We hold a Plumas National Forest – Special Use Permit to guide fly fishing trips on Davis Lake.  This is required of all guides that use this water for guiding purposes.

Set amidst the beautiful Plumas National Forest near Portola CA, Davis Lake continues to be one of the more popular fly fishing stillwaters around.  Every year anglers come from all over to experience the fishing opportunities at Davis Lake.

Davis is a shallow lake that is well known for its prolific midge and damsel hatches.  Davis is fishable year round except for a few months in the winter when the lake can be frozen and the roads impassable.  The lake can be fished effectively from a boat, float tube, pontoon boat, small outboard craft or wading the shallow shoreline.

In the spring as the lake thaws, expect black chironomids in size 18 and snails in size 12 -14 to appear.  Blood midges in size 10-12 are usually not too far behind.  Midge patterns fished with a floating line under an indicator are very effective.  Another deadly technique is using a floating line, a long 4x leader and a variety of slow retrieves.

Sometime in June as the water and air temperatures increase, the damselflies at Davis start to migrate to the shallows and hatch.  Fly fishermen look forward to this time of year at Davis.  Fish can be seen cruising the edges of the many weed beds in search of migrating Damsels.  A floating line with a 12 ft, 4x leader is usually adequate in this situation.

In the fall, as water temperatures decrease, the main food sources in the lake are blood midges, snails and leaches.  The fish are very aggressive this time of year and larger tippet is a good idea.  Intermediate or sink tip lines with a 3x leader are effective from a boat or float tube in 6-10 feet of water.  Wading the shoreline with a floating line is also a great way to fish in the fall.