The Scott is a major Klamath tributary running out of the Marble Mountains down through its namesake valley, and it carries the weight of being one of the system's important steelhead and salmon nurseries. It holds resident rainbows and the sea-run steelhead that give the river its real reputation — but it's a river under pressure, and you have to fish it honestly. Summer is the hard truth here: agricultural draw and heat can pull the flows down and the water temperature up to the point where the trout are stressed and the fishing should be left alone. The river fishes best when the water is up and cool — the shoulder seasons and the steelhead runs that follow the autumn and winter rains. When it's in shape, it's freestone fishing with real fish in it. When it's low and warm, the kindest thing is to put the rod away.

• River
• Mixed