Fishing report for week of Oct. 14-20: Nacimiento, Millerton among best bets for bass

Compiled by Dave Hurley and edited by Roger George, a former Olympic-class decathlete at Fresno State and striper record-holder at Millerton Lake and who now guides in the greater Fresno area. Telephone numbers are in 559 calling area unless noted.

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Best bets

California Aqueduct bass, catfish and stripers biting, Pete Cormier reported. Delta sturgeon bite breaks out, Joey Gamez said . Nacimiento producing big bass limits, Dave Hurley reported. San Luis stripers going topwater, Mickey Clements said. Millerton spots on good bite, Jake Figgs reported. McClure bass continue feeding, Ryan Cook said . Don Pedro trout trolling outstanding, Monte Smith reported.

Valley

West-side waterways

Striper 3 Catfish 3 Bass 3

In the northern section of the California Aqueduct, Jake Figgs of Valley Rod and Gun in Clovis reported good action for largemouth bass with wakebaits such as Whopper Ploppers or Zara Spooks along with plastics such as Zoom’s Z Craw.

In the southern section in Kern County, Pete Cormier of Bob’s Bait in Bakersfield reported similar results to the past weeks with blood worms or jumbo minnows being popular baits for both catfish and striped bass. Cut baits and Triple S Dip Bait are also working for whiskerfish while stripers are found on jerkbaits, sardines or anchovies.

Call: Valley Rod and Gun in Clovis 292-3474; Bob’s Bait Bucket in Bakersfield (661) 833-8657

Eastman Lake

Bass 2 Trout 2 Bluegill 2 Catfish 3 Crappie 2

Figgs said, “With the lake at 7%, few bass fishermen are willing to launch their boats. Catfish to 16 pounds have been landed from the shoreline at the dam with anchovies. Chicken livers are producing a smaller grade of catfish.”

Call: Eastman Lake 689-3255

Hensley Lake

Bass 2 Trout 2 Catfish 2 Bluegill 2 Crappie 2

Figgs said, “A few bass fishermen are heading here instead of Eastman, and the largemouth bass are holding around the rockpiles. Large-profile jigs or big worms are picking up the occasional quality bass. Most fishermen are targeting catfish along both sides of the day with anchovies or chicken livers.” The lake held at 15%.

Call: Valley Rod Gun, Clovis 292-3474; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Hensley Lake Hidden Dam 673-5151

Lake Don Pedro

Bass 2 Trout 3 Kokanee 1 King salmon 2 Crappie 2

Trout trolling remains outstanding with Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing reporting limits of rainbows are the rule trolling heavy spoons at depths from 50 to 60 feet through the abundant shad schools. He said, “These trout are gorging themselves on shad, and they are pulling hard. Normally, they would have copepods, but these are beautiful, clean rainbows.” The occasional king salmon to 2 pounds is found at depths to 70 feet. A trout plant was released this past week. For bass, Ryan Cook of Ryan Cook’s Guide Service said, “In two or three weeks, I will be back on Pedro, but the water needs to cool down around 10 more degrees as the bass are offshore within the shad schools.” The lake held at 70%.

Call: Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing (209) 581-4734; Kyle Wise – Head Hunter Guide Service – (209) 531- 3966; Ryan Cook – Ryan Cook’s Fishing - (559) 691-7008

Lake Isabella/Bakersfield area

Bass 2 Trout 2 Crappie 2 Catfish 3 Bluegill 2

Lake Isabella opened up last Friday for boats and shore access, and Cormier said, “The lake was busy over the past weekend, but we haven’t received much information. Prior to the closure, the lake was solid for catfish, and there were still some crappie to be found around the marinas. Bass fishing was the best it has been in recent months.” The Kern River from Tulare County to Lake Isabella has reopened, and the section from Kernville and Riverdale is also open. Trout fishing has been decent in this section with salmon eggs, live crickets, nightcrawlers, or Panther Martins. The lower river is kicking out largemouth and smallmouth bass in addition to catfish.

Call: Bob’s Bait Bucket in Bakersfield (661) 833-8657; North Fork Marina (760) 376-1812; Golden Trout Pack Station 542-2816

Lake Kaweah

Bass 2 Crappie 2 Trout 2 Catfish 2

The lake is very low at 5%, and the bass are concentrating on the few submerged rockpiles remaining in the lake. Senkos, jigs or deep-diving crankbaits are all working best. With the low water, catfish are moving into the shorelines in the evenings, and chicken livers or cut baits are effective.

Call: Sierra Sporting Goods 592-5212

Lake Success

Bass 2 Crappie 2 Trout 2 Catfish 2

The lake held at 8%, and the bass bite remains fair at best with jigs or plastics on the drop-shot over rocky point along with deep-diving crankbaits with the best fishing in the early morning and late afternoon hours. The Sequoia National Forest has partially reopened, and information on the current closure and open areas is available at fs.usda.gov/sequoia.

Call: Sequoia Fishing Co. 539-5626, sequoiafishingcompany.com

McClure Reservoir

Bass 3 Trout 2 King salmon 1 Kokanee 1 Crappie 2 Catfish 2

Cook said, “There hasn’t been much change with the exception of the absence of a topwater bite. The bass are all offshore working over the shad schools, and we need it to drop another 10 degrees before the bass move into the shorelines. Right now, working main lake points with a finesse presentation with smaller jigs or plastics is best. The Kerman Bass Club held a tournament with 10 anglers on Saturday, and 33 bass to 2.98 pounds were brought to the scales with an average bass weighing 1.23 pounds. A trout plant took place this past week, and the rainbows have been observed close to the surface out in open water chasing the shad.” The lake dropped slightly to 42%. The Bagby, Horseshoe Bend and McClure Point North launch ramps are closed due to water levels.

Call: Ryan Cook – Ryan Cook’s Guide Service – 691-7008

McSwain Reservoir

Trout 2

The Department of Fish and Wildlife has not scheduled a trout plant this month, but a few holdover rainbows from past plants are taken from the normal locations of the Handicapped Docks, the Brush Pile and the peninsula by the Marina with trout dough bait or nightcrawlers. The lake levels remain high.

Call: McSwain Marina (209) 378-2534

Millerton Lake/San Joaquin River

Bass 3 Striped bass 1 Shad 1 Bluegill 2 Crappie 2

Figgs said, “Still the top bass option in the Fresno-area as there is an early morning topwater bite with Ricos, Whopper Ploppers or Spooks before dropping to the bottom after 9 a.m. with plastics on the drop-shot or dart head in the 15-foot range. The main lake points in East Bay or in Finegold Bay or Finegold Creek are the most productive areas. A few largemouth bass in the 3-pound range were reported this week.” The lake held at 30%.

Park hours in October are 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., then 6 to 6 Nov. 1-Feb. 28.

Sycamore Island is open Friday through Sunday and state holidays from 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. in October and November.

Call: Valley Rod & Gun 292-3474

New Melones Reservoir/Tulloch

Bass 2 Crappie 2 Catfish 2 Trout 2 Kokanee 1

Tucker Tarap of Glory Hole Sports in Angels Camp reported a slowdown on the bass bite with most fish suspending around 15 feet at depths from 20 to 30 feet while chasing the massive balls of shad, Plastics on the drop-shot or Carolina-rig are effective along with crankbaits, or jerkbaits. The bass will become more active as the water continues to cool. The cool weather and chance of rain in the upcoming days should make the trout move higher in the water column and become more active. Catfish are found in the 15 to 30-foot range with cut baits or nightcrawlers. The Glory Hole and Tuttletown boat launches are open, but the Angels Cove launch ramp is closed. The lake held at 63%.

Call: Glory Hole Sports (209) 736-4333; Monte Smith (209) 581-4734; John Liechty Xperience Fishing Guide Service (209) 743-9932

Pine Flat Reservoir/Kings River

Bass 2 Trout 2 Kokanee 0 King salmon 1 Catfish 2 Crappie 2

Figgs said, “The topwater bite remains decent along main lake points or steep banks past Sycamore Creek in the deeper water. The river arm is very shallow, and the bass are holding in the deeper sections; 4- to 6-inch plastics such as Roboworm’s Aaron’s Pro Shad or Sexy Shad are working on the drop-shot or the dart head near Trimmer or Windy Gap.”

In the lower Kings, a trout plant occurred this week, and another plant is scheduled for next week. The flows have stabilized, and shore fishermen are drifting nightcrawlers or salmon eggs through the fast water into the eddies or casting Panther Martins with black/yellow dots with a gold blade; both have been effective for the regularly planted rainbows. Water releases have halted, and the lake held at 21%.

Call: Valley Rod & Gun 292-3474; Sequoia Fishing Co. 539-5626

San Luis Reservoir and O’Neill Forebay

Striper 3 Catfish 2 Bass 2 Crappie 2

The striped bass bite has broken out early at both San Luis Reservoir and O’Neill Forebay as the linesides are boiling on the surface in the mornings and evenings.

Mickey Clements of Coyote Bait and Tackle in Morgan Hill said, “Both lakes are going off, and the stripers are boiling earlier this year as normally it takes until the end of October into November before they start to boil. The stripers are schooling up in deeper water, but they will get close to the shorelines in Dinosaur Point on occasion. Topwater lures such as Zara Spooks or Evergreen’s Shower Blow SP 150’s in shad patterns are working, and it has been ‘game over’ with Alabama rigs. The bass are schooling up pretty hard, and jumbo minnows are also effective for those not wanting to cast lures. In the mornings, the stripers are found from the surface to 10 feet before moving out into deeper water throughout the daylight hours, but they are coming back even more in the evenings. Ripbaits such as Lucky Craft Pointer 128s are also working.”

Figgs confirmed the solid ripbait bite, saying, “We have many of our Fresno-area anglers heading to the big lake or the forebay, and we receive around 10 calls per day from anglers looking for the Duo Realis 120 in Neo Pearl which has been out of stock and hard to find. They are settling for the 120s in Aaron Marten’s Signature or the D-Shad patterns.”

For trollers, Roger George of Roger George Guide Service said, “The passing of the full moon, wind, and low pressure has caused the trolling bite to be sporadic at best. The stripers are more scattered, and the bite can turn on and off quickly right now. Topwater action is breaking loose, but it’s dependent on hitting the right day. The water temperatures fell nearly 5 degrees to around 70 degrees in response to the cool front. Trollers are picking up a few linesides in the 40- to 70-foot zone, but minnow fishermen are having a tougher time finding schools of stripers in the normal locations. Portuguese Cove remains the best overall bet. I guided twice this week, and we landed 20 stripers to 25 inches on both trips trolling Lucky Crafts. The algae bloom is moderate, but a warming trend can ramp up the algae in a hurry. I am hoping that the bite will become stable with the current warming trend.”

The main lake held at 47%.

In the O’Neill Forebay, Clements said, “This is a great place to take a child fishing right now as the stripers are busting the surface along the shorelines at Check 12 and the rockwall at Highway 33.”

Call: Coyote Bait and Tackle (408) 463-0711, Roger George of rogergeorgeguideservice.com 905-2954

High Sierra

Access to the region is limited by the order of the U.S. Forest Service which has limited vehicle traffic on all roads within the Sierra National Forest. The closure is temporary, and it will be evaluated regularly through Nov. 1. Additional information on the closure area at fs.usda.gov/sierra

Bass Lake

Bass 2 Trout 2 Kokanee 1

A webcam of the lake is available at basslakeca.com. The lake dropped to 85%.

Edison/Florence/Mammoth Pool

Edison is at 28%, Florence is at 22% and Mammoth Pool is at 38%.

Call: Vermilion Valley Resort at Edison Lake 259-4000

Shaver Lake/Huntington Lake

Kokanee 2 Trout 2

All access to the lake is closed per order of Southern California Edison along with the temporary closure of the Sierra National Forest. but the closure will be evaluated regularly through Nov. 1. Road access to Huntington Lake and Camp Sierra is available for residents only to retrieve personal items starting Oct. 11. Shaver dropped to 77% with Huntington holding at 98%.

Call: Dick Nichols – Dick’s Fishing Charters at Shaver Lake Sports 841-2740; Todd Wittwer – Kokanee.net Guide Service 288-8100; Dinkey Creek Inn 841-3435

Wishon/Courtright

Trout 2

Road access on the McKinley Grove Road to Wishon and Courtright is available for residents only to retrieve personal items starting Oct. 11.

Call: Wishon RV Park 865-5361

Ocean

Half Moon Bay

Salmon 2 Rockfish 3 Striper 2 Sand dabs 2 Surf perch 3

The Coastside Net Pen salmon continue to trickle into the Half Moon Bay harbor, and the regulars remain affixed to their small ladders inside of the harbor casting out pink worms or beads while six-packs, private boats, and even commercial salmon fishermen have been finding enough salmon between the two entrance buoys to keep their interest.

Dennis Baxter of the New Captain Pete reported one commercial boat spend the majority of a day between the buoys for 17 salmon, but the action dropped precipitously the following day. He said, “One good option is to go get your rockfish limits and then make a few tacks between the buoys to see if you can roust up a salmon or two. I have been heading out with my son, Braden, in the afternoons, and we have been enjoying a few salmon dinners.”

Captain Tom Mattusch of the Huli Cat reported limits of rockfish have been the rule during this weekend’s trips with a combined fifteen limits of rockfish in 220 feet of water at the Deep Reef. They have been finding the best action in the deep water, but limits are also taken in the shallows near San Gregorio. Regular passenger Ken Yuen threw bars all day long for a mixed bag limit of rockfish including a large Boccaccio and a treefish along with a ling cod. Mattusch said, “There still are salmon out in front of the harbor between the buoys as the Coastside Net Pen fish are making their way back to the harbor.”

Out of Half Moon Bay Sport Fishing, the Queen of Hearts continues to score limits of rockfish with the occasional ling cod for their light loads, and generally all of the party boats are running with as few as five passengers.

The New Captain Pete, Huli Cat, and Queen of Hearts will all be running the crab combination trips starting Saturday, November 7, and the New Captain Pete will also run a crab-only the day prior to Thanksgiving as well as Thanksgiving morning. Crab-only charters are available as well.

The sport crab opener is a major event along the San Mateo coastline, and Mattusch advised anglers to make prior arrangements since a parking area traditionally used for RV’s will be off-limits this year, and in the past, several RV’s have been in this lot over the opening weekend. He said, “People will have to make prior plans since parking here will not be an option this year.” Reservations are highly advised well in advance since the campgrounds and local hotels will be jammed during the first two weeks of the season before the commercial crab season begins.

Call: Captain Dennis Baxter – New Captain Pete (650) 576-3844; Captain Tom Mattusch – Huli Cat (650) 619-0459

Monterey/Santa Cruz

Salmon 1 Rockfish 3 Striper 2 White sea bass-3 Halibut-2 Sand dabs 3 Surf perch 3

Chris Arcoleo of Chris’s Fishing said, “Local rockfishing has been excellent with quality vermilions, olives, and yellows. We put in 20 limits of rockfish on Monday on the local reefs, but it looks like we are heading south to Point Sur on Thursday and Friday. We are going to Sur every chance we get with the weather allows. Reservations are already piling up for the upcoming Dungeness crab season starting on November 7th, and we are running the popular crab combination trips. The biomass of crab in Monterey Bay appears to be very encouraging.”

Allen Bushnell of the Santa Cruz Kayak Fishing and Surfcasting Guide Service said, “Rockfishing provided most of the action this week. Anglers are getting consistent limits while fishing the rocky areas north of Santa Cruz and south of Monterey. While shallow spots from 30-60 feet of water can produce enough rockfish for dinner, heading towards the deeper reefs will result in bigger fish, and quicker limits. Lingcod are slowly making their way in towards their shallow spawning grounds, but that bite has not gotten hot yet. Charter boats around the bay all posted limits for the rockfishing they did this week. Private boats are still getting halibut near Capitola, and off the Santa Cruz North Coast beaches in 60-80 feet of water. In Monterey, halibut are still being caught near Del Monte Beach and up the coast towards Sand City. Most exciting for that area however are the tanker-sized white sea bass feeding on spawning squid this week. Fly-lining live squid is the best bet to hook up one of these monsters, though setting a couple lines near the bottom can produce results as well. Sea bass are known as “ghosts” due to the way they appear and disappear so quickly. They are difficult to hook up and put up an amazing fight. Not to mention that many consider the white sea bass to be the best eating fish in the ocean. If you make a try for these fish it’s critical to remember to give plenty of room to other boats. Flylines often stretch a hundred yards or more from the drifting boats. Never cross in front of another boat’s drift. Also, the commercial squid boats in the area are huge and often cannot see smaller skiffs or powerboats. Bring an airhorn, and make sure your radio is working. Safety first, always.”

The Monterey Bay Salmon and Trout Project suffered major damage to their hatchery near Davenport due to the CZU Lightning Fire Complex, and they will need assistance to rebuild this essential program for Coho salmon and steelhead in the watersheds of the Central Coast. Donations are accepted at the website - https://mbstp.org/ or through https://www.gofundme.com/f/coho-salmon-in-crisis-after-santa-cruz-fire.

Call: Chris’ Landing (831) 375-5951; Allen Bushnell – Santa Cruz Kayak and Surf Casting (831) 251-9732

San Francisco Bay

Salmon 2 Halibut 3 Striper 2 Rockfish 3 Leopard shark 3 Sturgeon 2

The Marin coast has been feast or famine for most of the salmon season, and this past week did not bring a change to the pattern. Captain Jerad Davis of the Salty Lady out of Sausalito said, “Our last four trips have been 15 salmon, 5 salmon, 17 salmon, and on Monday, 2 salmon for our ‘Fish Like A Girl’ crew. The conditions all looked great up at Duxbury with brown water, plenty of bait, bird life, and meter marks so I believe the salmon just didn’t want to bite. There has been no consistent pattern all summer long.”

The New Rayann out of Sausalito was able to get located on Monday with 11 salmon to a whopping 35 pounds along the Marin coast, but it is matter of being in the right place at the right time when the fish decide to bite.

Captain Ron Koyasako of Nautilus Excursions in San Francisco put his clients onto 4 limits of salmon on Saturday along the Marin coastline before returning to the bay for a halibut apiece.

Rockfishing remains outstanding with boats running to the Farallons routinely returning with limits of rockfish and a healthy ling cod count. Two boats out of Emeryville Sport Fishing came back with 35 limits of rockfish and 26 ling cod to 13 pounds.

Inside the bay, halibut fishing remains outstanding despite the late date. Keith Fraser of Loch Lomond Bait and Tackle in San Rafael said, “This is the middle of October, and halibut are still biting, even on this week’s very slow tides. A group of our customers took live smelt and shiners to the mouth of Richardson Bay, and they returned with three limits of halibut to 13 pounds. Striped bass continue to be present all over San Pablo Bay, and another of our customers, Anthony Hampton, took live ghost shrimp to the McNear’s Pier, and he caught and released 6 legal striped bass from 4 to 10 pounds on the weak tides. The real story is how the fish are biting on the small, anemic tides.”

One party boat out of Berkeley Marina returned with 22 halibut to 25 pounds for 9 customers on Monday, further emphasizing the state of late season halibut action.

Call: Captain Trent Slate Bite Me Charters (415) 307-8582; Captain Jerad Davis, Salty Lady (415) 760-9362; Captain Steve Mitchell of Hook’d Up Sport Fishing (707) 655-6736; Happy Hooker (510) 223-5388

San Luis Obispo

Rockfish 3 Salmon 1 Surf perch 3

Rockfishing continues to be solid out of the San Luis Obispo ports with limits to near-limits remaining, but the ling cod have been absent in the waters close to the harbor. In order to find ling cod, a longer trip seems to be necessary. Out of Morro Bay Landing, the Avenger, Starfire, and Endeavor were out on Monday with 59 anglers for limits of rockfish consisting of 208 vermilion, 55 copper, 20 Boccaccio to 7 pounds, 307 assorted, 2 petrale sole, and a solitary ling cod. Also in Morro Bay, Virg’s Landing in Morro Bay had the Fiesta and Black Pearl out on Monday with 38 anglers for 163vermilion and 190 assorted rockfish to go with one ling cod. Out of Port San Luis and Patriot Sport Fishing, the Patriot and Flying Fish were out on Monday with 36 passengers for near limits of rockfish consisting of 29 vermilion, 1 copper, 296 assorted rockfish, and 2 ling cod to 4 pounds. Both ports are running a variety of trips from ½- day to long range ventures far from the harbor.

Call: Virg’s Landing (800) 762-5263; Patriot Sport Fishing (805) 595-4100; Morro Bay Landing

Others

Delta/Stockton

Bass 3 Striper 2 Sturgeon 3 Catfish 2 Bluegill 2 Salmon 2

The Sacramento-Delta sturgeon action has broken out in a huge way that we haven’t seen in years at the start of the season, and six-pack captains in the know are scoring up to six limits of sturgeon before 9 a.m. working deep water. As interest in halibut and salmon in San Francisco Bay continues to wane, more and more six-pack operators will be returning to the harbors in Pittsburg and Martinez. River salmon remains slow throughout the Sacramento-Delta, but there are signs of improvement as the water continues to cool. Striped bass trolling has been fair at best with a lack of fresh fish moving into the system from the bay/ocean.

Sturgeon action remains outstanding for those in the know, and Captain Joey Gamez of Golden State Sport Fishing has been absolutely putting on a clinic in the deep water with 11 slot limit sturgeon and one shaker on Friday with limits achieved by 8:30 a.m. Richard Chan and Nathaniel Watkins of Stockton, Shawn Miller of Patterson, Daniel Dennis of Oroville, and Matthew Lange from northern Minnesota all left the boat with slot-limit sturgeon. Gamez followed this up with another clinic on Saturday morning with 8 slot-limit sturgeon by 9:00 a.m. Gamez trailers his boat, and he puts in his boat at the closest launch to where the sturgeon are holding. Traditionally, early in the season, sturgeon keg up in the deep water outside of the Pittsburg Marina, but it is important to have a heavy anchor with enough scope to hold in the deep water as boats drifting will cause the sturgeon to move out of the area. Gamez has been scoring with a combination of lamprey eel or salmon roe on the incoming tide as the sturgeon stack up in the deep water on the incoming.

Captain Steve Mitchell of Hook’d Up Sport Fishing will be back on the water out of Pittsburg Marina starting Saturday, October 22nd while Captain Zach Medinas of Gatecrasher Fishing Adventures is also returning for his catch-and-release sturgeon ventures out of Pittsburg.

Alan Fong, manager of the Fishermen’s Warehouse in Sacramento, was in the northern portion of the Delta this week looking for crappie, and he said, “It’s just not right yet as it remains too hot, and there is so much grass there that I couldn’t get to my spot. There are some striped bass in the 8-pound range in Liberty Island, but you have to throw swimjigs as the grass is too much for topwater lures.”

For salmon, Sylvia Vieira at Vieira’s Riverside Bait near Isleton reported one or two salmon have been landed per day from all of the boats launching out of the marina. The parking lot fills up by 6:45 a.m. on the weekends. She said, “The water temperature has dropped, and we expect better results in the coming weeks.”

Also in the north Delta, Alan Fong said, “Those who are experienced are finding salmon by jigging below Freeport. We just got in a supply of Brad’s Cut Plugs, and they were nearly gone by Sunday morning.”

Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing prefers to run the Brad’s Cut Plugs behind an 11-inch Pro Troll dodger, but he said, “I have noticed with the water temperature as high, the salmon are right on the bottom and the cut plugs aren’t nearly as effective as a spinner or a Kwikfish which hold on the bottom. The cut plugs run a few feet above the bottom.”

Out of Benicia, Tony Lopez of Benicia Bait said, “They picked up a few salmon off of 1st Street on Saturday morning, and there was a report of 7 salmon landed off of the Dillon Point State Park on Saturday, but it has been slow overall. Salmon fishermen have been picking up striped bass. There are larger striped bass taken on splittail in Suisun Bay around 30 feet as Ron Reisinger of Chico caught a limit at 26 and 20 pounds on Sunday. Sturgeon fishing is really picking up, and we have been getting in up to 25 pounds of grass shrimp this week.”

Dave Houston of Livermore was out trolling this week, and he said, “It’s very tough out there for the trollers, but we managed to get three limits by 9 in the morning. We went searching to see what other fish we could find and we did get a few others to go but they came un buttoned. Water temperature is about 70, there’s still a lot of grass in most areas that we tried but the water clarity is good.”

Clyde Wands, shallow trolling expert, confirmed the tough trolling action, saying, “We were the top boat this week with only three legal stripers to 24 inches, and we tried all over the place. The water is still too warm at 70 degrees for this time of year, but they will be here as there are still stripers in the bay. Only one of the stripers was a fresh-run fish, and there aren’t many stripers in the system right now. The tides were good for trolling, and this is puzzling because we found better numbers and quality last week when the tides were big.”

Kenji Nakagawa of Phenix Rods continues to find quality striped bass tossing topwater lures, and he caught and released stripers to 12 pounds in the western portion of the Sacramento-Delta on his bass boat instead of his kayak this week.

Landing a kicker largemouth bass in the 8/9-pound range was the key to placing at the top of the 132-boat field in the Best Bass Tournaments Tournament of Champions this past weekend. True to form over the past few months, a 20-pound limit will place you close to the top, and the difference has always been who is able to find the large bass. Striped bass continue to be scarce in the San Joaquin system, but the months of October and November are traditionally the best time in this region prior to the arrival of cold water closer to December.

Randy Pringle, the Fishing Instructor and director of the Best Bass Tournaments said, “With the rollercoaster weather over the past week, you will have to change your tactics. I recommend long fan casts across moving water. The water has to be waving the vegetation, and if the weeds aren’t moving, you may catch a few bass, but you won’t get numbers. You have to puff the silt by ticking the top of the weeds. The ima Rock N’ Vibe Suspend which dives to 2 feet, and it is a good lure to use on a dead stick presentation. There is a good chatterbait bite when its windy, and a small swimbait like the Boom Boom Shad is another option as the bass are focusing upon shad. They are still eating crawdads, and the ima Squarebill crankbait in Red Craw is another option. Long casts over the weeds from the middle of the high tide through the outgo and from the middle of the incoming tide to the top of the tide will be the most productive times.”

Dan Mathisen of Dan Mathisen Outdoors took out clients on Saturday, and they achieved the ‘Delta Treble’ with two largemouth bass over 3 pounds, two legal stripers at 24 and 26 inches, and two chrome-bright salmon that were quickly released. Mathisen said, “We landed the bass on flukes before heading over to Sherman Island for the striped bass on Rat-L-Traps. We ended up trolling along the rockwall below the Antioch Bridge for stripers, and we had two bright salmon hitting the Rat-L-Traps. Since the salmon were landed below the bridge on the San Joaquin, they were immediately released. One of the salmon ran us around the boat a few times avoiding the net, and it finally jumped up and landed in the bow before we quickly put it back in the water.”

In the south Delta, H and R Bait in Stockton reported up to 70 pounds of fresh shad have been coming into the shop every few days, and they are freezing 30 pounds to get ready for the wintertime when the fresh shad are unavailable. Bluegill action is best in either Whiskey Slough or off of Eight Mile Road east of Stockton with red worms, jumbo red worms, or meal worms.

Call: Randy Pringle (209) 543-6260; Captain Steve Mitchell – Hook’d Up Sport Fishing – (707) 655-6736; J.D. Richey – Richey’s Sport Fishing – (916) 952-1554; Vince Borges – Vince Borges Outdoors (209) 918-0828

Lake Nacimiento/San Antonio/Santa Margarita/Lopez

Bass 3 White bass 3 Striper 0 Catfish 3 Crappie 2 Bluegill 3

Lake Nacimiento has been producing larger tournament limits than Mother Lode and Central Valley lakes, and this weekend’s Bakersfield Bass Club tournament was no exception with the winning limit at 13.51 pounds with the big fish a 5.13-pound largemouth. There is a good topwater bite in the mornings as both the spotted and white bass are chasing bait on the surface. Once the schools go down, shad-patterned swimbaits or spoons are effective, and 30-fish mornings are not out of the question. There is a jig bite in the middle of the day. Bluegill are taken on meal worms around structure. The lake held at 26%. A webcam of the lake is available at http://www.lakenacimientolive.com/. At Lopez, the bass bite continues to be solid for both numbers and quality, and there is a topwater bite int eh mornings for both largemouth and smallmouth bass along with shad-patterned swimbaits or jerkbaits. During the daytime, working the bottom with finesse techniques such as plastics on the drop-shot is best. Panfish are found at depths to 20 feet with meal worms, red worms, or jumbo red worms. A webcam of the lake is available at http://805webcams.com/lopez-lake-webcam/. At Santa Margarita, the algae bloom has begun to dissipate, and there is more clean water in which to work for bass. Catfish over 10 pounds have been landed this week, and whiskerfish remain the best bet with nightcrawlers or cut mackerel. Panfishing is best with red worms under a bobber. At San Antonio, bass fishing is limited to smaller versions of largemouth or smallmouth bass, while crappie or bluegill are the top option with very light minijigs over structure along with live red worms or meal worms. Catfishing is best with cut baits scented with garlic. The operating hours at San Antonio are from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekends only. The lake dropped slightly to 16%.

Events

The International Sportsmen’s Exposition scheduled for January 2021 at Cal Expo in Sacramento has been canceled due to the global pandemic, but it will return in 2022.

Tournament results

Delta/Russo’s Marina – Best Bass Tournaments/Tournament of Champions– October 10/11th: 1st – Brandon Gee/Duke Kanaya – 33.45 pounds; 2nd – Wyatt Debusk/Branson Medeiros – 32.31; 3rd – Jason and Geno Lazzerini – 31.59. Big Fish – 8.89 pounds – Ricky Flores.

Lake Pardee – Nor-Cal Trout Angler’s Challenge/Adult Division – October 10th: 1st – Raymond Morales – 4.94 pounds; 2nd – John Moua – 3.93; 3rd –Andy Vang – 3.53.

Lake Pardee – Nor-Cal Trout Angler’s Challenge/Youth Division – October 10th: 1st – Kayla Townsley – 2.21 pounds; 2nd –Mason Cetinch – 2.13; 3rd – Mateo Martinez – 1.43.

Lake McClure –Kerman Bass Club– October 10th: 1st –Michael Beltran – 7.25 pounds (Big Fish – 2.98); 2nd – John Albidrez – 6.87; 3rd – Ron Orbaker– 6.64.

Lake Nacimiento –Bakersfield Bass Club– October 10th: 1st –Randy and Mason McAbee– 13.35 pounds (Big Fish – 5.30); 2nd – Nathan and Russ Towes – 10.21; 3rd – Jim Spillers/John McNally – 8.62.

Upcoming tournaments (subject to change)

October 17th/18th:

Delta/B and W Resort – Fresno Bass Club

Delta/Contra Costa County – Sierra Bass Club

Lake Camanche – Riverbank Bass Anglers

Don Pedro – Cen Cal Elite Bass Tournaments

Nacimiento – San Luis Obispo Bass Ambushers

October 17th:

Tulloch – Christian Bass League

McClure – 17/90 Bass Club

Kaweah – Visalia Bass Club

Success – Kern County Bassmasters

October 18th:

Delta/Russo’s Marina – East County Student Anglers

Delta/Contra Costa County – Delta Teen Team

Don Pedro – Nor Cal High School Bass/Gold Country Junior Bass

Success – Porterville Bass Club

October 24th/25th:

Delta/Pittsburg Marina – City of Pittsburg Fishing Derby

October 24th:

Camanche – Yak-A-Bass Team Open

Don Pedro – Angler’s Press

October 25th:

Delta/Russo’s Marina – Hook, Line, and Sinker

Success- Porterville Bass Club

November 1st:

Don Pedro – Modesto Ambassadors

Trout plants

Week of Oct. 11 by California Department of Fish and Wildlife conditions permitting:

Fresno County: Kings River below Pine Flat Dam

Inyo County: Bishop Creek Lower, Diaz Lake, Lone Pine Creek, Owens River below Tinnemaha and section 2, Pleasant Valley Reservoir