Site Map
Here's a quick run down of the major sections of this site and the focus of each:
Fly Patterns- Caddisflies
- Mayflies
- Midges
- Updated! Stoneflies
- Streamers
- Terrestrials
- Sierra Neveda Aquatic Insects
- New! Blackfoot River, North Fork
- Carson River, East Fork - Carson Iceberg Wilderness Section
- Carson River, East Fork - Hangman's Bridge & Below
- Clavey River
- Cottonwood Lakes
- Eagle Lake
- New! Green River
- Updated! Heenan Lake
- Hot Creek
- New! Jones Hole Creek
- New! Kelly Creek
- Kern River - Johnsondale Bridge & Below
- Kern River - Heritage Trout Section
- Kings River - Lower Section
- New! Kings River - South Fork
- Kings River - Upstream of Pine Flat
- Kinney Lakes
- Lake Alpine
- Little Kern River
- McCloud River
- Merced River - Below Yosemite N.P.
- Merced River - Yosemite National Park
- New! Mill Creek, California
- New! Mokelumne River, North Fork below Salt Springs dam
- Pit River
- New! Rock Creek
- Rogue River - Middle Section
- Sacramento River - Balls Ferry to Red Bluff
- New! Sacramento River -Redding
- New! Sagehen Creek
- Saint Joes River
- New! Stanislaus River, Lower
- Stanislaus River, North Fork
- Updated! Trinity River
- New! Tule River
- New! Uintas Small Stream
- Walker River
- Yuba River - Lower Section
- Yuba River, North Fork
- River Restoration
- Brook Trout
- Brown Trout
- Bull Trout
- Cutthroat Trout
- Golden Trout
- Lake Trout
- Rainbow Trout
- Eagle Lake Trout
- Goose Lake Redband Trout
- New! Klamath Basin Redband Trout
- McCloud River Redband Trout
- Warner Lakes Redband Trout
- Steelhead
- Endangered Listings
- Northern Harrier - (raptor photography)
- Red-tailed Hawk - (raptor photography)
- Coopers and Red-tailed Hawk - (raptor photography)
Updated! Reviews
New Content
June 21, 2009
The Mineral King valley is where the South Fork Kings River flows. It's an amazing setting to fish for wild trout.
Summer 2009
The EcoAngler reports on three new wild trout fisheries of the Sierra Nevada.
May 31, 2009
The North Fork of the Blackfoot supports a native fishery in a watershed of continual ecological change.
May 5, 2009
The EcoAngler heads into Blackfoot Country. Trip report coming soon.
April 2009
And the winner for most endangered river of 2009 goes to... Sacramento - San Joaquin River System.
April 6, 2009
The Lower Sacramento River flows through the center of Redding and supports a large urban population of rainbows.
March 2009 National Marine and Fisheries Service issued a detailed analysis of reasons for declining Chinook salmon runs in the Sacramento River. Warning: Large PDF File.
March 26, 2009
For decades, 60 miles of the San Joaquin River has been bone-dry.Imagine all the instream flow.
March 12, 2009 California's State-budget-cutting-axe has hit the Heritage & Wild Trout Program.Read the letter from Roger Bloom, CDFG Biologist, detailing the severe impact to this great fisheries program.
March 6, 2009
Experience the pure wonder of fly fishing the Golden Trout Wilderness from the couch.
February 26, 2009
In the shadow of Mount Lassen and once home to the Yahi Indians, flows Mill Creek.
February 1, 2009
Impressions from a recent trip to Ano Nuevo.
Winter 2009
Read the chronicles here:
- Swimming with the Smolts
- The Expanding Marsh
- The Expanding Marsh - (continued)
- State Breach
- Uncorking the Creek in the New Year
- No Rain - No Run
- Spawn Blocker
- New! Lance Armstrong and 2 Inches
December 28, 2008
Dare I say, the best collection of fly fishing essays written -- The Longest Silence by Thomas McGuane.
December 21, 2008
Thanks to contributors - Ned Morris (CHTC #5 & #57) and Scott Lyons (CHTC #65)- the EcoAngler has expanded its Angler Honor Roll .
December 14, 2008
Kelly Creek is one of the West's Blue-ribbon native trout streams. Without foresight and a change to the fishing reg's things would have been different here -- very different.
December 2008
Red Spawn - Midwest invaders continue hatching their plot to push westslope cutts out of their native lakes.
November 20, 2008
You are'nt high - You're just steelheading on the Trinity River 2008.
November 20, 2008
CalTrout issues a detailed status report of California native fish. Warning: Large PDF File.
November 9, 2008
Looking for a quiet, small stream experience just outside of Truckee, California? Then Sagehen Creek might be your answer.
November 2008
Coming this month - The EcoAngler covers a couple Truckee Trib's.
October 26, 2008
Thanks to Katherine Evatt and Pete Bell of the Foothill Conservancy for correcting my minimum streamflow info for the North Fork Mokelumne River below Salt Springs dam.
October 19, 2008
A popular trail with hikers and backpackers leads to the headwaters of the Truckee River - home to a restored population of Lahontan cutts.
October 12, 2008
Some photographs of healthy stream-resident Lahontan cutts.
October 5, 2008
Just posted my recent Heenan Lake Fishing Report.
September 30, 2008
Heenan Lake 2008 
Rainbows in Heenan? Unfortunately true - California Department of Fish & Game Biologist confirms my fear.
Fall 2008
The EcoAngler offers an explanation for their abundance in waters throughout the West.
September 21, 2008
Jones Hole Creek 
slices down a thin, red rock canyon inhabited by rainbow trout and aggressive-wading mountain sheep.
September 14, 2008
An excellent, remote fly fishing 
experience can be had along the high, North Slope of Uintas Mountain Range.
August 28, 2008
Engineering a more eco - friendly water cooler on the Green River
August 21, 2008
Fishermen welcome since 300 A.D.
August 14, 2008
Take a look inside what makes the Green River, below Flaming Gorge a proverbial aquarium of fish.
August 7, 2008
Occupying less than 5 percent of its historic range within the upper Colorado River watershed, the Colorado River cutthroat is considered to be the most colorful cutthroats and possibly one of the most beautiful fish in North America.
July 20, 2008
Flowing through a deep canyon on the West slope of the Sierra the North Fork Mokelumne River below Salt Springs dam certainly looks like a great fishery.
July 12, 2008
Rock Creek's spring run-off may have been later and larger than usual this year, but the Giant Salmonfly and golden stonefly hatches produced jaw-dropping and jaw-closing responses for anglers and trout alike.
Summer 2008
Coming in July - Fishing a fat Salmon fly hatch on a historic blue ribbon fishery. View some Stone Love.
June 25, 2008
The 3rd Release of Fish Eye doesn't disappoint and features one of my favorite Sierra still-water destinations.
June 11, 2008
Hiking the Doyle trail upstream along the Tule River leads to a dense wooded canyon with small, eager trout swimming below.
The Nature of Fly Fishing
It's less about how to cast further, or increasing the number of fish landed, and more about increasing the angler's knowledge of the species, the environment he inhabits, and what he likes to eat (real or inmitated). That's the goal of this site - EcoAngler.com.
Featured Artist - AD Maddox
Ecological?
By definition, ecological is the interactions and relationships between organisms and their environment. It comes from two Greek words: oikos meaning "the family household," and logy, meaning "study of." The science of ecology teaches the angler, it is impossible to separate the study of a species of fish such as trout from the study of their environment. Freshwater ecology is a broad and complex science, and the scope of this site only allows a brief overview of the critical elements - Fly patterns (a.k.a. aquatic insects), Habitat and Species.
A good ecologist can dovetail into dovetail until the whole thing stretches out of sight. We call it an ecosystem now; earlier Americans called it the Sacred Circle. Either way it can make your little head swim with a vision of a thing of great size and strength that still depends on the underpinning of its smallest members.
Sex, Death, and Fly-Fishing by John Gierach
Fly Patterns
It starts with a trout's favorite class of food - aquatic insects. (Grasshoppers, ants, beetles, minnows and leeches are also on the menu here.) And in the case of the angler, the fly patterns which imitate these insects.
The goal of the EcoAngler is to recognize the insects that freshwater trout survive on, and to the extent possible the ecology of these tiny creatures.
Trout Habitat
Trout are coldwater fish and take up residence in streams, ponds, and lakes that have cold water year round and provide enough food and oxygen to survive. The initial focus of the EcoAngler is trout habitat in the Sierra Nevada and Northern California.
Each of the fisheries covered in habitat includes information critical to your angling success. This information includes:
Fly Patterns
To improve your chances of connecting with a resident trout - a suggested list of fly patterns is given for a particular habitat. Here's a sample set of nymphs recommended for the East Walker River.
Map of Area
The EcoAngler includes a detailed topo map of the stream or lake and surrounding area with each of the habitats listed.
To get you to these fly fishing destinations, driving directions from a major city are provided as well. (Look on the left side of the specific habitat page under "Directions.")
Flow Information
Easy access to real-time water flows and levels are available from each of the stream habitats profiled. The link entitled Flow Information - in the upper left corner of the page - takes you to the USGS extensive web-site for water data.
Fishing Regulations
With a majority of the habitat described on the EcoAngler lying within California's Wild and Heritage Trout program, please consult the Department of Fish and Game's Regulations for complete details before striking out on a trip. A reference link entitled Regulations is provided on every habitat page and any special considerations are generally called out on the page.
As anglers, it's up to each of us to protect and care for these unique fisheries.
Species of Trout
No species of fish has excited the freshwater angler through the years as the trout. California is home to two native trout species (rainbow and cutthroat) and numerous subspecies including Eagle Lake rainbow trout, Lahontan cutthroat and Kern River rainbow trout.
California Heritage Trout Challenge
Catch, photograph, and release six different forms of California native trout from their historic range and California Department of Fish and Game will send you a personalized certificate featuring the art of Joseph Tomelleri (similiar to this one).
A sort of Angler Honor Roll lists a number of anglers who have successfully completed the California Heritage Trout Challenge since the program started.
The EcoAngler describes a number of these native trout that qualify for the challenge including:
-
Lahontan cutthroat
-
Paiute cutthroat
-
California golden trout
-
California rainbow trout
-
Eagle Lake rainbow trout
-
Goose Lake redband trout
-
McCloud River redband trout
-
Steelhead trout
-
Warner Lakes redband trout
Book and Video Reviews
Sierra Fly Fishing - Volume 2
Like going to a movie after first reading the book, the movie usually disappoints. For me at least, this movie lives up to expectations. And so you know, my expectations were not developed from any book on the Upper Kern River. I had the good fortune to experience the Golden Trout Wilderness with Guy Jean in 2006. As I sat and watched the DVD, with the memories of this wilderness and one-of-a-kind fishery firmly etched in memory, I couldn't help but feel I was re-living the entire five days from that summer. (My mental camera only slightly better than the digital one.)
Read the entire review in Native Trout.
The Longest Silence
Essays on fly-fishing have been written and will continue to be written, but McGuane's work likely represents the apex of the category. If somebody or some new collection of work proves me wrong, then so be it. In my mind, page for page and word for word, The Longest Silence will reign! No arguing McGuane as the master wordsmith, right? Now, combine that quality with a grand sense of humor and keen insights into the sport and you have something special. We'll be lucky to see another book of it's equal in this generation. (There, I said it.)
Read the entire review of this book in the Reviews section.
Get Bent: Fish Eye Video Issue 3
Get Bent offers plenty of rod bending material - translation: lots of big, juicy trout. The jazz track accompanying this section almost keeps pace with the video action on screen. This opening moves with rhythm and energy. A video mosaic of rivers I recognized like the East Fork of the Carson, the Truckee (appears to be footage from Fish Eye #2) with some of the usual faces which Mikey has fished with - including an eight year who takes a rainbow on a dry fly. It wraps up with another youngster Loren Elliott hooking and landing a 20 inch rainbow on the East Fork of the Carson.
Read the entire review of this video in the Fly Fishing Reviews section.
The Season of the Mayfly: Fish Eye Video Issue 2
The video magazine opens with a twisted tribute to the opening scene in the movie Jaws... instead of a young, female swimming substitue a mayfly. Watch the serenity of a mayfly floating carefree. Then witness the death from below reality when a trout goes on the feed.
Read the entire review of this video in the Fly Fishing Reviews section.
Caddisflies
As LaFontaine states midway through the book, "The study of caddisflies is the graduate school of an angler's education." His book clearly mirrors both the diversity and complexity of its subject matter - caddisflies. LaFontaine mastery of the bug and how to present it to trout in it's varying life stages is apparent. But the crowning achievement in these pages is the bridge LaFontaine builds between this insect's world and the mind of the angler. It's a bridge every angler must eventually cross in order to master the complex interaction between these bugs and feeding trout. I couldn't really come up with the number of days and the river miles you would need to wade in order to gain the knowledge Lafontaine distills onto paper... but a lifetime wouldn't be a stretch here (wearing out many pairs of wading boots along the way).
Read the entire review of this book in the Reviews section.
The Trout and the Fly
If you wish to get inside the small, primitive brain of a trout, then read The Trout and The Fly. Most theories passed around in angling circles for how these critters behave is commonly hearsay. The authors, Brian Clarke and John Goddard - both avid fly fishermen, reveal trained and measured observations. More than any sport, fishing lends itself to word-of-mouth and story telling. Clarke and Goddard take a more analytical tact - providing the angler fundamental knowledge of trout behavior.
Read the entire review of this book in the Reviews section.
The Angler's Bamboo
I received Angler's Bamboo as a gift from my cousin, Gib Cooper who along with his wife owns and operates Tradewinds Bamboo Nursery out of Gold Beach, Oregon. The book provides a concise history of how "tea stick bamboo" came to be revered by anglers around the world.
Read the entire review of this book in the Reviews section.
Many Rivers to Cross: Of Good Running Water, Native Trout, and the Remains of Wilderness
M. R. Montgomery goes fishing. Well, to be precise the author goes in search of rare, hard-to-find, native trout. The places and the numbers of native fish he finds are as telling as the sharp observations he gives the reader. I initially picked up the book on account of it's subject matter - fly fishing for native trout around the West. As I read the last couple of chapters I found myself less interested in the author's fishing activity and more drawn into his commentary and writing style.
Read the entire review of this book in the Reviews section.
Fly Fishing Articles
Southwest Fly Fishing
I contributed a story for the January/February 2009 issue of Southwest Fly Fishing focusing on the Wishon Fork of the Tule River of California.
Arising from the high granite slopes of Moses and Maggie mountains in the Golden Trout Wilderness, this segment of the Tule River flows south and then west through a portion of the former Sequoia National Forest ...
I contributed a feature story for the November/December 2008 issue of Southwest Fly Fishing focusing on the Kings River of California.
Broken down into two classic reaches: the lower Kings River below Pine Flat Dam, and the upper Kings River above Pine Flat Reservior.
It's ultimately a story of two different fisheries. Each reach impacted by vastly different management practices.
I wrote a feature story for the July/August 2007 issue of Southwest Fly Fishing. The article details a five day span spent angling for Kern River rainbow trout along the upper Kern River within the Golden Trout Wilderness.
Northwest Fly Fishing
Another, shorter article I wrote appeared in the July/August 2007 issue of Northwest Fly Fishing. It's a piece about one of my favorite still-water destinations in the entire Sierra Nevada - Heenan Lake.
I contributed a feature story for the January/February 2008 issue of Northwest Fly Fishing. The article covers the upper Merced River in Yosemite Valley flowing down through the Merced Canyon until it meets the South Fork of the Merced.
©2005 - 2009 The Ecological Angler