December Steelhead on California's Mad River

“Since the Mad River Fish Hatchery sits so close to the ocean, the early-run fish here are extremely bright and full of fight. As the season wears on, you’re more apt to run into ‘guacamoles‘ — the locals’ term for fish that have been in the river for a while and have ‘greened up.'” J.D. Richey describes the December steelhead run on the Mad River, where most of the fish are 6-12-pound hatchery-raised steelies that concentrate in an eight-miles stretch. In California Game & Fish.