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Northern California Lake Fishing Report

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Wednesday, May 31st, 2006

  • Napa County
    • By

      Water Temp: 71.4

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Subject : Fishing with Sid

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      Memorial weekend has come and gone and Lake Berryessa was filled with holiday boaters enjoying their long weekend. The weather was a mix of windy, overcast, cool and very warm. For all of you who called me for fishing info before they went up last week, I am glad to hear some successful stories. One in particular was from Ron who was accompanied by his friends Jim and Dave. Ron told me that they had a 40+ day. They fished the east side of the lake towards the ranch house. My friend Abe's sister-in-law Kim joined me for a brief fishing lesson at the docks. She had never caught a fish before and you guessed it she landed a 14 1/2 inch bass and is now hooked on fishing. On Friday I got a late start and headed out to Big Island midafternoon. It was quite windy and a little hard to control the boat with the trolling motor. I finally decided to go along with the drift and that worked out fine. We fished between 2 to 20 feet however the wind directed us. I was using a weightless senco and my wife was using the same with brass and glass. Not being able to get to the bottom, I picked up another rod that had brass and glass and a baby brush hog on it and that worked fine for me. Between us we landed 27 bass and missed a few too. Saturday we headed out not knowing exactly where we would go when we hit the main lake the boat traffic was unbelieveable so we decided to go into the cove behind the Spanish Flat Marina where it was quiet and the water was calmer. It turned out to be great fishing day but we had to work for it. Sunday we started out a bit earlier and knew we had to find a sheltered area so we stayed near Steele Park in my favorite cove all day using mostly the same setup but hitting a few on topwater. Monday we headed to the back of Capell Cove again to avoid the boat traffic and fished the bushes and trees. I did not have any success with top water even though I threw it over fifty times. What seemed to work for us this weekend was using plastics. The methods that I like to use with plastics are a weightless texas rigged worm or a texas rigged worm with brass and glass depending on how deep and the wind conditions. Some other methods I recommend are split shot rigs, carolina rigs and drop shot rigs. See attached pictures of the tackle we used. My preference is a wide gapped hook size 3/0 or 4/0 and my wife does just as well with a straight hook. My worm of choose is the senco. My favorite plastic is a River2Sea crawdad. "til next time......................................good fishing!!!
      www.fishingconnection.net If you have any fishing stories you would like to share please email me at bestguide@hotmail.com or call me at 650-583-3333.
      City: NAPA

      Tips: Email me if you want to see what i use at lake berryessa

  • Solano County
    • By

      Water Temp: 70

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: went out of ladds at 6am, fished til noon.
      my partner and I caught about 20 to 25 fish, mostly on senkos. Best five just under 17lb,
      big fish 7.4lb. all in all a good day.I keep hearing top water bite is good. well it wasn't for me, I didn't have even one blowup.
      City: Turlock

  • Sacramento County
    • By

      Water Temp: 68-70

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Hit the water at 5:45 throwing a super spook for about an hour had 4 hits/ no hook ups. Switched to small crank bait, caught 1 dink on first cast. Switched to small shallow rip bait lost a good one, changed hooks no more takers. Switched to weighted wacky rigged cut tail worm in green pumpkin boated 3 small bass & 1 sunfish. Off the water by 8am got to go to work.....
      City: Roseville

      Tips: I know one day soon, I am going to hit that wide open top water bite, just hasn't happened for me yet this year.....

  • Amador County
    • By

      Water Temp: 66-69

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: FISHED FROM 630 AM UNTIL 6PM USED SENKO IN WATERMELON CAUGHT ALOT OF DINKS FINALLY CAUGHT ONE AROUND FIVE PDS USED CRANKS NO FISH TRIED TOP WATER EARLY NO FISH FISH . FISHING NOT EASY AS IT WAS TWO WEEKS AGO
      City: antioch

      Tips: TRY TO STAY ON POINTS FISH 15-20 I USED PLASTICS FOR MOST OF MY BITES

    • By

      Water Temp: 65

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Arrived at around 6 and fished until 11 or so, caught 12 bass, biggest going about 2.5. All fish were caught dropshoting in 15-30 ft of water off points
      City: Salinas

      Tips: Roboworms in sculpin, shad/aaron's magic patterns..have fun out there

Tuesday, May 30th, 2006

  • Sacramento County
    • By

      Water Temp: 70-74

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: My wife and I went to Folsom today. I don't know the lake very well so I was doing some exploring. This was my first time there in a boat. Caught two right away in the flooded trees near the peninsula on LC pointer, including a 4.2lb largemouth. Nothing in the south fork. Found a worm bite in the north fork. Bites were really lite pressure bites. I think the fish were still recovering from a rough weekend. Fish were good quality with only one dink.
      City: Citrus Heights

      Tips: I don't know

Monday, May 29th, 2006

  • Santa Clara County
    • By

      Water Temp: warm 68?

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Floated down past the small dam from the launch ramp using a green pumpkin senko. Lost 1 when he jumped, missed some good bites. Boats and waves everywhere!
      City: Santa Clara

      Tips: They were hitting the senko hard about 20 ft off the shore, around points. Don't forget your dramamine!

  • Solano County
    • By

      Water Temp: 68

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Spent last 3 weekends on the Delta. 5/14 Found about 20 keepers or so in false river. Best 5 went 20 lbs. Couple caught on blades, but all the rest on senkos and beavers. Back again on 5/21 for club tourney. Fished same water, this time poppers and beavers, 20-25 fish. Produced 18.5 lbs., for 2nd place and 2nd big fish(6 lbs.). 5/27 once again to the delta....WIND WIND WIND. Not even the same results as before, had to hide behind tule burm to stay outa the wind until almost 11 am. That sux! Couple of 3 lbers. and a bunch of rats, with a few fun stripers mixed in. Other two trips produced 6.5, 6, 4.75, 4.5, 4, plus other 2-3 lbers. What a blast those days were!
      City: Rocklin

      Tips: Poppers close to the rip rap as possible, then work 'em all the way to the boat. Beavers and senkos on isolated tules...let it sit for a bit, and watch your line cuz it WILL swim off.

    • By

      Water Temp: 65-69

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Not bad timing for a holiday weekend. Monday morning was a good time to hit the water at CFW when everbody was still sleeping in with a hang over. The water was warm in the rock creek, no top water bite, crankin or spinner bite. Good lizard, brush hog on a texas rig or a jig in brown or brown/purple. Flipping the bushes or trees and retreving it slow was the ticket. 25-30 fish from 1 to 3 lbs until noon when the lake lice came out for there fun time. A nice sunny morning on the water
      City: rocklin

      Tips: Green pumkin or watermelon colors

  • Lake County
    • By

      Water Temp: 64-67

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: We fished the edge of tules by state park. We had our best success on 6" ox blood worms fished slow. Fish were just weight, no hard hits. We also had some luck on a white spinner bait.
      City: MIDDLETOWN

      Tips: fish slow right at tule line or back in tules. ox blood seemed to work best followed by mm III.

    • By

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: at the boat launch i caught 1 dink off of drop shot. near the the 1st dock i caught another dink on dropshot. With confidence in my dropshot, at the pool i pulled in a nice 1-2 pound bass and another dink. With 4 fish total i was pretty happy.
      City: antioch, ca

      Tips: worm color was pink with charchreuse tail and purple with charchreuse tail.

  • Leon County
    • By

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Went tubing with my girlfriend at 7:00am. Started off drop shotting across from the launch ramp and caught a couple of 1lb-ers. My girlfriend was nailing them with night crawlers so I swallowed my pride and went with the worms. Very fun day catching about 5 fish each in the 1.5-3.0 lb range. Quit at about noon. Lost a pretty big one on my trout rig, when it practially jumped into the float tube and snapped the line over my other rods.
      City: San Jose

  • San Francisco County
    • By

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Cruisin' Bass at Lake Merced today...one about 3 lb the other around 1 lb. The small one followed my Gitzit minnow bait almost to the bank, but did not strike. The bigger fish was just swimming around. Bustin' the fry in boils as it moved through the deeper water adjacent to the shallows.

      Yakked with Petey Pete about his Delta fishing trip and his pic (posted in the photo secton). My son came down and threw a Blade Dancer with me for a while - but no fish today.
      City: Daly City, CA

  • Westchester County
    • By

      Water Temp: in the 70's

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Caught a total of 8 Smallmouth...most averaged 1-1 1/2lb. Fish #6 was the biggest...It was about a 2 1/2lb smallie. Fought really nice...Great action
      City: Fremont

      Tips: PLEASE CATCH AND RELEASE THE BASS

    • By

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Memorial Day - should have known better...
      The most boat traffic I've ever seen on this lake.
      The picnic area was filled with folks having a great time, obviously the boat ramp\cove area was very noisy.

      Lots of anglers on the shore - lots in boats. Not a lot of fish caught. I think they had everything including the kitchen sink dropped on their heads.

      Go to the lake about 10:30 (too late)
      High skies, warm weather, tried a small 4-8 diving swim bait, hula grubs, carolina rigged a mister twister 4" fry (I love the action of this bait) it just wiggles and flitters about, and the ribs produce little air bubbles if you twitch it. However no takers or maybe I didn't feel the pickup.

      Worked the island, trees, laydowns, rockwalls, even drifted across to the dam. Nothing, Nothing, Nothing.

      I love this lake but it has been tough on me the last couple of weeks. Should have tried a drop shot or maybe a shakey head.. (shakey, shakey)
      City: San Jose

Sunday, May 28th, 2006

  • Napa County
    • By

      Water Temp: 67-69

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Meet a Young Couple at 7AM at Markley. The ski crown was just about getting ready to commit their souls to the lake when we lauched an left for the first spot. First spot the young lady hooked a nice spot (Long and slim). Within a short time I watched 10 ski boats come around the corner. Where out of here!!!!..
      Headed straight North and fished above the silver barn in my favorite spot "Northeast Corner" sat out around 100 yrds in 18-23ft and and had them Drop-shot a Robo Prism Shad in the grass clumps. By 4PM they had caught approx 35 fish within a 150yd stretch, deepist probably 27. By the way, the young lady out fished in number and size her other half. "I didn't say that". We left their to watch the ZOO. Wow, total mud out on the banks in the narrows. Took a guy into Berryessa Marina. His Patoon style boats battery died. Had a ton of elderly folks and kids on board. Pulled out quick and hooked and booked home.

      Rich Thiel www.calbassguide.com
      City: Rio Vista

      Tips: Drop-shot and try Topwater in the morning. will be up there again during the week when the Zoo leaves.

  • Solano County
    • By

      Water Temp: 67

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Tough fishing in the west delta today. The banks got pounded hard this weekend, and all the boat traffic didn't help. Few on spinnerbaits and a few soft hits (little fish) on assorted plastics.
      City: San Bruno

      Tips: Let it settle back down after this holiday rush. Good luck.

  • San Francisco County
    • By

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Fished in the wind and cold this evening at dusk for 1 hour. Flipping the tules at bridge on South Lake. Had a bite on 6" brown/chartreuse tail Power Worm (rigged on a 3/3 oz round jighead) that took the tail off. Checked my reports from last year. The fish were showing up about this time. The bad weather we had in March and April may have put them off a few weeks, but they should be around soon.
      City: Daly City

      Tips: Patience, patience... and dress warm.

  • Tuolumne County
    • By

      Water Temp: 68

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Made the mistake of going fishing on Memorial Day weekend because I hadnt been fishing in a week. Bass in the morning were chasing shad and busting the surface everywhere in the first cove I was in. Over a hundred crappie caught but no extra large ones, still kept a limit. Bass slowed down in the afternoon when boat traffic picked up. Fished topwater and dropshot in the morning and switched to drop-shot robos and spinnerbait later. Largest fish was a 4lb spot on drop shot at 20ft.
      City: manteca

      Tips: Avoid the crowd, fish during the week. Bass on topwater/dropshot ealry and dropshot/spinner later on. Crappie on panfish tubes and dropshot.
      Cant really say exactly where fish are located because the bass were from shore related to cover out to about 60 yards in the open water busting shad.

  • Butte County
    • By

      Water Temp: 65

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Great day for numbers. Caught 50+ fish on any lure we wanted, but the biggest only went 2 1/4. The jig bite was awesome. Fish were primarily in 10 to 20 feet. Just dragged them around. Not the most exciting way to fish, but effective. Blade bite was OK once the mudlines formed. Beautiful day. Houseboats were out and the sights were nice.
      City: Roseville

      Tips: Just drag your favorite bait. The reaction bite should get better with the warmer temps.