Hi all! I live in Wisconsin and could kick myself when I pass some nice water without fishing gear. My wife and I are going to hike the whole trail this year, and I’m wondering if anyone has any experience fishing along the pct. Where does the nice fishing start? Is it mostly stream fishing for trout or mostly flatwater fishing? Both? Any license or tackle info would be great, too! I’m not looking to fish for meals, but just for fun.
Josh
Hi Josh,
I hiked the John Muir trail which pretty much follows the PCT for 95% of the time. The fishing on the JMT was outstanding. I mostly fly fished in the beautiful streams and rivers and once in a while I fished in the lakes. I caught fish for dinner only a couple of evenings and the rest of the time I just fished for fun. The trout hit almost anything I threw out there. There is a very nice little book called “Trout-Fishing the John Muir Trail” by Steve Beck.
The weight of a fly rod and reel is definatly worth it. I caught a trout with almost every cast when using any type of caddis pattern. I hope this helps and enjoy your hike.
Crockett
High Sierra trout aren’t huge but they are plentiful.
There are litterly hundreds of opportunities. Here are some of them between Walker Pass and Bubbs Creek:
South Fork of the Kern
Mulkey Meadow
Rock Creek
Crabtree Meadow
Wallace Creek
Wright Creek
Lakes and streams in the Upper Kern Region - you might even consider a 1-day diversion to the Kern (where the big guys lurk) via the High Sierra Trail out of Wallace Creek
booger