Customer Reviews

The Definitive Guide to Fishing Northern California

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Chris Shaffer has outdone himself with this third installment of the "Definitive Guide to Fishing California" series. Having received the Central California guide two years ago as a Christmas gift, and absolutely loving it, I'd been eagerly awaiting Shaffer's newest release.

Without a doubt, this "Northern California Guide" will keep any angler busy with a lifetime full of great angling. Nearly 800 (!) pages of superb information and photo's are packed into this book. Every major and minor body of freshwater from the Oregon border to the northern San Joaquin delta are described by no less than one full page of text and rated on a scale from 1 (no fish) to 10 (One of the top 20 fisheries in CA.). Shaffer fished every single body of water listed in the book, consulted with pros, and even snorkeled many of the waters to get a first-hand glimpse of the fish population. Shaffer does a great job describing in detail why a certain body of water was rated the way it was, even including unusual biological factors like how the endangered yellow-legged frogs have caused the DFG to cease planting in many high sierra lakes. Having fished nearly thirty of the spots listed in his Central California book, I can vouch for the accuracy of his ratings system.

Shaffer writes with a very personable tone and readily divulges the best methods to catch fish on each body of water. He even lets readers know how challenging it is to reach each body of water. Many of the waters are drive-to, while the remaining are hike-to waters which range from an easy path to butt-kicking five mile hikes. Shaffer's directions are easy to follow, and he also lists local guides and fishing shops to contact for further information in his "If you plan on making the trip" section of the review.

Having owned this jewel of a book for only a week, I have fished five spots described and landed nearly 60 trout in three days using Shaffer's tips. There literally is something for every fisherperson in this book.

The only downside to this book? Your arms may get tired from holding this behemoth of fishing literature after several hours of reading!

I opened this "definitive guide" with trepidation as I assumed that the book was one of those something-for-everyone tomes that covers a lot of territory, but lacks the sort of specific detail about any one location that would prepare a novice or expert fisherperson setting out to try new spots. I was dead wrong-this book is big, heavy (don't drop it on your foot), and impressively detailed. I checked out the fishing locations with which I am most familiar in Plumas County (prime trout country with several world famous streams) and was impressed that Chris Shaffer writes about my home area like a knowledgeable insider. Places that I thought were little known and the preserve of local anglers are all in the book. With Shaffer's book you will learn about great fishing spots in my backyard that I would just as well prefer to keep secret. I would venture to guess that this sort of detailed description is true of other areas in Northern California covered by Shaffer, but with which I am not personally familiar. In sum, this book is a splendid reference and well worth the price.

It's a great idea, but poorly executed. Hopefully the second edition will feature:

1. A proof-reader.
2. A second proof-reader.
2. Maps of the fishing sites.

Also the fishing sites in the SF Bay area are split between this edition and the "Central California" edition, meaning Bay Rea residents, who will form a significant portion of the readership, will be forced to buy two books. Even then Lake Chabot doesn't get featured.

In all it's a decent place to start, but online resources are much more detailed and informative.

this book is great, however it is starting to become outdated. I visited a few of the lakes in the book, and they were not as described. The landscape has changed and the fishing as changed as well. Good book, and points out several secret places.

This guy knows his stuff. I have found every review to be dead on. His Southern Cal book is even better.

This is the best California fishing book series available. There are also the Central and Southern California editions. The best features of these books that makes them so valuble is the commentary and especially the pictures. So many times I have gone to a campsite or lake, only to be so disappointed to find a pond instead of a lake or a campsite with no scenic beauty. These books have pictures of each fishing site, so you have an excellent idea of what you are in for. There is nothing as disappointing as finding a site way below your expectations after driving for hours to get there. These books pretty much eliminate that scenario, especially since they also give you contact information so you can verify the fishing site is still intact, active and as you see it in the picture. Beautiful color pictures on EVERY page of the book. Outstanding.

Should be a choice for zero stars. This book is freshwater only, author wastes your time ranting about anti-environmental political issues and obscure areas with no fish. Many good areas are reviewed, but author's anti-everything commentary about what he doesn't like (which is a lot)is a turn off. Proofreading is awful, it shows in nearly every page. Good book for a child since it has pretty pictures. Amazon deleted my more detailed review, if you want to give this book a chance suggest browsing through your local area with a copy first, guaranteed you will pass it by after.