Fishing report, Sept. 15-21: Close competition at Shaver Lake Kokanee Power Derby

Compiled by Dave Hurley and edited by Roger George, a former Olympic-class decathlete at Fresno State (he still holds the school record). George guides in the greater Fresno area and holds the striper record at Millerton Lake. Telephone numbers are in 559 calling area unless noted.

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Valley

West-side waterways

Striper 2 Catfish 2

Bill Sterling of the Sportsman’s Warehouse in Fresno runs a Facebook group known as Striperz Gone Wild, and they are hosting their second annual Fall Classic Striped Bass Derby on the California Aqueduct on Oct. 9. Sterling said, “I picked up all of the trophies for the adult and youth divisions, and we will be giving away rods, reels and a lot of lures and equipment for fishing as well for the participants thanks to our many sponsors. We expect over 200 fishermen this year with an increased emphasis on children.” Participants must register at the Volta Bridge southwest of Los Banos between 4 a.m. and 2 p.m. to be eligible for the prizes. There haven’t been many boils so far this summer, but as the weather starts to cool, the stripers will start chasing shad on the surface.

In the south aqueduct in Kern County, the triple-digit temperatures are affecting the ability to stay out in the heat, and most anglers are heading out in the evenings for both striped bass and catfish. Flukes or small swimbaits are the best option for the linesides while catfish are taken on cut baits such as anchovies, sardines, or mackerel. Blood worms have been hard to obtain with the storms on the East Coast.

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

Eastman Lake/Hensley Lake

Bass 1 Trout 0 Bluegill 2 Catfish 2 Crappie 1

No change or relief on the horizon as the sad situation at both lakes continues, and it will remain until there is any rain. In observance of National Public Lands Day, a family-friend day will take place on Saturday, Sept.. 25 with a number of outdoor projects at Hensley from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with registration beginning at 8 a.m. All ages are welcome to participate, and participants are requested to pre-register with Ranger Shay Perryman by Sept. 17 at 831-7026 or shay.perryman@usace.army.mil.

Call: Eastman Lake 689-3255; Valley Rod Gun, Clovis 292-3474; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Hensley Lake Hidden Dam 673-5151

Lake Don Pedro

Bass 3 Trout 3 Kokanee 1 King salmon 2 Crappie 1

Ryan Cook of Ryan Cook’s Fishing said, “Bass fishing has been a struggle for some, but there is a topwater bite offshore with the Berkley Choppo 120 or the D and M Custom’s ½-ounce buzzbait along with spooning 3/4-ounce Hopkin’s Shorty spoons at depths from 25 to 65 feet.” Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing put in quick limits of rainbow trout with shad-patterned spoons at depths from 40 to 60 feet in the shad schools. Finding the schools is the key to success. The lake dropped to 52%, and a buoy line has been installed outside of Fleming Meadows toward Schoolhouse Point. The Fleming Meadows and Moccasin will remain open throughout the summer. Bass fishing is decent with jigs or flutter spoons at depths from 20 to 40 feet in the main lake or along points with big rock along with random 45-degree banks. A night tournament on Saturday produced a winning limit at only 13 pounds with a big fish at 7 pounds. The next largest fish was 2.5 pounds. Kokanee fishing has been slower with the fish holding on the bottom. Rainbow trout are found near the shad schools with heavy spoons. The Blue Oaks launch ramp remained open over the Labor Day weekend, but it is expected to close soon.

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 - 691-7008

Lake Isabella/Bakersfield area

Bass 2 Trout 1 Crappie 1 Catfish 3 Bluegill 2

The lake continues to drop, and it is currently at 9%. There are unmarked hazards throughout the shallow lake. There is a topwater bite in the mornings or evenings around submerged wood with frogs, buzzbaits, or walking-style topwater lures for bass, but plastics on the drop-shot are the most consistent presentation at depths to 20 feet over submerged islands. Catfishing is the best option with Triple S Dip Bait, scented nightcrawlers, or frozen shad. Crappie are found on occasion around structure with minijigs. The French Gulch Marina is only launch ramp with the low lake level. In the Kern River, the flows are very low at 86 cfs at Kernville in the upper river, and trout fishing has ground to a halt as the fish are holding in the deeper pools, and the fish are spooky. In the lower river, smallmouth and largemouth bass fishing is best with plastics or live minnows.

Call: Bob’s Bait Bucket in Bakersfield (661) 833-8657; North Fork Marina (760) 376-1812; Golden Trout Pack Station (559) 542-2816

Lake Kaweah

Bass 2 Crappie 1 Trout 0 Catfish 2

The lake dropped to 13%. The bass are holding on the available structure such as rockpiles. There are unmarked hazards throughout the shallow lake. There is a decent bite for smaller bass with plastics on the drop-shot, Senkos, jigs, or lipless crankbaits at depths from 5 to 25 feet. The Kaweah River is running at only 8 cfs at Three Rivers.

Lake Success/Tule River

Bass 2 Crappie 1 Trout 0 Catfish 2

Chuck Stokke of the Sequoia Fishing Company in Springville said, “Bass fishing is decent although the lake is low at 11%. Fishermen are catching a number of small bass on plastics or crankbaits, but occasionally, a larger bass is outwitted.” In the Tule River, Stokke said, “The river is closed until at least Sept. 17, but reopening that soon may be unlikely due to recent lightning fires in the region.”

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

McClure Reservoir

Bass 3 Trout 1 King salmon 0 Kokanee 0 Crappie 2 Catfish 3

Ryan Cook of Ryan Cook’s Fishing said, “Bass fishing is best with plastics on the drop-shot such as 4.5-inch Robo Worms Prism Shad or Hologram Shad. Numbers of bass are possible at depths from 10 to 20 feet. Jigs with a ½-ounce jig head are also effective.” Bagby, Horseshoe Bend, and McClure Point North launch ramps are closed due to water levels. The lake dropped from 24% to 23%.

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

McSwain Reservoir

Trout 2

Trout fishing has slowed down with the lack of plants in the past few weeks, but there will be sizable plants before the upcoming Merced Irrigation District Fall Trout Derby on the weekend of Oct. 2-3. The best trout action is occurring from the banks in the evenings with Power Bait, nightcrawlers, or Kastmasters from the Brush Pile, Handicapped Docks, or peninsula near the Marina. Information and registration lakemcclure.com/annual-fall-trout-derby-returns-to-lake-mcswain.

Call: McSwain Marina (209) 378-2534

Millerton Lake/San Joaquin River

Bass 2 Striped Bass 1 Shad 1 Bluegill 3 Crappie 1

The lake rose once again to 48% with water releases on the San Joaquin River system out of Shaver and Huntington. Michael Crayne of Valley Rod and Gun in Clovis reported good action for spotted bass inside of Winchell Cove near the rockwall with jerkbaits, 5-inch swimbaits, or plastics on the drop-shot. There is a catfish bite with chicken livers or anchovies. The San Joaquin River is running 265 cfs. below Friant.

Sycamore Island will be open Fridays through Sundays and State holidays through November 11. Seasonal hours of operation are 6:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. January, February, March, October, and November; 6:00 am to 7:00 pm April and September, and 6:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. May through August. Entry fees are $9.00 per vehicle and $5.00 per trailer. Annual passes are available for $85.

Call: Valley Rod & Gun 292-3474

New Melones Reservoir/Tulloch

Bass 3 Crappie 1 Catfish 2 Trout 3 Kokanee 1

The lake dropped to 36%, but Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing found excellent action for limits of rainbow trout at depths from 40 to 60 feet with shad patterned spoons. Similar to Don Pedro, finding the shad schools is the key, and there is a tremendous amount of bait in the lake with the decreased water levels. With plenty of hilltops and points coming out of the water, opportunity is wide open on bass fishing. There is a topwater bite early or late with Poppers or Whopper Ploppers along with crankbaits or spinnerbaits. Plastics on the drop-shot are working over the submerged island tops. Catfishing is good at night with chicken livers, cut baits with scent, or nightcrawlers from the banks. There are numerous unmarked hazards throughout the lake. Boaters have to be extremely cautious.

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 1 Kokanee 0 King salmon 0 Catfish 2 Crappie 2

The lake is balancing inflow with outflow, and it held at 20%. The bass bite is picking up with creature baits on a slow roll such as Missle’s D Bombs along with wakebaits. The best action is in the coolest water near Trimmer or Sycamore in the river arm near the submerged trees or rock. The Cen Cal Elite Bass Tournaments held an event on Saturday taken by the impressive limit of 15.43 pounds with a big fish at 4.98 by the team of Bill Kunz and Cory Kerber. A trout plant occurred in the lower Kings a few weeks ago, and with the lower flows, the action remains strong with spinners, Power Bait, salmon eggs, or nightcrawlers in the transition from fast to slow water. Fly fishermen are scoring in the catch-and-release zone at Cobbles Weir. The flows rose from 126 to 160 cfs at Trimmer.

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

San Luis Reservoir and O’Neill Forebay

Striper 2 Catfish 2 Bass 2 Crappie 1

The lake is approaching an all-time low at 12%, and the action has slowed from the banks as the fish are moving into deep water. A few large striped bass have been caught and released by experienced trollers willing to work all day for a few big bites, but these are the exception and not the rule. Vehicles illegally traversing the newly exposed dry lake bottom of San Luis Reservoir have caused the park to now close at sundown instead of the usual 10 p.m. closure. Both the Basalt Recreation Area and Dinosaur Point launch ramps are back in service, but a 4WD tow vehicle is advised. In the O’Neill Forebay, Bill Sterling of the Sportsman’s Warehouse in Fresno said, “The water before Check 12 before the Forebay is shut down, and they have actually drained a couple miles so they can fix a crack in the cement. I believe it will be down until the beginning of November. We are starting to see some boils, but really we aren’t in that season yet.” The action is for primarily undersized striped bass taken on pile worms, blood worms, or anchovies from the clear areas under the Highway 152 Bridge or near the channel at Highway 33. It is possible to put together a legal limit, but it is a challenge. Largemouth bass are hitting plastics or Senkos along the rockwall and near the old Medeiros launch ramp.

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

High Sierra

Bass Lake

Bass 2 Trout 2 Kokanee 1

With the closure of Northern California national forests until at least Sept. 17, the past weekend was a bust for fishermen as the lake was swarmed by recreational boaters and campers. The lake dropped to 65%.

Edison/Florence/Mammoth Pool

Closures in the Sierra Forest until Sept. 17 will limit access to the High Sierra lakes. Edison is very low at 9% with Florence at 32%. Mammoth Pool dropped to 47%.

Call: Vermilion Valley Resort at Edison Lake 259-4000

Shaver Lake/Huntington Lake

Kokanee 3 Trout 2

Shaver hosted the final Kokanee Power Derby of the season this past Saturday, and the bite was fairly consistent for kokanee, resulting in a very close competition for the top three spots. With the reservoir releasing water at a rapid clip, the Shaver Lake Marina will be moving a few remaining docks into deep water while the best launch will be at the Sierra Marina. Guides are anticipating a few more weeks of kokanee fishing before trout will take over as the top species.

Dick Nichols of Dick’s Fishing Charters, “It was another great week of kokanee fishing, and limits all around were the rule. Chris and Heather Matthes of Prather took out their 4-year old son, Christopher, on his first fishing trip, and they were rewarded with limits. Another three-limit day was enjoyed by Rick Guibbini of Paso Robles along with his grandson, Wylie, and nephew Mike. The other three days were highlighted by two limits for two guests, and Friday was my last day of chartering on the lake. It was a challenge with several participants in Saturday’s Kokanee Power Derby pre-fishing along with high winds, but my passengers, father and son Bill and Joe Bergen had no problem picking up limits for Bill’s 83rd birthday. Similar to throughout the summer, orange/white or orange Dick’s Mountain Hoochies along with orange tubes tipped with scented corn behind Dick’s Mountain Dodgers in orange foil or watermelon at 80 to 85 feet were the ticket. My return trip to the marina was memorable with many of the fellow trollers waving and wishing me a happy retirement. I haven’t retired from fishing altogether as I will be out on the lake on Mondays for fun next year.”

Todd Wittwer of Kokanee.net Guide Service said, “I was out pre-fishing with Jared Romero on Friday in preparation for his participation in the tournament, and we put together three fish over 5 pounds with the big fish at 17.75 inches. As usual, pink or orange Radical Glow Tubes or Rocky Mountain Tackle’s Signature Squids in Pearlusense or orange Cotton Candy behind a 5.5-inch Moonshine Dodger were the trick at depths around 84 feet. We had 11 kokanee before 8:30 a.m., and Jim Travis of Affordable Tackle called me over to tip him off to what was successful. I told him 84 feet with a setback of 12 feet, and apparently this made all of the difference as his team took first place in the derby the following day. With the dropping water, my boat is moved out to the far dock for a few more weeks, and I might head over to the Sierra Marina depending upon continued interest.”

The team of Jim Travis, Jim Brittain, and Rick Childs took first with a three-fish limit at 5.16 pounds while Rene Villanueva and Brian Hough came in second with 5.11 pounds including the big kokanee of the derby at 2.03 pounds. Jared Romero apparently benefited from the tutoring by Wittwer as his team including Manny and Parker Romero and Bruce Marion came in third at 4.96 pounds, breaking a tie with the second-largest kokanee at 1.86 pounds. Parker Moore took the junior division with a single 1.82-pound kokanee while the team of Doug and Ron Philpott won their second consecutive trout division by obliterating the field with a 7.83-pound trout. In all, 33 of the 46 teams weighed in three-fish limits.

Anglers are requested to complete the kokanee survey at bit.ly/kokesandkings upon the completion of every trip to provide accurate information to the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

At Huntington, water releases have started, and the lake dropped significantly from 83% to 76%. The temporary closure of the Sierra National Forest has put a damper on visitors to the region.

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 1

The temporary closure of the Sierra National Forest has limited access.

Call: Wishon RV Park 865-5361

Ocean

Half Moon Bay

Salmon 1 Rockfish 4 Striper 1 White seabass 1 Crab 0 Sand dabs 3 Surf perch 3

The Dungeness crab opener is a big deal out of Half Moon Bay harbor as the upcoming November 6 recreational opener remains in jeopardy due to the changes approved by the California Fish and Game Commission last fall. The crab opener is at the discretion of the Director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife based upon the presence of endangered humpback whales in the region. Previously, the crab season closure over the past two season applied only to the commercial crab fishermen who possess exponentially more crab pots than recreational fishermen. The decision by the department has led to at least one of the major party boats out of the port leaving for Fort Bragg in the coming months while the future of another party boat is to be determined as it is for sale.

Rockfishing remains the story with the Queen of Hearts out of Half Moon Bay Sport Fishing posting 20 limits of rockfish and 2 ling cod on Saturday. The Ankeny Street also limited out for 11 anglers and 5 ling cod to 18 pounds while the Riptide loaded up with 13 limits and 4 ling cod to a whopping 33 pounds. Sunday’s score produced a cornucopia of San Mateo coastline species with the Ankeny Street returning with 20 limits of rockfish including 8 cabezon to 9 pounds, 12 ling cod to 12 pounds, and a bonus 22-pound halibut.

Captain Tom Mattusch of the Huli Cat, whose vessel has been sold and his heading north to Fort Bragg, went to the Deep Reef on Saturday for 11 limits of rockfish along with 10 ling cod to 12 pounds working deep water to 250 feet. Earlier in the week, Mattusch went out to the Guide, Pioneer Canyon, and the 601 in search of some good-looking water for albacore. Unfortunately, despite the long run, they didn’t find any bird, bait, or a hard water break as the area was ‘devoid of life.’

The lack of appearance of the Coastside Fishing Club net pen salmon has kept locals scratching their heads, but there is still optimism that they will arrive back in the harbor at some point before the season is over.

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

Monterey/Santa Cruz

Salmon 1 Rockfish 4 Striper 1 White seabass 0 Crab 0 Sand dabs 3 Surf perch 3

Allen Bushnell of Santa Cruz Kayak Fishing and Surfcasting Guide Service said, “Many anglers have a love/hate relationship with tuna fishing near Monterey Bay. In years past, we enjoyed multiple successive years of albacore runs that could last for weeks or months at a time, albeit some 30 to 60 miles off shore. Some of my best fishing memories are riding as deadhead on the Wild Wave while Captain Mike Baxter consistently brought the boat to back to the harbor with triple digits of longfins. A few years ago, we had three or four weeks of very consistent bluefin tuna in our area. Most of the big tuna were caught off Davenport near the “Fingers” area some 10 miles from Davenport. Slow-trolling mackerel seemed to be the ticket to success. While some highliners such as Tom Joseph aboard the Sara Bella from Fish On Sportfishing caught the big tuna nearly every day, it took my partner Jack Teresi and I six trips to finally land just one 55-pound fish. We were nevertheless ecstatic. For the past ten years or so, the albacore schools are arriving to feed off the coast of far northern California and southern Oregon. Bluefin were sighted here occasionally, but no sustained bite ever developed. Last week’s report of big schools of tuna and tons of mackerel (their preferred prey) got everyone’s hopes up.

Since then, the hoped-for BFT bite has not materialized. A few tuna are being reported caught nearly every day, but only in the one’s and two’s, and mostly near Big Sur or further south. There is still hope for future development, but we should be prepared for disappointment as well.

Ignoring the lure of exotic tuna action, fishing is still going very well for Monterey Bay anglers. It’s turning out to be a great year for rockfish, and the lingcod are moving in with fish in the high teens and low twenties reported caught just this week. Most impressive is the sustained halibut bite in and near the bay. Starting in April this year, anglers have been finding and hooking tons of halibut. Right now, there’s a great bite off the bull kelp bed on the North Coast above Santa Cruz. Some squid spawns are occurring in that area so that’s the recommended bait for fishing north of town. Inside the bay itself, huge schools of anchovies are crowding the beach. Plenty of halibut continue to be caught at all the “usual” areas, which include westside Santa Cruz, the Mile Buoy area, Capitola and the Cement Ship, Manresa and of course, the Pajaro Pipeline area. Near Monterey, Del Monte Beach up to Sand City continues to hold lots of flatties for free divers and line anglers. Many of these fish are still undersized (which bodes well for the future), but keepers in the 11- to 40-pound range have been consistent in the past few weeks. Capitola anglers are also reporting a few white sea bass here and there.”

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

Golden Gate/San Francisco Bay

Salmon 2 Albacore 0 Halibut 1 Striper 1 Rockfish 4 Leopard shark 4 Sturgeon 0 Crab 0

Just when you think it’s over after a week of very slow salmon action, the next wave of fish arrives from the school north of Point Reyes. Saturday’s improved salmon fishing gave hope for the coming weeks as the scores improved for six-pack operators while the larger party boats worked hard for close to a fish per rod. However, the scores came back down to reality on Sunday with only a few large salmon landed. This season has been consistently marked by inconsistency on the salmon front with a good day buoying spirits only to see a crash the following day. Rockfishing remains tremendous with the best action on the long run to the Farallon Islands or even further to Fanny Shoals, but the ling cod limits have been worth the wait.

Captain Trent Slate of Bite Me Charters out of Loch Lomond rebounded on Saturday with ‘nine biggens’ in the box trolling along the Marin coastline. He said, “We went nine for nine as the hooks were buried deep in their mouths. However, Sunday was a different story with only two salmon hooked and landed. Since we had a great day on the bow on Saturday, I had regular passenger, Justin Anderson of El Dorado Hills, on the boat, and he hooked the only two fish. But he handed off the rod both times to female anglers in the stern, and they were able to bring the fish to the net.”

Captain Steve Mitchell of Hook’d Up Sport Fishing was also trolling on Saturday, and they landed all eight bites for eight salmon to 28 pounds for their six anglers on board. He said, “It was great on Saturday, but Sunday was a whole ‘nother story with no salmon bites either by trolling or mooching. Even the rockfish weren’t biting as we only picked up a handful of rockfish while trying to salvage the trip at the end of the day.”

Captain Ron Koyasako of Nautilus Excursions out of San Francisco, aka ‘The Ghost Whisperer,’ found a white seabass on Saturday while trolling for salmon. He said, “We had a regular charter that wanted to fish for stripers and halibut, but we gave them the lowdown on the lack of action in the bay and convinced them to go outside. We started our day by filling the cooler with bottom fish and a few ling cod before putting on the troll gear for salmon. After a slow stretch when I was going through my options, a rod went off, and then a second, third, and fourth. We had a quad on, and after a few moments of chaotic activity, we put them all in the box. We circled on them together and saw some familiar marks when a big school of our favorite fish was under the boat. I called my deckhand, Hunter Nguyen up to see the meter, and by the time he made it to the helm, a reel was screaming in the stern. We landed the ghost and circled again, and this time we hooked a big one, but after a long run and some savage head shakes, it gained its freedom. We hope this is a vanguard of future schools as the prime time for white seabass is arriving from September through November. There have been small pods of sea bass on the North and South Bars over the past few weeks, but this was a huge school of over 100 fish. We ended up with limits of rockfish, 3 lings, 6 salmon, and a white sea bass. Sunday was an entirely different story with only one salmon before switching over to rockfish for limits further up the coast near Duxbury.”

Rockfishing has been incredible with the Happy Hooker and Pacific Dream out of Berkeley combining for 31 limits of rockfish including a 6-pound cabezon along with 46 ling cod at the Farallons on Saturday while the other Smith Family boats, the California Dawn and the El Dorado III came up big with 41 limits of rockfish including a cabezon and 41 limits of ling cod to 32 pounds.

Inside the bay, the action has been at a standstill for anything other than leopard shark. Captain Steve Talmadge of Flash Sport Fishing has been either heading up the Marin coastline to Muir Beach or just outside the Gate at Bonita Cove for rockfish along with working the south bay near Hunter’s Point for leopard sharks. Talmadge said, “Sharks are very consistent, but the halibut remain small with most being undersized.”

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

Near-limits of rockfish continue to be the story out of the San Luis Obispo County ports with the party boats taking a variety of trips from ½-day to long-range. Similar to every other week of the season, the longer you travel from the harbor, the better the quality of rockfish. Out of Patriot Sport Fishing at Port San Luis at Avila Beach, the Patriot, Phenix, and Flying Fish were out on Sunday on trips of varying lengths with 40 fishermen for 19 vermilion, 9 copper, 112 Bolina, 250 assorted rockfish, one rock sole, and 5 ling cod to 11 pounds for five rockfish shy of 40 limits.

Out of Morro Bay, the Fiesta, Black Pearl, and Rita G out of Virg’s Landing took out a combined 77 passengers on Sunday for 105 vermilion, 80 copper, 505 assorted rockfish, 20 canary rockfish, 18 ling cod, 15 ocean whitefish, 4 rock sole, and 2 petrale sole for near limits. Also out of Morro Bay Landing, the Avenger, Starfire, and Endeavor were out on Sunday with 60 anglers for 90 vermilion, 150 copper, 50 Boccaccio, 368 assorted rockfish, 10 treefish, one ocean whitefish, one cabezon, one rock sole, and 4 ling cod to 12 pounds for 2/3 limits of rockfish. All ports are taking trips ranging from ½ day to long range. The new sub-limit is 5 vermilions as part of a 10-rockfish limit this season.

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

Others

Delta/Stockton

Bass 3 Striper 3 Sturgeon 2 Catfish 3 Bluegill 3 Salmon 1

The river salmon continue to blow through the Delta at a fast rate due to low and warm water conditions, but there has been more success from the banks this past week depending upon when the schools are moving through. Striped bass are flooding into the Sacramento River system, and they are taken on the troll, on swimbaits, plugs, spoons, or bait from Collinsville to Rio Vista. Sturgeon six-packs are returning to the Pittsburg/Martinez area within weeks as the relative peace from fishing pressure that the diamondbacks have experienced over the past months will be interrupted. There is a disturbing trend of saltwater species moving further and further upriver with schools of anchovies observed upstream of the Carquinez Bridge.

Pam Hayes of Benicia Bait said, “There have been a few salmon showing up at both the Dillon Point State Park as well as along 1st Street in Benicia, but the last three days have been slow with only a few at the State Park and none at 1st Street. More and more fishermen are starting to show up. There have been lots of striped bass with anglers at the State Park hooking mostly undersized stripers on every cast. Blood worms, pile worms, anchovies, or grass shrimp are all working for the linesides, and there are still huge schools of small anchovies in our waters. The stripers are gorging on the anchovies, and it is similar to when they dropped the salmon smolts off of Mare Island. There have been very few anglers out for sturgeon, but this will change soon. We have been able to keep up on live grass shrimp, and Curtis is starting to get a few more bullheads in the nets.”

Zach Medinas of Gatecrasher Fishing Adventures has been working on his Farallon throughout the summer, but he should be back in the next few weeks on his very successful catch-and-release trips for white sturgeon out of Martinez. In the meantime, he and second captain, Virginia Salvador, have been targeting sturgeon in Montezuma Slough from their kayaks, catching and releasing three diamondbacks on their last trip.

The flats on the Sacramento River from Sherman Island to Liberty Island are loaded with striped bass, and Alan Fong of the Fishermen’s Warehouse in Sacramento said, “I had a friend who was throwing 5-inch Fish Traps on a ½-ounce jig head in 3 to 7 feet of water around Sherman Island, Collinsville, and in Broad Slough, and he caught and released 40 stripers over 10 pounds. The wind has been a factor, but he was out on a calm day, and the action was so good, he never had to move for over an hour with fish on nearly every cast. I was in the north Delta, and we found great action on spinnerbaits in the grass. I ended up breaking two blades on the spinnerbaits after the wire was bent so many times from landing fish. On the salmon front, we are starting to see more trollers around Clarksburg.”

Jeff Soo Hoo of Soo Hoo’s Sport Fishing said, “The wind has been a factor, and we haven’t been able to fish the locations that we would like on occasion, but there are plenty of stripers in the system. The incoming tide has been the best time, and the window has been smaller this week with a short period of the income. We went trolling on Sunday for limits of stripers, and the bite lasted until the dirty water came. The Sacramento River is holding more stripers than on the San Joaquin. We are finding them on both live bait and with spoons, and the live bait is getting larger.”

Dave Houston of Livermore took out Clyde Wands, Chester Linton and Mario Castillo on Thursday, and he said, “It was tough trolling in the wind today, but we stuck it out. They came on different color lures than on Monday (today they like chartreuse). We fished Pittsburgh, Collinsville and Broad Slough. There wasn’t much grass for us to deal with and the water temperature was about 71°. We ended up with 14 keepers and we snagged one 43-inch sturgeon. We kept a few stripers and released the rest.”

The Bad Bubba Shad swimbait on a ½-ounce jig head is working for striped bass in the west Delta on the Sacramento River side as Randy Pringle, the Fishing Instructor, has been tossing the lures over the flats for linesides to 15 pounds. Largemouth bass fishing is best in the afternoon with various lures.

Vince Borges of Vince Borges Outdoors has also been heading to the north Delta for consistent action for both striped and largemouth bass, and he said, “I run these combination trips at this time of year as you can catch both species on one type of lure. On a recent trip, we caught and released 25 to 30 stripers to 10 pounds and largemouth bass to 4 pounds on swimjigs in a golden shiner pattern. The stripers are pushing up the baby bass and the golden shiners onto the flats, and the recently-spawned bass are already 6 inches long. The swimjigs are a perfect match for the shiners. Largemouth bass are also loading up on crawdads, and the Yo-Zuri squarebill crankbait in Delta craw has been an effective lure.”

William Crooks of Sacramento was out with Neil Koepke and Ron Retzlaff this week, and he said, “We fished shallow and deep from Three Mile Slough to Collinsville for 13 keepers, 9 shakers, and two squawfish. We released the largest striper at 12 pounds, keeping limits from 4 to 9.5 pounds. The majority of stripers were landed at the bottom of the tide.”

Chris Ditter of HeadRush Guide Service will be returning to the Delta this week, and he will be targeting striped bass on the Sacramento side due to the warm water affecting the salmon run in the metropolitan Sacramento area.

The 73rd Annual Rio Vista Bass Derby is just a few weeks away on October 8th through 10th. After a hiatus in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the derby is back bigger and better with a $3000 first place prize for the target-length striped bass competition. Information on the derby is available at www:bassfestival.org.

The San Joaquin-Delta is normally the junior partner in the overall Delta system, and this has been true over the past few weeks as most striped bass fishermen are targeting the senior Sacramento side. However, there is still good fishing to be found in the San Joaquin.

1st Annual ‘Kiss My Bass’ charity tournament for the Stockton Boy’s and Girl’s Club scheduled for September 18th has been postponed due to a lack of signups. There are a number of previously scheduled tournaments in conflict with this date, and it is planned to be rescheduled during November.

Johnny Wang, manager of Turner’s Outdoors in Stockton, said, “There are striped bass ranging from 22 to 26 inches taken off of Eight Mile Road on an early morning topwater bite along with flukes. I went bassing this week out of Ladd’s, and it is still really productive for numbers flipping plastics into the rip rap. The bass are loading up on crawdads, and green pumpkin has been an effective pattern. There is an algae bloom from Center Street in downtown Stockton to the Interstate 5 Bridge. The warm water is bringing out the black crappie and bluegill in the south Delta sloughs.”

H and R Bait in Stockton reported intense fishing pressure on the banks in Whiskey Slough with striped bass in the 24- to 26-inch range on shad or anchovies, Bluegill are also thick in Whiskey and surrounding sloughs.

Dan Mathisen of Dan Mathisen Outdoors said, “Striped bass are showing up near Brown’s Island, Middle Slough, and in Sherman Island, and it has been surprisingly good for this early in the season. River2Sea’s Swavers or Optimum’s Bad Bubba Shad swimbaits have been working best. Black bass are hitting chatterbaits or by punching the weeds, and when there was overcast conditions from the smoke, spinnerbaits were working. Our Tournament of Champions is coming up on the weekend of September 25/26th out of Holland Riverside Marina in the south Delta.”

Eli Guryanov of West Sacramento also found great striped bass action in the shallows at depths from 2 to 4 feet around Frank’s Tract. He said, “I was looking for isolate weed clumps in the current, and the key was to cover water. I landed over 20 stripers on a G Kraft custom Firecraw chatterbaits.”

In the south Delta, Omega Nguyen of MegaBait and Tackle in Lathrop said, “There are a lot of stripers coming through the south Delta, and our fishermen are soaking fresh shad, anchovies, or sardines with good action. The stripers are getting larger with fewer shakers. We are getting nearly 100 pounds of fresh shad every day, and I am freezing a good portion of the shad.”

A temporary emergency drought barrier has been placed in False River to slow the movement of saltwater into the central Delta and prevent the contamination of water supplies. The work began in early June, and the temporary barrier will be removed by November 30, 2021.

Call: Randy Pringle (209) 543-6260; Captain Steve Mitchell – Hook’d Up Sport Fishing – (707) 655-6736; Chris Ditter – HeadRush Sport Fishing – (916) 284-9236; Vince Borges – Vince Borges Outdoors (209) 918-0828

Lake Nacimiento/San Antonio/Santa Margarita/Lopez

Bass 2 White bass 1 Striper 0 Catfish 3 Crappie 2 Bluegill 3 Trout 0

At Nacimiento, the water has finally stabilized at 13%, but there are a number of unmarked hazards throughout the shallow lake. A few spotted bass are taken on topwater lures in the early mornings, but the best action remains on the bottom with plastics on a slow presentation to 25 feet in depth. White bass can be found boiling intermittently in various locations within the lake, and white Kastmasters or Roostertails are effective either trolled or cast into the boils. The red ear and bluegill bite remains excellent with red worms, jumbo red worms, or wax worms. A webcam of the lake is available at http://www.lakenacimientolive.com/. At Lopez, bass action remains good with a topwater bite in the early mornings or late afternoons before dropping to the bottom with plastics, Senkos, or jigs. When the wind is blowing, spinnerbaits have been effective. The majority of largemouth bass are in the 2- to 3-pound range, but there are some larger fish taken. Panfish are biting wax worms or meal worms at depths to 15 feet. The launch ramp remains open, but it will close soon, perhaps as early as this weekend. Boaters are advised to call the marina at (805) 489-1006 for the latest launch ramp status. A webcam of the lake is available at http://805webcams.com/lopez-lake-webcam/. At Santa Margarita, the bass bite has gotten tough over the past week as the fish are averaging around 2 pounds with an occasional larger model. Limits have been difficult to put together, and the best action has been with crankbaits along with Brush Hogs, Senkos, or plastic worms on the drop-shot or Ned-rig. Catfish are a good option with cut baits scented with garlic, and there have been some double-digit whiskerfish taken from the banks. Bluegill and red ear perch are holding around shade in the shallows, especially around the docks. At San Antonio, the lake is holding at 7%, and there is minimal change over the past several weeks with the best action for catfish with Triple S Dip Baits in Bloody Formula or chuck mackerel. A few large crappie have been taken on minijigs near structure. Carp are omnipresent in the shallows, and they are more than willing to bite dough baits such as Wussy Bait. The ramp opens at 1:00 p.m. on Fridays, but it is open at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Reminder: consuming white bass, black bass, crappie, catfish, or carp are subject to safe eating guidelines due to excessive mercury.

Events

Tournament results

Shaver Lake – Kokanee Power Team Open Adult Division (Three Fish Limits)– September 11: 1st – Jim Travis/Jim Brittain/Rick Childs – 5.16 pounds; 2nd - Rene Villanueva/Brian Hough - 5.11 pounds; 3rd – Jared, Manny, and Parker Romero/Bruce Marion – 4.96.

Shaver Lake – Kokanee Power Team Open Youth Division (One Fish Limits)– September 11: 1st – Parker Moore – 1.82 pounds; 2nd – Kaitlyn Contreras – 1.28 pounds; 3rd – Hunter Woodring – 1.27.

Pine Flat – Cen Cal Elite Bass Tournaments – September 11: 1st – Bill Kunz/Cory Kerber – 15.43 pounds (Big Fish – 4.98); 2nd – Wayne Arnold/Fernando Becerra – 10.29 pounds; 3rd- Duke Homan/Don Javaux – 9.35.

Upcoming tournaments (subject to change)

September 18/19

Delta/Contra Costa County – Sierra Bass Club

Tulloch – California Bass Nation

September 18

Delta/Ladd’s Marina – Western Outdoor News/Manteca Bassin’ Buddies/Nor Cal Bass

Camanche – Slay Nation Tournament

New Hogan – Tri Valley Bassmasters

New Melones – Santa Clara Bass Busters

Don Pedro – Christian Bass League/Contra Costa Bass Club

McClure – 17/90 Bass Club

Isabella – American Bass Association

Nacimiento – San Luis Obispo Bass Ambushers

September 19

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

New Melones – Nor Cal High School Bass

Millerton – Fresno Bass Club

September 24/25

Delta/B and W Resort – California Bass Federation

September 25/26

Delta/Holland Riverside Marina – Dan Mathisen Outdoors Tournament of Champions

Clear Lake – Modesto Ambassadors

September 25

Camanche – Bass Anglers of Northern California

Success – Xtreme Bass Club

Santa Margarita – Bakersfield Bass Club

September 26

Delta/Ladd’s Marina – Riverbank Bass Anglers