Truckee River Fishing Report

Truckee River


by Trout Creek Outfitters
10-27-2023
(530) 563-5119
Website

The fishing on the Truckee has been nothing if not consistent. The dry fly bite along Glenshire Drive, while maybe not happening every day, can be present mid-day into early afternoon and provides a great opportunity to catch fish on top on the Truckee River, an admittingly rare treat on our river system. When hatches are not present here focus on smaller flies fished subsurface like pairing a BWO imitation with a zebra midge, for example, and don’t forget to use 5x.

Fishing below the confluence of the Little Truckee is a bit of a different game, and larger patterns can be used here with greater success. Crawdads, stoneflies, worms, and eggs will all make for a great attractor fly and pairing them with a midge or BWO will give those picky fish their choice. 4x tippet is suitable for the larger attractor flies, but 5x will still be best for your smaller flies.

The Nevada side is a bit of a different game and as the river flows east, we see areas on the west side of Reno where water is pulled out for power stations or for Reno’s water source. If fishing down in the desert, we recommend focusing through downtown, and all the way east of Sparks towards Lockwood or Mustang Ranch. Not to say there’s not good fishing around Verdi or Mogul, it has actually been quite good as of late, but if you land in the wrong spot, you may find the water too low or may be greeted with some private property signs.

The area through downtown can be… let’s say interesting, but the fishing can be really great down there and its worth exploring if you don’t mind the urban landscape for a day. East of Reno is where things get really interesting. This lower section of the Truckee provides a longer growing season for the trout and a great abundance of food via the bug and fish life present. Here the fish grow larger and don’t mind chasing a streamer. While you sacrifice a bit in terms of scenery the excellent fishing should be enough to interest any avid angler in giving it a try, and the desert landscape is beautiful in it’s own right.

When fishing the lower river, we are using heavier tippet to match the increased turbidity of the water, and the larger average size of fish. The main bugs down here will be crawdads, baeits, caddis and midges. 3x or 4x will be your best bet for nymphing, 0x-1x will be great for streamers, although 5x may still be needed for the dry fly fishing if caddis or BWO’s come off in the evening. The beauty of this river is the amount of river miles it provides and the varying opportunities depending on what section of river you decide to fish for the day. One big reason why this river is our favorite water on the west coast, and we’re not just being biased


If you would like to go fishing with us please check out our website Trout Creek Outfitters.com or call (530) 563-5119.




More Reports

Trout Creek Outfitters Reports
for Friday, October 13th, 2023

Pyramid Lake: The surface temps at Pyramid continue to drop
Little Truckee River: The river flows have remained stable
Truckee River: Tuesday night brought the first small dusting of the year