Shasta County Fishing Reports

Fall kings are pushing hard out of the estuary and upriver right now, driven by cool water releases from Lewiston Dam that started Aug. 28 (450 cfs stepping up to as much as 1,200 cfs through Sept. 21) plus cooler air and recent rain. The spit fishery at the mouth closed to angling Sept. 3 after harvest hit the adult fall Chinook quota, so the estuary hot bite of the last few weeks is off the table. The rest of the lower river... Weitchpec bridge to the mouth is still open on a 1,624-adult quota of which 1,192 remained as of Aug. 28 (will likely be well down after Labor Day traffic). Expect fresh fish staging in holes throughout the lower river... work them at first light, and figure on higher, colder, and pushier water than the flows you saw last week.

Surface water temps continue to spike with the recent heat wave... not the best for shallow midday bass fishing, but the early morning / late evening bite has been excellent on topwater baits. Small frogs, propbaits, or poppers are killing spotted bass off rocky structure and points when the sun is low. During midday, fish are pushing deeper... 20-30 feet, where crawfish-imitation soft plastics or dropshots are your best bet.

The kokanee bite has cooled off substantially within the last few weeks, but the rainbow and brown trout bite has improved. Plenty of quality fish near the dam and in the Dry Creek area for trollers running cut plugs and Speedy Shiners in 55-75 feet of water, focused on finding shad schools. For those chasing kings, target the deeper end of the schools... looking for sonar ticks 5-10 feet below.