The Northern Sierra offers some of the most consistently good trouting to be found in California, with limited angling pressure. Too many Southern Californians make the mistake of hammering it out with the crowds on lower eastern Sierra waters.
Taking the time to drive a little further north is well worth the effort.
The magnificent Feather River area with Lakes Almanor CA and Oroville has extensive facilities for the weekender. The Plumas-Eureka sector with the Gold Lakes Basin, Davis, Frenchman and Bucks Lake CA is a virtual smorgasbord of diverse trouting waters.
Gold Lakes Basin and Jackson Meadows feature clusters of smaller trout lakes. And finally, the Truckee River and its satellite waters, Donner, Prosser, Stampede and Lake Boca, can generate rice trout fishing on an all year basis!
Spring runoff pushes browns and rainbows shallow along Lake Almanor’s east shore (40.261,-121.138) at 3–8 ft when surface temps sit 48–55°F. Summer stratification stacks fish on Almanor’s west basin ledge at 18–28 ft early and 32–45 ft by mid-morning; fall turnover reopens the upper 10 ft for pond smelt chasers.
Lake Davis (39.868,-120.469) fishes best late May–June on the north coves during the damselfly hatch, then shifts to the main channel weed edges in 8–12 ft in September. Frenchman (39.826,-120.154) holds cold water longer, peaking for rainbows at creek mouths in June and again on windblown banks in October.
Stampede (39.474,-120.143) and Boca (39.376,-120.096) remain stable year-round; kokanee stratify 35–55 ft July–August, while browns slide shallow at dusk in November. The Truckee River from Glenshire to Hirschdale fishes best on dropping flows in April–May and again October–early December with water 48–58°F.
Gold Lakes Basin high lakes (approx 39.65,-120.70) open after snowmelt in July, with evening sight-fishing in the top 4 ft and dawn midge pods; by September, focus on inlet trickles. Jackson Meadows (39.524,-120.556) has its strongest bite at ice-out (surface 40–45°F) and pre-freeze in late October with trout suspended 6–14 ft over 25–35 ft.
Run slow-troll (1.2–1.5 mph) threaded nightcrawlers behind silver/blue Dodger 000 at Almanor 18–28 ft on leadcore (4–5 colors) in summer. Pull Arctic Fox trolling flies in burnt orange or olive/white 40–60 ft back of ball at 1.8–2.0 mph on Stampede for browns at gray light.
Use a 1/6-oz Speedy Shiner in “Fire Tiger” 25–35 ft down at Boca during overcast; shift to “UV Pink” 40–50 ft when sun is high. On Lake Davis, slow-strip intermediate lines with size 8 wiggle-tail leeches 30–50 ft off the bank; pause 2–3 seconds every 4 strips to trigger following rainbows.
Truckee River (Glenshire Rd access 39.375,-120.096) demands size 16–18 olive Baetis nymphs under 3/0 split shot in spring, with afternoon switch to size 14 March Browns when water hits 52°F. Summer pocket water responds to dry-dropper: size 12 Chubby Chernobyl with a size 18 Split-Case PMD 18–24 in below.
Lake Davis shoreline: size 12–14 olive damsel nymphs on a clear camo intermediate; when the wind slicks off, swap to size 14–16 Callibaetis cripples. Frenchman late season: size 10 rusty balanced leeches under an indicator set 9–11 ft, twitch every 10–15 seconds.
Stampede coves: size 12 black midges at first light 6–8 ft under an Air-Lock; move to size 10 tan scuds in weed lanes after sunup.
At Almanor’s Geritol Cove (40.256,-121.147), cast 1/4-oz Kastmasters in “Brown Trout” at a 45° fan; count down 6–10 seconds and retrieve with two-speed cadence. Lake Davis’ Camp 5 shoreline lets you float bait—PowerBait garlic chartreuse—18–24 in above a 1/4-oz sliding sinker when water is below 55°F.
Frenchman’s Lunker Point offers steep breaks; fish a 3/8-oz tube jig in smoke flake on 8 lb fluoro, hopping down the ledge. On Prosser (39.375,-120.169), focus on the inlet mudline after rain with 1/8-oz marabou jigs in black/olive under a fixed float set 4–6 ft.
Use Canyon Dam ramp at Almanor year-round; troll the east shore stump field on an inside turn pattern watching 18–25 ft contour. Lake Davis has the Honker Cove ramp; run electric-only in coves and set wind-drift paths to slow-strip leeches parallel to weed edges.
Frenchman has a single concrete ramp near the dam; slow-troll Needlefish in “Cop Car” 1.4 mph 15–22 ft down along the east bank when the sun hits. Stampede main ramp gives quick access to the island humps—stack kokanee gear at 35–55 ft with double dodger rigs.
Target Almanor browns at the Peninsula drop (40.257,-121.138) in March with 5" rainbow-pattern Rapala F11 on longlines 120–150 ft back at 2.0 mph. Stampede’s southeast creek arms kick out 8–12 lb browns at night in October; cast 6" black Jerk Minnows on 12 lb fluoro over 6–12 ft flats.
Boca’s dam face holds big browns in November; run a 3.5 Mag Lips “Mardi Gras” 45–60 ft behind planer boards at 1.8 mph. Jackson Meadows’ early June evening bite produces 5–7 lb rainbows on suspending stickbaits in ghost minnow paused over 15–20 ft.
Almanor: Rocky Point and Almanor North campgrounds sit close to launch; Lake Almanor Lodge in Chester handles boats with plug-ins. Lake Davis offers Grasshopper Flats for full hookups and proximity to Honker ramp.
Frenchman: Chilcoot and Frenchman campgrounds cover the north shore; Reno lodging is 45–60 minutes for off-water nights. Stampede: Logger and Emigrant campgrounds walk to the ramp; Truckee hotels cover shoulder seasons.
Gold Lakes Basin has primitive camps at Gold Lake and Sardine, with Graeagle cabins as backup; Jackson Meadows provides Pass Creek and Woodcamp near the dam.
Lake Davis and Frenchman usually cap mid-December–February; drill 6–10 ft off weed edges and run 1/16-oz tungsten jigs tipped with mealworm, glow white or pink, 1–2 ft off bottom. Stampede can freeze partially on the creek arms; target 12–18 ft with small spoons (Swedish Pimple #2 in glow chartreuse) and set a deadstick rod with a size 14 treble and single salmon egg.
Check ice thickness daily; avoid inlets and pressure ridges, and carry picks and a throw rope. Almanor rarely offers safe ice; stick to open-water bank and kayak sessions there.
Use 7'0" ML trolling rods like Lamiglas X-11 with line-counter reels (Daiwa Lexa LC 300) for precise depth control; spool with 15 lb braid and 12–15 lb fluoro leaders. For shore and jig work, a 7'6" medium-fast spinning rod (St. Croix Triumph) with 8 lb fluoro handles spoons and jigs in wind.
Fly anglers: 6-wt with an intermediate clear and a type 3 sink tip covers lakes; 4–5 wt with Euro leader for the Truckee pocket water. Carry polarized amber lenses for low light and copper for bright days; winds often hit 12–18 mph by noon, so pack a drogue for small boats.
Baetis: March–April on the Truckee, 11am–3pm, size 18–20; PMDs: June–July, size 16. Callibaetis: Lake Davis and Frenchman late May through July, size 14–16; damsels: June peak, size 12–14.
Midges are year-round everywhere; black and red chironomids size 12–16 dominate early and late season. Pond smelt and tui chub are primary forage in Almanor, Boca, and Stampede; match with silver/blue or pearl lures.
Almanor: Speedy Shiner “Cop Car,” Rapala F11 rainbow, Arctic Fox trolling flies in burnt orange; flies—Albino Wino balanced leech, size 14 BH PT. Davis: Dick Nite size 1 “Frog,” Jay Fair wiggle-tail leech olive, size 14 Callibaetis cripple.
Frenchman: Needlefish “Fire Tiger,” 1/4-oz white tube jig, balanced leech in brown/black; flies—size 16 chironomid red/silver. Stampede/Boca: Mag Lips 3.5 “Mardi Gras,” Apex “UV Pink,” hoochie/spinner kokanee rigs in pink/white; flies—size 10 black midge, size 8 tan scud.
Truckee River: size 16–18 Baetis nymphs, size 12 stonefly (Pat’s Rubberlegs), size 12 Chubby Chernobyl with size 18 Split-Case PMD dropper.
Afternoon winds funnel down the Feather River canyon; be off Almanor’s east shore by 1pm if in small craft. Watch submerged stumps at Almanor’s west basin and Davis’ north coves when lake is below full; run graphs at 4–6 mph while scouting.
Cell coverage is spotty east of Graeagle; carry paper maps and an InReach. Winter roads to Gold Lakes and Jackson Meadows close after first big snow—check Plumas NF and Tahoe NF updates.
Truckee River: Barbless artificials only from Trout Creek confluence downstream to Boca inlet; zero-kill regs often in effect seasonally—check CDFW Region 2 updates. Stampede/Boca kokanee limit is typically 5; browns/rainbows standard 5, but size/gear rules may shift in river inlets.
Lake Davis and Frenchman are general regs but watch seasonal closure of tributaries and springtime low-speed zones near dams. Lake Almanor has a two-rod validation option; respect no-wake in coves and around marina docks.
Always confirm current fire restrictions for camp stoves and glass containers on beaches; CDFW wardens patrol heavily during holiday weekends.
Planning a multi-lake trip or exploring more Sierra Nevada fishing? Check out these resources:
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