Fishing Report

Limit:

Sunday, April 7th, 2002

  • Nassau County, California
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      Water Temp: not sure

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Boat was broke down, so I went up and ished o the bank. I was ishing near the dam on the east shore o the lake or most o the time. I caught seven there, three were keepers. Biggest weighed close to three pounds. I went and ished in the trees on the North side o the lake and got one more. There were lots o isherman on the North side, and rom what I saw, not too many ish.
      City: Corcoran

      Tips: watermelon colored worms do the trick.

Saturday, April 6th, 2002

  • Plumas County, California
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      Water Temp: 51-55

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Wedid not actualy ish at almanore today, went to a small lake called butte lake very near almanore. The ishin was good, we had a small club tournament there today. There were 13 boats, and several boats had 17-181/2 pounds or ive ish all smallmouth. My partner and I had just over 22 pounds or our ive,it was an incredible day.
      City: susanville

      Tips: This time o year smallmouth are moving up on the lats lokking or places to spawn. Try suspending jerk baits, and gitzits.

  • Amador County, California
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      Water Temp: 61

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Fished with two clients on Friday morning, and another client at night. The three o us started about 7:30 am on a very cloudy and breezy morning. We started in Mountain Spring arm and I was trying a Weapon jig, while clients were using a Berkley Pulse Worm and the other a Senko. In about 10 minutes I hooked a nice 5 1/2 pounder in a bush. She might have already spawned. So we thought the jig bite would be good - it wasn't! The pulse worm produced three bass or one client up to 2 3/4 lbs. Ater some breakast, we tried to sight ish a bit, but only saw one big ish and she took o. In the aternoon, the sun came out or about an hour, and they were able to sight ish some 2 1/2 lb males. It was un, and we put them right back. Those males were chasing anything that moved!! Fun to watch!! We used chartreuse lizards and Senkos. We wound up with 9 bass, but only one nice size one. The night trip was a dierent story. The water wasn't able to warm up with the threat o rain (it didn't - thank goodness), and I think it hurt the night bite. The ront cleared out about 9 pm and the air temp dropped - a ormula or ailure. It turned out to be a damp, cool night, with heavy air. One nice thing - no east breeze! My client was ishing heavier equipment or the irst time and did well, catching three bass in our irst hour beore dark. Ater dark, as only can happen at Amador, the bite TOTALLY died. Even the spawning males wouldn't hit. Ater some good trips there recently, this was hard on me!! We ending at the dam and he caught another 2 pound bass and then his irst Warmouth bass - and it was a beauty. He was excited to catch something new. I believe he had 8 or 9 total bite during the trip, and I had one. I always have to chuckle when I hear olks say that guides sometimes catch all the ish. Not only is that not true, sometimes they catch none!!! I'm sure he was a pretty happy ella driving home on a tough night saying, "Well, I showed Hemphill how to do it!". And I couldn't be happier - I'm so glad he got the action - he was doing something better than I was. I had him ishing the junebug Dead Ringer 8" worm, and again, it worked well at Amador. I stuck with the jig most o the night - no cigar this time! Last trip, I caught all my quality ish on a jig - go igure!!
      City: Yuba City

      Tips: I think timing is very important in the spring - i you can ish during a string a warm days - ish will move on the beds. The cool weather will move them o sometimes. Try brown or black baits i the water is clear, but use white or chartreuse baits or sight ishing i the water is dingy - and some o it is, especially in Cat Cove. Topwater did now work or us - probably was too cool.

  • Napa County, California
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      Water Temp: 57-61

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: We started in the skier's cove and found a couple on a rip bait, but not size. The fish moved out due to the colder weather. Talked to another boater and he indicate the water temp dropped 3 degrees in the past week. We then ran up to Pope Creek and found a couple of bed fish to 2.5 lbs. We ended the day with 6 keepers.
      City: Rohnert Park

      Tips: Look for smallie bed down to 20' in clear water. When the weather warms, the bite should be wide open. (it's raining today as I write this the 9th)The largemouth should start moving up when the water temp gets into the 60's.

  • Solano County, California
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      Water Temp: 64

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Fished the New Bass tourney on Sat. with JK. We went right to our spring spot in whites and immediately got on blade ish, but couldn't get on any quality ish. We shot across the cut about 100 yards where the better quality ish usually come rom and got on a good lipless crank bite. It was lights out or about 15 minutes and then things really died. Around 9:30 we only had 4 ish in the boat, but knowing that the delta can turn on and o at any time, we stayed in the area. I'm glad we did, because by 10:30 the plastic bite was really starting to open up. In the next 1 1/2 hours we hit 2 ives and a our to give us a pretty respectable limit. We managed to get around 25 ish or so and brought in a good limit o 23 1/2 pounds which was good enough or 2nd.
      City: roseville

      Tips: Same old story. Senko's, jigs and reaction baits. It was extremely windy, which made or tough ishing, but the reward is there i you put the time in. Most o the quality ish were in 2 eet o water or less. The spawn is on as a ew o our ish actually had some eggs coming out. I don't mean to contradict mysel and I know this may not be a very popular opinion, but it wouldn't break my heart i tournaments were not allowed and a catch and release was mandated on all bass waters in the state between the dates o 3-15 to 5-1 so the ish could properly do their thing. I will still ish the tourny's because I love the competition, but I saw many quality ish that weren't exactly swimming away ater they were released on Sat.

    • By

      Water Temp: 62-64

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Fished out o River End. Lauched at 5:45 and headed up the main river. Flipped all day with a 7" BigB's Bassin worm Black w/Chart Tail, My partner lipped a 6" worm. Hooked a ew here and there and ended the day with 20 bass 1-3 lbs. A better day on the delta. Can't wait till the blade bite gets real good.
      City: Fremont

      Tips: At low tide lip tight to tullys or run into disco. High tide lip with brushhog or crank a speedtrap over the weeds. They are hungry and don't give up.

    • By

      Water Temp: 65

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: ished rom big break to central delta. had no problem inding hungry bass willing to hit just about anything thrown at them. (mainly that torpedo looking plastic)ha ha. have been catching alot o better ish on black jig with a blue pork trailer. and thanks to a good riend o mine i have also been able to establish a pretty good rog bite here lately, i have been throwing the rog in sparse tuleys in about 3 eet o water and the ish have been crushing it!
      City: Oakley

      Tips: as everyone knows senko's are very consistent, black/blue and brown and blue jigs have been good and don't hesitate to throw that rog! also the breaks on the islands where there is good current have been good using a crystal craw speed trap in 1/8 oz. GOOD LUCK! get out there and get'em while it's hot!

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      Water Temp: 54

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Fished rom Old River, Disco Bay, then back to Sandmound.Managed 6 bass, largest around 3#. 2 came unbuttoned.Not much o a Senko bite or us. Did our damage on S&P Yamamoto grubs/1/8 darthead. Diicult to lip and pitch rom a 17 t. Tracker when the entire Delta Fleet oWeekenders and O-Shore racers are swamping my "ride". I will go home and blame it on the cold ront.
      City: Martinez

      Tips: Get out there as oten as possible!

  • Lake County, California
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      Water Temp: 57 to 63

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Spent the entire weekend up at the lake. Usually this time o year is awsome. We had some problems. With the cold ront that moved in the night we arrived, came cooler water. the wind mucked up the water. we could not see any bed ish.I caught ish on a 8" swimbait. Blackblue jig and a senko.9 ish 2 @ 5lbs, the rest around threeish. Bite or us was over by 11am. We hit it hard and struggled the entire trip.Fished only the north rom Lucern to Corrinthians.Best pattern was to ish the tulie pockets in the am. I think I was on top o beds but we could not see any due to the wind and water color.Good Luck all.The ishing should really pick up soon. just not this weekend or us!.
      City: San Jose

      Tips: Senko! Senko!Swim bait in the lats outside spawn areas.Jig the wood!

  • Tuolumne County, California
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      Water Temp: 58-62

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Got in the water at daybreak.Fished main lake coves..Caught ish rom 2 t to 20 t deep.All on worms & splitshoting a senko.Did catch a ew on the senko with no weight,was to windy..We caught rom dink's to 2 1/2 lbs.Got 13 over 12 in. let at 1 pm.Got two blowups on a top water & threw spinner & crank some,no takers...
      City: Riv

  • Butte County, California
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      Water Temp: 59

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Sometimes, guiding can be un and very satisying!! I took a ather-son team to Oroville on Wed. and Thurs. Since dad has retired and lives in southern Cali, they don't get to ish much together and told me they have been skunked the past 6 or 7 times them have ished together. I tried to come to the rescue and I think I saved them! We caught 25 the irst day with 4 over the slot, and 39 the second day with 9 over! We tried hard or the 40th bass, but we ran out o time. The weather was very weird - og on the lake Wed at 10 am! We launched at 10 am both days, planning to ish the later, hopeully warmer aternoon - good choice! Wed. we started in some o my avorite places in the north ork with very poor results. On to the middle ork and things looked up about 3 pm. We used rodstrainer jigs in brown/orange and purple/blue/black and they produced our bigger bass. We also used a 4 inch Berkley Pulse Worm. The irst topwater bass o the year were landed on Chug Bugs. They would not hit a morning dawn Magic Worm - amazing!!! Thursday, we had some success on jigs in the south ork, but this was to be a Senko day. They both wanted to learn how to ish them - and learn they did!! A ew avorite areas beyond the Enterprise bridge really produced - one in particular. A guides dream - we were hooking spots up to 2 1/4 pounds on every second or third cast - or about an hour. They were so excited - and I was happy or them! This was rom about 4 to 5 pm - on a sun-exposed bank. We lost one o two quality topwater ish - darn! We used the 5 inch Senko in colors 221 and 194 mostly. Others worked too. I did manage one largemouth in McCabe on a Senko - about 2 pounds. Fun, Fun!!
      City: Yuba City

      Tips: We did not ine many bass in the backs o creeks, they had moved out to the closest points. We didn't ish any deeper than 20 eet. Fishing picked up in shadows later in the day, but was best on sun-exposed areas shortly beore the sun let the area.

  • Bayfield County, California
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      Water Temp: 55-58

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Windy and Chilly, partly cloudy. Fished upper end in the 5mph area. Fish were spooky due to the clear water. Saw very ew ish and caught only six 12" to 15" ish. Five o them with worms on rock piles or stumps in 10' to 15' o water. One on a crankbait in the shallow lats in the aternoon (long cast!) Also one nice trout (dinner!) on a white spinnerbait, go igure! Most others I talked to were having a slow day as well.
      City: Eureka

      Tips: Look or the water to warm a bit and the ish to move into a spawning pattern! Should be anytime now. Lots o ry around brush and shallow structure should help the crankbait bite when it warms up.

  • California
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      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Coming down or a camping trip at Margarita April 18th - 22nd. Does anyone have any reports rom this lake? Please post or e-mail. Any tip would help.Thanks, Fredrico.
      City: Pleasanton

Friday, April 5th, 2002

  • Plumas County, California
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      Water Temp: 55

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: All you old boys need to go to Shasta ,Almanor is not to good you can only get about 16 to 18 pounds with 5 ish now days.

      Tips: Right now anything will work

  • Napa County, California
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      Water Temp: 51-59

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: had two guide trips thurs and fri,and caught a total of 27 fish.. mostly rippin and flippin bedded fish. the cold front moved fish off beds completley and the fishin was tough and cold ! any time we get some consistant warm whether, the lake will go off! fish seem to be suspeneded in 8-10 feet deep and some toads were seen, but spooky!! fish ripbaits... rip rip pause! good luck
      City: danville

      Tips: rip baits.. small jigs on beds

    • By

      Water Temp: ?

      Water Clarity: Clear (4+ foot visibility)

      Report: Went fishing friday 11:30-3:00 on foot. Caught three, missed two. One was a Spot 13" came on a sluggo, two smallmouth, 13" and 14" both came on a bill dance 1/4 oz medium running crankbait (Shad colored).
      City: Davis

      Tips: Try crankin near structure in about 6' of water in sheltered coves

  • Solano County, California
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      Water Temp: N/A

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Arrived at lake around 2p.m.Caught ish all aternoon.6"and 4"plastics.Ice blue was the color.All buck bass,right against the bank.
      City: VISALIA

      Tips: CATCH AND RELEASE!BASS ARE STAGING TO SPAWN.

    • By

      Water Temp: 60-65 degrees

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Pre-ished or the New-Bass Future Pro. Was throwing Senkos as usual, and was catching bass between 1.5 and 3 pounds. Then caught a nice 4.5 around 9:30. At 12:45, I was ishing in a dead end slough and hooked up on a toad! Ater watching her jump out o the water several times while shaking her head, I netted her mysel since I was ishing alone. She weighed an even 11.0 pounds, my best to date. A Pro rom Lake Mead (Doc Watson) was pre-ishing or a tournament next week (WON Bass I think) and witnessed the catch. He took some pictures or me with my camera. I just wish that I could have caught her tomorrow. Oh well.
      City: Rancho Cordova

      Tips: Can you say Senkos?

    • By

      Water Temp: 59-60

      Water Clarity: Muddy (0-2 foot visibility)

      Report: Fun Fished this morning (6:30AM) out o Lundborgs on Bethel Island. Backseater was Dallas Merrick o Hayward (Walton's Pond). With just un ishing in mind, didn't push hard in where we should start, just ished what look good to us. I went 2 or 2 on spots catching ish. Dallas's turn went 1 or 1 in choosing spot(s) har!!!. That spot produced the most ish which was a 100yd bank with close deep water access. The ish were TIGHT to the tules and real inicky in what they wanted, Brown Jig/Zoom Blue Chunk trailer was the key to catching these ish. No Senko Fish were caught, we tried.Out o 8 ish caught up till 12(Noon), 7 were caught on a Brown Jig with 1 coming on, and the biggiest (4 1/2lb),a Spinnerbait by Baits by Boyce. Smalliest ish caught was a 2lb. Best 5, 15lbs/7ish 19-20lb. For a un trip, you couldn't ask or a better day. I think I burned 2-3 gallons o gas all mornin. No wind at all this morning. Good luck to the isherman that go out this weekend.Rich Thiel's Guilding ServiceBanner is on top o this pg.
      City: Castro Valley

      Tips: Fish where there is current and deep water nearby (at least 10t bottom. Stay out instead o tight and pitch, pitch, pitch. The ish are tight and the hit very light but solid. Pay attention in what your doing on each pitch. Fish slow, you don't have to run and gun to get a limit around Franks Track. Pay attention to detail and what your throwin too!!!!.

  • Lake County, California
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      Water Temp: 58

      Water Clarity: Stained (2-4 foot visibility)

      Report: Besides having a pretty good trip to Clear Lake last Tuesday with a client, I was VERY EXCITED about something new I saw there this spring - over a hundred young bass that had survived the winter!!!! In the past two trips, we have even caught 3 or 4 twelve inchers. This is great news I think. Under one dock I saw about 12 bass rom 6 to 10 inches - last years spawn - good news! I'm sure that all readers to ncb realize that survival o the young over the winter is one o our serious problems at Clear Lake every year. I also saw several bass in the 8 to 10 pound class crusing around, trying to get warm. I saw one that might go around 12. These were better quality than I saw last spring. Another good sign. Please let them spawn!!On Tuesday, we ished mostly #221 5 inch Senkos and caught 9 bass up to 6 1/4 lbs - not a great trip but better than the 5 pounders in previous trips. Wow! - talk about spooky!! The big bass would come up to our baits - look at them - and run away. It was ALMOST unny. I said - almost!! We did see a ew pairs locked on nests, but mostly crusiers. Last year the mood o the ish, a least or my boat, was see the bait and eat it. Not this year - so ar. Like the previous report said - this water is CLEAR!! Be prepared or lots o weed and slime on your baits - the beneit o clear water. Night ishing has been very slow this year so ar, and it is hard to igure out why. This next month will be interesting. Bass are continuing to hit jigs day and night, and also the Power Tube is working.
      City: Yuba City

      Tips: It might be necessary to use smaller baits i the water remains clear - but that may change. Sometimes with very warm weather, Clear Lake will gain some color rather quickly. Since the lake is higher than last year - you may have to look urther back in to the tules to ind the bass. I have been drop-shotting a ew bass or the irst time at Clear Lake lately - that is a irst or me!! I have been using a 3 inch pumpkin Senko.