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Northern California Lake Fishing Report

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Friday, April 29th, 2016

  • Amador County
    • By

      Report: Hi, well here is a few few caught, one is a Beast Largemouth 6lb + fish caught on 6lb test flouro 100% seagar clear, also many other good bass including some smallmouth, there is also a really nice trout i caught only took maybe 5 casts with a blue fox inline spinner and fish on!
      Really nice fish over 3 1/2 lb's under 4lb's this fish was caught using 6lb flouro seagar as well.
      the weather was either cold or slighty warm at best,
      fish were caught on plastics and lures see video below for some big fish!!! lots of fun
      Watch Video: http://www.westernbass.com/forum/post562283.html#p562283

Thursday, April 28th, 2016

  • Napa County
    • By

      Water Temp: 63-64

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: So, where were all the rest of you on Wednesdays exciting weather event at Berryessa? There were only 3 rigs at Markley's ramp area - plus Matt Allen somewhere out there taking photos of our water spout that hit the lake in the afternoon thunderstorm! The 3 of us made it back to the ramp just as the rain and hail hit - and it was a major hit! I am no fan of lightning out on the water. As for the fishing, I had a client from Florida who now loves Berryessa! He did very well and caught is first-ever spotted bass - and several more that keep getting bigger, up to 3 lbs. Now he knows how those spotted bass fight!! He hit for the cycle too, getting a largemouth and a smallmouth. The cloud formations over the lake were absolutely amazing in the morning. As the day went on, they grew and grew, got darker and darker, it got windier and windier, and we quickly went 0 to 60 back to the dock!!

      Tips: I have to make one more comment about my last trip to Bullards Bar (see report). I have always wondered what goes through a clients mind when they are out on a famous lake - like Clear Lake or Bullards Bar (no, it wasn't always famous), and catch an amazing big bass (7lbs14oz spot) in the first few minutes ever on the lake. Something like: Wow - this IS a good lake, or, this lake is EASY, or, this guide IS great - no - probably not that thought - LOL! And who get the biggest thrill - the client or the guide? There were some scary moments until she was in the net! Anyway, back to Berryessa. We fished in the narrows mostly. I was going to head out to the main body, but the narrows bite was good and getting better. We used Robo worms most of the trip. Could net get them to touch a Senko that day. Points were no good but the steep walls would produce a nice bass here and there. We did not find any concentration of bass, maybe because of all the weather turmoil in the past few days. When I did take him out to the main body, showing him the size and layout of the lake, it was nasty - big swells! So much for the main body! Gotta call Matt - see if he made it back in one piece!!

Wednesday, April 27th, 2016

  • Shasta County
    • By

      Report: From Lake Shasta

      Lake Shasta Good afternoon Shasta Lake Fans!!!
      The sun is coming out from the clouds and warming up. Currently we are at 63 degrees and a slight breeze.
      The Forrest Service held a meeting today with businesses, marinas and others who had an interest in operations on the lake this coming summer. Some of which I wanted to share for everyone to get the best out of our 2016 summer! AS you can imagine, everyone at the meeting was thrilled to have the lake at the level that it is at.
      First and foremost, the biggest question on everyone's mind is what the expected draw downs are...
      Estimations are that the lake will bottom out at 75' below full pool by the end of October!!!
      If you recall the highest lake level we saw at the beginning of 2015 was 71' down...that is where we started the 2015 summer season.
      Although, it is still a prediction, it was tremendously good news for us all, and quite the relief comparative to years past! grin emoticon
      With that said, here is some more useful information about just a small portion of the activities on Shasta Lake this summer:
      Boat-in campgrounds
      • Ski Island, Arbuckle Flat, Greens Creek and Gooseneck Boat in campgrounds are currently open. Given current water levels, we are already seeing use even on weekdays at these sites. Hazard tree reduction is complete as we continue ongoing fire prevention and vegetation management. All developed boat access campgrounds have received an initial cleaning and will continue to receive regular service throughout the season.
      Floating Toilets
      • We maintain 6 floating toilets on Shasta Lake. Normally, our goal is to ensure all floaters are installed prior to Memorial weekend. However, as we have a full lake and our toilets have
      received recent maintenance and repair, they will likely all be in place prior to mid-May.
      Regulatory Buoys
      • As a courtesy to the Sheriffs office, the Forest Service maintains about 50 regulatory buoys identified by County Ordinance. Most are currently in place. Regulatory buoys include 5mph and No-Ski buoys.
      • Many of you buoys had to be removed last season due to low lake levels.
      • We are currently in the process of reinstalling regulatory buoys.
      • Our target is to have all County Ordinance areas marked by Memorial weekend.
      Obstacle Marking Program
      • The obstacle marking program is a volunteer program implemented by Shasta Lake Marinas and now Shasta Lake Boaters (new partners)
      • The Forest Service provides materials, guidance and monitoring for the program.
      • There are 321 areas identified in the obstacle marking program.
      • The fall survey conducted October, 2015 identified 45 markers needing repair.
      • According to returned survey forms (not all are in), volunteers provided 54 hours of labor to
      replace 24 out of 45 damaged markers or about 93 overall success.
      • Thank you Obstacle Marker Volunteers! (all marinas and Shasta Lake Boaters) lake Clean-up
      • Despite extensive past man made debris clean-up efforts, high lake levels have floated a noticeable amount of marina related debris.
      • We will continue to collect floating lake junk and time and opportunity permits
      • Please take care to secure broken or unwanted sections of docks, booms, foam, etc and remove it from the lake and dispose as soon as possible.
      Woody Debris
      • Storms in January and February deposited a fair amount of new woody debris into the lake. Using booms purchased from Bagley Fire BEAR funds, we captured nearly 4 compacted surface acres on the McCloud and Squaw Creek arms. Our intent was to leave the booms in place long enough to capture any additional debris washed in by winter storms so it could be contained and transported to an area which facilitates easy access to wood cutters.
      • Unfortunately, recreational boaters loosened both booms (presumably to attain access) and ALL debris was lost. It is unlikely the FS will attempt woody debris management in future years due to decreased reliability of our aging booms and the inability to monitor public interaction at all times.
      Mother's day-Memorial weekend
      • Expect a large turnout.
      • Extent of Forest Service involvement is picking up the mess at the end of the event.
      • Shasta Lake Boaters were a huge help last year and I expect a fair turnout from them again as
      well.
      • Thank you Shasta lake Boaters!
      Lake Level Report (04/27/2016 at 13:00)
      Lake Elevation: 1055.53' (11.47' below full pool)
      Lake Elevation (2015): 993.20' (73.80' below full pool)
      Storage: 4,218,322 af (estimated)
      Storage (2015): 2,683,198 af
      Outflow: 4,708 cfs
      Inflow: 7,884 cfs
      Precipitation (24 hr @ dam): 0.00"
      Precipitation (Season @ dam): 61.54"
      Precipitation (2015 Season @ dam): 48.10"

Tuesday, April 26th, 2016

  • Riverside County
    • By

      Report: From DVL Marina
      We are so excited to share the exciting news that we will be open for private boat launching starting May 18,2016!!! We will be having giveaways during the first 5 days from May 18-22! Can't wait to see you all. We will be doing inspections and boat banding the two weekends prior from 7am-3pm if you want to get your boat pre-inspected.

  • Butte County
    • By

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Drove over to Bidwell so I could fish the middle fork, launching about 6:20 am, off the lake about 11:15am. Decent day, not a lot of larger fish, just one 15", 5-6 14-14 1/2" with all the rest typical 12-14", total 23 fish today. Bite seems to be good just about anyplace with some type of structure. Most fish on Roboworms today, just 5-6 on wacky weightless senko's, but the senko's did catch the larger fish. Fish shallow to 25-30 foot or so. Dinks kind of rule the first 10ft. Picture in fishing forum.

Monday, April 25th, 2016

  • Lake County
    • By

      Report: Well, another big tourney come and gone, and with it, our stable weather! While the lake is at 7.46 Rumsey, just below full pool, the wind and rain continue to muddle up what was once a promising spring bite. Water clarity has suffered immensely, as has the day time water temps, now hovering in the low 60 degree range.

      FLW anglers got to experience a little bit of everything last week and through the finals Saturday, and as expected, the post spawn fish looked to have made the difference. One could hope for a big bed fish and there were a few caught, but from the looks of it, post spawners were not all that hard to find, and most were willing if the right offering was made.

      The fish being bait related the birds and the dark colored bait schools would show most the way to some decent bags. I know the eventual winner stated he was throwing a combination of a-rigs and underspins, and that seemed to be the pattern at least half of the top ten was chasing, and I know for certain what third place finisher Wade Curtiss was chasing as well, underspin Keitechs and stand up jigs with Lil Creeper Sunfish. Underspin jigs with a 3.8 Keitech for the bait chasers, and stand up jigs tipped with a Lil Creeper Sunfish for the bed fish. I also know he’s now missing a few he thought he had. Just kidding, he was nice enough though to leave a few before heading home. Wade has his own line of jigs and swimming baits, and he can be reached on the internet @ Ladies Man Custom Baits, or by text at 949-735-2943. Check his baits out, quality made custom, according to your specifications; color, size, hook etc. etc.

      Now for the forecast; already winds have taken their toll on anglers both yesterday as
      well as today. Extremely high winds and big water took this boat and it’s anglers by
      surprise and they were lucky to be able to walk away. Their boat, not quite so lucky, and
      these kind of occurrences happen all of the time up here. When this water does get big
      up here it is usually extremely hard to get up on top of, so my advice is DO NOT try.
      Stick your bow up in the air and take your time. Better to get back in one piece than risk
      this here. That said, I’m sure this happened so fast they didn’t have much of a chance.
      One more tip, should something like this happen to you, try and stay calm, do not panic,
      and check you kill switch if you’re motor will not re-fire. Trust me, I’ve been there!
      Hopefully the remainder of the week will go as forecast and we will begin to see some
      warmer, more stable weather come our way. Once it does, I suspect the bite is gonna pick
      up, especially down south, or at least we can hope!

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Sunday, April 24th, 2016

  • Yuba County
    • By

      Report: Lunker Larry's client with a post-spawn spotted bass at 7 lbs 14 oz - Bullards Bar, using a Robo worm.

      I had a guide trip Friday and today - Sunday - a rare Sunday trip for me. There really wasn't much fishing pressure either day. Mornings were calm with bad winds both days starting late morning. I guess I should start with todays (Sun) trip as the father of my father/son trip showed son how it's done!! Did he ever - to the tune of a 7 lb 14 oz post spawn spotted bass. That's the way to start a trip!!! I had him fishing a morning dawn 6" Robo worm. When I saw that fish rise to the surface, I just about freaked!! Quite a tussle at the boat but I somehow got her in the net on the first swipe. After those Bullards spots spawn, they are still tall - top to bottom! After that, they just caught small ones up to 13 inches - smaller than the Friday trip. That trip started off well as I put a 4 1/4 lb spot in the boat and lost another big one which broke my line. In spite of the horrible wind that came up, we caught several keepers up to 2 lbs. The total bass caught on both trips was about the same, 25 to 30+.

      Tips: One has to assume that the bigger spots are only up shallow early and maybe late in the day. They just are hard to find now during the post-spawn. I was surprised that the Senko bite hasn't been very good - at least in my boat. It is hard to get away from the Robo worms - in 2 or 3 favorite colors, when trying to get clients into post-spawn action. Almost every cove now has flooded trees - some totally submerged. Wow - talk about cover. The lake is still rising - now about 91% - and should fill before long. Bullards Bar is a simply gorgeous lake when full - enjoy!!

      Pix here; http://www.westernbass.com/forum/post562090.html?hilit=bullards#p562090

    • By

      Water Temp: 62-65

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: I had a guide trip Friday and today - Sunday - a rare Sunday trip for me. There really wasn't much fishing pressure either day. Mornings were calm with bad winds both days starting late morning. I guess I should start with todays (Sun) trip as the father of my father/son trip showed son how it's done!! Did he ever - to the tune of a 7 lb 14 oz post spawn spotted bass. That's the way to start a trip!!! I had him fishing a morning dawn 6" Robo worm. When I saw that fish rise to the surface, I just about freaked!! Quite a tussle at the boat but I somehow got her in the net on the first swipe. After those Bullards spots spawn, they are still tall - top to bottom! After that, they just caught small ones up to 13 inches - smaller than the Friday trip. That trip started off well as I put a 4 1/4 lb spot in the boat and lost another big one which broke my line. In spite of the horrible wind that came up, we caught several keepers up to 2 lbs. The total bass caught on both trips was about the same, 25 to 30+.

      Tips: One has to assume that the bigger spots are only up shallow early and maybe late in the day. They just are hard to find now during the post-spawn. I was surprised that the Senko bite hasn't been very good - at least in my boat. It is hard to get away from the Robo worms - in 2 or 3 favorite colors, when trying to get clients into post-spawn action. Almost every cove now has flooded trees - some totally submerged. Wow - talk about cover. The lake is still rising - now about 91% - and should fill before long. Bullards Bar is a simply gorgeous lake when full - enjoy!!

  • Solano County
    • By

      Water Temp: 66

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Fished Big Break on Sunday with my buddy Tom. They predicted Gale Force Winds in the afternoon around 1PM but we blew out of there around 11AM before the wind starting to kick up. Was out on Dutch around 630 AM and the rollers were already moving in. Moved into Emerson to get out of the wind, with a slow moving outgoing tide. Between my buddy and I we caught around 14 LMB using wacky-rigged 5 inch worms (Stick O's and Senkos) in motor oil color and black. Largest fish was about 4.5 pounds with a number of 2-3 pound fish. My buddy threw everything out there, from crank baits to jigs. I even through out a R2SEA Whopper Popper but to no avail. The fish were only hitting slow dropping plastics. All were great fighters.

      Tips: If you're fishing the sloughs of Big Break, on a full-moon, remember to get the hell out of there before low tide moves in or you may get stuck. There are some place that are less than a foot of water. Also don't blow in too fast because there are at least 2 submerged tree branches that you don't see until really low tide.

  • Riverside County
    • By

      Report: Elijah Lewis and his dad Elliott Lewis had fun shoreline fishing today! Elijah caught a 20.59 lb carp all on his own, and Elliott's bluegill weighed .93 lbs. They caught both fish using a nightcrawler near the East dam.

    • By

      Water Temp: 50-60

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Went fishing yesterday using a swim jig and reaction inavation sweet beaver Texas rigged. Fished for 3 hours on the left side of dam caught 7. Biggest was around two pounds. This lake has a high population of bass and they are in the coves.

      Tips: Fish in coves and near brush.

Saturday, April 23rd, 2016

  • Butte County
    • By

      Water Temp: 62

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: We launched at about 7:30am at Spillway. We headed straight to south fork and started our fishing across the shoreline from Stringtown. It was nice and calm while we're trolling on and off using natural color crankbait (10-15ft divers) and suspending jerkbait. Our first catch off a crankbait was about 3-4lb. We caught around 20 fishes around the area (more smaller ones 8-10inches-12-13 inches). We traveled towards north fork and decided to fish along the banks, just a little north of Bloomer's boat in campsites. We were slowing drifting south while using Keitech swimbait and watermelon brushhogs. Brushhogs was hitting like crazy!! We fish about 8-10 feet off the shore. We caught over 50 fish along that strip of shoreline. It was a decent day of fishing for us!

      Tips: We use watermelon tiny and baby brush hogs rigged in a size 1 worm hooks (weedless) with a free sliding 1/8 oz bullet weight. Bass love em!

Friday, April 22nd, 2016

  • Solano County
    • By

      Report: A great Time to remember to Join California Striped Bass Association! Need More Members that Love to Fish and Support this Great fishery! Join Here!
      Isleton Striper Trolling and plug casting has toughened the last few days. Water temps raised a bit this week and a few more stripers in the Cache Slough area responded. Trolling the Angry Eyes and Savage Preys is the best bet. Sturgeon anglers moved west .
      Rio Vista- Trolling is scoring many limits stripers and occasionally, a 12-15 pounder caught. Savage Prey and P-line Angry Eye lures are key for the trolling anglers. Red White Classic Shimmer jigs around pumps getting stripers. Shore bound anglers are scoring both species. The best place to score a striped bass or sturgeon remains Sherman Island in the area of the Power Lines, use Sardines or Red’s Bloody Eel.

      Walnut Grove . Bank anglers tossing shad and eel prevail for an occasional sturgeon or Striper those looking for bigger bites. Drifting live baits for stripers cracking the 10 pound plus keeps anglers smiling. Trolling Savage Prey baits colors 8 to 10 foot deep is key as the spring push starts up. The Dirty “D” is clearing its name and conditions are improving. Stay in the Wimpys area for best conditions. Best bet, Savage Prey and P-line Angry Eye lures.

      Discovery Bay The Bite is On! The black bass bite has continued rolling. Biwaa Sevens in Bluegill and RedHorse patterns rocking the Bed fish are around. Most Blackie anglers are sticking with Senkos and Tail Slapper swim baits paired with Fatsack Swim Jigs, Wind and overcast this weekend slow rolling Fatsack Tackle blades and Rat-LTrap Echos searching ledges near sparse tulle flats.

      Frank’s Tract Black bass bite is at a consistent pace warm days only helps the Big Girls bite. Hematoma Beavers on over cast days also working well. We found a few Stripers and Black Bass with top water and Chili Craw Red Eye Shad. Others looking to score are starting to crank Chartreuse Shad 6th Sense baits and Big Poppa’s are solid options. Keeper sized stripes are grabbing Bubba Shad a bit more this week and trolled Angry Eye baits.
      West Delta The stripers are here anchovies and sardines in many areas for bank anglers, Antioch Pier and along Sherman Island rd. Stripes to 18 pounds have grabbed Red/White Classic shimmer jigs. Trollers it’s getting started on both sides with Red Barn being the top choice, if they aren’t there move to the Eddo’s Side. Chartreuse patterns are the best bet.
      Contra Loma – Black bass have been biting on artificial baits/lures and nightcrawlers around the lake. Try a AC Minnow wake bait or a Savage Trout fishing is still consistent on the east side, north side of lake or from a boat with nightcrawlers, Power Eggs, or mice tails. Too many bank walkers popping Bass to 8 pounds off the beds.
      Los Vaqueros Trout action best bet. They are being caught in South Cove and Oak Point as well as Cowboy Cove. The baits of choice for shore anglers is garlic scented PowerBaits, nightcrawlers or Kastmasters. Trout average a pound and a half but range to over 5 lbs. Light tackle is important for catching trout with 4-6 pound test being plenty. There was a 1000 lb DFW plant on the way. There was also a 1000 lb Lassen plant this week. With the continuing plants, trout fishing has been holding steady with more limits being caught from all around the reservoir.
      Del Valle . Black Bass are on fire with anglers reporting having caught and released up to 12 bass. Most are smaller and in shallow water creating their beds. Best bet is still Senkos, either wacky or Texas rigged. Also try a plastic crawdad, on either a half-ounce, or a one-ounce football jig head. If you do catch a bass, please release it, as she maybe pregnant. Remember that by taking one bass, anglers could be taking thousands away from the lake, so please, during the crucial spawning period, release any bass caught. Trout have been active this last week. They have been in the shallow water; anglers are having good luck on Power Bait, nightcrawlers, Rapalas, mice tails and Kastmasters. Many anglers have reported catching their limits.
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Wednesday, April 20th, 2016

  • Lake County
    • By

      Water Temp: 68=70

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: I took a father/son team visiting from the mid-west yesterday. They wanted to see and fish the lake. I'm sure they saw more bass boats in one day than they would in a year back home!! We visited all three arms, fishing different on shore and off shore structure. They caught a lot of bass - several keepers, but nothing big. Dad tried a sort of buzz-bait technique with a plastic bait he was using. Kind of a weird technique, but several large bass came up to look, No takers however. The lake is in beautiful shape and weather was perfect. The 3 day tournament will provide a variety of weather patterns - probably with some wind and rain.

      Tips: No tips before a major tournament.

Tuesday, April 19th, 2016

  • Tuolumne County
    • By

      Water Temp: 66 - 72

      Report: Great top water bite on the IMA Little Stick, that lasted until 10:00am...just had to let it pause and then they would smash it. Most fish staged on shoulders of points. After top water subsided, a breeze allowed for a spinnerbait bite but those fish were committing toward the back of cuts. Threw a jig and stick bait but fish were smaller than the reaction fish.

Monday, April 18th, 2016

  • Lake County
    • By

      Report: Yep, FLW is in town this week, and with the Lake at 7.59 feet Rumsey anglers are running around everywhere just hoping to figure something out, but it is not easy, and I guarantee you it isn’t what most expected. Really? Absolutely, this place has spun more than one good stick out this past 4 or 5 days, and what’s to come offers even more challenges.

      Water temps are now in the low to high 60’s with an area or two reaching into the 70’s.
      Bait is everywhere, mainly shad and fry is all over the place. So, obviously February did indeed harbor some illicit activity in the tules. As a result we have some pre-spawners, some spawners, and a ton of post spawn fish around the lake. I suspect the later will play a larger role than the others when it comes to this week’s event, just as I suspect it did this past weekend when CTT was here.

      The coming forecast for the remainder of the week is warm through Thursday with possible rain on Friday and Saturday. The other twist I eluded to earlier. What’s going to be the result? Well, with the continued poor bite down south, I’d expect the north end to get fairly crowded, but who knows, this one is gonna be a tough one to call.

      We made it out today for a six hour trip and we had to work for our 24 lbs of bed fish, and I mean work. Six fish total for six hours. Not your typical mid-April by any means,
      still, this lake has not been this alive in 10 or 15 years. There’s shad everywhere, tule perch, hitch, crappie, bluegill, black fish, silversides, and yes an occasional bed fish.

      All we need now is some clean water and calm winds……..it’ll happen!
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  • Butte County
    • By

      Water Temp: 61-62

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Launched at 6:30am at Lime saddle, stopped fishing about 10:30 am. Fished the west fork area out in the Nelson bar area. Damn, lots and lots of wood in this general area, be careful. Fished some old spots used to fish a few years ago and found fish at those locations. About half the fish on wacky weightless Senko's, the other half on roboworms, texas rigs. Found the better fish came from the senko's, the roboworms got much smaller fish today, a couple barely big enough to be fish. Managed just 18 fish today, largest at 14 1/2" with the rest 10-14". Water looked lousy in this area, much nicer in the middle fork. Seeing lots of carp in shallows, must be spawn time for them or they like eating the green growth that went under water. Pictures in fishing forum.

Sunday, April 17th, 2016

  • Solano County
    • By

      Water Temp: 64-70

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Launched Paradise @715am at low tide...started in Columbia Cut but managed only a few dinks. Moved up to Little Connection and zip...killin' time for the tide to come in since we're not that good fishin low tide. Nothing on cranks or topwater though I'm hoping it turns on soon. Moved into St Francis and picked up a 1s, 2,s, a 3 and a 4....continued back to Columbia and picked up a few more 1s and 2s. Headed to Mildred (northwest edges) and again, a few more 1s and 2s. All on 5" senko-type baits...Stik-Os (Blk /red flk) and Big Bite Baits (watermelon /red flk)..bites were subtle in the morning ... line would just start moving. Toward afternoon and warmer water, bites were more solid. Ran back to Paradise and fished the section between the houseboats and 8mile road and picked up a nice 2.5. Senkos ruled but sure wish the crankbait bite turns on soon!

      Tips: Not qualified to give tips. We just tried moving out to 6-10 ft and looked for drop offs but still couldn't put anything together so we junk fished ... worked a stretch with cranks and topwater, then went back over the same line with senkos. Senkos got the hits. I coulda brought 1 rod. But who does that? Hopin a week changes things!

  • Riverside County
    • By

      Report: Congrats to Noah Guerrero on his 3.99 lb redear!! He was

Saturday, April 16th, 2016