Freestone · Volcanic · Eastern Sierra

Upper San Joaquin River

Upper San Joaquin River terrain map
Prime · Brown Trout
Parachute Adams · 12-18
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
River steady at a fishable height. On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • Level1.04 m
  • Water temp15.8°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Parachute Adams
Parachute Adams12-18
High-confidence seasonal pick
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
1.04 m
Water temp15.8°C
ClarityClear
Weather13°C
WindSW 7 km/h
Pressure1020 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.9 mm

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

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Ideal
15.8°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
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though insect activity could be better.
Hatch timeline · todayQuiet day

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 4 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

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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.
  • General-season trout water (~late April–mid-November) but really gated by snowmelt and Reds Meadow road access
  • Verify CDFW rules and wilderness / Devils Postpile National Monument access
  • High-altitude, short season.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Rush Creek
17 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Hot Creek
23 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
McGee Creek
26 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Upper Owens River
29 km
76
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Crowley Lake
31 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Supporting
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Middle Fork San Joaquin River (Madera County)' (CAR5406002020190822044334), 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) · CAR5406002020190822044334

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 90%
How the 85 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time80 × 13%10.4
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity52 × 12%6.2
Conditions total= 85
Can you trust it?
Water temperaturelive gauge readinggauge
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • TroutLast Saturday in April → 15 November
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts