Almanor Fishing, Weather & Lake Report

John Crotty, Almanor Fishing Association

I was talking with Mark at the Sierra Fly Shop at Hamilton Branch yesterday and he had a customer ask about setting up rods for trolling this time of year. While we all have our preferred method, this is how I set up my rods. I use an 8’ spiral wrapped rod that is custom made by guide Duncan McIntyre for trolling on Lake Almanor, add a Diawa Lexa 100 (line counter reel), spooled with 8 or 10# maxima line, attach a #1 P-Line three-way swivel, 5’ of 6# leader and a size 8 Gamakatsu bait hook. I use a size 8 for both crawlers and gulps. I use the same setup for hardware and just switch out the hook for a small snap so that I can easily change out lures. I always carry two lead core rods set up with Arctic Fox trolling flies for top lining flies. I believe as fishermen we quite often out/over think things, especially when the bite is tough, keep it simple and don’t mix incompatible presentations.  By that I mean, don’t have baits that work best at one mph on one rod while you have hardware on another that works best at 2.5-3mph while trolling at 2 mph.

The Canyon Dam ramp is clear and open. Lake level is increasing daily and you will need rubber boats to get onto the dock when launching.  Be safe and call ahead for current weather and fishing conditions.