20 June 22 - July 6 , 2018
FRESHWATER
VOL . 37 • ISS . 14
FRESHWATER REPORTS :
CONTINUED FROM PG 13
SAN PABLO RESERVOIR cont .
James Stoker of San Rafael caught 5 trout and 1 catfish from his boat . Patricia Washington of Richmond bagged a 7.73 lb . catfish .
Ben C . of Hercules caught a 10 lb . channel cat using anchovies at the boat launch . Patricia and Terry Ryan nailed 3 catfish stringer weighing a total of 30 lbs ., topped by an 8.6 pounder .
Al Hurwitz of Saratoga and Abbey Lev of Sunnyvale reported trout success on a recent trip . “ We caught one small spotted bass and around a dozen rainbow trout , mostly small ones ( DFG plants ) that we released ,” said Hurwitz .
“ However , we managed to keep three very nice Mt . Lassen rainbows , the largest around 1.5 lbs . Most of the strikes were South of Sandy Point trolling a variety of colored Kastmasters around 15-20 feet below the surface ,” Hurwitz stated .
Daniel James Smith of Martinez caught a 7.4 lb . largemouth fishing at the boat launch .
The lake level is 311.1 feet in elevation and the surface temperature is 71.9 degrees .
The DFW planted 800 lbs . of trout at the boat launch on May 30 .
SANTA CLARA VALLEY LAKES
Drop Shotters Target Anderson and Calero Bass
COYOTE - Crappie and bass continue to provide action for Silicon Valley anglers while catfish action remains spotty .
Anglers making use of slow-moving tactics experienced the best action this week according to the pro anglers at Coyote Bait and Tackle .
“ At both Anderson and Calero you ’ re looking at a good jig and drop shot bite ,” related Eric Tan .
“ Bigger fish at Calero and your usual numbers at Anderson . Look for rocks especially during the day . You can try tossing reaction or a Keitech swimbait on a 1 / 8 jig head early in the mornings ,” he added .
“ Coyote has been slow and so has Uvas and Chesbro , but the crappie has been good at Chesbro . Remember - you can ’ t use minnows right now but jigs work pretty good . Put them under a bobber and adjust the depth to find where they are ,” said Tun .
Catfishing was rated OK according to Tan . “ Check out Uvas or Chesbro but go in the afternoon evenings . Mackerel , ( chicken ) livers , and night crawlers should work ,” he related .
- Roland Aspiras
SHASTA / WHISKEYTOWN LAKES
Trout And Kokanee Bites Sputter , Bass Bite Remains Strong
REDDING - At Lake Shasta the trout are transitioning into deep water and the
Dunsmuir ’ s Fantastic Sacramento River Trout Fishing !
Is catching a big fish
what you want to do on your vacation ? There are many reasons you can do that in Dunsmuir , California , this summer because the Upper Sacramento River is a productive and state-designated Wild Trout fishery and Blue Ribbon trout stream with plentiful water of high quality . Lots of cold water is released from 250 feet deep at the bottom of Box Canyon Dam . More melted glacier water enters the Upper Sac from Mossbrae Falls , just above the city
3704
Catch them at your local tackle shop ! fishingbutler . com / 1-905-807-3221
Bubs Fong caught this pair of huge largemouth bass while working Delta waters this spring .
Photo courtesy of BUBS FONG , Sacramento .
of Dunsmuir where the upper section is spring fed and the lower is freestone .
There is easy river access and parking for the public at the Dunsmuir City Park and Tauhindauli Park . Other locations are near the numerous bridges at Scarlett Way , River , Butterfly , Shearer and Financial Avenues and on down to Sweetbriar .
In Dunsmuir , the city additionally stocks larger fish 14-22-inches and includes some that are trophy size . These fish are from the Hat Creek area at the Mt . Lassen Hatchery on the Bidwell Ranch where the fish are raised in a naturalistic way , exposed to aquatic insects . Their flesh is firm and they put up a good fight because they are energized and healthy . You ’ re not going to find this anywhere else in the state .
For more information see the Dunsmuir Big Fish Wanted Poster in this edition of the Fish Sniffer or call ( 530 ) 235-2177 . bite has suffered as a result . Shasta ’ s bass continue a post spawn feeding blitz . At Whiskeytown , kokanee limits remain the rule , but the fishing isn ’ t as easy as it was a month ago .
“ I spent three days at Shasta with my wife in early June celebrating our 24th anniversary ,” reported Fish Sniffer reader Len Williamson . “ The trout bite was a little tough for us . We were expecting to find trout in the top 30 feet , but that wasn ’ t the case . The trout we caught came from 40 to 70 deep .”
“ We really had to work to find the trout . We used the sonar to locate the bait . Sometimes the bait was holding trout , but sometimes there was nothing on the bait but spotted bass . The trout we got were great quality fish . We had rainbows up
to 21 inches and a single 24 inch brown that probably weight around 5 pounds ,” exclaimed Williamson .
“ We got all of our trout on 2 inch Rapalas and Hum Dinger spoons trolled without dodgers . Some fish came on small Hum Dingers , but the half ounce version in blue and chrome worked the best ,” disclosed Williamson .
On the bass fishing front , Shasta ’ s spotted bass are spread out and on a very active bite . You can catch bass all the way from the surface to 40 feet deep . Reaction baits are working at times , but nothing is as productive as a drop shot rig armed with a pair of small shad colored plastic worms .
Look for the bass to be holding in the mouths of cove around bait . When you find the right bait ball it ’ s not uncommon to hook two bass at a time . The average bass is a 1 pound , 12 inch spot , but much bigger spots up to 5 pounds are showing up too .
Shasta is currently about 22 feet from the top and dropping about 4 inches per day .
At Whiskeytown , limits of kokanee to 17 inches are the norm , but the bite isn ’ t as intense as it had been and anglers are having to spend more time on the water for a limit .
Paulina Peak hammered dodgers teamed with a pink hoochie are the hottest offering , but Uncle Larry ’ s Spinners and Apex Lures are hooking fish too .
STAMPEDE RESERVOIR
Kokanee Salmon On Fire
TRUCKEE – Want to catch a limit of quality kokanee ? Then head to Stampede Reservoir .
“ Kokanee action is Hot , Hot , Hot and limits are very easy to come by right now , with fish ranging from 13 ” to over 16 ” and very fat for this time of year ,” said James Netzel of Tight Lines Guide Service . “ The fish are everywhere . You don ’ t need to go searching . You don ’ t need to motor fast to get to your favorite spot . Choose your destination and start trolling right at the dock and I can almost guarantee you ’ ll limit out