Report Updated April 8, 2103
LOOKING FOR SHAD…
The river remains open to steelhead fishing but no bait rules are now in effect. Nobody’s out fishing and anglers are waiting to see if any shad show…
Current River Conditions
Russian River Fishing Report
Russian River map
About the Russian River
Okay, so with the derelict car bodies along the banks and the plastic from the vineyards hanging from the trees, you’re not going to mistake the Russian for the Babine, but scenery aside, the river still produces some excellent steelie fishing in the winter months. In particular, the stretch immediately below the mouth of Dry Creek (near Healdsburg) holds a lot of hatchery steelies as they wait to run up the tributary and into the fish ladder.
But you don’t have to fish with the masses. There’s plenty of water upstream through the Alexander Valley to explore. Up or down river, the biggest problem here is that when it rains, the river can be a muddy and unfishable for weeks.
In the spring months, you’ll find a modest American shad run below Johnson’s and Memorial dams in the lower river. The overgrown herring can arrive as early as Easter and run into early June and produce spurts of good action for fly and spin anglers alike. Come summer, the river is overtaken by innertubes, canoes and swimmers but there’s a pretty solid smallmouth bass fishery throughout the drainage if you don’t mind trading quality for quantity.
Stupid Boat Tricks on the Russian!
Shad Fishing 101
Species of the Russian River
Winter Steelhead
December-April
American Shad
May-June
Smallmouth Bass
Year-Round
Photos from the Russian
Steelheading on the lower river
The stretch near Squaw Rock is pretty bony and best fished off the bank
