Spey Casting Class: Great Day

November 8th marked a great day for the art and science of spey casting. Adrian Psuty and myself played teacher to 9 awesome students. About half of the students had never done any spey casting and by the end of the day they were booming loops. The other anglers had experience and graciously allowed Adrian and I to tweak their casts to increase proficiency.

We tackled just about every topic imaginable and dove head first into every question asked.

We took at look at many different styles of flies and how to fish them on the swing

Here is Adrian demonstrating how to rig a tandem tube fly

One more look at pure discovery

Great news: We are doing it again... Join Adrian Psuty, Keith Kaneko and myelf as we will be unveiling the spey world.

Novermber 22, 2009
9am-5pm
Cost: $75
5 spots currently open
Contact Ryan Miller:
530-913-8312
email: rhmiller@gmail.com

Yuba River Fishing Reports

I have been on the Yuba almost exclusively the last few weeks and am having a ball. The fishing thus far has been good to very good. There were a couple of those unreal days with over 35 fish hooked and a few with less than 10 hooked. Overall the egg bit has been very strong with the occasional nymph being swiped.

Over the last few days the fish have been picking up almost as many nymphs as eggs. Nymphs that have been getting it done include, small PT's, micro mays and the Red Headed Step Child from Hogan, today, that fly rocked it! I will say that the fishing has slowed down, but with some clouds and rain it should pick up.

Swinging flies has proven to be aweseome over that past few trips. I have a few days where 5-8 big fish were hooked in just a few runs. Most clients swinging are throwing switch rods with either Scandi and Skagit heads.

The following are a few shots from the past few weeks... enjoy!

Spey Casting Class: Updates

We are set for tomorrow's first class with 9 students ready to tackle spey casting with spey and switch rods.

There are currently 5 spots left for another class on November 22nd.

If you are ready to get into the spey world or elevate your game this is the class you can't miss.

$75 per student, all day, plus tons of gear to try out.

Contact:
Ryan Miller
530-913-8312
rhmiller@gmail.com

Spey Casting Class: More cool news

I am happy to announce that Adrian Psuty will be joining me as an additional instructor for the spey class offered on November 8th. Adrian brings with him an arsenal of rods for us to try and more importantly a wealth of knowledge in the spey world. He has the an incredible technical comprehension for spey applications and is eager to share it with you. With this addition I have opened up more spaces.

Currently there are 3 spots left for this class.
The November 22nd class has 6 spots left.

Cameron Miller Photo

Contact me for more information.
Ryan Miller
Cell: 530-913-8312
Email: Rhmiller@gmail.com

Updates: Switch and Spey Rod Classes

This could be you...

• November 8th NEW OPENINGS!
  
• November 22nd class has 8 spots left

Come join Keith Kaneko, Adrian Psuty and myself as we share our combined knowledge and experiences with you. We will host this day of discovery on the Yuba River.

We will cover everything including:

• Casting on both sides of the river and off both shoulders
• Line selection (scandi vs. skagit and long belly)
• Tip selection
• Reading swing water
• How to step
• When to carry loops
• Fly selection and water temps

Craig Dinsdale setting up

I give you my word that no matter your skill level you will come away with a wealth of knowledge and concrete confidence when swinging flies.

Contact Ryan for details and/or to secure your spot.
Phone: 530-913-8312
Email: rhmiller@gmail.com

Presentation to Davis Fly Fishers

Tomorrow, October 27, I will be giving a detailed presentation on fishing with "indicators." This class will explore many of the environmental indicators that may yield secrets to catching more fish.

Here is a little peak at what I will be talking about: How to approach new situations with a methodical G.R.I.D. The GRID is looking at Geographical significance, River structure, Insect populations and Desired casts. This approach might help you break down variables.

In addition I have broken down strike indicators to a mad science and will show how to properly rig and use them. You might be thinking that there isn't much to using one of these fancy bobbers, me too. However, somehow I ended up with a 10 page manual on the how to's... crazy. All who join me will get the manual plus other goodies.

Any Granite Bay folks out there have seen this presentation and let me live, so you might like it

Here in the info link: http://ffd.x10hosting.com/pdf/FFD0910.pdf

It would be great to see you there.

Thanks,
Ryan

Yuba and Feather Fishing Reports

I have been guiding like a mad man again and have been having a ball. Overall fishing has been good. So far the Yuba has been pretty consistent with some spectacular days. Fish are still looking for round things bouncing on the bottom and they will occasionally nab a nymph or two. There are a decent number of salmon in the river giving us some hope that they might return again next year.

While out there you might notice brightly covered rocks (orange and green) in the river. They are marking the redds. I am sure this is some wort of DFG or DWR study. One of the cool things about this is that if you are not sure what a salmon nest (redd) looks like just find the radioactive rock and study what is around it.

Evening Cast with Mark

Kent with a slab

I have been on the Feather too and have not been doing that well out there. I am sure there are a decent number of fish there, but with temperatures in the 80's and full sun... Yeah, not the best conditions to fool chrome. The other day with clients we did managed to hook a few including this hot hen. This girl really ripped it up.

Detailed Spey and Switch Classes on the Yuba

Spey and Switch Rods on the Yuba
With Ryan Miller

This class will be held on the Yuba River and will be dedicated to exploring the world of spey casting and utilizing spey techniques. Learn everything from how to hold the rod to properly working a run. I will show you how to select rods, reels, lines, tips, flies, spey casts and water. We will dive into Skagit, Scandinavian and long belly line applications. If you do not own a two-handed rod, no problem, I will show you how to do everything on a single-handed rod. This is the most complete spey class out there.

The November 22 date will feature local guide, travel agent and my good friend Keith Kaneko of Angling On The Fly. He and I will spill the beans about one of our passions. *class must have 6 anglers for both instructors to be there.

Two Dates:
November 8: 5 anglers max cost is $100 per person
November 22: 10 anglers max, cost is $75 per person

Students will be taken on a first come, first serve basis and ability does not matter.

Both classes will start at 10am and end at 5pm.

Contact Ryan Miller at rhmiller@gmail.com, Phone: 530-913-8312 with questions or to sign up.
For more information on Ryan Miller visit:

The Web Page

Photo by Andy Guibord
Let's swing some flies

Swinging in California

Time to get out your swing on. Now is the time get geared up for fall fishing in Northern California. This is a great time to swing flies on your favorite rivers. There are still great hatches going on, in addition to great water temperatures. Swinging flies is also good now because there are no distractions of eggs. Once eggs hit the river bottom is seams that fish switch gears and smash eggs.

If you are new to swinging flies I have a sweet program to get you going. I can even provide equipment for the day. If you are a seasoned swinger, come on down and let's get into it.

If you would like to check out something new or a new way to look at something old, check this out. FALL SPECIAL

Here is Adrian getting his game face on.

Yuba...

She is blown...but should be fishing soon. The water has dropped nicely from 15k and will be in shape for floating soon. Wading will be very tough until she gets under 3k.

Here is what ate for us before the deluge-

Had a tough day, however we manged to round up some studs-

String of Reports...

It has been a while since my last fishing report, I am going to give you the best summary possible...

Most of my guiding has been on the Yuba. In short, she has been up to her usual antics of letting us feel the high of hooking good numbers of fat, crazy rainbows. Then almost in the same breath, BAM, something changes and she shuts us down... All in all the days have been good with a few fatties a day, plus brief periods of insanity. We are working very hard for every fish and changing flies to find the magic bug.

In the last week we have hooked fish on over 20 different patters. Some to note are little yellow sallies, oregon cheese eggs, march browns, and midges. The staples are working too, just remember to change it up once in a while.

Observations: Not much surface activity over the last two weeks. It may be different above the bridge.

April 13, Yuba: Clients Bruce and Sallye put up a good fight against the tough side of the river. Overall, fishing was slow. The morning started out ok, first cast, BANG, fish on... That was misleading- We managed to hook some nice fish on various bugs, however, found ourselves working very hard to get the grabs.

April 14, Northern California: NORTH WINDS. Those are never good out there... No fishing today, I watched the snow fall in Nevada City while getting an awesome root canal done, good times.

April 15, Yuba: The North Winds (yes, capitalized... it's that important), were still up around 15-20 mph and things were cold. 25 degree start when I launched the boat and that wind was COLD. Morning started off ok again, we hit a few in the first run after a few bug changes. From there is was quiet for some time. It wasn't until about 2 that the wind died down and the fish decided to eat. He found a spot the gave us 6 fish, BINGO. Again, we hacked out a good day and worked hard for our fish.

April 16, No fishing today, finished up root canal, AWESOME!

April 17, American: In depth class for Granite Bay Fly Casters on how to swing flies. The day was great, 20 students, all day and man did we do some casting. Somebody even hooked a fish... :)

April 18, Kiene's Expo: Very well done, good times had by all. Thanks to Bill and Marylin for a great expo. Additionally, it was great to see some old friends and clients.

April 19, Yuba: Similar story, with a twist. Had a husband and wife team out there waging war against the picky eaters. This day was HOT (weather), we needed to dip in every once in while to keep from fading. Fishing was ok, we picked up a few here and few there, I can live with that. By the afternoon Sophia was bombing casts and ripping lips of those trout, it was awesome. My favorite moment was when all hell broke loose from what I would call a steelhead. This fish ate with vengeance and in no time was inverted, 2 feet in the air. The fish gave us a serious whooping, I liked it.

April 20, Yuba: Another great husband and wife team saddled up... This was Janet's first full-blown day of fly fishing and we hit a good one. The weather was nice, warm with a cool breeze. Fishing was constant with a grab here, a grab there, a fish here and a fish there. We did managed to hook 12 or so for the day. Janet rocked the casting, rocked the mending and was determined to land one. Despite all out efforts we did not convince one to get it in the net. NEXT TIME!

Thanks to all for booking trips with me, I appreciate your business and enjoy sharing days with you!

I will be off the water this week as I finish and prepare for DownStream 2009! We still have room for students and a few more volunteers. Contact me for more info.

On the fence about where to fish, what flies and techniques to use?

Don't be confused-


When in doubt, FISH!

On The Water...

I have been guiding on our local waters recently and I am happy to say that fishing has been good.

American: April 1oth marked the first striper/steelhead trip of the season with clients and I am happy to say the we were successful. The weather for the day was not exactly pleasant with heavy rain and colder temperatures. Fortunatly, the muck only lasted a few hours just in time to allow our fingers to warm back up. While stiper fishing we managed to get 3 awesome grabs with clousers and one striper to follow the fly. On the metalhead side, we landed 3 hot, chrome steelhead in the 18-21" class. All and all a good day. I expect to see more steelhead and stipers pour into the river everyday.

Yuba, April 11: The Yuba showed her gentle side to us as she gave up plenty of fat 'bows and a few nice steelhead. Fishing was good all day as fish "keyed" into over a dozen different patters. The river was VERY busy with anglers.

Yuba, April 13: Today she showed her uglier side... We did manged to hook a decent number of trout, however we worked very hard to get them.

Fishing Report: Yuba, 2 days

Guided the Yuba Tuesday and Wednesday and had some great days. Clients Ken and Peter waged war on the selective trout on the almighty Yuba. I am not usually a number counting kinda guide, however, this time we counted. In two days we hooked 42 rainbows, landing over half of them. Most of the fish were over 16" with at least a dozen fish 18-21". We hooked fish with several bugs including stones, eggs, March Browns, pt's, princes, and caddis.

Dry fly activity was nill, nada, nothing... We did see a salmon fly though, woohoo.

There are some great pictures coming and I will post them soon.

These were two incredible days with great clients to boot.

Stay tuned as my guiding calendar is FULL through mid May. I will be posting reports as often as possible.

Multiple Days, American and Yuba in a nutshell

American: I have been guiding and fishing the American frequently and overall have been please with the results. Fish are eating egg patterns, SJW's, copper johns, and other small mayflies. If you swing, think black, purple or brighter pinks and oranges. We are getting grabs everyday, the water temps are conducive to big grabs from pissy fish (love it).

If you are not hooking fish nymphing under indicators try going deeper, heavier and change your egg. The egg will get eaten, however, sometimes it is there to attract fish. Also, keep moving, you need to go to them, they are avoiding us!

American

Yuba: The Yuba has been throwing her monthly cycle at us, there have been some brutally tough days out there. Mixed in with the beatings have been a few great days, hooking good numbers of big fish. Swinging flies is still producing big, aggressive fish. Fish are are eating eggs, rubberlegs, copper johns, small mayflies. On top: the march browns are crawling around, I have seen a few here and there, the skwalas are on the same program. Fish are keying in on them now, look for bigger hatches soon!

Yuba McFatty

February is big season in the valley... big bugs and big fish. Look for monster chrome to show up in the American and big bows to start packin' on the pounds.

Yuba With Ken Hanley

I had the pleasure of guiding/fishing with Ken Hanley on the Yuba not too long ago and we had great day. We had a nice start to the day with a few bugs hatching around us with fish working the surface. The goal of the day was to hang out, chat about fly fishing and see if we could fool a few 'bows. Without a doubt the day was a complete success, I had the pleasure of learning about Ken's recent travels and stories of the great fly fisherman that are still casting, tying, speaking, teaching and fishing. In between stories we were able to fool a few nice trout under 'cators and got a few solid tugs on the swing. I always enjoy days spent with Ken, I learn a ton and laugh my butt off with all the great stories.

Ken holding Yuba gold
Last fish of the day... good way to end it

A few months back Ken's new book, Tying Fureld Flies, was released and has been well received. If you have not checked out Ken's work I highly recommend you do. Most fly shops carry the book, check it out soon.

Thanks for a great day Ken, hope to fish with you on your turf soon!

Yuba on the swing

I have been spending a great deal of time on the Yuba and am happy to say that it is fishing well. During the winter months the Yuba can be one of the best fishing rives in Northern California for trout and steelhead. Lately I have seen a nice push of steelhead throughout the river and expect more to come in within the next few months. The last week or so the fish have been receptive to flies on the move, both emergers and streamers.

Nymphing egg patterns with caddis and mayflies under and indicator has also been producing a few fish. One of the highlights of this time of year is the BWO hatches that happen almost every day, they are especially thick on overcast days. The days that the fog was socked in the BWO's went crazy and so did the fish. There were stretches of river that had hungry fish sipping constantly. They got all over parachute adams size 18.
If you would like to try the Yuba , I highly recommend doing a walk and wade trip. While on foot we can really dive into technique, reading water, bug ID and how to use your spey or switch rod. Check out my current special and pick a day you can sneak out.

When in doubt, fish!
Ryan

Click image to get the Northern Waters

Yuba Winter Special...

I would like to offer a Yuba winter special...

Here are the conditions:

1. Yuba only
   
2. Spey or switch rods only
3. Walk and wade only
   
4. $300 for one or two anglers
5. 8am to dark (flexible)
   

I will still be offering full guided trips out of my drift boat that can include fishing on the swing.

This offer is for the angler who is really looking to tackle our valley rivers with spey and switch rods, we will dive into the pools of swinging flies and look for a solid tug! I encourage anglers with all skill levels to check it out.

Please contact me for more details. Thank you!

Klamath: The Whole Shebang

The Klamath is "The Whole Shebang," it has awesome scenery, good fishing for resident rainbows, steelhead, and incredible water. I had an opportunity to float with my good friend Steve Pereira out of Chico, CA and Craig Nielson of Shasta Trout down the Klamath in search of metalheads... this was my first time on the Klamath and it was one I will not soon forget. We floated the upper river and were accompanied by a few other guide boats. Not very long into our float Steve cranked on a few half pounders and got the skunk off the boat. After Craig back rowed several times in the sweet run I was able to jump a nice steelhead and manage to get rid of it. Not too long after that we continued down the river and continued to hammer on chrome. We had close to 40 opportunities and landed about half that. Steve was the king of the day landing one nice 5-6lb hen and lost another one that may have broke the 10 mark.

If you are looking for a great experience on the Klamath I highly recommend Craig, additionally, he currently has a few prime-time spots open.

Craig and Steve

Halfie

Steve and the Victory Dance

The Billy Goat Rules

Fishing Reports: Lower Sacramento

Overall fishing on the Sac has been good. The egg bite has slowed down, but the feeding still continues. There are good numbers of steelhead from Balls Ferry south. Almost everyday we hook fish that go well into the backing and are never seen again. There were a few days last week where the water flows were very inconsistent and made for some tough days, however, the flows are in the process of stabilizing now. The flows are now below 4k, if have been waiting to wade the Sac, now is the time.

I will post images when I get them.

Lower Sac: October 16 and 17

The Lower Sacramento is in FULL swing, the egg bite is on and fish are keyed in to the program. On the 16th I floated Anderson to Barge and felt that the upper river was a little slow. We hooked a few fish here and there, but it wasn’t quite red-hot. There were several spots where the fish were stacked up and we had a good time picking them off one by one. Once we headed over the white water below Ball's it was on, we hooked 12 or more right away. We continued to hook sweet 'bows for the rest of the float; almost every spot we fished gave us a fish to fight. Once we got into the Barge area we were able to sneak in behind the other drift/jet boats and stick a nice steelhead (pictures to come) out of the "hole". Overall the day was good, the afternoon sealed the deal. Great weather (for sun tanning), great clients and crazy tout...

Today, the 17th, I floated Ball's to Jelly's and was pleased with the fishing. I had a cool father and son team that tackled the big waters of the Sac for the first time. The dad, Kenny, was fairly new to fly casting... especially the Krusteez, 2-3 flies and 2 spit shot and I must say that he did a great job. After figuring out the fly cast we quickly got into fish. His son, Justin was rifling off casts in the back of the boat and nailing aggressive slabs. All in all we landed enough fish to loose count and hooked enough to last a year. Justin and Kenny were a dynamic team that fished hard all day and were handsomely rewarded.
Thanks to all for two awesome days on the Sac.

Tomorrow, I will be on the Sac again, then on to the Feather. Stay tuned!