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Suggested Flies for Creek Tributaries to Bucks Lake: | ||
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Suggested Flies for Bucks Lake: |
Callibaetis: Callibaetis Cripple Brooks Sprout Callibaetis Callibaetis Spinner Mercers Poxyback Denny's AP emerger (#14-16) |
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Directions: | |
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| Notes: Lower Bucks Lake (5,021' ele) can be a good alternative during the mid-summer months as this water remains cooler from the diversion of Buck's water to the powerplant at Grizzly Forebay. The levels can fluctuate quite a bit due to the powerhouse draw. Look for structure near the large cove at the boat ramp to hold large Browns. Midges are a primary food source in Lower Bucks Lake. Griffith's Gnats and Midge pupa patterns work well. Another good spot to try is the north side of the lake where a pipe from Three Lakes empties near the dam. In Spring and early Summer, large Browns will wait in these areas for food. Use large streamers. Grizzly Creek has a population of wild rainbows and browns that orginated from the Grizzly Forebay. The streambed is polished from the water flow that PG&E controlled by diverting water from Lower Bucks Lake to Grizzly Forebay. They no longer need the diversion but the activity created a polished rock streambed with numerous carved out pools holding the wild trout. You can access the creek from the Oroville Quincy Highway that runs alongside the creek.
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Fishing Regulations (Effective March 1st, 2021)Bucks Lake: Open all year. No restrictions. 5 trout per day. 10 trout in possession. 10 landlocked salmon per day. 20 landlocked salmon in possession. Bucks Lake Tributaries Saturday preceding Memorial Day through Sep. 30. 5 trout per day. No gear restrictions. Summer only fishing to protect Spring and Fall Spawning.
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From downtown Quincy, on Hwy 70-89: go West 16 miles on Bucks Lake Road to lake. Beyond Meadow Valley, road becomes steep and winding for about 3 miles; the grade and turns are easier on the logging road to the left about a mile past Meadow Valley.
This area was first settled by Horace Bucklin in 1850. At the same time, James Beckwourth was directing wagon trains of settlers past this area to cross the Sierra at Beckwourth Pass. Locals soon came to recognize the area as Bucks Ranch. The ranch became a lake in 1928 when the Feather River Power Company built a dam and is now owned by PG&E. Bucks Lake contains Rainbows, Browns and Brookies along with Mackinaw Trout and Kokanee. The lake has marginal spawning areas, so the fish need to be stocked several times during the year. Flyfishing is generally during the spring and fall when the fish are in the shallower areas along shore. Float Tubing is best working the inlets where Mill Creek, Bucks Creek, Haskins Creek, and Right Hand Creek come in. Large nymph patterns as well as streamers and woolly buggers work well in the Spring. The trout will cruise in 3-8 feet of water. There is a small callibaetis mayfly and midge hatch that occurs near the springs. Use a number of Callibaetis patterns or midge pupa patterns with an indicator. During the Summer months of August and early September, the surface temperatures of the lake are too high and the fish are deep, usually out of reach for fly fishing. In the Fall, the fish are scattered over the lake looking for food, particularly along shorelines but the browns move into the inlet areas getting ready to spawn. Shoreline fishing works just as well as a float tube. There is also a dark caddis hatch during the Fall in which dark-bodied caddis are very effective.