Hyper for stripers

Published online on Wednesday, Mar. 18, 2009

Fog lingers over glassy water as Roger George steers his boat toward a shady corner of Millerton Lake, where the sun has yet to clear the canyon wall.

Here, near the mouth of Finegold Bay, are the striped bass hunting grounds. At least they have been lately. Stripers are always on the move, so you can never be sure.

George's color fish finder displays the contours of the lake bottom and also the occasional blip. From experience, he knows the red-tinged ones are probably stripers. Maybe even another lake record like the 50.3-pounder he caught in 1998.

"Every fishermen wants to catch a monster fish," George says. "Stripers provide that opportunity."

By now, George's name should be familiar to Fresno-area anglers and readers of The Bee's weekly fish report. A former Fresno State decathlon standout, George belongs to a small but dedicated cadre of striper enthusiasts who frequent the Delta, San Luis Reservoir and Millerton.

Millerton is called the "Dead Sea" in some circles because of its difficult conditions. But look closer, and you'll find everything from spotted and largemouth bass to American shad, catfish and a small population of stripers.

Native to the East Coast and imported to California waterways in 1878, stripers were introduced to Millerton in 1955, according to Department of Fish and Game records.

Although retired DFG biologist Randy Kelly says there is some natural reproduction, Millerton stripers are mainly a put-and-take fishery. Up to 3,000 yearling fish at a time have been planted sporadically over the past decade thanks to funding provided by the California Striped Bass Association.

Chong Vang of Fresno recently landed a 37-pounder from the shore. However, most of the stripers caught at Millerton fall in the 10-pound range -- evidence the plants are working.

"In 2003, we put in 3,000 12-inch long fish," says John Poindexter, co-founder of the CSBA's Fresno chapter. "Those are probably the 10-pounders people are catching this year. The ones we planted in 2000 are 15-pound fish by now."

It should be obvious that today's 10- and 15-pound fish will only become 25- and 30-pounders in future years if they're caught and released. So keep that in mind.

Of course, just because stripers are present doesn't mean anyone can catch one. In fact, few do.

That's because techniques and tactics vary from week to week -- or even day to day -- because of the constantly fluctuating water levels and temperatures and the availability of bait fish. Stripers at Millerton feed mainly on American shad. Find these slimy bait fish, and the stripers won't be far away.

Some days, George baits his hooks with minnows and drops them on top of stripers he locates on his fish finder. Others, he casts swimbaits into structures where he suspects stripers are hiding. When the fish are on the move, he trolls for them using a downrigger.

"There isn't just one answer out here," George says. "You need all the tools."

Because they are voracious predators and nonnative, stripers have their share of detractors. Just about every largemouth enthusiast has a sob story about reeling in a bass only to see a striper swipe it off the hook.

Now, even agricultural interests are getting into the act under the guise of environmentalism.

Stripers are currently afforded the same level of protection as salmon, steelhead and sturgeon. But a bill introduced by Assemblywoman Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) would change all that.

If AB 1253 becomes law, restrictions on striper fishing would be eliminated, along with funding intended to enhance their populations and habitat. Even transporting a striper into California would become a crime. (A similar lawsuit filed by farmers against the DFG is pending in federal court.)

Fuller says she introduced the legislation to "strike a balance" in California waterways, and her bill tries to make the case that hungry stripers are largely to blame for the decline of the Delta smelt. However, this view is refuted by leading fish biologists, including Peter Moyle of UC-Davis, who say there is no evidence for such a conclusion.

Fishing groups contend that Fuller's bill is little more than an end around intended to get more Delta water pumped southward.

"It's a witch hunt to try and blame anything they can for the demise of smelt," Poindexter says. "And a water grab."

Adds John Beuttler, conservation director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance: "If they can get rid of striped bass, they'll probably target other fish species in the Delta to get after that water. Where will it end?"

Hopefully, we'll never find out.