VOL.39 • ISS. 20
MAP FEATURE
Sept 25, 2020
15
Lake Camanche Facts
History and Size: Lake Camanche sits in the rolling Mother Lode
foothills of the Sierra Nevada t the juncture of Amador, Calaveras and
San Joaquin counties. The EBMUD reservoir covers 12 square miles,
is 150 feet deep, and has 53 miles of shoreline when full. The lake
is only a two-hour drive from most of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Construction of the dam and reservoir on the Mokelumne River was
finished in 1963.
Fishing Season: Fishing for rainbow trout, black bass, channel
catfish, bluegill, crappie and other fish is open year round at Lake
Camanche. A $6.50 fishing access fee is required.
Vehicle Entry/Parking: the daily fee for cars, motorcycles and small
vans is $12.00 during the regular season and $9.00 daily during the
off-season from October to April.
Boating Facilities: Marinas on the North and South shores offer
boat rentals, slips, fuel, bait, tackle and supplies. Boat ramps are
located on both shores. The boat launching fee is $12.00 except for
during the off-season from October to April when it is $9.00.
Camping and Lodging: Full RV hookups, shoreline camping and
lots of campsites with barbecues, tables, hot showers, restrooms
and laundry facilities make Camanche one of the best recreational
destinations in California. Fully furnished cottages at both shores and
motel units at the North shore are also available.
Vessel Inspections Required: The East Bay Municipal Utility District
has taken several steps to manage the Quagga and Zebra mussel
issue at Camanche. Vessels from Southern California and outside of
California will not be allowed on Lake Camanche. All vessels from
approved counties will be inspected prior to launch. These inspections
should take no more than five minutes per vessel. You can help
with the inspection process by ensuring all your water reservoirs are
dry and that your boat is clean. For more information, visit: https://
www.ebmud.com/recreation/invasive-mussel-prevention-program
Facilities information: www.camancherecreation.com
Lake Camanche – North Shore, 2000 Camanche Rd., Ione, Ca.
95640, 209-763-5121
Lake Camanche – South Shore, 11700 Wade Ln., Wallace, Ca. 95225,
209-763-5912
COVD Update: Working together with their agency partners and
public health officials, the Camanche Recreation Company has
developed a sustainable operating plan to allow outdoor recreation
to continue at Lake Camanche. Starting Thursday July 2n, Lake
Camanche day use visitation numbers have been reduced to provide
enhanced social distancing. The new daily limits are as follows:
• 100 day use vehicles at the North Shore
• 100 day use vehicles at the South Shore
• 150 daily boat launches at North Shore
• 100 daily boat launches at South Shore
Camanche
Reservoir
To
Junction
Highway 12
& Stockton
To
Liberty Rd,
Highway 99
& Galt
Buena Vista Rd
River
Mokelumne
To
Highway 99
& Lodi
North Camanche Parkway
Dam Restricted
Area
Keep Out
Spillway
Elevation
236 ft
McIntire Rd.
Dike 4
Dike 5
Dike 3
To
Jackson
Dike
6
Hat Island
Spillway
Elevation
236´
Little Hat Island
Dike 2
Goodmans
Corner
Causeway
Rabbit
Creek
Arm
Dike 1
Curran Road
Camanche Reservoir
Restricted
Area
5mph
Campers
Cove
Wallace
Camanche Arm
San Joaquin, Calaveras
and Amador Counties
Camanche Road
Horse Island
Reservation Rd
Wade Lane
China
Gulch
5 mph
South Camanche Parkway
North
Finnerts
Cove
Pattison
Rd
Camanche
South Burson Rd
Buena Vista Road
Parkway
Mokelumne
River
20 MPH
No Skiing, Jet Skis
or Personal Watercraft
Southshore
East Camanche
Burson
Restricted
Shoreline
Keep Out
Burson Rd
To
New
Hogan
Lake
Fishing Notes
Rainbow Trout – are caught year-round, but winter and spring are the top times. Shore anglers catch trout in both the
south and north shore recreation areas and South Shore Trout Pond. Anglers fish Power Eggs, Power Worms, PowerBait,
Zeke’s Sierra Gold Trout Bait, nightcrawlers and salmon eggs. During the late spring and summer, trolling spoons and
minnow imitation lures in deep water near the dam and in the Narrows is your top prospect.
Largemouth, Spotted and Smallouth Bass – reward anglers fishing jigs, spinnerbaits, swimbaits, Senkos and other offerings
throughout the year. Largemouths dominate the catches at this structure-rich reservoir.
Channel Catfish – offer excellent action during the summer and fall when water temperatures are at their warmest. Soak
chicken liver, mackerel, anchovies and stink baits in the coves.
Camanche Dam on the Mokelumne River was finished in 1963.
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff.
The most notable of these was Lancha
Plana – “flat boat” in Spanish – a settlement
in Amador County formed as a
result of a flatboat ferry crossing across
the Mokelumne River. Founded by
Mexican settlers in 1848, it was situated
on the north bank of the Mokelumne
River, 9 miles south-southeast of Ione at
an elevation of 220 feet. Lancha Plana
Bridge crosses the lake now about where
the town once stood.
Other towns inundated by the lake rising
waters include Arkansas Ferry, China
Gulch, and of course, Camanche, the
town that the reservoir is named after. The
town, formerly called Limerick, became
Camanche, named after Camanche, Iowa,
in 1849.
Since the lake is relatively shallow, with
a maximum depth of about 150 feet when
full, Camanche offers huge expanses
of reefs and rock piles punctuated by
standing timber and brush. The low areas
between the rock piles act as channels
and travel corridors that the lake’s trout,
bass and other gamefish use for travel and
security.
Besides the lake itself, the South Shore
also features the South Shore Trout Pond,
regularly planted with trout in the fall,
winter and spring.
Wit abundant structure, Camanche
features a trophy bass fishery dominated
by largemouth and spotted bass.
Kevin Miranda of Sacramento caught
the lake record largemouth weighing
18.17 lbs. on June 26, 2015 when he was
fishing with a crankbait by Little Hat
Island. That fish measured 31” long and
had a 24” girth. That record shattered the
previous record of 15.2 lbs. caught by
Lonnie Owens back in January of 2013.
The second biggest bass ever caught at
the reservoir was caught in January 2018
by Dennis Choi of Rocklin while he was
fishing for trout off the north shore day
use area at Camanche .While he didn’t
hook any trout, he managed to catch and
release a monster 15.46-pound largemouth
bass while using Berkley Power Eggs.
“It was my 73rd birthday,” said Choi. “I
feel very lucky to catch such a huge fish,
especially since it was the second bass
that I have ever caught.”
He hooked the fish around noon while
fishing with an Okuma 8.6-foot ultralight
spinning rod teamed up with a Shimano
reel.
“The fish hit so hard that it bent the rod
completely over in the holder. I grabbed
the rod and as soon as I set the hook, I
thought, ‘Holy Toledo, this is a big fish,’
” he said.
The reason for the big bass at Camanche
is the presence of Florida-strain largemouths
that grow bigger than the northern-strain
largemouths, plus a healthy
forage base. The lake management most
years stocks Florida-strain largemouth
in the lake to bolster the lake’s natural
spawning population.
On July
10, 2019,
Bass
Unlimited
from Willow
Creek
Fisheries
planted
4,700 lbs.
of fingerling
bass in
Camanche.
Each pound
equals to
roughly 170
fingerlings;
the math
is about
800,000
baby bass
fish. They
planted
ithe bass in
multiple locations throughout the entire
shoreline of the lake.
Beside rainbow trout and black bass,
abundant populations of channel catfish,
black crappie, bluegill and sunfish are
found in abundance in the lake.
Steve Anderson set the lake crappie
record on March 1, 2016 when he landed
a 3.16 lb. crappie while fishing a jig.
Jeff Howard set the lake catfish record
on December 3, 2016 when he landed a
27.6 lb. channel cat while soaking chicken
liver in the Narrows.
While fishing for any of these species,
you may see the iconic bald eagles that
migrate south to Camanche every year.
For more information, call Lake
Camanche Recreation Company, (209)
763-5121 or 1(866) 763-5121, or go to
www.lakecamancheresort.com. For more
information on guided trout adventures
on Camanche, call Robbie Dunham, Koke
Machine Guide Service, (209) 712-6611.
Dianne Stockton shows off the ten rainbow trout that she and Robbie
Dunham of Koke Machine Guide Service landed at Camanche Reservoir on
September 4. Photo courtesy of Robbie Dunham.
Photo courtesy of KOKE MACHINE GUIDE SERVICE, Galt.