Fly Fishing at Santa Paula Creek

Look past the local college, avocado farms and oil wells that sour the lower portions of the creek, and you'll see Santa Paula Creek for what it's supposed to be – a historic southern steelhead spawning habitat within the Santa Clara River watershed.

The Department of Fish and Game has halted plants on this tributary of the Santa Clara and is working with the Santa Paula Creek Fish Ladder Authority and other local organizations to help repair damaged fish ladders and provide other restorations that will help improve steelhead passage and habitat in Santa Paula Canyon.

Like the Santa Clara's other embattled tributaries, Piru and Sespe creeks, the Santa Paula has been subject to the same stressors that plague the urban watersheds – loss of riparian habitat, streambed alteration caused by flood control structures, habitat fragmentation and degradation of water quality.

All of which has made for difficult fishing on the lower stretches of the creek.

While these conservation efforts are taking place, the best fishing on the Santa Paula will be above the falls and tributaries located 3 miles upstream from the Highway 180 bridge.

That makes for a long but mandatory hike along the Santa Paula Creek Trail, scooting past Thomas Aquinas College (a four-year Catholic liberal arts school), ranch houses and thumpity thump of those rusty old oil wells. After the first mile, the eyesores fall off and the trail follows the creek upstream through the towering Topatopa Mountains of the Los Padres National Forest.

The hike to Santa Paula Canyon Falls is about 3 miles. Backpackers can stay at Big Cone Camp, located just before the falls.

The best fishing on the Santa Paula is above the falls or further up the East Fork and its feeder creeks.

Tiny nymphs and dry flies are the norm on this small-water stretch. Small, barbless spinners such as pink Panther Martins will also work for these small, wild trout on the upper stretches.