| Fly Fishing for Shad on
the Lower Sacramento River
Fly fishing for
Shad, commonly referred to as "poor-man's Tarpon,"
is one of the most exciting angling opportunities in the Central
Valley. Shad are known for their acrobatic battles and unwillingness
to ever quit fighting once hooked. These silver-sided fish average
2-3 pounds, but are so strong they often feel more like three or
four times their size, as they run, jump, run, jump, run, jump,
thrash, thrash, thrash. Even better, once you’ve found a school
of shad, it’s not uncommon to hook dozens of fish in a short
period of time, or until your arm gets tired.
Seasons
Shad migrate upriver
to spawn, much like their anadromous cousins the salmon and steelhead
of the Central Valley. They typically begin to show in the
lower sections of the Sacramento River system in late spring, and
begin to amass in the river near Corning each summer by early June,
staying in the river throughout the months of June and the first
half of July. The best times of year to target Shad is from June
to July.
Click here
for more detailed information on the seasons for Shad Fishing
Fly Fishing for Shad
We target Shad
using jet boats to access various riffles in the Lower Sacramento
River, south of Red Bluff. Our guides will generally either pull
up to productive riffles and runs, where anglers wade the
flat, easily-waded gravel, or anchor the boats above deeper runs
that cannot be accessed from shore. Casting shooting-head and sink-tip
setups with single or double-handed rods is the most effective technique,
and once a school of fish is found, the action is often hot and
heavy until your arms are sore.
Shad fishing is
done primarily by swinging flies on sink-tip or full-sinking lines,
similar to traditional steelhead style fishing. In fact steelheaders
have come to love shad fishing because it’s the same style
of fishing with a lot more action. And it’s a great way to
fish the popular two-handed spey rods, which enable anglers to cover
more water and hook more shad on the broad Lower Sacramento River.
As if a day full
of catching exciting Shad one after another isn't enough, there
are often bigger, even more powerful Stripers chasing them around.
Shad anglers occasionally hook into Stripers, and sometimes Shad
and Striper trips can even be combined.
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