VOL . 37 • ISS . 07
Trout : Where And How !
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This is a classic stretch of shoreline that has produced a lot of trout for author Cal Kellogg . The fact that the bank is steep indicates that deep water is available just offshore . The rocky structure and stumps provide shelter for baitfish and the presence of baitfish attracts trout . Spots like this can be good for both fishing bait and tossing lures .
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Narrows like this are outstanding spots for targeting cold water shore hugging trout . When the water necks down , the trout get concentrated and concentrated fish are always easier to catch .
^When the water is cold and the trout are holding near the bank , standard baits such as the Zeke ’ s Sierra Gold and Atlas Glitter Mallows shown here generally produce good results . Some days you can get cold water trout to chase lures , but overall the bait bite is more consistent .
^While bait fishing might be the most consistent approach day in and day out , the well prepared trouter will have a solid selection of dense long casting lures . Here we see three of Cal Kellogg ’ s favorites , a Kastmaster , a Vibric Rooster Tail and a Yo-Zuri L Minnow .
FRESHWATER
March 16 - 30 , 2018
Finding Trout …
So , I recently had a Fish Sniffer reader reach out to me and ask several questions about trout fishing . I had every intention of publishing it here and then answering him , but I can ’ t seem to find the message … Hmmm .
As I recall his main question was where do you find trout in lakes during the winter and early spring ? That ’ s a great question so I ’ m going to share my thoughts ….
My first thought is that where you find your trout may be different from where I find mine . I fish the same basic
FISH SNIFFER HOW – TO by Cal Kellogg spots from boats and from the bank during the cold-water months .
Now when the water is cold , you can assume that the trout are up on top . I ’ m not saying there won ’ t still be fish down deep , but you can count on there being big numbers of trout in the top 25 ’….
Certainly , if you have a boat you can target some of these fish offshore , but I prefer to fish features that concentrate the fish . The first and most obvious feature is the bank itself .
The bank has a few things going for it … First the sun hitting the shoreline heats up the ground and in turn that warms the water . It might be a slight temperature difference , but it ’ s enough to attract both trout and baitfish .
Beyond that , if you think about it a lot of the stuff that hits the water eventually drifts to the shoreline . I ’ m talking about stuff like that soggy inflated worm you tossed into the water when you changed your bait or that big fat moth that crashed into the lake last night when it saw the moon reflected on the lake ’ s surface .
Trout are opportunists . I ’ ve cleaned trout with everything from rocks to cigarette butts in their stomachs , so I ’ m sure one of the reasons they cruise the shoreline is to pick off incidental morsels that just happened to get into the water in addition to baitfish .
Finally , the bank acts as a barrier . At some
presents
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point a cruising fish is going to run into the shoreline . When it does , there is a very good chance that the fish will turn left or right and continue cruising along the bank .
These reasons account for the fact that bank anglers often do better than trollers in the winter and early spring . While your mobility is limited without a boat , the near shore zone is actually easier to fish from the bank than from a boat . That ’ s why I ’ ll often opt to put my trolling gear away , beach the boat in some out of the way area and fish from the bank . More about that later ….
Now different stretches of the bank have different attributes and some spot are going to be better than others based on the conditions and some spots are high percentage options under most all conditions .
My hands down favorite area to fish is a rocky point that drops into deep water . So much the better if the point is bordered by shallow bays . The point ’ s tip serves to concentrate fish that are cruising the shoreline . With immediate access to both shallow and deep water , trout are apt to stick around a point so long as there is food nearby .
Creeks seasonal or otherwise are also good bets especially if they enter the lake adjacent to deep water . Shasta has a great many seasonal creeks that dump into deep coves . These can be real hotspots at times for trout , bass and catfish . Such spots offer food , a temperature break and often a clarity break too .
Narrows are often fantastic simply because fish activity is necked down and fish are concentrated . Whenever fish concentrate , it ’ s easier to hook up .
Classic narrows are like the narrows at Lake Del Valle where the entire lake sucks into an hour glass configuration , but to the discerning eye the mouths of coves often create narrows too . This is especially true in deep water lakes when coves are formed in canyon gullies . If the sides of those gullies pinch in at the right depth you get two nice points and
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