Upper Sacramento River
Wild Trout
The Upper Sacramento River is featured in the new ebook, Wild Trout.
Upper Sac Almost on Fire
A word to the wise - don't attempt to fish the Upper Sac when you see these hatch in the air.
Directions
From I-5 Near Dunsmuir
- Sweetbriar - Travel south on I-5 approximately 10 minutes. Take the Sweetbriar exit. Turn left at the stop sign, cross over the freeway and take an immediate right on the dirt road and follow to the end.
- Castella/State Park - Travel south on I-5 approximately 7 minutes. Take the Castella exit. Turn left at the stop sign, cross over the freeway. Turn left at the "T" intersection, then right, crossing over the river. Make a left at the Castle Crags Picnic area and park in the day use area.
- Soda Creek - Travel south on I-5 approximately 5 minutes. Take the Soda Creek exit. Turn left at the stop sign and follow the road to the river.
- Dunsmuir City Park - From Dunsmuir, take Dunsmuir Avenue north and watch for signs to Dunsmuir City Park (look for the steam engine at the park enterance).
- Scarlett Way - From Dunsmuir, take Dunsmuir Avenue norh and turn left on Scarlett Way (look for archway). Park across river in large parking area. (No tunaround space for motorhomes.) This is also the access for Mossbrae Falls.
- Cantara - From Dunmsuir, travel north on I-5. Take the central Mt. Shasta exit. Turn left and cross over the freeway. Turn left on Old Stage Road and travel south approximately 2 miles. Turn right on Azalea and cross the tracks. After 1/2 mile, turn right on Catara Road, and continue down to the river.
Fly Fishing Upper Sacramento River
Fly fishing the upper Sacramento River combines three things which matter to most anglers - easy access from the road, varied scenery, and of course, healthy wild trout. This portion of the Sacramento River is the 37.3 mile segment of the river upstream of Shasta Lake, and downstream of Box Canyon Dam at Lake Siskiyou, in northern California.
It is a highly productive, cold-water mountain stream for most of its length. Its varied habitats include pools, runs, riffles, cascades, and pocket-water. The river flows south, through Siskiyou and Shasta counties into the northern end of Shasta Lake, a large, fluctuating storage reservoir.
A biologically diverse and complex system, the river supports a wide array of aquatic plants and animals, from algae and phytoplankton to aquatic insects, mollusks, crayfish, amphibians, and several species of fish. However, the most prominent aquatic resource is the area's internationally renowned wild rainbow trout fishery.
The river directly, and indirectly, supports a wide variety of terrestrial resources as well. Vegetation most closely fits the White Alder Riparian Forest natural community type (Holland 1986), but is variable and includes riparian forest, riparian scrub, and gravel bar. Terrestrial wildlife species interact in a complex web of interdependence with each other and their habitat, including the aquatic environment.
The California Department of Fish and Game's (DFG) California Wildlife Habitats Relationship Program (WHR), which lists all native and introduced wildlife species known in California, indicates that the watershed supports up to 247 species of terrestrial wildlife, including 76 mammals, 17 reptiles, 14 amphibians, and 140 birds.
