Freestone · Mixed · Northern California

Truckee River

View across the Truckee River during a snowstorm at Truckee River Regional Park, Truckee, California.

Big-shouldered freestone that drops out of Lake Tahoe and heads toward Reno, with the dam up top and irrigation demand pulling on the summer flows — so what you get downstream depends on who needs the water.

Marginal · Brown Trout
Parachute Adams · 12-18
Marginallive now
Slow going — pick your moments
River temperature is the limiting factor today, not the flow. Fish dawn or dusk if you go at all, and handle everything with extra care.
80% confidence
What moved it
  • Level1.29 mLast reading 4h ago
  • Water temp19.0°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Parachute Adams
Parachute Adams12-18
High-confidence seasonal pick
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
1.29 m
Last reading 4h ago
Water temp19.0°C
ClarityClear
Weather29°C
WindSW 14 km/h
Pressure1015 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.4 mm

Live readings only. Trends shown where the gauge supports them.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Warm — slow
19.0°Cideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown 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
Water at 19°C — above the brown trout caution line (18°C). Fish dawn or dusk only. Land it fast, wet hands, no air shots.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 2 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

See the full sub-surface read with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 with Pro.

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Evidence
ModelledModerate confidence

Modelled from regional ecology — no survey or occurrence data for this water yet.

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

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • CDFW season; some reaches open all year — verify the CA/NV-line rules.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Cooler water nearby · 1
Water here at 19.0°C — the fishing's alive, but these are cooler if you'd rather rest the warm water.
Little Truckee River
12 km
~10°C
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Gallery · 2
  1. View across the Truckee River during a snowstorm at Truckee River Regional Park, Truckee, California.
    Truckee River in snow
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Big-shouldered freestone that drops out of Lake Tahoe and heads toward Reno, with the dam up top and irrigation demand pulling on the summer flows — so what you get downstream depends on who needs the water. Strong wild browns and rainbows live in the pocket water and the deeper runs. It's mostly heavy nymphing and streamers, and the browns earn their keep. Autumn and winter are the prime time; in summer get your licks in early before it warms.

  • Mixed
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Impaired
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Truckee River' (CAR6351001019980805112246), 2024 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Not Supporting. Listed impairment causes: Sediment, Nutrients. 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) · CAR6351001019980805112246

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 80%
How the 34 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature39 × 28%10.9
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time55 × 13%7.2
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity65 × 12%7.8
Conditions total= 66
Can you trust it?
Water temperaturelive gauge readinggauge
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
What would change the calculation
Cooler water — back toward the 10–16 °C ideal band — would lift the score and ease welfare.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • TroutLast Saturday in April → 15 November
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts