Chip O'Brien

Former CalTrout Reg. Mgr

Thursday, August 10, 2006

In 1964 a 10-year-old boy caught his first fish with his father’s dusty old bamboo fly rod. From that moment on, Chip O’Brien knew he would spend his life fly fishing and sharing his adventures with others.

Educated as a writer/photographer, O’Brien has authored over 175 articles in fly fishing and aviation magazines so far. Hundreds of his images have appeared in magazines, books, brochures and State of California publications. His book, River Journal, Sacramento River is available through Amazon.com and other sources.

A former CalTrout Regional Manager, O’Brien was awarded the “Streamkeeper” award for his work on behalf of the lower Sacramento River trout fishery. Professionally trained in the collection and identification of aquatic insects, he has been a regular snorkel survey participant, bio-assessment volunteer and paid consultant for California Department of Fish & Game. While in Redding he served as president of Shasta Fly Fishers six times and was named “Fly Fisher of the Year” and “Doc Graves Fly Tier of the Year” for that organization. He has been fly fishing for over 40 years and guided northern California‘s best trout waters for over 15 years.

A popular speaker, O’Brien loves to share his images, experiences and quirky humor with fly fishers around the West. He has recently moved north to pursue teaching, writing and new waters around Silverton, OR.

Chip's presentation will be on Keswick Reservoir, which is the nine miles of water between Shasta County's Shasta and Keswick Dams, just north of Redding. The largest recorded wild rainbow from Keswick to date weighed 19+ pounds. Hardly anyone fishes this water because it has its own unusual set of rules.

This presentation will cover access to Keswick, entomology, flies, tactics, equipment, a bit of history, and techniques and strategies to connect with Keswick trout. Anglers familiar with this little known fishery can catch and release 20 pounds of wild trout on a good day.

The following notes from Chip's presentation were taken by GBF Member John Carroz. Thanks, Chip for a very entertaining and interesting presentation about this little-known stretch of the Sacramento River:

How to fish Keswick Reservoir by Chip O’Brien

1.    Obtain a permit to cross Shasta Dam.  Use Google and search for ‘Shasta Dam Permit’. Or click the following link or copy/paste it into the address line of your browser:

Shasta Dam Permits:  http://www.usbr.gov/mp/ncao/shasta/access_permits_complete.pdf

 

You must acquire a permit from the Shasta Dam Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) in order to cross Shasta Dam. This permit takes three to five days to process, so submit your application at least a week ahead of time so your name will be on their list when you arrive at the gate. Once you are cleared to cross the dam the permit lasts up to six months. For more information regarding the permit process and office hours the BOR can be reached at (530) 275-1554. You can also obtain a permit application from the Redding BLM office at 355 Hemsted Dr. in Redding, Monday through Friday 8:00-4:30, the application will have to be turned in to the BOR upon completion. (Note that you will need legible color copy(s) of primary and secondary driver’s licenses to submit with the application)

2.    Drive across Shasta dam (Gate opens at 6:00am and closes at 10:00pm. See rules below.)

3.    Turn left for river access.  All access is on the west side of the river.

4.    Park at the first lake access trail. The best fishing is on the top section of Lake Keswick just below Shasta Dam.

5.    Carry your float tube down to the lake; float downstream, fishing the shoreline and rock gardens. Don’t attempt this with a pontoon boat or you will regret it when carrying the heavier pontoon back to your car.

6.    The main thing to remember about fishing Keswick: Fish are located where there is 3 – 6 feet of slow moving water over grass. Minimum cast is at least 30 feet from your float tube to avoid spooking fish.  Must achieve a natural drift, so make sure you allow some extra line out since too tight a line will cause your fly to drag. 

7.    Chip O’Brien uses size 12 gold tungsten bead, brown bird’s nest and an indicator on a 9 ft. leader. A 5 wt. rod is ideal. Strike at any slowdown of indicator.  Use only nymphs.  Fish feed primarily on midges.  Fishing is poor in hot summer weather and in December and January and when water is rising / falling frequently during day or over 6 feet per day.  Lake fishes best in high water.

After fishing, find one of the 3 take-out trails up from the lake downstream along the densely vegetated west shoreline. They are somewhat obscure, but the first was marked with a ribbon, and the next two are fairly obvious. These allow you to hike back to your vehicle in 15, 20, or 45 minutes. It is important not to float past the last take-out trail. It would be a long hike back to your car.