Putah Creek

Glory Glory Holelujah!

It’s hard to believe that it’s been over 10 years since the last time water flowed over Lake Berryessa’s glory hole. This spectacle only happens a few times in a century so once good news got out that the hole was flowing the missus and I made the trip to check it out.

The last time I curiously drove up Putah Creek to take a look at the lake the infamous glory hole was about 40ft below it. Now that the lake is filled up from all the rain we’ve gotten in the past few months water is finally flowing Lake Berryessa down the glory hole and into Putah Creek.

Pictures and videos don’t do the glory hole justice. The mesmerizing funnel of water that flows down the hole is much wider and closer to view that I had anticipated. Lake Berryessa’s glory hole is truly a marvel to check out if you ever have the opportunity. Just be sure to anticipate and be mindful of the large crowds along HWY 128.

Despite flows over 4,000 CFS, I saw a few anglers trying their luck at Putah Creek. The majority of the trails along the creek are flooded so access is extremely limited until they go down. There were a few nice seams that I found while hiking around but I wouldn’t risk fishing them knowing how deceptively deep the creek is.

While hiking around the Cold Creek area we were lucky enough to spot a few spawners performing their mating ritual. I was very excited to see big Putah natives chasing each other up and downstream. It’s been a few months since I’ve last fished the creek but it’s good to know that these fish are doing well. It’ll be a few weeks until the creek is fishable but this trip has made me appreciate Putah creek a whole lot more.

On the way home we stopped at Lake Solano to scout it out. The park is well-maintained and looks like a great place for a summer outing. I’ve also heard and read that the lake produces big fish during that time as well. Once the flows get cranked up and the weather gets hot I know where I’m going…

Feather River, Fish Talk

Evacuee Here

Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

I haven’t touched my fly gear in about two months. My fly tying station continues to sit empty with tools hidden away, feathers in bags, and hooks neatly organized until the news comes when I can start pursing my game again.

I recently evacuated from my home in Yuba City after news got out about the Oroville Dam’s emergency spillway possible failure. Tallest dam in the nation + possible failure = the 100 year flood. It sounds like a pretty cool premise for a movie but living it would definitely be something else. Thankfully the dam itself is fine it’s the emergency spillway that is damaged. A broken emergency spillway would mean any water over the dam’s height would flow uncontrollably out of Lake Oroville. This would lead to disastrous levels of flooding in Butte, Sutter, and Yuba County. The perfect storm.

This could have been prevented if… Is the buzz around the situation right now. Apparently there are a lot of captain hindsights playing the blame game on social media. Fueled by the media’s question of “What could you have done to prevent this?” these heroes make the world a little better through their powers of hindsight. Frankly I’m just happy to be home.

Am I stress about the situation? Not really. I am more upset that I can’t go fishing. Just as the Yuba was coming down this happens. The release of the Yuba is currently below 20,000 CFS but in Marysville it looks like 90,000 CFS due to increased flows from the Feather. Hopefully the levees hold up and we can end this saga without a repeat of 1997s levee break.
It seems like the local stream fishing will be out of the question until the summer. We’ve still got a few more weeks until the bass wake up but at least I’ve got that to look forward to.

I have everything packed in case the worst happens but as of right now it’s just the same old same old.

Times like these make me wonder what the Feather River and it’s forks looked like before the Oroville dam was constructed. All I know is that the fishing must have been amazing. Imagine fishing for wild salmon and steelhead on the North Fork and Middle Fork. Those must have been the days.