The Bull fire is currently 81% contained at 16,460 acres in size.  Mountain 99 is still closed between Brush Creek and Headquarters camp.  The river is still closed in approximately the same area due to fire fighting helicopters taking water from the river.    The forest service has closed a portion of the Kern River Ranger District within the Bull fire.  See the link below for more information.

Sequoia National Forest Website

The Kern County Chapter of the Red Cross is currently supplying support to the victims and firefighters of both the Bull fire and the West fire near Tehachapi.  You may visit their website to see reports on what they have been doing during these fires.

Kern County Red Cross

7/28/10 - 8:00 PM - Kern River Valley Fire (Bull Fire)

The Bull Fire is currently reported as being just under 16,000 acres.  Mountain 99 is still closed between Brush Creek and Headquarters camp. 

Bakersfield Now (KBAK-TV) Photo Gallery from Bull Fire

7/27/10 - 5:00 AM - Kern River Valley Fire (Bull Fire)

The Bull Fire is currently around 4200 acres in size.  Hard road closures are in place around Kernville including Mtn 99 between Kernville and Fairview.

National Incident Information System - Bull Fire

7/26/10 - 7:00 PM - Kern River Valley Fire (Bull Fire)

There is a large fire burning north of Kernville in the Bull Run drainage area.   It is being called the "Bull Fire".  As of 7:00PM this evening (Monday) it is reported to be 2000 acres and growing.  Parts of Kernville and River Kern are being evacuated.  We will provide links to information on the fire as they become available.

KGET News Breaking News Link

Kern County Fire Twitter Link

Kern County Fire Incident Page - Bull Fire

May 2010 - 2010 Fire Season Declared

The BLM, USFS and Kern County Fire Department have already declared the 2010 Wildland Fire Season to be in effect.   We would just like to remind our everyone to be aware of their surroundings while you are on are lakes, rivers and streams.  Wild fires can start at any time and move very fast, as the McNally Fire showed us in 2002.  We want to see everyone come back from their fishing trips safe and sound.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 05/01/10

The first stocking for the Kern occurred last week since the mechanical failure at the Kernville Planting base March 13th. Nearly 10,000 pounds of planters were loaded into the Upper Kern for the trout opener. This is the first planting for sections of the Upper Kern River between Johnsondale Bridge and KR3 in more than a year and a half. Finally significant numbers of plus foot long fish will be catchable in this section.  Most wading fly fishers will have to wait as the spring melt is on and the river is now + 2,000 cfs on its way to +5,000 cfs by June 1st.

Most safety minded fly fishers will not venture back up on the Upper Kern until flows drop below 1,000 cfs again probably sometime in mid to late July. We received a good amount of rain and snow in April and the snowpack is well above average for the first time since the summer of 2006. Repairs have been made to the Kernville hatchery and it should be back to normal operations very soon. Local city lakes have not been planted in weeks because of the hatchery mechanical issues and warming water temperatures in the valley. No more planting locally until Turkey Day.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 04/01/10

More stocking issues for the Kern have surfaced because of a mechanical failure at the Kernville Planting base March 13th. Fish at the hatchery began going belly up and the hatchery was forced to plant every fish it had. Most of those fish went into the Upper Kern at the bridge in Kernville and by KR3. There was great catching and lots of pressure on those stretches. Trout were hitting anything colorful placed 1 foot off the bottom for several days and the harvesting was on. The spring melt has begun in earnest as flows on the Upper Kern have exceeded 1,000 cfs in Kernville and +700 cfs below Fairview Dam. Wading is difficult on most stretches of the Upper Kern as a result. Unfortunately, no stocking was made between Fairview and KR3 which would have given the river a much needed infusion of foot long trout in this scoured section of the river which has not been planted in a year and a half. The hatchery manager indicated that the repairs should occur in a couple of weeks provided repair funding can be acquired in a timely manner so we'll keep our fingers crossed for now.

The Southern Sierra snowpack was well above average going into March which is our wettest month of the year. The month did not live up to expectations and subsequently April needs to be above average for the drainage to have a much needed above average year after 3 years of drought have plagued our home river.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 02/11/10

Thought I should try the Upper Kern today on the second day after stocking resumed. Got a late start and arrived at Kernville Park around 10am . A dozen happy guys were there stacked along the river. It was good to see catching again but not the crowd. I guess it's a good problem to have. The Upper Kern is flowing clear (400cfs) and cool at 42 degrees. I had to poke around a while to find a secluded spot above Kernville Bridge. I settled in where I saw some rising. I looked around and saw no bait cups or any trash. I figured this was the spot for me. Boy was it. In just the first hour I landed 28 rainbows 12" - 15". Thankfully no other fisherman had seen me or I would have had a lot of company I'd guess. Over the next 2 hours I landed another 35 rainbows mostly on the Arnerd BH nymph I tie on a #12 red scud hook ( I think a BH PT or BH Prince would work too). I redistributed trout as best I could as I fished to give them a chance before others got in the area. Takes were subtle often and and every drift hesitation produced a hook up. No surface hook ups today. My arm is sore and I'm glad I took a pain reliever before I started! A gorgeous day on the river with a serene spot to myself. I'd guess there won't be many like it now. Best fishing day since '06. Trout do bite when it's cold ;-)

I stopped by the park on the way out and the fishers there said a lot of +4lb trout were planted there. May be you can catch one of them?

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 10/01/09

The Kern River has not been stocked since Nov 2008 and the summer harvesting season has now been completed. The quality of the catching has been down significantly based on reports of many different fishers in and out of our club.

We now have our first qualitative understanding of the impact of the stocking ban on the Kern River. The Kernville fly fishing club, the Southern Sierra Fly Fishers, recently held their annual fly fishing tournament and the results are very distressing. Typically 60 anglers participate and usually one or two are "skunked". This year 35 (58%) blanked. Keep in mind in the past only fish 10" or larger could be scored, this year they relaxed that standard so that smaller fish could be scored. Even with the ability to score smaller fish the fishing was much worse.

A total of 154 fish were counted by the other 25 participants and the total length of the scored fish was 1,268 inches. That was an average of just 8.2" per fish. This was down substantially from average of 12" - 13" from previous years. In fact none of the top ten fly fishers averaged 11" or more per fish with the winner averaging just 7.9". It appears that few trout large enough to bend a 5wt are left in the Upper Kern above Kernville. Either the participants have been using far less effective tactics and flies this year or the lack of stocking has been very detrimental to the trout population. I believe the latter is in play. Harvesters have nearly taken all of the trout large enough to eat.

Upper Kern Fishing Report (A lot of Firsts) - Rich Arner - 08/06/09

I nearly fainted when I saw that the weather forecast called for sub 80 degree temps for early August. Flows have dropped below 250 cfs on the Upper Kern so I thought I should give it try.

I’d never explored the high water mark of Isabella where the DFG has been dumping planters regularly so that was my first stop. I pulled over to the parking area and was surprised to see 12 vehicles parked in the lot and across the river that had spewed out 20 fishers lined up on a 200 yard run. This was just before 8am on a Thursday????? I knew that this was no place that I’d enjoy fishing so I moved on.

I decided to use today as a fact finding mission to find out what really has been going on. Several fly fishers I know were skunked recently and others who had landed trout did so with numbers 80% below where they were this time last year. I decided to check several spot where I know wild fish have thrived because of inaccessibility in the past but was worried that baiters had harvested everything that could fit in a frying pan.

The first run I went through yielded several bumps to my #10 foam stonefly but these fish were too small (8”) to suck in a larger foam fly. I didn’t get a trout landed for 2 hours until I tied on a #12 brown Arnerd nymph (no red hook). Attractor colors didn’t seem to work. Water temp 65 degrees at 9am. The top of this area used to be heavily stocked and some fresh worm containers were left on the banks but no other fisher was to be found. The area appeared to be scoured of pan sized trout. I did net 3 pike minnows. The first two hours were not encouraging.

I did try 5 other spots for about an hour each. The brush was a lot thicker than in March when I last netted 5 trout in an hour. Results were much better as I got off the beaten paths and placed my Arnerd nymph in holding water. I netted 16 rainbows (10”-13”) all on the nymph and several tries at the foam stone but none big enough to hook.

I DID NOT SEE ONE OTHER ANGLER ON THE ENTIRE UPPER KERN BETWEEN FAIRVIEW DAM AND KR3 -the first time that I have ever seen this in summer. Many campgrounds were filled. I landed 10 pike minnow – more than I’ve landed in all of the last 4 years and all on the nymph. They were caught in every area I fished. I did not catch any hardheads ;-)

I tried pumping a couple trout stomachs with no results as this is hard to accomplish on 13” fish. But all trout were clean, plump, and feisty. I saw no fish rising. River temp was 70 degrees at 3pm.

Around noon I was roll casting to an inviting trout lair and saw some vegetation moving out of the corner of my eye. When I looked to my left I saw a beaver was pulling it down river - another first!

Sixteen trout in about six hours translates to less than 3/hr which is one fourth of where I am usually this time of year and I had to work a lot less in previous summers. I’d have to say most of the fellows I’ve fished with would not traverse the ground and river I waded to get to these spots so the fishing really is very tough. ah but the solitude is well worth it.

Heading home I took a glance at the (LIHWMCFZ) Lake Isabella high water mark combat fishing zone as I drove by and it still had quite few angles stacked in it so I kept moving home.

Fire Report - Rich Arner - 07/05/09

Two fires have been ignited in the Golden Trout Wilderness.  The extremely dry conditions in the Southern Sierra mean you must be extremely cautious if you intend to head into those areas.  For more detailed information, see the following web site links below. 

Shotgun Fire Links

http://www.bakersfield.com/news/local/x1216782263/Wilderness-fire-draws-less-aggressive-tactics

http://www.inciweb.org/incident/1705/

Lion Fire Link

http://inciweb.org/incident/1712/

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 5/28/09

The Upper Kern's trout fishing short term future has gone from bad to worse over the last month for several reasons. Currently flows exceed 2,000 cfs and peaked around 3,400 cfs on May17, 2009. No stocking above Kernville Park north to the Johnsondale Bridge has occurred since early November as a result of the environmental law suit agreement. Many fly fishers have reported that many harvesting fishers continue to fish the Upper Kern unaware of the no stocking policy and continue to take legal trout out of the river. Clearly if this continues remaining holdovers will dissipate in short order post-Memorial Day.

A recent press release May 15, 2009 http://www.dfg.ca.gov/news/news09/2009051403.asp by the California DFG announced several waters where the stocking ban was lifted and now can be stocked with hatchery rainbows. Unfortunately the North Fork of the Kern River was not one of these waters. In addition stocking of the South Fork of the Kern at Kennedy Meadow will no longer be stocked as of 5/15/09 -presumably because of the presence of California Golden Trout. The DFG had been planting sterile rainbows in this stretch to reduce hybridization but was forced to change course as the planters are potentially reducing the food load for Golden Trout (and other species?) in this watershed.

Flows in 2009 should parallel those of 2008 and river temps likely will rise above 75 degrees in July. These are lethal water temperatures for rainbows. The last couple of years trophy trout held at the Kernville planting base had to be released to avoid a massive kill. In the past these plump trout could be placed in cooler water as far upriver as JD bridge with the potential to survive but that option is gone now. Hopefully new supply wells can be drilled to alleviate this unfortunate circumstance but likely won't happen this summer season. At this time Lake Isabella is being stocked heavily.

Increased marketing of waters above JD into the Golden Trout Wilderness which entices anglers with the ability to take two trout per day will also stress the Kern in wilder areas as the third year of drought is upon us. Clearly the potential for a massive fire concerns all of us and thunderstorms are forming as I type this report. Be very wary if you plan an extended trek into the Southern Sierra this summer and stay tuned to the latest conditions before and while you go.

Our area DFG biologist has compiled and submitted her study to the DFG hierarchy which documents hardhead minnow populations. The study shows catastrophic sedimentation has reduced their numbers and is unrelated to trout planting. A compilation of electro-shocking studies in that report shows some dramatic declines in wild and planted trout in some areas. Many believe this is a result of the strong fishing pressure that has impacted the Kern the last few years. The DFG reported that last year the Kern was impacted by 150,000 man-days annually. Most of those fishing days occurred between March and October and on weekends. That translates to over 1,000 fishers/day that can and do take 5 fish/day legally (we've seen our share of 5 gallon bucket loads exit the river also). It is easy to see how quickly the river can be nearly depleted once stocking is curtailed.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 12/11/08

I think this is the best fishing of the year for the Upper Kern. Never thought I'd be saying that. The canyon walls are green on the drive up. Air temps still near 70 degrees. Water temp 39 degrees at 9AM and 43 degrees at noon. Water clear on low flow section and still less than 100 cfs. NO ONE IS FISHING!!! Landed 21 between 9am and 2pm. Some on the surface. Fish are 10" - 14" and wild or very long term holdovers. They are very aggressive on takes - I think I missed 2 fish all day. I'll leave my catch and release net at home next time. I doubt few if any stockers are left. These fish are all colorful torpedoes with pointed noses. It is 3wt and 4wt fishing with many aerials. I can pick and choose where I want to fish but they are not easy to find making it more rewarding. All the scrambling over boulders will make sure I'll sleep well tonight. It has been 4 years since I caught double digits in December and was able to achieve this the last two weeks. The pressure is definitely off now that stocking has stopped and the harvesting folks are staying home. The usual set up working like a charm. Hope forecasted rains for Saturday don't murk things up ;-)

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 12/4/08

How bad has the fishing gotten since stocking ceased on the Upper Kern? We'll I wanted out of the fog and headed up the canyon. I fished the Upper Kern yesterday and landed 16 wild fish. Much better than I expected as the Turkey Day crowd usually depletes the upper river of pan sized and greater rainbow trout above KR3 every year as planting ceases in this area. The river hasn't been stocked for almost a month. In the past they would continue stocking in the Kernville area below KR3 powerhouse and the catching was still good regardless of water temp. You just had to beat the crowds who congregate around the stocking points on stocking day ;-). Not my idea of wonderful fishing conditions, in fact, I avoid it. I landed four fish at 13" that were heavily colored and a real treat to land. They weren't anything like the fat 14" - 16" stockers of a month ago, but clearly a more satisfying challenge. Fish this size will be considered trophies on this stretch if stocking isn't resumed. #12 bh Arnerd nymph works year 'round. Water was clear and very low below Fairview on the low flow stretch, I'd guess 80 cfs or less. We were the only ones fishing but fish were very hard to find. 68 degrees sunny, clear, and warm. Water temp 44 degrees at noon. Not much hatching before 2pm.

Stocked and Will Not Be Stocked Lists from DFG

Click the below links to download PDF files from the DFG.

Waterways & Lakes to Be Stocked

Waterways & Lakes that will not Be Stocked

Judge Approves Trout Stocking Ruling Made Friday 11/21/08 - Nov 22, 2008 - From R. Arner

Below are some articles to inform you on what has been decided. The detailed listing for which waters will be stocked again will be posted on the California DFG website early this week.

Essentially the stocking guidelines are:

The deal allows stocking in reservoirs larger than 1000 acres and smaller ones not connected to rivers or streams. It bans stocking where 16 native fish species and nine frog species are found.

I spoke with Christy McGuire Saturday. While she did not know exactly where in the Kernville area stocking could resume, the info she shared does not bode well, in my opinion, for the Kern River. The Kern River is home to two protected species, golden trout and hardhead. Therefore it indicates continued stocking could impact 2 protected species and stocking could not resume until an EIR is completed and shows resuming stocking would not harm the two species. This typically takes years and millions of dollars which the state can ill afford with the current budget crisis.

Trout in the Classroom fry rearing and planting is unaffected.

The prognosis for Lake Isabella is potentially better because it is over 1,000 acres and man made. Stay tuned.

Articles you may find worth a read are:

Judges Ruling http://www.fresnobee.com/384/story/1030445.html

Redding Article http://www.redding.com/news/2008/nov/22/fish-stocking-vastly-curtailed-by-environmental/

CSPA Article more details on future stocking parameters http://www.calsport.org/11-21-08.htm

Pacific River Council (one of two parties) that flied the law suit http://www.pacrivers.org/fish%20stocking.cfm

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - Nov 20, 2008

Just got off the Upper Kern River. The fishing has dropped off considerably. This is typical when stocking drops off. While I netted 18 between 8am and 1pm. I had to try 7 spots and bushwhack to get to most of them. Most fish were 8"-10" wild fish in very out of the way spots I'd not fished before. The 3 spots I tested in the Kernville area were much slower this week. I did land 2 @15" that likely were planted last week. Fishing pressure was high for a Thursday as practically every turnout to the Johnsondale Bridge had a vehicle parked on it.

I spoke to one set of baiters and two sets of fly fishers and they all had very slow days. They mentioned that no stocking had occurred this week up there. I know they stocked Lakes Truxton and Riverwalk on Tuesday here in BFL. Between Nov and Feb they usually stock the Lower River and BFL lakes consistently and bi-weekly in the Kernville area below KR3 to Riverside Park (and rarely above KR3). Water temp 45 degrees and very little hatch activity. Air temp around 65 degrees at noon.

I just got some news on stocking from a friend while typing this and it is not good. Apparently legal action has been filed against the DFG to stop stocking until EIR's are done. I suspect stocking may be affected on waters like the Upper Kern with protected native species like the Kern River Rainbow, Golden Trout and etc.? Check out this web site http://www.myoutdoorbuddy.com/fishing_report.php?fishing=254 This could be a huge issue locally and its extent far reaching. Stay tuned.

If you head up this weekend be prepared to enjoy the scenery because landing fish will probably be a bonus. I got some nice pics of gold on the river.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - Nov 13, 2008

The forecast for today was a warm 79 degrees in Kernville. In mid-November that means do what you can to go fishing on the Upper Kern. As I drove up 178 in the canyon things were foggy on the river from Richbar all the way to Kernville. Lake Isabella was covered in a 500' thick white blanket. At about Kernville it dissipated. The first 2 runs I stopped at in Kernville were already taken before 8am. I went to a third and tossed a dry dropper and tugged streamers for an hour without a bump.

Hit a fourth spot and landed 21 with 3 over 16" in about an hour. Then the spinners/baiters showed and casted all around me and over me. This is typical Nov - Feb as few spots in Kernville are planted and everyone congregates to those areas. Makes for a lot more elbow to elbow fishing. I marched off on my own and had a long stretch to myself. Landed 5 more up to 14" and they were not as chubby but there was far more satisfaction in landing these wary fish that had escaped the pressure of the last two months. I quit around noon as I was very cold (didn't think I needed wading fleece). Water temp 45 degrees and air temp didn't exceed 65 degrees so the weather man was off by almost 15 degrees. KR3 is generating power and flows are down substantially below Fairview Dam (I'd guess < 100cfs) and the Upper Kern River is running very clear. 26 in the net in about 4 hours. Pretty good for November if you don't mind crowding.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - Oct 23, 2008

The weather continues to be warm and conducive to wading on the Upper Kern this week. I covered the same water as last week and there was a marked drop in fish in the river over the same two 1/4 mile stretches of river I fished last week. Last week I took 30+ and on the same stretches this week took just 6. So we trekked over some new water on the low flow section. I found a 1/4 mile stretch that produced a dozen fish in an hour but only 2 were over a foot long most were thin 8" -10". I assumed that stocking has been reduced above KR3 as is usual after mid- October. We decided to head toward Kernville and went to try a favored spot that usually produces in winter. I went over it thoroughly with out a bump. We looked way down stream and saw some baiters having some luck. Had a great conversation with two of them and they are part of the Friends of the Hatchery and they said that stocking this week was below the town of Riverkern and will likely be that way through spring :-( We poked around a new area for us and found a great little stretch with aggressive fatty's taking dries and nymphs.

It was a great finish to a beautiful warm fall day that will be harder to experience over the next few months. Landed 31 on the day in about 6 hours and kept a string of 4 straight +30 days. I suspect that it will be hard to extend the string much longer as the stocking is focused below Lake Isabella and the lakes in Bakersfield. We observed fishers on every turn today and the pressure is very high from JDB to Kernville. The river on this stretch will quickly be depleted over the next few weeks and has been typical the last 4 years. Kern Murky worked in the before 11 AM and the brown #12 BH nymph was the ticket in the PM.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - Oct 16, 2008

With a drop in gasoline prices and air temps I decided to head up and had the best day of 2008. Landed 50 rainbows in about 5 hours. The average fish is heavier and longer this year. The last few years 12" was the median and now I think it is 13.5" or maybe my measure net is shrinking? The largest was 18" and another dozen 14" -17". The water below McNally's has cleared to 5' again and water temp 50 degrees at 10AM near Kernville. Hatches started coming off at 11AM. Not much surface feeding action observed and I only took 3 fish on the surface. This is normal heading into late October.

My #12 BH KernMurky worked great until 10AM when the light was less direct on the river. Then switched over to my bead head brown #12 stonefly. The pressure this year has caused me to try and explore more areas on the Upper Kern. Fish seem to be in different areas and favored spots of years passed are increasingly less productive?

October 15th usually marks the peak fishing on the Upper Kern as more fish are stocked below Isabella and less above KR3. After Turkey Day no stocking has occurred above KR3 and most of the fish are stocked below Lake Isabella. Too bad, above KR3 is a much easier and enjoyable fishery for most fly fishers even if it is a longer drive. I'm surprised the businessmen of Kernville don't lobby to continue stocking above KR3 even while they continue to stock in Kernville below KR3 through the winter.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - Oct 2, 2008

Fished the Upper Kern today and landed 36 in 4 hours. At least 10 fish 15" - 16.5". Very few fish under 13". My buddy landed his biggest two fish ever today on the Kern. Air temp around 80-85. The river below Fairview is getting much murkier. Visibility less than 2'. May be some storms recently dirtied things up again? Hard to wade. I did very well on my KernMurky. Fishing pressure less below Fairview but many folks still hammering above Fairview Dam where it is clearer (6' visibility) . Water temp was 55-60 degrees. Pumped stomachs and fish were taking #20 -#18 baetis nymphs where I was. My #12 bh KernMurky worked just great; few hits on the surface stonefly today.

Oh I forgot to mention on one of my last drifts of the day I thought I snagged a tree limb. I pulled up a brand new ultra light Shakespere Ultralight Rod and reel. First time I came off the river with an extra rod and reel ;-)

Fishing Report - Brian Adams - Oct 2, 2008

I spent 5 days last week in the Mammoth area. I fished the lower Owens the Big Springs, Rush Creek and Hot Creek. Hot Creek by far the best with 14 fish landed and 4 over 16 inches. I did some side trips to Mono Lake, Bristlecone Pine Forest and up to Whitney Portal Road for some great photos. My fishing partner was the fish dog Cricket.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - Sept 28, 2008

Went up today to scout the river for my Turkey Day guests next week and enjoy the great warm weather. Unfortunately the fishing has gone south quickly. The last two trips netted 41, 23 and 19 today. However more of my fish were wild fingerlings 6" - 8" this trip. I've never caught so many wild fingerlings over the last 3 weeks which is a very good thing. I've been fishing between Fairview Dam and KR3 and this area got very warm in July-Sept but these fish survived. One thing to keep in mind is that because of the low water conditions SoCal Edison has not diverted any water for months off of this stretch so it has received >120 cfs all year. The last 3 years flows typically dropped below 80 cfs on the low flow section stressing the natural reproduction in this area. It appears even with the higher summer water temps the extra water flows over compensated for the warm water temps.

The hatchery web site indicates there has not been any stocking since the week of October 28th. Based on my observations I think it may be true and not just an oversight to update the web page, it's possible that I could be wrong. However, there is a lot of evidence to support my conclusion. My fishing buddy and I checked out 6 different spots and couldn't find evidence that the Upper Kern was stocked recently anywhere. Normally in these spots you can see fish and we couldn't find any. We even checked out the stretch between KR3 and Kernville where stocking has been concentrated in late fall and winter and no fish or fisherman seen. Where I did find success it occurred on hard to get to spots that aren't stocked. I've talked to a dozen bait/fly anglers in the last week and the majority of them have been skunked. The heavy pressure on the last few weekends coupled with the apparent decrease in stocking has nearly purged a lot of the popular easy to wade spots. I waded through areas that have held fish the last 2 months and no fish scoot out - another indication that fish aren't there either. Water temp 50 at noon and has dropped very little over the last month. Air temp and blue sky perfect. BWO hatch at mid day. No signs of surface takes though. A lot fewer vehicles in the pull outs this week so the local regulars must know the stocking has dropped off in this section and the best fishing is over for the year I'd guess. I hope an indication of restocking occurs soon. My guests next week aren't strong waders so stocking those easy to wade spots is important to them. If not given the likely crowds for next week's holiday we just might stay home - last year was a zoo. The Lower Kern may be where the river may be improving quickly as the stocking truck moves down river.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 10/21/07

Weather perfect and water conditions still perfect (temp 52 degrees at noon). Landed 31 in 4 hours. Started before 8:30am to beat the pressure. First hour was great 22 landed. We estimated 50 hook ups in an hour for 2 of us. Fish dispersed over 200 yard section. Then 4 other car loads showed up. Went to next spot few fish over 3/4 mile stretch. Third spot above Fairview loaded with vehicles. Covered 1/2 mile and picked up 6 fish in 50 yard stretch. Three fish 15 -16" and fat here. Others fly fishing there did the same. The area above Fairview is still getting extreme pressure even on a Friday? I'd guess people who were successful this summer(the only place the DFG could stock) are still drawn to the upper area even though stocking is halved now that lower and BFL lakes being stocked. Many fish taken on the surface. Few insects in the air. I'll be fishing Mon - Thurs from now on. Fri - Sun just too crowded - even in Oct?

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 10/18/07

Fishing on the Upper Kern has been excellent the last 3 weeks. Beginning this week the DFG is planting rainbows in Bakersfield in Lakes, Ming, Hart Park, Truxton, and the Lake at River Walk Park. For more details on stocking that is updated weekly check the web site below:

http://friendsofthehatchery.org/reports/stocking.html

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 10/12/07

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 6/7/07

Went up yesterday despite Goldledge fire. Flows are very wadebale below Fairview (140 cfs). Water clear. Fish were scattered and much harder to locate versus a month ago. Covered 1.5 miles of river on 3 of my favorite runs. Glad it was cool ;-) I've been told the fishing pressure is very extreme now on the weekends; about 50% of the turnouts had vehicles today. Landed 25 up to 16" and my buddy landed 14 in four hours. Doubt river stocked this week as of yesterday may be today? Mayflies everywhere, not much surface feeding observed but my foam golden stonefly took 1/3 of the fish landed. Water temp 60 degrees at 1 PM. The fire seemed to be nearly put out but helis shuttling water were constantly flying overhead. Glad they got this under control (see pic below). Hope the first thunderstorms to come don't wash a lot of soot and sediment into the river.

Tight lines,
Rich

Fire Updates Online

Here are a couple of websites to keep up to date on this, and other, fires.

http://www.inciweb.org/incident/685/ - Be advised this site is heavily visited and can be slow or non-responsive at times.   If that occurs, just return to it in 15 or 20 minutes.

http://www.nifc.gov/nicc/sitreprt.pdf - National Daily Fire Summary Report

Fire Report - GoldLedge Fire 6/5/07

Below is the latest on a fire growing fast on the Upper Kern

Kernville, CA - Firefighters continue to battle the more than 2400 acre Goldledge fire burning approximately 10 miles northeast of Kernville in the Sequoia National Forest. Fire activity increased today when erratic winds shifted causing the fire to grow in size. This prompted Forest Service Officials to initiate a voluntary evacuation for property owners in the Horse Meadow area on the Kern Plateau, including the Campground Host at Horse Meadow Campground. Approximately 25 private property owners have
summer cabins, trailers and out buildings in this area.

Officials have temporarily closed three forest trails including Salmon Creek, Rincon and Pack Saddle trails for public safety due to the fire. In addition the Cherry Hill road at the intersection of Sherman Pass road south to the Horse Meadow area is closed temporarily.

The Forest Service is asking the public's assistance in locating person's of interest that were seen yesterday leaving the Goldledge campground north of Kernville, driving a white Chevy S-10, with a sliding rear window. Please help the Forest Service by giving us your information at 559-294-4894 or 559-294-GUYI (give us your information).

Customers and employees at the Kern River Golden Trout Resort have not been allowed to return for public safety due to the loss of power and telephone service. Southern California Edison is working on restoring power to the Resort and McNally's Fairview Lodge, located north along Mountain 99.

With the fire continuing to burn in an easterly direction fire officials say the biggest threat is the Horse Meadow community and natural resources in the forested area on the Kern Plateau including valuable wildlife habitat for the California spotted owl, northern goshawk and Pacific fisher.

Firefighters took an aggressive stand yesterday and were able to protect the Kern River Golden Trout Resort from the fire. Mountain 99 remains open but visitors are advised to drive with caution due to emergency vehicles in the area.

Some residual smoke is expected to drift into the Kennedy Meadows community and off the Kern Plateau down to the Ridgecrest and Inyokern areas along Highway 395. Smoke is visible from the Kern River Valley and Kennedy Meadows area.

Approximately 450 firefighters are battling the blaze including fire engines, hand crews, patrols, helicopters, air tankers, and dozers along with miscellaneous support personnel representing the U. S. Forest Service, Kern County Fire Department, Bureau of Land management, CAL-FIRE and Los Angeles County Fire Department.

The cause of the fire is human caused and remains under investigation.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 5/10/2007

Made the way up to Kernville today - road construction completed ;-)  Got up in the Upper at about 9:30AM and water was clear and flows very wadeable. The flows were about 700 cfs above Fairview Dam and 160 cfs below it. Landed fish right away on top and bottom. Had 37 to the net by  noon covering 3/4 mile. At least 10 of them were 14" -16" and fat. A fourth of the fish were taken on the dry. Lots of surface activity and bugs flying around everywhere. March browns still prominent. Fish were very strong. The water temp was 62 degrees at 10 am.  Fish were holding in more turbulent water and under rocks like the picture below. We broke for lunch and went up river to a 2nd spot. Hooked up again right away but then things changed around 1pm. Water visibility dropped to 3' or less and river level came up a bit. In the span of 30 minutes the surface activity stopped and the fish stopped biting. Took a water temp of 66 degrees at 2pm when we quit. Landed 41 in just over 4 hours and the air temp was about 85 degrees when we quit. Saw few anglers - with the exception of two bait guys who took 8 each and were going to take as many as they could  :-(   

I think a significant melt is on and we got the last great hours on the river for a while.  As I type this (5pm) the upper has surged to over 900 cfs above Fairview and 330 cfs below Fairview dam (that's more than double the flow we started with today)  It may be time to hit other waters now. The high flows probably won't last a month but I'm concerned that water temps are going to hit +70 degrees as soon as the melt ends. This could be a very stressful season for trout.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 4/13/07

Had a final outing for Trout in the Classroom today which wrapped up around 11am. Thought that the Upper Kern might be worth a try because SoCal Edison started diverting water at Fairview Wednesday 4/11and the "low flow" section had been dropping 100 cfs daily and was 150 cfs before I left this AM. When I finally hit the river at noon the water was nearly clear as September on the low flow section and I knew I'd have a good day even though it's Friday the 13th. Additionally, the river has been stocked regularly the last month and the fly fishing has been lackluster because of the high flows reducing visibility. When the flows dropped the sediments fell out and the fish could see a fly again. I could wade wherever I wanted to in waist waders. I believe the flows were below 100 cfs by noon below Fairview. I put away the bright flies and went back to the reliable bh nymphs and fished 3' deep. Landed 24 in and hour and a half. The takes were strong and only had 2 LDR's. Had to leave around 1:30PM for a swim meet. Lots of insects (mayflies) flying around. No stoneflies. Had some bumps on top but the bh nymph was doing great (16 fish/hr) so why change ;-) Caught the fish in pockets over a half mile of river. No pods of fish. Some fat some slim so I was catching recent stockers and others that probably were in the river a while. Water temp 52 degrees and air temp 74 degrees with slight wind. Get up there before half of LA finds out !!! I doubt these conditions will last long once things start heating up again and the melt resumes. Check the flow phone first 1-877-537-6356. Kern basin snow pack at just 19% which is the worst in 3 decades from what I've been told. Let's hope summer isn't too hot and we get a late spring snow storm up high!

Adios,
Rich

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 03/15/07

Mike I. and I were up in Kernville today to support the Trout in the Classroom at the hatchery. We decided to fish a little before the 1PM class and hoped to tie into a sizeable spawner. When we arrived at the river around 1100AM the water temp was 51 degrees below KR3 ... ... that's the good part. Visibility has dropped substantially. The water is dark brown and visibility is less than 2'. Folks who fished as late as Monday reported the Upper Kern was running clear and cold. I immediately knew I should fish bright flies. We had no bumps at all the first hour. We went above KR3 and tried again. I managed to cross (flows above 500 cfs) and landed 5 in an hour on a Cabelas red glow bug and had 4 LDR's. Other bright flies didn't get a take. Aggressive wading required. No diversion at Fairview yet to generate power for all of those AC units kicking on in SoCal? Go figure

We had to meet our group at 1pm where we met with the hatchery manager and he shared some additional disappointing news. First the snow pack is less than 50% of normal and the high altitude pack (which supplies the mid-summer flows) is at just 28% of normal. The next 10 days have no sign of moisture and March typically averages the highest precipitation of the year. I also asked him if we will be seeing some of the whopper fish that have been placed in the Kings the last several weeks. He was disappointed to report it looks like we won't be getting any of those any time soon. That's a mixed bag; less excitement but could reduce some of the increasing fishing pressure on the river - a good thing IMHO. The Lower Kern was chocolate milk on the way home.

This hot weather could usher in one of the earliest peak flows in decades and it could be very low again well before the 4th of July. Greg will be planting the same numbers of fish so that more fish per cubic yard of river but the high sierra streams and wild populations will be very stressed this year in the GTW. Handle with care if you fish there.

Think snow,
Rich

Fishing Report - Brian Adams - 02/17/07

Saturday Feb. 17^th was our outing to the Kings River. With one wrong turn, a tire blow out and a scenic tour thru the foot hills we finally made it to the parking area at Avocado Lake. There were 12 of our club members in attendance as well as the Fresno club so there was no shortage of people. As I said in the last newsletter this would be a learning experience as none of us had fished this area before. Thank you to the Fresno club for the tips on how to fish this river. We had a few hook ups but I think the only fish landed was a very nice rainbow around 6 or 7 lbs by Teresa. A few of us got to witness this and photograph the fish and figure out we need a bigger net. The Fresno club has been catching fish to 30 inches using tippet down to 3x and still breaking these pigs off. The river is really nice because rocks and boulders have been placed through out it for structure but I recommend fishing this mid week because of the crowds on the week ends.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 01/28/07

Thirty members of the Kern River Fly Fishers ventured up to the Lower Owens for the weekend before the Super Bowl to hook into feisty wild browns. This is a great spot to fish while we wait for the "fished out?" Kern to be re-supplied with rainbows, hopefully before the spring runoff. The weather was gorgeous Thursday through Saturday with sunny 65-degree afternoons. While baetis were hatching everywhere all day the mid-day sipping fest that usually pervades the lunch hour really never occurred this trip. However around 4:30 pm daily fish rose for a dry fly treat to wrap up the day. Deep nymphing tiny baetis imitations proved to be the best technique, which allowed one of our lucky members to take 26 browns on Friday. Fishing pressure was moderate and has been greater in February. Just a great time to experience one of the most picturesque fly fishing venues in California. In addition to the great fishing we had a grand time feasting on fine dining Friday and Saturday night while we reminisced over the day's quarries and compared notes on what flies worked, when the fish feasted, how deep, and tried to pry out where those honey holes were found. We all learn more every time we go.

Remember that the New Zealand mud snails are prevalent in all the waters in this areas and the surest way to eradicate them from your waders is to put your waders in the freezer for 24 hours (they can survive a month out of water on your waders and boots). We don't want to introduce these buggers to our beloved Kern or the Bakersfield lakes. A big thanks goes out to John Kidd (The Lower Owens Master) for organizing this outing and providing a ton of fishing/tying demonstration and advice to our group. We couldn't have half the fun and learning without your contributions. I'm already thinking about next year when we will also have a chance to fish Hot Creek on the same trip, as it will become a year 'round fishery soon. Enjoy some of the photo memories I captured on the club's most popular fun fish fest.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 11/21/06

The low flow section on the Upper Kern remains very low at just 50 cfs and easy to wade, however, it has not been stocked consistently but has received a lot of fishing pressure because of the attraction of the occasional large fish being caught and posted on popular web sites with heavy traffic. The number of fish taken has dropped significantly but the river is lined with golden splendor and is warm and sunny when it's cold and clammy down here.  No trophy trout have been planted since September but some have survived the heavy worm and powerbait harvesting ;-)  Perhaps some large fish have moved up from Lake Isabella below Kernville as well?  This week local lakes Truxtun, Ming, and Hart Park will have trout planted.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 11/14/06

Got some time freed up and went fishing on the upper Tuesday. I decided to try some new water again and worked great the first hour landed 7 up to 14" and 4 of those on dries. The next 2 hours were slow and I netted 3 more. Had a chance at another half dozen. Few fished spooked out of holding water while wading. No stocking above KR3 now for 3 weeks. Water temp was 53 degrees at 11 AM. Almost every fish I landed went airborne. Last week I don't think a single hooked fish jumped? Weird. Very breezy and casting was difficult for much of the 3 hours I fished. I saw quite a few baiters and spin fisherman for a Tuesday. Several camped out at Hospital Flat so I completely by passed that area. From what others have told me it has been fished hard the last 2 weeks. Weather was great and I managed to net double digits in 3 hours, however, I covered more water than any trip this year. The reduced planting coupled with the higher than normal number of fishers (for November) probably has made things pretty tough. The Lower Owens can be very good in December and that may be a better spot to consider. Unfortunately at this time the Lower Owens is at 600 cfs so not very wadeable now. Drifting  there may be productive?

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 11/07/06

Low flows section just 47 cfs today so decided to get up on the Upper Kern on the last warm day of the year. Landed 12 in about 3 hours. I had 3 nice trout between 11AM and 2 PM attracted to my foam golden stonefly but they wouldn't bite. So I tied on a #20 para adams with an olive body and they sucked it in each time. Because of the very low flows below Fairview I decided to fish a lot of new water for me. I had plenty of spots to choose because I think I only saw 5 different vehicles pulled over to hunt or fish today. After fishing for about 20 minutes and landing 3 healthy bows to 14" I came upon a deeper pool that looked real fishy. I was able to stay behind a large boulder and cast up stream to a riffle that dumped into the larger pool. My first cast was right on target. After a 6' drift the indicator fly hesitated and I set. No fish but I noticed a large tail deep below the riffle I was trying to exploit. I made a second cast that was too far left and quickly recasted to the sweet spot. I waited for a take and I got it but the hook didn't penetrate. The trout moved his head to the left slightly and I got a chance to see his head. It was a big fish and I had got him to take twice and I knew that I'd probably spooked him. I was bummed but wasn't going to give up yet.  I persisted and made another cast right in the sweet spot again and focused on any minute twitch on the dry. The third strike was a charm!   When I finally hooked him and he turned broad side and took off, my heart just stopped at the size of him. I thought for sure I'd have no chance to land him on my 9ft 4wt Avid fly rod and 4lb Vanish fluro tippet. I let him run. I think I held my breath the whole time and walked down stream 50 yards just holding on for dear life. It was a good thing the river flows were low. He made several runs up and down stream and did the head shake shuffle. After 10 minutes of tugging near the breaking point I got him in the net .....       ..... he barely fit.  Snapped this picture and took a video (visit our photo page to see the video). He was thick and beautiful (25" and 6 lbs I'd guess); I just didn't want to let him go. I sat there helping him resuscitate calmly in my cradled hands and I thought of the movie scene in "A River Runs Through It" where Brad Pit is standing in the river holding a large trout and his brother said, " I stood there looking at my brother standing there and I realized I was watching perfection." I didn't think there could be a more beautiful moment in time holding a wonderful creature on a perfect autumn day standing in the sun on at clear river lined in golden splendor. Is this sappy or what?  Just a beautiful day to be on the river. Water temp 52 degrees at 11:00 AM. I've spoken with the hatchery manager since and found out that no bonus trout have been planted since September. I've been lucky enough to land a dozen of these trophies from 17" - 25" since mid-August. I always go back to the same spot usually a week later to see if I can recatch them but have never hooked up big fish in the same place twice. These fish must move around a lot. I've hooked them all on my bh nymph. I would have thought many would have been harvested quickly. In the last month the total fish I land has dropped to 1/3 of the numbers in Sept/Aug but the number of fat boys has stayed roughly the same. Perhaps the herons are taking a lot of the footlongs but the fat boys are too big to swallow? Stocking on the upper has been every other week since September too. That's driving the number of fish available to land down quickly.  While the river is cooling down fast the solitude of the thinning crowds still make the Upper Kern great place to spend the day even if you don't hook up.

Fishing Report - Rich Arner - 10/27/06

The flows on the low flow section below Fairview dam were dropped yesterday. Not sure how long the flows will be below 100 cfs but I decided to give it a try. Fish were much harder to find today. Many of the runs that usually hold fish did not have trout scurry away as I waded through them. The Upper Kern River was not planted this week.  One of the highlights of the day, I was able to take 3 bows to 14" on dry flies(#12 para adams) that were sipping flies around noon. Air temp about 45 at 10 am and the water temp was 46 degrees. No takes the first 2 hours. I decided to fish an out of the way spot and landed two  on bh nymph. Even though wading is much easier than last week, I took a slip and went in. Thanks goodness things warmed up later because the water is cold!!! We moved on to two other spots and the fish seemed to become more active after noon. I managed to land a dozen and was ready to call it quits after four hours when I decided to try one more run in a spot I haven't fished in 2 years. Got a hard set in some foamy water and the fish just head shaked and didn't move much. After about two minutes of staying in a small 10' circle  he practically swam into the net but when I touched him it was like someone touched him with an electric cattle prod. The fish took off taking line into fast water and went down stream several pools.  After lots of boulder hopping and 15 minutes of tugging I got to a point where he was either going into rapids or I was going to break him of. I decided to pull hard. Good thing I was using 4x flouro because the line held. I put my camera on a rock and set the timer and snapped this shot.     20" fatty -great finish to the day.

Fish were fewer this week (caught 9 fish/hr after noon last Friday) and the last guy was worth it. Before you go you can check the latest flows at the SoCal Flow phone on the North Fork of the Kern River at 1.877.537.6356 to get some idea if you want to take on the river if it is higher between Fairview and KR3.

Tight Lines,
Rich

For information on the ongoing situation with the Lake Isabella Dam, visit the Army Corp of Engineers' Lake Isabella Dam Home Page - http://www.spk.usace.army.mil/organizations/cespk-pao/lakeisabelladam/

Rich