The main river continues to kick out some great fishing this week as the browns begin to finish up spawn and the post spawn bite starts up. This is when fishing streamers will really pick up, especially with the mix of overcast days in the forecast and the fish beginning to transition into tail outs. As is typical for this river, especially this time of year, the nymph game will be your best shot at finding consistent fishing on an otherwise inconsistent river system. We are huge fans of indicator fishing this time of year as the fish spread out from the faster water they’re found in during the warmer months. 

The indicator will give you the ability to cover more water, which is important this time of the year. The ability to fish further away from the bank, adjust your depth or easily add and subtract weight will help. Additionally, the ability to really slow those drifts down in the slower sections of a run while keeping those flies in front of the fish longer are some of the main reasons we recommend putting away the euro rod and dry dropper rig this time of year. When indicator fishing this week, we found good success on worms, stones, and eggs as well as baetis nymphs and midge larvae. The use of a larger “junk fly” up top with something in the size of 16-18 imitating BWO’s (baetis), or midges will be an absolute go-to during the leaner months. So, make sure you’re well stocked on these winter staples! 

Some great Truckee River patterns this week have been San Juan worms in red and tan, gummy worms in red or purple, Pat’s rubberlegs in brown, juju baetis in purple, olive micro mays, and black or red zebra midges. With flows good along most of the river system, we have been getting good reports everywhere from here in Truckee through downtown Reno. So, consider getting out and trying some new water this week. Exploration is a big part of what makes this sport fun!