Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3823 Oct 25-Nov 8 | Page 26

24 Oct 25 - Nov 8, 2019 VOL.38 • ISS. 23 What’s Happening • What’s New What’s Hot! Sponsered by: Brad’s Pro Staff Sacramento Valley Reports Jeff Goodwin’s Guide Service – Captain Jeff Goodwin The Sacramento River King salmon season kicked off this year on July 16th below the Red Bluff diversion dam. We stacked the boat with four river fishing guides, including myself, and an hour before official sunrise we were ready to drop our KF-16’s into the frigid waters of the Bamboo hole a few miles below Red Bluff. We shared the hole with another 10-12 boats, but we had arrived early enough to get a good position in the hole where we knew there would be big, bright King salmon hugging the bottom below. The bite didn’t really take off until about 7:00 am, but when it did, several boats hooked up with some really nice kings. we weren’t the first boat to hook into our first King salmon, but within a few minutes of the bite turning on we were hooked up as well. Flows on the Sacramento River were running over 11,000 cfs and we were using 5-6 oz. weights off a sliding dropper to get our KF-16’s down to the bottom of the 25’ Bamboo hole. We fished the Bamboo hole the whole morning and by 10:00 am had 5 bright Kings in the box. Like many years the Pink Magic KF-16 and the Dragonfly KF-16 were the hot lures for sure. Another key component to our success were fresh Pacific Sardine fillets wrapped with Atlas Mikes Miracle thread. Thats a winning combination in any good river guides book for sure. The proof is in the results though and we were definitely one of the top boats on the Sacramento River opener that day. The Sacramento River actually has two different openers, the next of which is above the Red Bluff Diversion Dam on August 1st. The August 1st King salmon opener is most often experi- enced in the Barge Hole which is located at the mouth of Battle Creek which hosts the Coleman National Fish Hatchery about 5 miles upstream. Every year, early run fall Kings stack up in the This excited angler 50’ foot deep hole and can provide some excellent salmon fishing on August 1st. I had scheduled caught this fish on 10- 11-19 while fishing with a film day with Pautzke Outdoors on August 1st this year and they wanted to fish for salmon. We Jeff Goodwin’s Guide met at the Balls Ferry Boat Launch at about 3:30 am and got in line to launch. All went well and Service.   within an hour or so we were running down river towards the Barge Hole. I had prepared to fish Photo Courtesy of Jeff Goodwin. KF-15’s in the Barge Hole and had them wrapped with fresh Sardine fillets and ready to go when the official start time came just before first light. I had 5 guys on the boat and with nearly 70 boats in the Barge Hole, I just handed out rods and kept the boat in position all morning. We dropped the KF 15’s down with 8 oz cannon ball sinkers, making sure our gear was running right under the boat. With all those lines in the water, fishing down and away from the boat just isn’t an option. Once again we saw a little later morning bite, but our KF 15’s were on fire! We hooked 7 nice King salmon and landed 4, which was an above average score for the day. It wasn’t quite what we had expected as far as the August 1st action go’s, but overall ended up with some great King salmon in the box. We finished up around 10:00 am on the water and filmed the rest of the show before heading back to the launch. After the openers, my guide team and I started running guided salmon trips in August and September down in the Corning area. We experienced some great days on the Sacramento River, with most days beginning with back trolling Brad’s KF 16’s in some good morning plug water that usually had salmon sitting in them. I was averaging 1-3 Kings most days within the first hour of the day and almost all of them were caught on either the KF 16 Pink Magic or Kenai Rainbow color patterns. By the end of September we moved up to the Anderson area again and have been finding success with both the KF 15 and 16’s regularly. The water temps are running around 52 degrees so the plug bite has been a little slower than most years in the past at this time during the season. The first light bite is crucial, but we’re getting a few each day early in the morning. The salmon are still moving upstream towards Coleman National salmon hatchery and the holes are starting to get crowded with a big batch of Kings which are starting to get aggressive. I anticipate the plug bite will improve in the coming weeks and there should be a lot more clients getting yanked on by our big Sacramento River King salmon through mid December when the river finally closes to salmon fishing. Looking back its already been a great year and we owe a lot of our success on the water again this season to the effectiveness of the Brad’s Killer Fish 15’s and 16’s! Tight lines! If you would like to book a trip contact me at 707-616-1905 or www.jeffgoodwinfishing.com MSJ Guide Service – Captain Manuel Saldana This year’s Chinook salmon took a while to show up in the Feather River do to the warm water temperature, which was approximately 62 degrees in July and August. The Sacramento River was running in mid-fifties during the same time. One of my favorite ways to catch chinook salmon is to back troll a KF-16’s Brad’s Killer Fish. Before fishing the KF-16’s I make sure they are running correctly. I do This angler caught this this by facing my boat up beautiful salmon while stream against the current. fishing with MSJ Guide Then, simply put the lure Service and using a KillerFish by Brad’s.   in the water and see if it Photo Courtesy of MSJ is running straight. Most Guide Service. of them run correctly out of the box but it is worth the time to check. If they are not running straight, simply turn the eye of the lure to the left or to the right depending on which way it needs to be corrected. The second step is to find some good bait. I like to use sardine wraps or crawdad tail on the Brad’s lures. My preference is to use bait from Big Red Worm Company because it is the freshest bait out on the market. Mid-September rolled around the salmon showed up and fishing got good for my clients while fishing the KF-16’s. One thing that my clients love about fishing the KF-16’s is that the hit is vicious and that they love every minute of it. The month of October is also going to be a month to remember as well. Remember, when November comes around the Sacramento River should get really good because this is the time of the year when the trophy salmon head up the Sacramento River . Book your trip today if you would like a chance to catch some salmon on some Brad’s Killer Fishing Lures. I can be reached at 530-301-7455 or via web at https:// msjguideservice.com/ BRAD’S CUT PLUGS & KILLER FISH Sacramento Valley Salmon Mainline 40# - 60# Braid Sliding Weight System 6 Bead Chain Bead a M e n inli Fixed Weight System 6 Bead Chain Barrel Swivel Barrel Swivel Brad’s Barrel Swivel Brad’s 6 Bead Chain der ish Lea Killer-F - #60 test 0 3 # f o 4’ Lead 4oz - 12oz Brad’s 10mm Bead Lead Dropper Line 2’ of #12 - #20 test Brad’s Duo Lock Snap Split Ring Mainline 40# - 60# Braid ne inli Ma Brad’s Split Ring Brad’s 6 Bead Chain der ish Lea Killer-F 0 - #60 test 3 # f o ’ 4’ - 6 Brad’s Barrel Swivel Lead Dropper Line 12” of #12 test Brad’s Duo Lock Snap Lead or Diver 4oz - 12oz lead or preferred diver No matter what the water conditions are, Brad’s has your go-to! For more information, please visit our website: www.BradsKillerFishingGear.com @BradsKillerFishingGear