Submit
Report

Folsom Lake and Reports

Limit:
Click for interactive map

Wednesday, May 9th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: ?

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: We had a pretty good day, even though we got a late start.Started on the peninsula and worked our way down. I guess it is a mixed bag o ish time o year. We seem to be catching all three species in the same areas. The active ish seem to be around 10 to 15 eet. I saw ish in 8 eet or less, but they just took a look at it. Most o my ish were caught on senkos or worms in the trees. I got one on a spinnerbait, but that is it. I tried rippin and one lashed at it right in ront o the boat. I am suprised the rip bite hasn't turned on. Everytime I go out I'll give it a shot, but only get one here and there. These damn 2lb spots and smallies are costing me an arm and a leg tearing my plastics, but I love eelin em pull on my line. Anyway we caught around 15 or so, and lost a ew good ones. I you ish on Tuesday or Wednesdays, and you see a v-hull 17' tracker stop and say hi. I enjoy dock talk.Good Luck.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: Fish trees and rock piles in the 10-18' range.I you ind all three in one spot you've ound a gold mine.Nice to see the lake has some Largemouth that are inally biting.Senkos are the ticket in trees.

Sunday, May 6th, 2001

  • By

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Just back rom two days at Shasta. Did get out on this lake last week on one o the howling north wind days. I tested a ew baits in preparation or Shasta. Caught 8 to 2lbs. A couple smallies and one largemouth south ork. Ripped early, then grubs and worms until 9:30am. A little tardy or work, but made it up on lunch. Shasta was the bomb. Magniicent weather, eagles, and it's 15 eet rom ull. How is it that Folsom may never ill this year, Oroville's down 80 eet, and Shasta's so high? Don't get me started. The weekend was the whole upper northern caliornia experience. The Headbanger radio station gave away a ree trip or two to next year's highly anticipated Daytona 500. We cruised around Redding saturday night calculating the rile in back window o the truck percentage. We also enjoyed the astonished looks rom the women who inally saw a man without acial hair. Even my partner said Bret Bodine does the wake-up call at the motel 6 we stayed at. No, that's Tom Bodette, and he'll turn on the light or him. He was conused- he said he took a bath in his Nascar antasy league in Saturday night's Martinsville event. It's all good in Redding. Got spanked by the team in the Zodiac again. It's mounted with a 6hp Johnson that weezes and smokes early, but they say i they don't have the livewell ull (an Am Pm ice chest with an aerator) it gets on plane around 12 mph. We worked with our limitations too- reusing to go out on the second day and cull through 30 dinks to get to 11 lbs or 7 ish in the McCloud again. Instead we ished reaction and came in with 6 ish in the Sac- boy, we showed them! The winners got a 5.87lb largemouth on a bed. Largemouths were rare. 25% o the ish were smallies. Spots were on the beds and so vulnerable. Much o the dock talk was about pulled back muscles and the thrill o the hookset when another 12" spot bit the tail o your inesse worm.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: On post ront north wind days get out early beore it comes up.

Monday, April 30th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: warming ast

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Unbelievable numbers o Bass on beds. Had a great time playing with them. Shaking any worm, or a chart. gitzit got a bite. I saw several bass in the 6-10 lb. class, but they were not locked on beds yet. I also saw a school o catish that were all between 5 and 15 lbs. , hooked on but he broke my 25lb. line.
    City: Sac.

Saturday, April 28th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: warmer

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: My mama is so accustomed to my drama she doesn't pay attention anymore- same situation with my reports. 30 to 40 in two trips over the weekend dispite the multi use problem ater 10am or so. Took my dad and my son on one trip and it was just like Mayberry. Except I can't wistle and my boy's little kacki shorts. We didn't use ly rods either, although it was my dad's irst experience with a spinning outit and I don't know what looked worse- him or my irst experience casting ly rod a couple years ago with my buddy. More on that in a minute. Put my dad on some spinners and he landed a ew small spots. Not bad considering he's the isherman that irst introduced trot line ishing to Caliornia. When I was my son's age a catish on the end o a string pulled me into the Sacramento River and I've been hooked on this sport ever since. It would have been much simpler to tie on a darter head and go dragging like i did, but watching him lail was more entertaining. My buddy did me on the second trip. I listen to his suggestions and he always takes me out o my game. It's a great strategy. Dock talk? I guess that's boat talk. He ripped a couple early then he switched to grubs. Ater he ran up the score I inally copitulated and tied a on a grub. I then went on a dink tear and put up the numbers. There were some keeper spots and a smallie or two. He wants to take me ly ishing again- sadistic bastard.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: Spots are spawning as well as largemouths. Lake is illing ast- Hobbie ramp at Brown's is already underwater. Unless you're bed ishing, work the water column. As the boat traic increases during the day most ish go deeper.

  • By

    Water Temp: 64-68

    Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

    Report: Went out with a buddy Thursday at 4:00 and caught over thirty ish on senkos in the trees, lots o two pounders with the best ish being a our lb smallie. Went out Friday with Newman and the action slowed down a bit, we had iteen ish doing the same thing and wethought that was slow. Saturday morning Newman and I went out at irst light.I have not seen this tough o a bite at Folsom since January.We had a total o ive ish between us,needless to say they are no longer in the trees. I think the postspawnhas arrived.
    City: Granite Bay

    Tips: Try cranking or ripping, I did not try that !

Friday, April 27th, 2001

  • By

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: ATTENTION RANDY DECKER...... Please save the drama or your MAMMA!!!

    Tips: We read this page to learn about ishing, not personal problems...

Monday, April 23rd, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: ? pretty cool

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: My riend Janet and I ished out o our loat tubes on thesouth side o beals point,useing 6inch smoke with purple lake worms in about 15-25t. o water, we caught a dozen nice bass,mostly spots,in 3hrs.
    City: Sacto.

  • By

    Water Temp: warmer

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: It might be optomistic to say my reports are an aquired taste, but i you are interested in improving the quality o the angling experience at this lake, read on. I saved the best takes or last. Reer to this report as "The Mother". 6 spots to 2lbs and a smallmouth various banks in the south ork between 6:30pm and dusk. Worms and small spinnerbaits- the baits my our year old throws on his Pokemon signature series spin cast outit. Stayed out o the willows. Just returned rom my third event at Oroville this year and an angler I respect highly suggested that the ishing in a resevoir behind an Auburn Dam would be a similar experience. That's more poor inishes and wasted money only much closer to home. Image the damage when Aaron Martens rolls up as a late entry and runs to Yankee Jims to drop shot. We need to build support to get this project built. My riend (I can prove this) is a multi species angler that catches a bass or two i.e. he waxes me all the time. I inally convinced him to enter the Golden State tourney here with me last May. His comment around 10:00am was "My God, I'm ishing on the reeway". At Auburn, the entire Shirtail Canyon would be a 5 mph zone. The best structure to whack Ledgebusters on would be the pontoons o all the houseboats at anchor. Excuse me- anyone reading this involved in this this year's Golden State tourney, could you get the second wave launched just a tad earlier? By the time we took o last year the sun was so high, you could have competed in a solar powered submarine. I'm normally not a supporter o giant public works projects but or this we need to get all the republican voting good ol boys to punch the correct hole and cross party lines. I know that's a stretch ater the ast start the Bush Administration in o to. Ironically, it was the Carter Administration (he was a democrat)that killed Auburn Dam. What can you say about someone who gave us the national 55mph speed limit. Truthully, getting approval or a project o this magnitude will require a little pork barrel legislation in Washington. That's where our senator says to Nevada's senator "hey, I'll vote to build a nuclear waste dump in your state i you vote or a magniicent recreation area in mine. That's air isn't it?" Actually Oroville is a state project and Auburn is a Bureau o Reclamation (Feds) project like Hoover and Shasta. Those projects were New Deal era depression busting eorts initiated by FDR (that's Franklin Delano Roosevelt- a president, or all you slackers that skipped history class to go pond ishing. You know, back in the day, when you marked on you calender the two times a year you caught a bass over 14") and times have changed. Power is one reason. Today, less than 35% o caliornia's power is hydroelectric. Good thing deregulation gave us plenty o other sources or this summer. Water is another. We need more subsidized water or armers to sell to L.A. Aterall that's way more proitable than growing this year's government price supported surplus crops we give to our enemies in Russia. The armers are entitled to a new CD player in the combine. Still, getting Auburn approved is going to be a major challenge. Making it more diicult, Folsom Dam had $230 million dollars appropriated to retroit the outlets o the dam. Currently the capacity o the outlets is 40,000 cs. The American River below Folsom Dam has lowed as much as 165,000cs when the three 100 year loods have occured in the last 15 years (do the math). Folsom does have those reliable lood gates. As a lood control solution or the entire American River drainage, just retroitting Folsom is like putting a bandaid on the ruptured Aorta o a competing marathon runner. Finally, while I'm turning this into political comentary, can we leave the spots out o Auburn? Fishermen rom the TVA lakes are claim to have invented the smallmouth bass. That's the same place where Deliverance was ilmed. Consider the hoards o little smallmouths and thier new opportunity when lake Clementine is innundated. The Black Bass Action Committee o norhtern caliornia supports an initiative to introduce Floridas into Oroville to oset the decline in northern largemouts. Decline? Shouded in controversy, the hysteria surrounding largemouth sightings at Oroville is just a ootnote in history about catch and release and altered photgraphs taken in mysterious circumstances. It was only when ishermen were undergoing compulsive behavior treatment under hypnosis that reports began to surace in local ishwraps (newspapers)with uncanny regularity claiming that anglers were abducted by alien beings like Gary Klein and made to catch largemouths on shoreline cover. Due to the code o no dock talk, conclusive evidence has remained elusive and these accounts were never conirmed. The Men in Green (The Department o Fish and Game)ultimately closed the books completely on largemouth sightings at Oroville and let many cases unresolved to this day. Because o the spots let's just say a Largemouth is pretty rare. Ask yoursel, are you really ulilled culling 30 spots to weigh in six pound limits? I spots a are introduced into lake Utopia(Auburn), the hottest IPO will be all the new inesse worm manuacturers. Someone needs to take Greenspan bass ishing- someone other than Bush. Not Skeet Reese either. I that happened, Greenspan would be at the magazine rack in a suburban D.C. Rite-Aid conused because there were no bass ishing articles in the latest GQ magazine. So I'm dreaming big. There's alot o reasons to build Auburn Dam.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: While I muddy the subject, the water is clearing here. Downsize lines and baits.

Sunday, April 22nd, 2001

  • By

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Fished the metro newbass tourny today. Had a limit on jigs and plastics by 8:30. Culled some ish on same jig and senkos later in the day.Caught about 20 ish all day inished in the middle o the ield. First place said the were sight ishing with lukes in a cove in the north ork.We stayed on the main body and it was too windy to sight ish . First place had a good limit o 27#s
    City: Galt

    Tips: Fish are bedding now i you have the patience then i would suggest site ishing or the big emales i your in a tourny i not i suggest leaving them alone and ishing the mainbody dragging plastics in 5 to 15 eet o water

Saturday, April 14th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: 57-58

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Started at irst light on Rattlesnake ishing with a ew riends on our boats. Fished a rock wall 5-20 eet with no takers. Moved to a point and a buddy caught one at 20-25 eet shaking worms. Moved towards the main body and ound some submerged rock piles and caught about ish between 4 o us at 30 eet shaking light colored worms. Hit the points the rest o the day and caught a ew more. I ended up with one ish the whole day, about 20 ish caught between all o us. Nice day on the lake.
    City: Nevada City, CA

    Tips: Should start moving up to the shallows soon.

Wednesday, April 11th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: ?

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: I am blowing up. Thought I'd go out this evening ater work- casual- no report, but I have to give props to Scott with the Astro or nailing a 10lb tonight. At the time the severe storm warning disrupted your episode o Dukes o Hazard this evening, I on the lake writing the script or the sequel to The Perect Storm. It's called The Perectly Stupid Bass Angler Fishing in the Storm. It's based on a true story. I could see it coming, but I landed a 12" smallie on a worm o a point and igured I had just established a pattern. Funny how subtle cues make you adjust your pattern. For me it was multiple lightining strikes. It encouraged me to quickly run to the nearest cove and beach the boat. Once the storm passed caught a limit beore sundown including a 4lb largemouth- 4 on worms, one on a blade.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: Seasonally speaking, lightning on an open lake will disrupt your concentration ishing reaction. Go to worms and jigs- it will help you ocus. Don't mistake the clap o thunder or a strike.

  • By

    Water Temp: 68

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Fished the main body around beals and the peninsalu.caught ish to 4#s on pointer and td minnow. dragged some 4inch magic worms in the aternoon or a ew ish.Lake too muddy rom the wind and rain to do any sight ishing maybe latter in the week
    City: Galt

    Tips: work the mud lines on the windward side o the lake when the wind is blowing

Sunday, April 8th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: colder

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Virtual dock talk. When you're lost as much as I am, what's an angler to do? Take last year at a two dayer at Shasta or example. Ater the irst day someone said check out the Pit. I said ok, but how do you launch a boat in one? We had a limit well over 4lbs on the irst day, so on the second day we learned how that arm got it's name. Another 4lb plus limit! At the scales, observers thought we had a bag ull o green shad. Post ront today stopped the reaction bite cold. 11 on darter heads in the south- including two 3lb spots Dylan caught and our smallies. I'd say he back seated me, but he ran the ront or a while. Ater trying to dead stick in hurricane like conditions the batteries were toast. Luckily my casting arm (normally hanging limp at the end o the day rom reaction baits) was rested enough to pull start my Mercury 90 six cylinder.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: Rapidly cooling water temps will slow them down in spring. Downsized to 4" worms and ished real slow.

Friday, April 6th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: ?

    Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

    Report: Nothing to report except a buddy that said I should quit sharing intel on the web. Sharing inormation? I said consider the source (me). He said yeah, nevermind. So at the risk o continuing to lose respect, I'll check in ater the weekend at Oroville. I'm having un. I I want to be respected, I wouldn't tell anyone I'm into bass ishing. I like Nascar too.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: The bad weather can prolong the spawn.

Sunday, April 1st, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: ?

    Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

    Report: I was the ool on this day. Took out the spare reel and the spare spinnerbait to the southork wishing or a 6lb accident. I I only had a spare right arm. Caught 12 rom 7am to 1 pm between the old bridge and the 5 mph zone. 2 largemouths, 2 smallies to 3 lbs. Fishing around the trees when the wind didn't blow my cast into them. Stopped at a couple shallow coves to look or beds. April ool- the south ork is dirty at best, and there's crud loating on the surace. Front put the ish tighter to cover. irst cast to one tree was o by two eet. Next cast within 8" same tree and BOO Yaddie! Another clone spot. (pregnant 15"er)
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: Adjust with the weather- change is the only thing that's permanent. Cranks not as eective as spinnerbaits. There's better techniques or bigger ish anyway.

Saturday, March 31st, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: 65

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Got on the water at 2pm and noticed the water was 65 degrees, so immediately went looking or bed ish. Lake was so stirred up rom all the Gaswasters that it made it impossible to see any beds. We tried the New York Cove area with blades and crankbaits in the mudlines, but had no success. We decided to go look or clearer water and do some inessing. That was the ticket, as we ended up putting around 40 ish in the boat, including a 3 pound spot and a 5 pound largemouth. The ish were caught in the north ork on rip baits and lizards. Best 5 ish went around 15#'s.
    City: roseville, ca

    Tips: While there is a ton o ish to be caught right now, deinately try and ish on a weekday. The boat traic on the lake is brutal.

  • By

    Water Temp: n/a

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: Headed out to Folsom with my Dad and my buddy we had a 20+ day missed alot too. We were ishing north ork with 4 inch worms on any structure trees,bushes,rocks,points any good cover had ish on them. We caught alot spotts and largemouth the bigger ish were smallies we ished rom 5 to 15 eet o water also saw ish cruzeing the banks. let when it started to get hott!!!BassMan,Nick Charles
    City: Roseville

    Tips: 4 inch magic worms any color I like to use oxblood,mourning dawn and pumpkinseed. work them over rocks and ledges and you will catch ish!!

Friday, March 30th, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: ?

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: I could articulate a report o a wonderul, soul ulilling experience o catching bass in beautiul spring conditions. Or, I could say we spanked em. Let's go with number two.20+ all species to 3lbs on chartruese spinnerbaits in the willows everywhere. A ew big largemouths are on beds, but the're alicted with lock jaw. Way more un to have 2 & 3lb warriors repeatedly pound your avorite spinnerbait until it's a worthless, mangled piece. Just when they thought they'd worn it out, I whipped out a back up. (I'm always this prepared.) Lake is up, weather is good, and the bass are biting. On the downside my reel is in the shop, and surgery on my arm is inevitable. Great day- I'm having my smoking heap o a spinnerbait encased and ramed so I can hang it on the wall.
    City: El Dorado Hills

    Tips: It's all about the spawn. Smallmouth are done and pulling o, largemouth are getting on the beds, and spots are plump and staging. Best part is this makes them all located in nearly the same places. Bed ish or largemouths i your'e into that, otherwise blitz the cover with reaction baits.

Thursday, March 22nd, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: n/a

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: headed out to olsom started o at dotins point throwing a rogue and busted a nice trout. Swith to a 4 inch magic worm oxblood and irst cast had a 2lb smallmouth and ended up catching 7 ish no size. Want to ish out o a boat but dont know anyone who has one so i you have a back seat open or olsom I will help pay or gas just want to learn how to catch bigger ish at olsom. Email me!!!!
    City: Roseville

    Tips: throw worms on rocky structure and move them slow

Wednesday, March 21st, 2001

  • By

    Water Temp: 58

    Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

    Report: GOT ON THE WATER ABOUT 1.30 AND HEADED DUE NORTH ONLY TO FIND MY HOT SPOT OCCUPIED.(BUMMER)STARTED HITTING ALL THE POINTS WITH A DARTHEAD TIPPED WITH A 4INCH MAGIC WORM.CAUGHT SEVERAL FISH BUT MOST WERE LITTLE BUCKS ,NO HENS.SWITCHED TO A JIG AND CAUGHT A FEW MORE AND ALITTLE BETTER SIZE.SAW BASS MONIKER OUT THERE AND HE WAS BANGING THEM ON HIS SECRET WORM.WE SWAPED FISH STORIES WITH A COUPLE OF BEERS AND HEADED IN.NOT A GREAT DAY BUT STILL BETTER THAN YARD WORK. A COUPLE OF DAYS LATER I RECIEVED NEWS THAT BASS MONIKER WAS HURT IN A BAD CAR ACCIDENT IN NEVADA.BEST WISHES TO AN AWESOME FISHERMAN AND A BETTER FRIEND.I'M SURE HE WILL BE OUT THERE SORE MOUTHING MY FISH BEFORE LONG.
    City: citrus hts

    Tips: BITE SEEMS TO BE THE BEST BETWEEN 11OCLOCK AND 4OCLOCK