Golden West Outings: The Heart and Soul of Our Club
We take off for spots all over Northern California on a dozen or so trips a year that range from a day to a week, from float tubing lakes to boating spring creeks to horse packing small streams to tackling blue ribbon trout rivers like the Pit, the Trinity or the Truckee. Most trips are over weekends, when we'll stay in cabins or motels, but camping is often arranged. Occasionally we plan a more far-flung trip, to Oregon or Montana, or even further afield like Belize or Alaska.
Outings are not limited to the traditional trout season either, as we seek out opportunities for steelheading in the winter, and lake fishing before April and after November. Outings are conceived and led by our own members who want to share their favorite destinations.
We find that we can learn more and improve our skills quickly in a group setting, and the fringe benefits of sharing good meals and trading stories about fishing and other subjects make our trips a high point of the season.
Outings
skill level legend:
Absolute Beginner: Come and learn from other members.
Advanced Beginner: Minimal casting skills and gear required. Fishing
advice cheerfully provided, but you must be able to fish on your own.
Intermediate: Good casting skills and fishing experience required.
Advanced: Tougher conditions; well-developed skills are suggested
for best results.
2010 Outings updated 1/26/10 by Loretta Strickland, Outings Chair
March 27 (Saturday only) Shadow Cliff Park – Pleasanton
Have a fun filled day at one of the East Bay Regional Parks jewels. Shadow Cliffs is located about 1 mile from downtown Pleasanton. This is a great outing for beginners. You can fish from shore or fish from your personal (float tubes, kayaks, pontoon boats) watercraft skills. EBRP has float tubes clinics at this park. This is a great park to practice fishing from personal watercraft. These lakes are planted with trout along with other fish. Cost of this outing is $5 for the EBRP parking permit and $5 for the EBRP fishing permit. Both of these permits are paid for at the park. in addition to having a valid 2010 California fishing license. Tom Stienstra wrote a great article which is posted below on the fish that are available to catch in the local EBRP lakes. If you are interested, contact fishmistress Loretta Strickland at lorvamp@hotmail.com
April 17 (Saturday only) - Kistler Ranch
Join GWWF for a fun day-trip outing in the Oakdale/Knights Ferry area. This ranch is located approximately 100 miles from Oakland and about 1 1/2 hour drive. The Ranch has 3 ponds with bass, bluegill and crappie. These fish are a blast to catch on a fly rod. The ponds are easiest to fish from a float tube, kayak or pontoon boat since the edges are muddy and weedy, but some good fishing from the shore is also possible. If you are a beginning fly fisher or a float tuber, this outing is for you! You will use 3-6 wt rods and either floating or sinking lines. Plan to arrive around 9 and fish until 6pm, or until the wind blows you off the ponds…it can get windy! Significant others and friends can attend as space is available. The cost for this outing is $20 each person. Limit is 20 people. If you are interested, contact fishmistress Loretta Strickland at lorvamp@hotmail.com
April 30- May 2 (Fri - Sun) - Pyramid Lake, NV
Pyramid Lake is located approximately 40 minutes north of Reno and the fishing is for Lahontan Cutthroat trout, average size 16”, but can be as large as 30”. It’s a beautiful, desert lake with constantly changing colors and scenery, and the fishing improves as the weather deteriorates. This is a great chance to learn or practice your double-haul technique with a 7+ weight rod and shooting heads, or simply nymph with an indicator with a 5-7 weight rod. Both techniques are best in combination with a stepladder or stepstool. Accommodations will be in trailers at Crosby’s Lodge at lakeside; cost is approximately $65-70 per person total for Friday and Saturday nights. We're trying new units this year. Please see www.crosbylodge.com and review the Sutcliffe Inn#17 and Modular #12 descriptions. We’ll have a BBQ potluck on Saturday night. Your tippet and flies can be purchased at a local fly shop either prior to or on the outing. Contact Fishmistress Judy Decker at (650) 340-0179 or jdecker@vectorlabs.com , once we’ve made contract I will ask you to send your check for $65-70 (made out to Judy) to 735 El Camino Real #103, Burlingame CA 94010.
May 22 (Saturday) Kayak Fishing California Delta
Join us for a kayaking fishing trip in the 5mph zones of the California Delta. This is a trip for experienced kayaks, canoeist, and pontoon boat users. No float tubes on this trip since we will be on moving water. We will be paddling out with outgoing tide, fly-fishing and paddling back on the incoming. Tide prediction for Orwood, Old River is low at aprox. 9 a.m. and incoming to high tide is at about 3 p.m. We will have a potluck after the outing. We are checking out the 5mph zones to find the best one for this outing. Limit is 12 members. The California Delta is a wildlife jewel located about 50 miles from Oakland. It has great fishing for various fish including large mouth bass, stripers, bluegill etc. It is one of the great stopping points on the Pacific flyway for birds. You will need at least a 7 wt fly rod for this outing. There is no cost for this trip. If you are interested, contact fishmistress Cathy Case at roggee46@hotmail.com
May 27-31 (Fri - Mon) - McCloud River
Fish the beautiful Lower McCloud River below Lake McCloud during the long holiday weekend. Camping is at Ah-Di-Nah campground at the river’s edge. You can fish at the campground or at the famed Nature Conservancy stretch. If you stay in a motel in nearby town of McCloud (45 min. drive), you will need to make your own arrangements. A $25 per person donation to the McCloud River Preserve secures your spot on this outing. Contact Fishmistress Anne-Marie Bakker at (707) 721-6184 or bakkersmith@sbcglobal.net and/or send your check for $25 (made out to Anne-Marie) to 1295 Calle del Arroyo, Sonoma CA 95476.
June 03 -06 (Thurs – Sun) – Deer Creek and Creekin’ the Chester Area
From beginners to accomplished fly fishers, this outing has it all. Yellow Creek, Deer Creek, Butte Creek, Rice Creek, Warner Creek, and Mill Creek are all within a short distance and let us not forget Upper and Lower NF of Feather River, Hamilton Branch, and Lake Almanor. We will be staying at Cedar Lodge www.cedarlodgefun.com just outside Chester with kitchenettes and gas BBQ. The cost of the accommodations are approximately $35.00 per night (based on full occupancy). Spouses and friends are welcome. To reserve space, contact Fishmistress Chris Hicklin at chris.hicklin@gmail.com or 510-673-3260 and send a check payable to Chris Hicklin at 978 Bruce Lane, Chico, CA 95928 hold your spot.
Hat Creek- Burney June 17-20
Hat Creek is the classic spring creek in Northern California. The fish not only know where you bought your flies but they know how much each cost. However since the middle of June is relatively early in the season perhaps last years fish have not yet passed on their knowledge to this year’s fish. There will be at least 3 different places on Hat Creek to fish, using dries or nymphs. We will stay in the town of Burney. It is about a 41/2-hour drive from the S.F. area. It is a long drive for just a little fishing if you have to leave after work on Friday. If you can take Friday off and then at least get to do some fishing Friday evening it will feel better. I will be there from Thursday night on. There are several motels in Burney, all managed by one organization. The rooms are just fine, and the prices moderate. Friday night we will probably meet at one of the local old time restaurants, but the Saturday night plan is yet to be determined. There is no real wading at Hat Creek except at the Power Plant. So this is an OK trip for a beginner, if you can at least tie on your own flies and cast a bit. . For those who want to experience Fall River, one half hour away, that is also a possibility. For Fall River you need your own boat, but short of that you can hire a guide, for the day, which is the best way to go on Fall River. Fish mistress will be glad to give you the name of a guide. This is an area of Northern California that you really want to experience if you haven’t been there before. For more information and to sign up contact fishmistress Arlene Marcus at mamarcus@cal.berkeley.edu
July 5 - 11 Big Horn River, Montana
Come fish one of the west great tailwater rivers with us. We will be fishing the Big Horn River in Montana; fishing the Big Horn. We will stay at the Kingfisher lodge in Fort Smith, Montana, check out their website www.bighornkingfisher.com. For more information, contact Fanny at 415-752-0192 or fannykrieger@mac.com
Sept 13-19 Colorado, Frying Pan and Roaring Forks River
Stay at a private working ranch, The Luarks Ranch, and fish the Colorado , Frying Pan and Roaring Fork Rivers. There is room there for six very comfortable, 7 more cozy. We fished there last year and had a great time. For more information, contact Fanny at 415-752-0192 or fannykrieger@mac.com
September 24-27, Spinner Fall Lodge - Fall River
Come stay at Spinner Fall Lodge located on the upper section of beautiful Fall River. The sole public access to the upper river is via the Spinner Fall Lodge boat rentals, or by hiring local guides. Dry fly fish for healthy wild rainbows averaging 16", or swing zug bugs on sinking lines for a shot at catching one of those 20"ers lurking in the deep pools. If you prefer not to fish out of boats, there are lots of alternatives for wading nearby: Baum Lake, Hat Creek, Lost Creek, McCloud River, Pit River, and Burney Creek. Spinner Fall Lodge is a motel, right on the river, with a restaurant and bar next door. There are no cooking facilities for guests, but there are plenty of dining options available. Rooms sleep one or two. Rates tbd when the lodge begins booking for the 2010 season. $20.00 secures your spot. Contact Mary Hazlewood for more information: 530-336-5848, or mlhazlewood@gmail.com
November 12-14 Trinity River Trip (Joint trip with GWWF and Shasta Mayflies)
If it's November and you're fishing on the Trinity River it's to catch the wonderfully challenging steelhead. Please join us! There are a lot of places to fish on this river, near Lewiston, Douglas City and Junction City. You can fish from the shore or make guide arrangements. Significant others are welcome and a potluck is planned for both Friday and Saturday night. Lodging details/suggestions to be announced later, but basically it will be somewhere in the Lewiston/Weaverville area which is about an hour west of Redding. If you are interested, contact fishmistress Rebecca Blair at rebecca_blair@sbcglobal.net
GWWF
Outings Policy
All
members who sign up for GWWF trips are required to provide payment for the
full cost of the trip at the time of reservation (unless specifically noted
otherwise). If a member is subsequently not able to attend, it is her responsibility,
and not that of the Outings Chair or Fishmistress, to find a replacement to
cover her costs.
Anyone can be a Fishmistress! If you'd like to share a favorite spot, or spearhead an exploration to a new one, all it takes is a call to Outings Chair Loretta Strickland, and she'll help you organize it. No special skills are required - just pick a place, and be the contact person.
Also be sure to check the Photo Gallery for links to the online albums of our members!
Dierdre Moy - Montana
Lower Yuba Trip
Robin with fish and guide
on Lower Yuba
Middle
Fork Feather
Kelly O. and Barb K. pause
before casting.
Truckee
River
Lois R coaches Jane H
on Truckee subtleties. Click on the pic for MORE photos of this trip.
San
Luis Reservoir
Dorothy Z. floats and waits for the decisive moment on the
San Luis Reservoir Striper Fishout Feb 19-21
