South Fork Smith River

Fishing the South Fork Smith River

The South Fork is the canyon fork of the Smith, California's northernmost coastal river. It runs clear and green through Six Rivers National Forest beside South Fork Rd, then meets the Middle Fork near Hiouchi to form the main stem. Nothing dams the Smith anywhere, and its hard bedrock gives up little silt, so the South Fork drops and clears soon after a storm and often fishes while other rivers are still brown. The main Smith River and the Middle Fork Smith River each have their own pages. The top of the water covered here is around the Jones Creek confluence and Big Flat Campground, where pools like Jones Creek Hole and Hurdygurdy Hole sit in a steep, narrow canyon. Coming down, Steven Memorial Bridge has turnouts at both ends and a deep pool you fish from the north bank, and at Rattlesnake Slide a long riffle spills into a deep pool a short walk from the road. Below that, a run of turnouts, rough trails and 4x4 spurs drops to riffles, tailouts and deep salmon pools. At Rock Creek you follow the creek down to a big pool at its mouth, Sand Camp has a gravel bar a few steps from a clearing, and at Twin Bridges you stand on rocks or a rocky bar. Craig Beach, 1.5 mi above the South Fork Bridge, has a large riffle running into a deep hole. The fork ends at the George Tryon South Fork Bridge near Hiouchi, where the road mileages on the site pages start. Across the Smith, Chinook salmon show from September, fish best until mid-November and linger in small numbers into January; most kings run 20 to 40 pounds. Winter steelhead arrive in late fall, overlap the tail of the salmon run and peak from late January into early February, and a few are around all year. Typical fish weigh 8 to 12 pounds, and the 27 lb 4 oz state record came from this river system. Half-pounders turn up in September and October, and sea-run cutthroat trout come in to spawn from April through September, when hardly anyone is fishing. There is no drift boat water here, so plan on fishing from the bank and wading. Many access points mean a scramble down rock to fish from boulders over a pool, and the wading can be tricky. Swing a silver hilton, brindle bug or bead head assassin for half-pounders early in the fall, then go to big dark flies, black and blue popsicles or pink and blue intruders from November through March, and roll cast where brush crowds the edge. Gear anglers drift roe or fish Kwikfish and spinners. Since the river clears so fast once the rain quits, the first days after a storm are the ones to plan around. Regulations change and differ by section, so check the current California regulations before you go.