Pit River
Year Around Fishing on Pit River
The Pit River is one of my favorite rivers in Northern California. The river has a thriving population of strong, hard pulling wild rainbow trout which are famous for their aggressive eating habits. The Pit is an extremely nutrient rich tailwater fishery hosting a smorgasbord of aquatic and terrestrial insects, crawdads, and small forage fish.
Anglers can look forward to plenty of solitude and secluded fishing on this river. Rarely will we share a parking space or pullout with other anglers. Typically, fellow anglers keep on driving and find the next available pullout for their own adventure. Where else does that happen in California on such a productive wild trout river?
The “catch” is that the Pit is not a particularly easy river to wade and certainly – not a river for everyone. Anglers have to be able to hike, scramble and navigate boulders (both in and out of the water) and basically “work for it” in this rugged canyon in order to gain access to the fishiest places.
Wading staffs are absolutely necessary on all reaches of the Pit River. Studded felt or studded rubber wading boots allow you to get where the fish live. Having a knowledgeable guide at your side along with some tenacity will make the difference between simply living through it - or loving this river.
The Pit River headwaters are the Warner Mountains in the remote northeastern corner of California. The river picks up volume and gains additional flows from Fall River and other spring-fed waters such as Hat Creek and Burney Creek among others. This Pit River system has extensive hydro-power dams built by PG&E beginning as far back as 1920.
There are several large dams throughout the canyon section below Lake Britton Dam. One of the more popular sections (due to ease of access) are the Pit #3 and #4 reaches. For fly fishing reference, the river can be divided into several sections (based on PG&E powerhouses Pit 1, 3, 4, and 5, etc) each uniquely different and worth fishing and exploring for trout. *Note, there is not a Pit #2 section. It was never constructed.
The Pit 1 reach is the upper section that empties out of Big Valley and Fall River Mills areas - for brevity let’s just say the fishing begins at the Pit 1 Powerhouse and flows for several miles until eventually entering Lake Britton near the confluence of Hat Creek. This reach fishes best during the cooler months early in spring/summer and again in the fall. Pit #1 can be accessed on foot or by inflatable water craft (whitewater pontoon or raft). This unique section of the Pit offers a fun experience for adventurous anglers with some surprising whitewater rapids. There are two different beats for floating this river, above 299 Bridge and below the 299 Bridge.
The most common section for wade anglers is Pit 3, below Lake Britton Dam. This reach is open to fishing all year around with special regs. Access is very good with a paved road that runs its entire length all the way to the Pit 4 & 5 reaches. The first few miles of Pit 3 require a short but steep hike on an access trail to the river below. If you continue to drive downriver, descending into the canyon, the road will eventually run along water’s edge improving access on the lower reaches of Pit #3.
Pit 4, & 5 sections are also open to angling all year long and offer great fishing throughout the summer season and during certain times of the winter season. The river channel gets wider here, but flows are also much higher on each of these sections – some water may be inaccessible to wade fishing.
For more information on fishing the Pit River please email or call me. Nearby streams include: Hat Creek, Burney Creek, Baum Lake, and Fall River. I recommend visitors stay in nearby in the towns of Fall River Mills or Burney - or camp in one of the nearby campgrounds. McArthur/Burney Falls State Park is popular. It’s also doable as a day trip while staying in Redding.
