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Northern California Lake Fishing Report

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Wednesday, April 3rd, 2019

  • Amador County
    • By

      Water Temp: 63

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Fishing bankers hours again after kindergarten drop off. Looked to expand on last weeks rip bait fish and started on the flats down in rabbit creek for zero fish on various pointer minnows and rattle baits.

      After an hour or so, ran across the lake and tried again on a big flat just short of the dike. Again zero fish, but drifted in shallow while getting a drink and started to notice cruisers and beds everywhere. Perfect conditions for sight fishing with greasy slick surface and a flat sky. Realizing I left my bed fishing box on the bench I quickly rigged up bubblegum and white/chartreuse senkos and got to work.

      First cast to cruising 2# and he rushed up to grab it on the fall. Next 3 beds each had solitary 2# class fish locked up and eat on the first casts. Turned and worked the other side of the pocket for 2 more cruisers then found 2 more beds with aggressive occupants. I’m no sight fishing expert, but it’s been years since I’ve found fish so aggressive and concentrated all at the same time.

      Got on the trolling motor and turned up the speed looking for bigger fish but only found 1-2# class fish as I worked my way up towards the submerged island tops closer to the entrance to South Shore.

      Went old school with a crawdad colored fat rap and dredged up 2 nice 2.5# spots in about 6’ on an island top. Hit the spot lock and fan casted a wacky rigged green pumpkin senko for 4 more chunky spots and LM up to 3#.

      Ran up to China Gulch and continued prospecting with the fat rap and followed the same routine. Most spots would only yield 1 fish on the crank, but more often than not would surrender additions fish on the senko. Crossed over to the West Bank, lather rinse repeat.

      Moved out to the north wall in Launcha Plana and the Fat Rap continued to be the hot bait. Coasting downwind through the submerged boulders the bite was interesting as the fish all hit immediately next to the bank or right as the bait approached the boat and turned up to the surface, nothing in between.

      Cranked rock piles on the east side for the same pattern as the morning. 1-2 fish on the fat rap, spot lock, then another couple of fish on the senko or drop shot.

      My Motorguide Tour TM’s served me well for 30 years, but now it’s hard to imagine fishing without spot lock and auto pilot. Minn Kota has figured it out!

      Surprised the Jerkbait bite vanished, but very pleased to see the fat rap still produces.

      Maybe 3 dozen fish, 1/4 LM, 3/4 Spots in all stages of the spawn, but did not see any fry yet. Best 5, maybe 14#.

      Water started at 59* and peaked at 63* with solid 4’+ clarity and partly cloudy skies with variable winds up to 10mph

Monday, April 1st, 2019

  • Solano County
    • By

      Report: by Synwyn » Mon Apr 01, 2019 6:59 pm

      I did very well on the delta this weekend. On Saturday, some friends and I fished Sugar Barge/Frank's. I searched isolated tullies near deeper channels and caught 4 fish between 2-3 lbs. I was pretty confident in the pattern, but every fish was pretty cookie cutter. After that, I went looking for docks near deeper water that had isolated rip rap near them. I found the bigger fish stacked on the docks and the rip rap. Pulled out a 3lber, 4lber and a 6lber on this pattern with a few others between the 2-3 lb range. My best 5 probably went for 18-19 lbs.

      On Sunday, we fished Big Break and I caught a good one on the same tullie pattern on the outside of big break near the main channels - the big girls haven't moved up in there yet. Caught that 4 lber and a few in the 2lb range, and probably 25+ dinks between 8-12 inches

    • By

      Report: by HavocTheBeast » Mon Apr 01, 2019 4:02 pm

      Fished the Delta Saturday and Sunday. Both days we're pretty much a struggle.

      On Saturday, my friend caught a nice 4lb striper (probably 25in+) and another large 9lb 2oz striper (probably 40in+... forgot our measuring tape that day) within the first 20min. Released back. The rest of the day was brutal. A few shakers here and there, but bites were few and very far in between (sometimes a few hours between bites). marked a few spots with fish, but they weren't biting in the afternoon.

      Went back out Sunday with the wife, and I caught a 4lb 15oz largemouth in the early morning with a jerkbait and a 6lb 7oz largemouth in the afternoon on a dropshot. Both released back. Again, it was a slow bite with only a very few shakers here and there. The wife only got 1 bite trolling minnows all day and that was her only bite. She was pretty bummed out.

      Water clarity was pretty good over the weekend. Sherman Island was slightly murky in several areas, but for the most part, visibility wasn't too big of an issue. Big Break, Bethel Island and Franks had much better visibility though.

      Going to try again next week.

  • Sonoma County
    • By

      Water Temp: 50-63

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: 3-30-2019
      Fished Lake Sonoma at least once per week since February. Still a mud puddle for most of the lake with heavy debris in many coves. Main creek entrances are the clearest. Water temp on both Yorty and Dry creek side up river is high 50's. Picked up 1 or 2 early bass on jerk or chatter baits along the banks in the afernoons each time out. Waiting for the weather to warm and fish to move up. On Saturday, 3-10-19, my son and i finally found them up near the Yorty Creek day use area. Water temp 61-63. Still muddy, but fish were up in the brush and shallow along banks. Flipping bright jigs, shallow cranks and drop shots into shallow creek arms. Weather was mixed sun, but pushing 70 degrees in the afternoon. Since we fish Lake Sonoma exclusively and I don't see many reports I thought i share my experience with anyone wanting to give this lake a try.

      Tips: Spoke with quite a few other anglers. Those doing well have been fishing suspended bass in 40' plus water. I don't enjoy this type of fishing so I stubbornly stick to shallow target fishing. I added this since drop shotting and dragging swim baits deep has been the most successful method from what I have seen.

Sunday, March 31st, 2019

  • Amador County
    • By

      Report: by StanL » Sun Mar 31, 2019 9:40 pm

      At Camanche this week the water is stabilizing with 2,218 CFS coming in and 1,601 going out. The surface temperatures of the water is hitting 61° in the afternoon, in some places and the fish are moving shallow.

      If you go, make sure you fish THE DAY, meaning fish the conditions of that particular day.

      On stormy days, you want to throw reaction baits and on sunny and callm days, stick with the bottom baits like worms,jigs, Senkos etc.

      Check California data exchange center provided by Westernbass.com on the forums. https://cdec.water.ca.gov/resapp/ResDetailTop?resid=CMN

      If the inflow and outflow are close, fishing is usually pretty good and if the outflow is greater than the inflow, it usually makes the fish suspend and that is when the fishing can be challenging.

      I hope this helps.

      Good luck fishing and please practice catch and release

  • Butte County
    • By

      Report: by Joe daddy » Sun Mar 31, 2019 7:14 pm

      Jp/jitterbug caught this one today 15’’. Launched at enterprise but probably not much longer. Heard they’re letting water out Tuesday...nice to see fish starting to get some color!

Thursday, March 28th, 2019

  • Amador County
    • By

      Water Temp: 56*-60*

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Gave up holding out for the perfect weather day and packed up and headed to Camanche at the crack of 9 after kindergarten drop off.

      Light wind and scattered clouds set up for what I hoped would be a nice reaction bite. Water temp ranged from 56* to 60* and 3’-4’ clarity from mid-lake up to Launcha Plana.

      Slow start throwing basstrix, senkos, underspin rigged fluke and a drop shot Aaron’s Magic 4” Roboworms until pulling up to a channel ledge in the houseboat moorage. 3 quick dropshot fish from 1.75# to 2.25# in 28’-30’ H20.

      Moved on throwing Lucky Craft Pointer Minnows and Basstrix around the houseboats before moving uplake for 1 more dink spot.

      Focused on secondary points around Launcha Plana and got in to a nice rhythm on a half dozen chunky 2# -2.5# spots ripping the Ghost Minnow 100 Pointer and an old school black/gold Bomber Long A.

      Starting to piece together where they were holding, I slowed down with a wacky rigged green pumpkin senko and picked off a nice mix of 8 spots and largemouth up to 3.25# on the next 3 points, all hitting on the initial drop in 4’-6’ of water.

      A brief squall came through late afternoon so we ran down lake to get away from the showers and ominous skies. Tucked in to fish some sheltered pockets along the north shore campgrounds and day use areas for 2 more LMB on senkos before calling it a day around 6. No giants, but a nice day on the lake with steady action and virtually zero boat traffic.

  • Lake County
    • By

      Report: by On The Water Guide Service » Thu Mar 28, 2019 7:33 pm

      Enough with the rain already. I am starting to understand how those poor folks that live in Seattle feel. We sure have been slammed with storm after storm and what seems like record rainfall amounts this year. The last couple storms that rolled through were a lot colder coming down from the gulf of Alaska. This dropped the water temps back down to the lower fifties and for the most part has moved the bass back offshore a bit. This is that time of year where the bass move up shallow and then back out deep based on changing water temps and barometric pressure. The key is making the right adjustments with regard to your techniques and boat position to find them. This coming weekend should be great fishing with warming temperatures and highs in the seventies forecasted. I would look for the bass to head back towards the shore and to get back into a good pre- spawn feeding situation.

      I would recommend fishing lures that you can quickly cover a lot of water like the A rig. Stay on the move until you catch one and then slow down and cover that area thoroughly with slower lures like a swimbait or jerk bait. A white chatter bait with a Keitech trailer has been working well out in front of the docks. I have also done well on a crawdad pattern square bill crank bait when the fish are up shallow on a hard rocky bottom. I talked with some anglers that were doing quite well and catching good numbers while throwing a 6" worm on the drop shot this past week.

      Crappie action remains good especially in the north end with lot's of one to one and a half pound slabs being caught on a variety of different colored crappie jigs and small live minnows. The action should get even better this coming weekend with the warmer weather.

      Tight Lines,
      Troy Bellah

Friday, March 22nd, 2019

  • Lake County
    • By

      Water Temp: 52-54

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: I had a chance to guide a wonderful husband/wife team on Tues, two days after the big tournament on Sunday! Yea, the lake was it's usual quiet self - even on Tuesday!! But there was room to fish and fish we did. The bass greeted us with open mouths! The morning was cloudy, but very nice with calm water. That lasted for several hours and then things changed - quickly! The south wind came up, and up, and UP, and soon, everyone was running - sort of - to the 5th street ramp. My 21 foot Ranger did it's best to keep us dry, but there was as much water above us as below us!! As we got to the ramp, waves were coming straight in - tossing our boats around. Grown men were running for their vehicles everywhere!!! I got a little bit of the trailer in the water and waited for the next swell to place my boat on the trailer. Worked perfectly!! I only had to juice the Evinrude a bit to place the boat up snug at the top. I checked everything over, and not a scratch. Very grateful!!! I wish there was some protection for one or two of those ramps. Some kind of wall. Southeast winds can be real nasty up north.

      Tips: Fishing was fairly good in the morning, though we didn't get out as early as I wished. We used a variety of baits - drop-shotting Robo worms, crankbaits, swim-jigs,and the new Yamamoto cowboys (great bait in dingy water!) The blue/black was the best color. Bass were pretty shallow and some where next to deeper docks. Not sure how many we caught, but several from 3 to 3 3/4 lbs. Best 5 about 14 - 15 lbs. We fished one of the long canals on the west side. it was either cleaned out over the weekend or the fish hadn't moved in yet. We were almost out to the main lake and - he catches a 2 pounder! Saved the reputation of that area!!!

Thursday, March 21st, 2019

  • Amador County
    • By

      Report: by StanL » Thu Mar 21, 2019 2:22 pm

      This week things are changing up here at Camanche. The lake is clearing up. The surface temperature is up to 59 degrees in the afternoon. The fish were just starting to pull up to the banks but then they dropped the lake about about two feet in four days This happens every year with Camanche since it is the fluctuating pool for pardee.

      We ended up backing out into 10 to 20 feet of water and catching all our fish with a 6 inch worm on a Frenzy Nail “ Shakey Head and a wacky Senko. We got them on places right outside of spawning areas.

      And I also have to congratulate Tim Wells for that 15.1 pound giant last week.

      And remember it is springtime so please practice catch and release and good luck fishing!

Wednesday, March 20th, 2019

  • Lake County
    • By

      Water Temp: 54-58

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Four day trip with Pony Boy from the 20th through the 23rd. The BBT event was postponed, but we decided to spend the time on the lake anyway. Who doesn’t want to be on Clear Lake in March when they have the opportunity, right? We launched at the casino every day, however fifth Street ramp is apparently been open for over a week now. Heard rumors of a reaction bite especially on A rigs and we saw lots of guys and gals throwing mostly reaction. However that was not the case for us. We threw jigs and plastics up on the north end and that worked well enough for us to catch just under 100 fish in the four day stretch. Our big fish was just over six and we caught quite a few between 3 1/2 and 4 pounds but no real giants on this trip. Most of the fish we did catch were as fat as footballs and put up excellent fights. Besides the 3 to 4 foot rollers and whitecaps on Friday, the real disappointment of the trip was other anglers with no common courtesy. It’s unfortunate that you can be fishing a point, a rock pile, a dock and another boat is so inconsiderate that they will either drive their boat with their trolling motor between you and what you’re fishing, or right over the top of where your fishing, or they put down their trolling motor had a far distance from where your fishing but then just creep up on your spot and start making the same cast that you’re making right in front of you.Absolutely no communication or even a wave hello, but just the entitlement and attitude that they’re the only real angler on the lake. Too bad we can’t use the “jerk rule” while out on the water fun fishing and disqualify them from being on the lake for the rest of the day. However it is quite rewarding when somebody pulls up and starts pushing the same pile of rocks that you are and you stick a couple of fours and a six right in front of them and they don’t catch diddley squat.

      Tips: Communicate with your fellow anglers, be courteous, and either get there first or wait your turn until a boat has left the spot you want to fish. Keep your ears open for what the bite may be, but don’t let that be your only resource because the bite is always changing so try other techniques.

    • By

      Report: by On The Water Guide Service » Tue Mar 19, 2019 7:55 pm

      The bite is really starting to heat up on Clear Lake. Spring has Sprung and the results of last weekends tournament is testament to that. I had a chance to get out today and do a little fun fishing with a friend of mine and we absolutely crushed them on the A-rig. Conditions were just perfect for the rig. We has a cloudy sky with a slight breeze coming out of the northwest and the water temps were 55* to 59* with slightly stained water and about a foot and a half visibility. Granted we didn't catch any real giants but we stumbled on a mega school of 2 to 4 pounders and the action was just phenomenal. I had intentions of going out and mixing it up between a swimbait, glide bait and the rig but for the life of me I just couldn't put that A-rig rod down. Hell I even caught a crappie on the darn thing. Lot's of Fun.

      It appears we have a couple storms supposed to come through later this week but I suspect it wont hurt the bite any. The lake level is on a slow downward trend and was at 8.91 on the Rumsey scale this afternoon. We are only going to get a little over an inch so hopefully there won't be any flooding issues.
      The Hitch have been swimming up the creeks and inlets on the first part of their spawning run and that means it is time to break out the big rods and get to work. The 7" and 8" top hook Tallon's have been working well in the light hitch and chartreuse shad colors. The locally made Trash Fish swimbait has also been working well in the LC hitch and light hitch colors. If throwing big baits is not your thing, try a 4.8 or 5.8 Keitech swimbait on a weighted EWG hook. Should be an epic flipping bite this summer with the high water conditions also.

      The crappie bite is turning on and they are heading towards shore to set up for their spawn. Deep water docks, flooded bushes, and creek mouths have been good areas to catch them. Some of the more successful crappie fisherman have been using a sliding bobber technique with a chartreuse or white jig. The key is to find out the depth they are suspending at and set your bobber stop accordingly.

      Tight Lines and good fishing,

      Troy Bellah
      https://bassfishingclearlake.com/

Sunday, March 17th, 2019

  • Napa County
    • By

      Water Temp: 53

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Water remained muddy as we fished the American Bass team tournament Sat. March 16. You needed over 15 pounds to win it. We got fish first thing on MMIII drop shots in the clearer waters in the narrows but the fish we had been finding all week were not there. We went to cranking in and tossing jigs on the east side of main lake by about 10 AM and got more fish but the bigger ones were hard to find. In the end, we settled in to the middle of the pack. There is a big Wild West tourney and a big high school tournament coming this next weekend March 23-24. We can can say the water is still muddy, the farther away from the dam toward Putah Creek the muddier is gets. It is also high and many of the places you like are still underwater. So plan your time accordingly.

      Tips: I will say from our day on the water that if you are going to the clear water in the Narrows for drop shot and jig water, if it does not happen in an hour give it up and move on. Many thanks to American Bass for a great tournament.

  • Tuolumne County
    • By

      Report: by Andrew5414 » Sun Mar 17, 2019 8:09 pm

      Went out with the wife and kids today, got a late start got on water about 12:30 fished till about 530. Kids and wife caught them on 6in senkos with no issues plenty of action I fished a jig and got some quality fish my big went 5.80 today, I also found some fish chasing shad got on A great little top water bite for about 20 minutes on the fish busting shad around 5pm.

      The smaller fish have moved up shallow. The quality bites for me have still been about 25 to 30 feet deep. Water was 59 on moccasin area.

Saturday, March 16th, 2019

  • Solano County
    • By

      Report: by Synwyn » Sat Mar 16, 2019 6:30 pm

      I launched today out of Sugar Barge and caught 4 or 5. Every fish was in 7-9 feet of water and they'd only bite a squarebill .

    • By

      Water Temp: 54 degrees

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Well after a few days of no rain my buddy and I headed out of Big Break to our favorite shallow water spots, where water temperature is a little higher than the main channel. As far into the slough as possible we had water temperature max out at about 57 degrees. No bites, caught one LMB about 1.5 pounds on a TRD with 1/4 ounce weight. Weather was beautiful, minimal wind. Rain is coming this week so I'm going to say that April, assuming temp continues to rise, will be the month to remember with all the rain we've had. Water levels were extremely high. We fished for about 3 hours, throwing everything from jerk baits, to chatters, to wacky, etc.

      Tips: Stay home 'till April if you plan to fish the Delta. Or go to a reservoir in the lower Sierras where it's going to heat up sooner, and be clearer in clarity.

Thursday, March 14th, 2019

  • Solano County
    • By

      Report: by monte300 » Thu Mar 14, 2019 3:14 pm

      I was at the Delta yesterday and the 20-25mph north wind flat out kicked our ***. However, in the Whiskey Slough/Empire Cut/Tiki Lagun areas the water clarity was pretty decent. Everywhere we went looked pretty safe but for us the bite was tough

  • Tuolumne County
    • By

      Report: by RMANZO » Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:36 am

      Just finished a “2” day trip to Melones w/client Paul Arias.. Always awesome when a client becomes a friend..Tuesday we caught fish all day anywhere from 10-40 feet.. No swimbait fish but had a 5 pounder and best 5 went around 18 pounds.. today we decided to hit a different area of the lake, and the switch up payed off.. Paul got his first Wagtail fish and first Homicide Glide fish.. A nice one over 5 pounds and the other close to 5... I love the excitement I feel when I tell a client exactly where to cast and which swimbait to throw for that situation, and it pays off :D . Once again, we caught fish all day long, and although we didn’t get any giants, our best 5 went over 23 pounds.. one spot we hit was just loaded w/quality 4 pounder after 4 pounder.. Thank you Paul for your business, and look forward to fishing w/you again soon...
      For anybody out there that is wanting to go out and catch fish all day long, or is looking for their new personal best, “now is the time”!!! **SPECIAL** The next “3” people to book a trip w/me, will get a rate of $200 for a full day... What are you waiting for “BOOK IT”!!! On a side note, I am putting in another order for some wagtails and homicides this weekend.. let me know what you need

Wednesday, March 13th, 2019

  • Mariposa County
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      Report: by RCook » Wed Mar 13, 2019 12:40 pm

      3-13-19 Lake Mclure Fishing Report
      On the water 7:30 a.m
      Off the water 12:30 p.m
      Water temp 52.5°
      Water clarity 5-15'

      My buddy Bryce Dibble and I took his two young boys out for a few fun fish catching hours on Lake McClure, and catch fish they did. We targeted main lake rocky points from 5'-35' of water throwing jigs and tube baits, with a few underspin fish mixed in.

      Today was all about trying to keep the kids on fish, and we were throwing baits with exposed hooks so they could get a hook set easier into the fish. We fished slow and caught fish consistently, probably boating 35+ largemouth and spotted bass, not bad for 5 and 6 year old! The Spring bite seems to be a couple of weeks behind, but I expect these fish to be moving up shallow in a big way very soon! Call today today to book your trip, Spring is almost full! 559-691-7008

  • Butte County
    • By

      Water Temp: 50?

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Dues in the mail, this one for ash.
      A tale of to worlds.
      High pressure north eastern winds. Started at McCabes excess road point the easier one. Blown out and busted I was still destined to catch a bass today or die trying. I saw ash’s posts bout big mama or even lil mama this time of year. And that 5 year old out fishing me really don’t sit to well.
      Started around 11, bad idea Dr Jones. Cold windy and nasty uncatchable. So the hell with this I need deeper water an at least a lil shelter. Moseyed my way to McCabes point/rocks. Beaten and defeated I sat down on rock and gave it one more cast; 2 o’clock. I’ll be darned if I got a bite. Fish on! Yeah buddy this bout to be good. Then no more bites for next hour, craps. One and done? Walked back on ’dwr road’ all proud of myself ready for more. When I got back water wind and points looked way different. Think that cold front had run its course. Now fishable caught one more on point. (Pylons) the better one. Missed another lil guy too! Hopefully that’s that, and good fishing here on in.

      Tips: If you think your fishing to slow fish slower.