I stood between two great mountains, Mt. Lassen to the east at my back and Shasta to my west, staring into a deep blue-green hole where crystal-clear, cold water poured from a hole in the ground. While incredibly special, these springs are quite common between the two volcanoes. They provide the lifeblood of California and have made it one of the best places in the world for thousands of years. We jumped into the cold water for a midday swim, with the sun high and temperatures reaching the high 80s. There wasn’t much point in fishing. It was a strange feeling swimming above a hole in the earth of unknown depths, at least to me.
As we hiked to the stream, grasshoppers jumped and flew from our footsteps. These strange insects are signs of the great fishing that was to come. When we approached the grassy banks of one of California’s most famous streams, Hat Creek, the PMDs elegantly rose from the water’s surface, backlit by the low sun. My eyes shifted to the water’s surface, watching the ripples created by fish feeding on the emerging insects and the swirls of water created from the powerful swipe of tails that sent them back to their lies.
I was in the mood for dry fly fishing, but these fish were unwilling to break the surface for the dainty PMDs drying their wings on the water. I decided not to change my fly from the size 10 chubby I had fished with on the McCloud the day before. I made a short cast upstream from where I stood to a little bucket where I had caught hundreds of trout over the years. A trout immediately slashed at the fly, nearly leaping entirely out of the water. Surprised by the immediacy, I watched and didn’t set the hook. Smiling ear to ear, I observed the trout slash at the fly until a big head emerged. Unable to resist, I set the hook and landed a beautiful rainbow.
On my walk back to the truck, swarmed by mosquitoes, I reflected on how special California Fly Fisher is. This moment culminated decades of passionately exploring and fishing in California. The pages of this magazine are filled with words from those who have similarly dedicated their lives to sharing their extensive experiences fishing our waters. What an honor and pleasure it is to introduce the summer 2025 edition.
For me, it is back to the salty air and cool breezes of the Pacific Ocean in search of sea-going monsters. That is, until the fall rains call me up north to the redwoods. Until then.
Stay Fishy, California.
