.

 Over on the Upper McCloud River I went over to the other side of the river to retrieve a clients fly and saw this lovely Wintu’ Indian grinding rock or a bowl for crushing acorn nuts, etc. I stopped for a moment and reflected back to a time when the Natives ruled the waters here and many thousand Indians lived on all the sections of the McCloud River as many as 4000 at one time in the early 1700’s was estimated in the middle river. This section of river was donated in the 1900’s to the United States Forest Service by the Hearst Family on the Wyntoon Estates for public enjoyment and recreation.

 Incredible these waters flow some 20 miles underground from the top of Mount Shasta through lava tubes and comes bubbling up from the aquifers located out in Bigelow Meadows above Lakin Dam, where the McCloud River is born. Nice pocket water to throw a dry fly into wouldn’t you say.

 Then after that the river flows over 3 magnificent waterfalls where each one is unique in looks, size and structure. Truly one of the most special places I have been to on Earth still to this day. 

 My two clients, one formerly from the Ukraine really enjoyed the Upper McCloud area and they have plans to come back in the spring to possibly fish again.

 A tour of Japanese checking out the Lower Falls area as we enjoyed one of Carola’s nice hot gourmet lunches, the Upper McCloud River is really an international destination place today! All the better it was always meant to be enjoyed by all.

 OK Poachers,  taking trout illegally from the LOWER McCloud River or any other fisheries is a huge fine now, don’t get on any “Government Lists” read the regulations and know the rules. Fishing with bait on the LOWER McCloud Rivers is not allowed, more poachers than ever are being reported and caught. If you see poachers out on the LOWER McCloud River please turn them in or say something. I ran this guy off the water, this is where I make my living and he should respect our fisheries and the set rules. If you have to poach to sustain your existence, you are a loser my friend, not to mention the hundreds of places in the region where you can keep trout legally using bait.

From the heart, jt

 Brian & Monica came up after doing a trip with us in Belize earlier in the season. They had a great day catching many trout on the McCloud River on both dries and nymphs. A real fun couple that travel all over the planet in search of great fishing opportunities.

 Release wild trout, especially from the McCloud River. Keep salmon, but let the wild trout live.

 Way to go Monica, look froward to seeing you two up here in November / December!!

 Got a call from Jack Borge of Auburn, California. He said he was 84 and he wanted to do some last minute trout fishing as they were staying at the McCloud Hotel.  I brought Carola along just to make things 100% right. This guy was hilarious, one great joke or comment per minute. One great story or historic pearl learned after another.

 The raft was the perfect vessel to float this trip in and Jack commented on how much fun he was having, just then a trout bit the fly!

 The old 99 bridge down at Dog Creek was quite the site, this is one cool historic bridge that was built in 1916. Not used anymore, you can climb up the mountainside and check out the view from the top, it’s a hoot.

 After we caught 3 trout, we enjoyed this wonderful salmon gourmet lunch that was prepared by Carola.

 My wife, what a great catch if I don’t say so myself. Jack thanks for coming up and fishing with us!

 After lunch Jack caught this trout. When asked how he found us, he said down at the Public Library of course, wouldn’t know any other place to look for someone..

 That day shined high as we floated a river Jack once loved wading as a youngster and now he was back riding it on my shoulders and reliving his childhood memories as well as catching trout all the while laughing out loud in a giddy kind of way! The day went perfect other than that hook that caught on a passing tree and I went to grab the rod and it stuck in my finger and I had to hold the rod and row some rapids with a rod attached to my thumb by a barbless hook size 8. Gee that was dumb! Next Jack couldn’t drive and we didn’t have a second car, so I left Carola holding Jack up as his back went out on him during the trip and there they were back to back supporting each other like two old buddies trying to see who’s taller. I started my climb up the hill to the tracks and Carola yelled back, go fast my back is getting tired! I ran back up the railroad tracks to try to retrieve our vehicle. I thought the railroad tunnels were straight when I floated by them all those years, but once inside I found myself running into darker and darker spaces as the tunnel was just enough room for me to run threw and a little room left for a passing train. I could see along the sides there were crawl spaces for me hide in if the train came, but all I could think of was the rattlesnake stories from locals who roamed around Lakehead. That’s about the time the tunnel bent and I couldn’t see anymore. I kept running, I was a little scared and wondering “Why the hell did you do this, run faster dumb-dumb, your wife needs you”. I remembered thinking wow, I haven’t ran this fast since track at Portola High School some 30 years ago and what if I stepped on a rattlesnake in the middle of the tracks running, could it still bite me? It’s fascinating how your thoughts amplify and become more real when you’re thinking out loud running for your life in the dark. The curvature of the track reminded me of back running the 200 meters in high school and how about half way through the run the tracks curved and this helped runners excellerate out of the turn for the finish line. This made me run harder and now I could hear my heart pound and my breathing became horse as I started making sounds like I was 46 and out of runners shape. Constantly in the front of my mind, the distance was longer than I thought and what if a train came, I don’t want to have to rely on a crawl space for safety. Then as bleak as an answer from Congress I saw the tiniest of lights and heard the river flowing behind it, it looked like I was nearing the finish line and then I ran out the tunnel and there was the beautiful Upper Sacramento River and I was looking down on it from 50 feet high, it was breath taking. I made it to car in record time and got back down and picked Carola and Jack up. They had moved from the back to back position they were in when I left and Jack was in good spirits. Jack took one step out the boat and fell on his face and bruised his nose. He got up and said, “if I didn’t fall on my nose once a day, I wouldn’t be Jack Borge, now would I!” 

Letter from Jack Borge Recieved –  Jack & Carola, last weekend Barbara and I went to Rio Vista to harass strippers. I fell on my nose again. My fishing days are over. Thank you both for a memorable fun fishing adventure. The lunch was great. God Bless,  Jack Borge

(Now you know why I did it. Jack Trout)

 This can happen to you!  Ouch! The rod is connected to one in many ways, this was not my favorite by far.

 Rick Wall showed up with his wife from Okahoma and they loved the Mount Shasta area and all the local rivers.

 Some of the rivers Rick’s fishes like the White River in Arkansas are stocked with McCloud River Rainbows.

 The McCloud River is a special place, I think some day they should have a McCloud River Rainbow statue right next to the flag pole on Hwy 89 in McCloud. I hope someday I can pay to have this built and mounted, for no one has left much for the McCloud Trout legacy that has populated rivers all over the world. The McCloud River Rainbow has haunted more rivers than any other trout in the chronicles of life and they deserve their place in history, future generations should know their story. Pass that torch of history on, that in which is remembered is yours to keep. jt

 Fish on Rick Wall !!

 Fish the top of the runs with nymphs and the middle to bottom of the runs with dries. That’s a great recipe for success on the McCloud River.

 Then a couple of real great guys showed up from the Healdsburg area and wanted to do a float with me. The fishing was great that day and we caught a lot of nice trout. Owen Dimock and David Smith enjoyed everything about the day they had on the Upper Sac on October 2, 2013. Even a nice cat nap after lunch, made it all the better!

 Soon after lunch they both hooked nice trout on nymphs and dries from my boat and Owen went on to tell me about his Grandfather who owed a store in the Delta Beach area where people would visit the local bar and take stage coach rides over to French Gulch, Trinity Center and Weaverville from the road near Vollmers right where we do this float. Only a few houses now exist down in Delta and a lot of swimmers that come in from Lakehead for summer loven.

 Then David hooked this incredible trout and it fought hard, we liked every minute of this battle.

 Sweet! Nice hook-up David hope to see you back in the spring for the 10 miles Upper Sac middle section float.

Thought you might appreciate the map for the Nature Conservancy Section on the McCloud River. Do you know the holes?

 Dominic Piazza (He’s a friendly Giants fan folks!) about a week ago caught double digits of trout on dry flies on the Upper Sac float and had the time of his life.

 Dominic brought his friend Kuni and he had a great time his first time fly fishing.

 Then Dominic hooked up in this riffle, how fun is that!

 I had to run then and go pick up the net out of the boat but I got this great shot. 

 How sweet it is, I love this job man!

 Hook up on dry flies not over rated folks. Beef butt ready for action!!

 Then a little further up, another trout on dry flies. It was that kind of a day folks. Plus it was perfect weather too!

 And another…

 Then Kuni caught one in the same hole on dry flies and we changed over for good that day. every where we floated we saw rising trout in the foam lines.

 Michael Hawkins came with his wife from Cincinnatti, Ohio and caught this lovely trout on the Upper Sac. Michael came down and fished with us in Chile this past year, so a re-visit was in order. They loved the area and the restaurants too! 

 Then I took him on the Klamath River and we did great there too with numerous steelhead hook-ups.

 Did I mention this salmon was caught on a fly rod.

 Oh boy, what a fun day on the Upper K. Babe Ruth loved fishing river in the 1940’s the Lions Club of Yreka invited him up and showed him around. Yes, Babe Ruth caught lunkers in the Klamath River many times after that and brought his friend Lou Gehrig along too and they hunted and fished between the Yreka to Los Molinos, California. The Babe loved our area too!

 Then Bruce Hutchinson came up from Colorado Springs, Co. and caught some great trout with me on the Klamath River.

 Can’t wait to see you down in Chile this season so I can guide you there too.

 This river is on fire now folks, hope to see you out there! jt   info@jacktrout.com  &  530-926-4540

 Way to go Bruce! You are my Sizzler of the Month Award Winner!  All the best Bruce and thanks for the dinner out!

 Wow, what a great day indeed folks!

Ross McCloud.  Notice to Packers [1856 opening of the Sacramento River trail to Yreka] . In: Southern, May Hazel.  May  Southern Journals:  Chapter Title: The California Oregon Trail: Sub chapter Title : Central Branch.  c1930s. Unpublished manuscript in collection of Shasta Historical Society. May Hazel Southern was the daughter of 1850’s Sacramento River pioneer  Simeon Southern (for whom Sims is named on I-5)     The M.H. Southern journals contain an astonishing amount of local history. Among her findings is the 1856 published statement by Ross McCloud in which he advertises his new project: “The new trail by way of the Sacramento river to Yreka is now completed and trains can now pass without crossing any mountains or having any deep snows to contend with. No molestation from Indians. The undersigned claims this trail to be the best mountain trail in Calif, and asks the public to test its merits and decide for themselves. There is no want of feed for animals on this route.  Ross McCloud, Shasta, Cal. Feb, 2, 1856.” The opening of this trail provided an alternative to the longer but established Trinity Center and Pit River routes to Yreka. The new trail enabled the settlement of the upper Sacramento canyon and was instrumental in facilitating the Mt. Shasta region settlement of the late 1850’s.     13. History after 1849. http://www.siskiyous.edu/shasta/bib/B13.htm

By  W.W. M U R R A Y

A number of years after Senator George Hearst’s death Mrs. Phoebe Apperson Hearst , early in 1900, was a guest of  her attorney, Charles Stetson Wheeler, at his McCloud River home known as “The Bend”.  Mrs. Hearst was so taken  with the beauty and virgin character of the country, she fell in love with  it and asked Mr. Wheeler if he would sell her a site on the river on which she could build a summer home.  Mr. Wheeler was so attached to his property he didn’t wish to sell any of it but permitted her to select any site on the river for a structure to her liking with a life state and two years thereafter to anyone of her choice.  At the termination of the two years, the property would revert to  Mr. Wheeler.  Mrs Hearst accepted these terms and built what was to be known  as  “Wyntoon”, which is taken from and Indian tribal name.  Eventually, Mr. William Randolph Hearst, Mrs. Hearst’s only son, not only purchased Wyntoon but also Mr. Wheeler’s holding on the McCloud River.

Wyntoon Castle, which was completed in 1903, was designed for Mrs. Hearst by architect Bernard Ralph Maybeck, who was  identified architecturally and spiritually with the University of California, where Mrs. Hearst first met him.  He later became a world renowned architect.  He  designed the mining building at Berkeley campus, which Mrs. Hearst gave to the University in memory of her husband,  Senator George Hearst.  Wyntoon  was built of the native lava rock and timber of the region.

What was intended to be a mountain lodge  developed into a magnificent medieval castle-like structure with a huge five-story tower rising to the sky.  In the tower was a stairway,  one entered the dining room and other rooms.  The floors above held a number of bedrooms, including Mrs. Hearst’s and those for the guests.  On the lower floor was a large, vault-beamed, church-like assembly  hall with a dual fireplace recessed at the far end, about 20 feet into the room.  Behind this was an alcove housing an exquisite old antique stained-glass window of cathedral proportions occupying the entire far end of the room.  Outside this window, a majestic pine tree gave a very magnificent effect .  This room was furnished with antique chests, candelabras and medieval  period chairs; and reflected the splendor of the rugs which were works of fine Persian quality.

In addition to the Castle another building was constructed for Mrs. Hearst shortly after.  This was known as “The Gables”, and was approximately  150 feet  upstream from the Castle.  The latter building cared for the overflow of guests.  The “Honey moon Cottage” stood on the edge of the river nearby.

Mrs. Hearts enjoyed being surrounded by  young people.  I was fortunate  in being one of them.  We had the time of our lives with swimming, hiking, horseback riding, archery, tennis, picnics and outings of all types.  Some trips were even made with pack animals, for there were over 75 miles of trails on the property.  Not only  did the youngsters enjoy these, but the adults  as well.  Mrs. Hearst’s grandson, together with their mother and father, spent a number of their summer vacations here.

If one’s birthday come while at  Wyntoon, a beautiful birthday dinner was held with a large cake and favors.  Everyone  journeyed to the McCloud River Lumber Company general  store to purchase inexpensive presents, but Mrs. Hearst always gave a very nice gift.  The Wheeler children were frequent guests and participated in these activities.  Mrs. Hearst never wanted for  an excuse  to hold a masquerade  party with everyone being responsible for making  his own costume,  with a prize going to the most original one.

(To be continued on the next weblog a 3 part series.)

 Bruce had such a great day he wanted to take us out for dinner and talk about his upcoming trip with us to Chile in 2014.

 In Mount Shasta we like eating at Casa Ramos Mexican Restaurant, just watch your drink!

Always a fine meal here my friends!

You can’t go wrong stopping here, one of the most consistent meals in the Shasta area. www.casaramos.net

Richard Merriman with a nice hook-up!

Way to go Richard, thanks again for coming up.

CHILE & ARGENTINA FLY FISHING 2014 

We hope to guide you in Chile this 2014 season, it should be great as this is our 22 season. We will be taking people from Chile over the Andes to Argentina, we hope you join us. 

Jack Trout Fly Fishing Chile & Argentina Information  This 25 + lb salmon was caught on a streamer fly on an 8 wt fly rod, come to Chile in March & April to experience the best fishing for humongus trout & salmon.

info@jacktrout.com       530-926-4540

BELIZE FLY FISHING 2014

Our fly fishing trips are going strong now in Belize. October has been a great month so far, let one of our local Belizean guides get you into a great ocean hook-up! Our specialty is jumping permit and hunting for tarpon. Our 15th season outfitting Hopkins & Placencia, Belize. Check out our complete fly list for Belize.

Jack Trout Belize Trip Information

Thanks for watching our adventures, hope you star in one of our episodes.

Many rivers to you, Jack & Carola Trout

Watch our fishing report adventures at www.jacktrout.com

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