Quick trip on the San Gabriel River

I am officially on vacation this week so I am trying to catch up on fishing as it has been quite some time since I have been out.

With the rain we have had lately, I decided to head out to one of my favorite spots on the San Gabriel river. I wanted to check it out to see if it was good enough to take my son out on a subsequent trip. I got everything loaded in my truck and left around mid-afternoon.

When I got to the low water crossing, I noticed the water was indeed high and flowing fairly fast. It took some careful planning to get in at the low water bridge and start paddling upstream.

I got to a narrow section in the river with a bend and had a hard time crossing it so I had to beach and drag my kayak a short way over to some slower water so I could continue upstream.

I saw some backs popping up which were obviously carp feeding but by the time I got within casting distance they all disappeared. I thought I had been quite stealthy but apparently not.

I continued upstream towards the rapids and the current was quite strong to where I simply couldn't get close enough so I started drifting back. As I drifted, I cast along promising spots.

I passed a section where a small creek was emptying into the river and decided to try here. I let my fly drift and felt a hit and I had a fish on. Unfortunately it came off after a brief fight. I am positive it was a catfish from the way it fought.

It was a quick drift downstream with the increased flow. It didn't give me much of a chance to fish many spots. I only caught one small sunfish on the way before I finally ended up back at the low water crossing.

All in all I fished maybe for just over an hour. I decided to try a different spot the next day as this spot, while plenty of water now, was a bit risky to bring my son along.