Upper Cliff Lake Fishing in Shasta County, California

• Overview

  California holds Upper Cliff Lake, in Shasta County. It stands 6,362 feet above sea level. Surface area runs to about 3 acres — small enough to read in one session. It is a small entry by Shasta County standards. You are 12 miles from Dunsmuir. The nearest city of size is Chico, 107 miles away. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Upper Cliff Lake

  Depth figures are not published for this one. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Fish documented in Shasta County include Chinook salmon, green sturgeon, rainbow trout, brook trout and Sacramento sucker. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. On Upper Cliff Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  August is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 60°F, while December sits near 31°F. A lid forms in a hard winter only. In milder years the edges alone go, and the middle never sets. April and May are the settled weeks, with October close behind. The season on Upper Cliff Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. For a change of water, Cliff Lake is 0.3 miles distant. The position on Upper Cliff Lake is worth confirming on the day.