VOL.39 • ISS. 18
FRESHWATER
August 21, 2020
13
EASTERN SIERRA cont.
is not as important and they become less
picky as they have trouble identifying their
floating food.
At Hot Creek, great dry fly fishing
has been taking place daily. As more
grasshoppers start to mature, the fish
are not overlooking them as they were
last month. Don’t be timid about throwing
some larger patterns that represent
the hoppers. You many also have to go
extremely small at times to imitate the
tricos and micro midges. The mayfly
nymphs are also incredibly tiny and
the fish are keying in on them as they
dislodge from the weeds.
Flows have increased on the East
Walker and fishing has been pretty darn
good. Nymphing has been accounting
for most of the catches, but some good
midge hatches are taking place on the
reservoir and they are flying down to the
river to deposit their eggs. You will find
some great dry fly action at times here
when this happens. There is a good
amount of water for wading and crossing
in most areas of the river
- Tom Loe, Sierra Drifter Guide Service.
Trout are on the bite in the East Carson. This dandy rainbow was landed on July 31.
Photo courtesy of RICHARD DARANCETTE, Facebook.
hoochies behind dodgers and Brad’s
Kokanee Series Cut Plugs.”
In addition, anglers are also picking up
some rainbow trout while trolling shallower
depths than for the salmon near the dam
and in the north and south forks of the
reservoir.
Stacy Barawed and her fishing partner,
Matt Thompson, won first place in the
second day of the Folsom Bass Team
tournament held at Folsom Lake on the
weekend of July 25-26.
They finished the event with a
6.50-pound bag, anchored by Stacy’s
2.92-pound spotted bass, the big fish of
the day and the two-day event. Thompson
was the boater and Barawed was the nonboater
on the team.
This was the first time that the Folsom
Bass Team had been on the water for
a tournament since March – and they
successfully pulled off 2 days of COVIDcompliant
fishing tournaments.
Folsom Lake is holding 537,961 acre
feet of water, 55 percent of capacity and
79 percent of average. The lake level is
421.21 feet in elevation.
- Dan Bacher
FEATHER RIVER
Anglers Working Hard for
Every Salmon
OROVILLE - The salmon fishing
slowed down in the couple of weeks since
the opener, but experienced anglers
who put in the time are picking up an
occasional king. Expect the fishing to perk
up when more salmon ascend the river in
the coming weeks.
“On my last trip, we had two take downs
and landed one bright 20 lb. salmon while
fishing below the Thermalito Afterbay
Outlet,” said Rob Reimers of Rustic Rob’s
Guide Service. “The fish hit a Rob’s
Dragon Glow Brad’s Cut Plug.”
“The fishing is kind of slow,” said
Reimers. “Anglers are picking up one or
two fish every day.”
Department of Water Resources
releases from Lake Oroville to the Feather
River are now 2,700 cfs.
FOLSOM LAKE
Trollers Target Feisty King
Salmon
FOLSOM – Folsom Lake has been
producing a lot of king salmon in the in
the 16 to 18 inch range, along with some
bigger fish, over the past few weeks,
reported Craig Newton of Willfish Bait and
Tackle.
“Boaters are targeting the salmon at 55
to 75 feet deep,” noted Newton. “Anglers
are doing best trolling Speedy Shiners,
KLAMATH/TRINITY RIVERS
Salmon, Steelhead Hit In
Klamath Estuary
REQUA – Fishing for spring chinook
salmon picked up after the minus tides
departed and the wind calmed down in the
Klamath Estuary.
“Some days were good, while others
weren’t,” noted Jerry Lampkin of TNG
Motor Sports Guide Service. “On one trip,
CONTINUED ON PG 16
the harder, smoother side of the stone.
Keep working until the blade glides along
smoothly.
At this point wipe the oil from the blade
and check it for sharpness. The blade
should be just short of razor sharp. For most
tasks this is plenty sharp, but if I want to
enter the zone of super sharpness I finish up
with my leather strop.
I attach one end of the leather belt to a
solid object and pull it tight using my left
hand. Using my right hand, I glide the blade
along the leather away from the cutting
edge. This gives the edge a final polish and
pushes it into another level sharpness.
If you don’t have a piece of leather
you can do the same thing using a piece
of corrugated cardboard setting on a flat
stable surface, just remember to work away
from the cutting edge. In an emergency if
you are able to invest some time, you can
completely sharpen a blade using nothing
more than cardboard.
The sharpening I’ve described so far
is best done at home or in camp. It’s not
the sort of thing you’re going to do on a
pitching boat or deep in a canyon standing
over a half-butchered buck.
In these situations, I utilize my small
diamond hone and the Hunter Honer. These
devices are easily carried and they will
quickly return your blade to an acceptable
level of sharpness. The key is to never let
your blade get super dull. At the first sign of
dulling, brake out your field sharpener and
go to work.
With the Hunter Honer all you need to
do is draw your blade through the notch
between the rods 12 to 15 times and you’ll
be ready to resume cutting. It’s pretty fool
proof, which makes it perfect for me!
The diamond hone is a little more
technical to use. I generally use the hone
like a file stroking away from the cutting
edge from the rear of the blade to the
tip. On the first few passes I apply some
pressure, but lighten up as I continue. When
using the diamond, make sure you use an
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3918
HOW TO By Cal Kellogg continued from page 5
equal number of strokes on each side of
the blade and alternate strokes from one
side of the blade to the other.
Of course, there is a long list of fine
points in reference to blade sharpening.
We’ve gone over the basics. Now it’s
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up to you to get a stone and pay your
dues in terms of practice. When you first
start, experiment with a pocketknife.
Small blades are easier to work then large
blades. Once you’ve built some confidence
you can move up to full size knives.
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