Freestone · Mixed · Northern California, US

Middle Fork American River

Middle Fork American River at Sliger Mine
Today · About as good as it gets
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Forecast · Today
About as good as it gets
On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% projected
Today's fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Conditions on the water · Today
Proxy gauge
Level
Steady
Proxy
via South Fork American River
Water temp13.8°C
ClarityClear
Weather21°C
WindN 13 km/h
Pressure1018 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from South Fork American River. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Rainbow Trout
Ideal
14°C est.ideal 10–18°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Rainbow Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is working for you, but time of day is the limiting factor today.
Likely species
Mayflies
Chironomids
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 21:00

12:00(now) — Mahogany Dun

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 61%
Peak emergence window4 food groups active

Peak activity at 21:00 — Brown Dun (Brown Dun, 4 food groups active)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

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Evidence
Records-basedModerate confidence

Based on species-occurrence records, not local invertebrate surveys.

Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Brown DunHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Western Green DrakeHatch
2
2
Flav (Small Western Green Drake)Hatch
2
3
2
Mahogany DunHatch
2
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Fly box · Rainbow Trout
SD
Sex Dungeon
2-6 · Pattern
Proven pattern for this period
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
South Fork American River
14 km
84
Rainbow trout
North Fork American River
18 km
79
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Lower American River
38 km
77
Rainbow trout
Rubicon River
43 km
79
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Lower Yuba River
44 km
80
Rainbow trout
Gallery · 2
  1. Middle Fork American River at Sliger Mine
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Supporting
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'American River, Middle Fork' (CAR5144201020020610125450), 2024 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Fully Supporting. This is a Clean Water Act assessment-unit classification (the US analogue of WFD), not a live reading.

Status is for the Clean Water Act assessment unit covering this reach.

EPA ATTAINS (Clean Water Act) · CAR5144201020020610125450

The full read · show the working · for Rainbow Trout · confidence 75%
How the 80 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time40 × 13%5.2
Pressure75 × 7%5.3
Insect activity73 × 12%8.8
Conditions total= 80
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowproxy via South Fork American Riverproxy
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
What would change the calculation
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout Último Saturday in April → 15 November
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts