Battle Creek Sample Itinerary

It takes a little less than an hour to drive to Battle Creek Ranch from either Redding or Red Bluff.

When you’ve reserved a beat at Battle Creek for the day, it’s your own private piece of stream from daybreak to dusk. You are welcome to arrive as early as you like, and leave whenever your angling day is over. We do strongly recommend that you give yourself ample time to hike out of the canyon at the end of the day BEFORE it gets dark.

The trails are not well-traveled and can be difficult to find at the end of a long day, so you want to have several visible landmarks to help track your way back to the truck.

The fishing at Battle Creek Canyon is best suited for the self-reliant, physically fit angler. Those willing to make the trek down into the canyon are rewarded by wild rainbow trout that only see a handful of fishermen during the course of each year. Some of the middle, steeper canyon beats only get fished once or twice a year, if at all!

A variety of different techniques will work at different times on Battle Creek. There are almost always a few trout willing to rise to dry flies, while dry-fly-and-dropper combinations are very productive and indicator nymphing is perhaps the most consistent producer of the bigger fish in the stream. Casting weighted streamers on sinking lines in the deeper pools has even been known to result in some behemoth rainbows (or steelhead) putting a bend in the rod of Battle Creek anglers.

There are some lodging and camping options nearby. If you’d like to learn more about the possible options for lodging or camping near Battle Creek Canyon, please give us a call at The Fly Shop at 800-669-3474.

A few points to remember:

Watch out for poison oak and rattlesnakes. Although rattlesnakes are not seen regularly on the ranch, they are around and something to be aware of. Poison oak is one of this ranch's best crops, but it can easily be avoided if you're watching out for it.