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Yuba River Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

The Lower Yuba: gold-country's wild rainbow ribbon, running clear below Englebright with steelhead genes and skwala springs.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
843 cfs
Air / High
72 / 77 F
Wind
S 7 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 11421000, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Yuba River sits in the sweet spot of the season: active fish and workable weather. The river is running 843 cfs, on the rise. Today brings clear skies, wind S around 7 mph, steady pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 77. Water sits around 66 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Smallmouth bassGood

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Brown troutGood

Terrestrials tight to the bank; streamers through the deeper runs on cloudy days.

SteelheadSlow

First fall runs after rain: fresh chrome in the lower pools on spawn bags and beads.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 82 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from Yuba River near Marysville.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 11421000.

583686788843 cfs08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp72 F
High / Low77 / 61 F
WindS 7-11 mph
Pressure1013.2 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain16% cloud, 17%
Sunrise / Sunset06:37 / 19:31
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 77/61 F, wind 9 mph, rain 17%

Fair or better. A 9 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Yuba River: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Steelhead illustration

Steelhead

Best: Oct-Apr

Lake-run rainbows that turn tributaries into winter fisheries. First fall runs after rain: fresh chrome in the lower pools on spawn bags and beads.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Best: Sep-Nov

Wary, predatory and nocturnal by preference. The big ones eat streamers. Terrestrials tight to the bank; streamers through the deeper runs on cloudy days.

When to come: the Yuba River calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Steelhead
Smallmouth bass
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Yuba River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 13 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 78 F, wind to 14 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 78 F, wind to 13 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

California requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

California license + steelhead card (wild rainbows count). No stocking: wild-trout rules: check CDFW Yuba regs.

Access

Parks Bar (Hwy 20), Sycamore Ranch, Hallwood accesses; drift boats Parks-to-Sycamore.

About this water

The Lower Yuba below Englebright Dam, Yuba County, CA. Wild steelhead-gene rainbows in gold country.

Fishing Yuba River: the full guide

The gold river

The Lower Yuba runs from Englebright Dam through historic mining cobble to the Feather: a wild-trout sanctuary (no stocking, ever) whose rainbows carry steelhead genetics: chrome-bright, hot-running fish in a valley river that fishes like a mountain tailwater.

The wild program

Year-round season, wild fish only: skwala stones bring March's famous dry-fly window, pinkish-albert and hopper summers work the riffle edges, and egg-and-nymph winters track the salmon redds (fish behind them, never on them: the river's fall kings seed everything). The fish average 14-18 with genuine 20-plus surprises.

Reading the cobble

The 1850s mining legacy built today's structure: cobble bars, deep slots and the daguerre-era channels: floated by drift boats (Parks Bar to Sycamore the classic) and waded at the accesses when flows allow (our Marysville gauge: under 2,000 CFS invites boots). High water rearranges bars yearly: the river stays new.

Valley practicalities

Access concentrates at Parks Bar (Highway 20) and the Sycamore/Hallwood reaches: summer heat makes mornings mandatory: and the lower river's shad run (May-June) adds a swing-rod carnival the trout crowd shouldn't skip. Marysville anchors services: the Sierra foothills rise minutes east.

Common questions

When is the skwala hatch on the Yuba?

February-March: the West's earliest famous dry-fly window. Overcast afternoons bring the river's wild rainbows up to size-10 stones.

Are Yuba rainbows steelhead?

Genetically entangled: the river's wild fish carry anadromous lineage and fight like it. A steelhead card is required: treat every chrome fish as the treasure it is.

Is fishing good at Yuba River right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Collins Lake10 miBullards Bar Reservoir19 miFeather River22 miLake Oroville23 miSacramento River33 miFolsom Lake37 mi
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