Clearwater Lodge
Fall River Mills, Callifornia, USA

Run by my good friends Bill and Vanessa, this lodge is in one of the most beautiful and unspoilt parts of California. Easily accessible from San Francisco, Redding or Reno, the lodge is ideally situated amongst some of the best trout streams in the Western Rockies.

In their words:

Clearwater Lodge on the Pit River is a magnificent Arts and Crafts building completed in 1921. Using lava rock and clear fir from the surrounding forests, skilled craftsmen created a masterwork of lodge architecture unique in California. Panelled walls and tall beamed ceilings rise above the clear fir floors. The original copper and stained glass chandeliers illuminate the Great Room. A massive stone fireplace with cosy inglenooks on either side invite you to linger and relax. Comfortable Mission chairs and settles offer places for reading and chatting around the fireplace. The Library is the perfect place for relaxing with friends, enjoying a glass of wine, and sharing stories of the day's adventures. Magnificent old sycamore trees create a canopy of shade on the wide front porch. There are chairs among the oaks and pines on the beautiful grounds for relaxing.

The Lodge originally served as the headquarters facility for the building of the nearby Pit One Powerhouse. It has evolved into a renowned fly fishing destination that has hosted anglers exploring the wonderful variety of trout waters of north-eastern California for over 80 years. These waters include Fall River and Hat Creek, the two spring creeks, and the Pit, McCloud and upper Sacramento, freestone rivers with pools, pockets, riffles, and runs. You can float the Pit from the Lodge in rafts and drift boats. In addition, there are several smaller spring creeks and freestone water as well as superb still waters that you can fish.

Located in a park-like setting on the Pit River, midway between Burney and Fall River Mills, Clearwater Lodge caters primarily to fly fishers as well as golfers with fine meals, accommodations, guiding and fly fishing schools.  

The Lodge offers seven comfortable bedrooms in the main building, each features a queen bed and a private bath. Fly fishing prints decorate the walls and the rooms feature antiques and oriental rugs. After a day on the river, you can look forward to excellent family style meals from a chef who understands that fishing builds hearty appetites.  Modern amenities including wireless internet access and air conditioning.

The Annexe, connected to the Lodge by a portico, provides European-style lodging accommodations, with six single bedrooms and two large shared baths. The Annexe's spacious sitting room features a natural rock fireplace and is perfect for gathering with friends to discuss the day's fishing and golf. Three individual Cottages, set away from the Lodge among trees and lawns, offer one and two bedroom accommodations.

Clearwater Lodge's exceptional guide team ensures a great fishing experience. The Lodge's tackle shop offers a selection of the season's best flies and appropriate tackle, including premium rods, reels, waders and wading shoes for guests' use.

For non-anglers, Lassen Volcanic National Park is less than an hour south, Mt Shasta an hour north. The nearby Fall River Mills golf course is regarded as one of the best rural courses in the state.

Clearwater Lodge is a five hour drive from San Francisco, one hour east of the airport in Redding, and three hours north of Reno, Nevada.

Open every day of trout season, from late April to mid-November, let the elegant simplicity of the Clearwater Lodge take you back to the Arts and Crafts era when attention to detail and pride of craftsmanship were a part of daily life.