Shasta County Fishing Reports

The McCloud is in excellent shape right now. Water clarity is ideal, and hatch activity is firing on multiple fronts. Golden Stoneflies are the headliner at the moment, along with a solid mayfly hatch... Green Drakes, March Browns. Salmonflies are expected to follow here shortly.

Dry fly action has been very good, especially midday. Nymphing remains very consistent throughout most of the day. Some big browns have been caught as well swinging streamers through tailouts.

Fowlers Camp and Lower Falls received a CDFW trout plant last week... worth targeting for bait and spin anglers.

The farthest reaches of the upper water houses wild rainbows and the native McCloud River redband trout... one of the few places left in the state to find them. Worth the trip.

Memorial Day just passed, so expect more and more company on the water, particularly on weekends.

Shasta continues to fire on all cylinders with water temps now in the upper 60s. As one species' bite starts to taper off (though not much), another picks up... and right now it's time for salmon. Kokanee season is here, and trollers are doing extremely well slow trolling pink or orange micro shrimp presentations on gold dodgers in the 40-50 foot range (sonar will help determine the best exact depth). Fish are chrome and healthy... multiple folks reporting limits of fish up to 17 inches.

Rainbows and browns are still biting well too, often hitting Kokanee rigs. But trolling spoons is your best bet... good reports coming out of the McCloud arm.

If salmon and trout weren't enough, Shasta continues to produce an awesome spotted bass bite on small swimbaits and dropshots. Most fish are in postspawn but are still hitting well off hard structure and points. Reports are that big crappie are being caught too.

Overall, Shasta is serving up some of the best mixed fishing in the region right now.

Water temps are hovering in the high 50s at Shasta, warmer in protected areas, and the spotted bass bite has been on absolute fire! Squaw and Pitt arms have been producing crazy numbers, but reports say fish are being caught just about everywhere. Senkos, shakey heads, and drop shots are all pulling fish near rocky structure, secondary points, and south-facing cove shorelines. Small cranks and rip baits are working too. Most fish are running around a pound, with a few 2 to 3 pounders mixed in.

Brown trout action has been good also, with reports of some of the largest fish seen this year. Kokanee are still a bit early, but the bite should take off anytime. The CDFW continues to stock rainbows, with multiple plants over the last few weeks.