Sturgeon tops in the Delta
Denis (with fish) and son Vic bonds from Manteca Courtesy Flash Fishing.

There were a couple of sturgeon taken in the Rio Vista area this past weekend below the Rio Vista Bridge. The diamondbacks grabbed shad and ghost shrimp. There are a few more schoolie-sized stripers also starting to show in the area 6-8 pounds with shad being the top choice.

On the San Joaquin River trollers are finding clearing water and trolling Rebels lures are finding stripers to 14 pounds, averaging 5 to 8 pounds, on the shoals and down to Seven Mile Slough. Shad also is fooling bass to about 5 pounds near Herman & Helen's Marina. Crappie also are active off Eight Mile Road, biting live minnows.

Jolly Joes Reports, On the old San Joaquin River, between the Navy Drive Bridge and the golf course on Rough and Ready Island, anglers are using minnows to hook stripers to 17 pounds.

Many are waiting for those minus tides and heading to the San pablo bay area. After a 2 hour drive 120 dollars in bait and launching Wayne headed for shallow water, 8 to 12 feet, especially off the Pumphouse. Wayne said "There are pesky trash fish in the area so expect plenty of action. Some flounders, too".

Most trips Wayne has reported Sturgeon ranging from sub-legal to a few keepers, Shrimpbaits, eel and roe are the top choice.

 

 

Sacramento Area Report - by Jack Chapman

Sacramento CSBA Report (2/01/2005)

Striped Bass: The striper bite has slowed but if you are willing to put in the effort you can still have results like Mark Wilson of our chapter reported, “… went striper trolling with me today. We trolled on the Sacramento River below Rio Vista. It was "one of those days". We must have had over 100 hits today trolling Bombers with White 6" Trick Worms. We lost just has many as we landed and missed a whole lot more. The stripers bit all through the tides, but they were on the small side. 4 shaker stripers and 28 keepers to 7 pounds was the final tally. We had one on that might have gone 10#, but it shook the hook. Hope last week's rains do not muddy up the water. The water temp made 50 degrees today and with the water clarity the way it is and the influx of "new" stripers, things might start waking up from the winter's sleep. We tried throwing Fish Traps for a while during mid-day, but we did not have a hit.” Another angler reported, “…trolling for stripers near highway 12 bridge near B. & W.resort.4 hits 6 keepers,2 lost fish. As the outgoing started getting stronger, toward low tide. Georgiana started dumping dirty water into Mokelumne, headed to tower park bridge did well there with the biggest being a 11#.home showered and dry by 5:30pm.and of course i did not keep any fish. Inside rod was hot spot. Clown color broken back rebels (Mark Wilson style)…”

Sturgeon: It is sturgeon time. Go now for your best chance at these prehistoric fish. They are being caught all the way from the South Bay to Isleton on the Sacramento River. You have to put your time in. You have to be patient and observant. It also doesn’t hurt to have a little bit of luck. If you do you just might have a report like these from my friends over at Coastside, “Fished Sunday off of Oakland airport in about 16 ft of water. I was south of the line up about 100 yards; started with Grass/Ghost shrimp with no takers. Heard they were hitting on herring on the VHF and was lucky enough to have some on board, switched to grass/herring and started picking up more bites and scored my first keeper , 55 inches - 40 Lbs. It was great!” and, “about 10 minutes to get his 48" sturgeon about 2 mi. NE of the pump house this morning. He was pretty excited and said it's a gorgeous day and he was using ghost shrimp.”

Where I’d Fish This Upcoming Weekend

• The Sacramento River from Collinsville to Decker Island Trolling rebels and bombers in 5 to 10 feet of water.
• South Bay (above the Dumbarton Bridge) and San Pablo Bay in the triangle for Sturgeon with herring if you have it else with grass shrimp and eel.

Good luck and tight lines.

Isleton Area
by Sylvia Vieira -- Vieira's Resort

There have not been many fisherman out since Christmas, however the ones that want to muster the very cold, foggy and rainy weather are catching some sturgeon. We even have a few stripers caught as the river seems to be clearing a little. We had a couple of nice 15 pound stripers in on Saturday, one out of the Old Sacramento River near Vieiras on the North Bank, and one by the Rio Vista Bridge, both were off of shad.

We had Mike Gibson of West Sacramento with a hugh 86 pound sturgeon caught at the Rio Vista Bridge.

We had Rod and Rod (The Grandson) Kiehm of Elk Grove with a very nice sturgeon caught at the Rio Vista Bridge on pile worms no size was given.

We had Terry Payne of Valley Springs with a 48 pound sturgeon also caught at the Rio Vista Bridge on ghost shrimp.

Don Harder of Vieira's Resort has been bringing in some sturgeon from light 36-A one was 48 inches and two days later he caught a 52 inch one.

Since we have had so much rain, snow etc, here and back East, some baits are hard to get at times, like the pileworms, grass shrimp. But the ghost is pretty easy to come by. Other baits to use for the sturgeon are squid and eel. It should start picking up more each day, as February, March and part of April are always good sturgeon months.

Good Luck
Sylvia Vieira

 

Flash Fishing Report www.flashfishing.net

A bit about Captain Steve, Captain Steve fished the San Francisco Bay since 1970, when his grandfather would take him out to the old Berkeley pier. He bought his first boat in 1980 and got his Captain's license in 1997. He enjoys small groups (no more than 6) and gives personal attention to all. Having 2 young daughters himself, he is especially patient with children on the boat. Bring your own equipment or use Steve's top of the line equipment. Steve has impressive state of the art commercial electronics on the boat to optimize your fishing experience! And yes, we went to the same High School, Welcome Capt. Steve!

Steve reports things are turning around in the West Delta, The bite did slow a little the last 3 days.
These photos are from yesterday.1/30/06
Denis (with fish) and son Vic bonds from Manteca.
Denis landed this 49" sturgeon( with the help from his son) in 32' of water 1 mile west of Garnet pt.Used eel/ghost shrimp during the max current of the outgo.

 

 

Capt. Steve
Flash
Sport Fishing

 

 

 

 

Trout: Continues to be great! Many of the rainbows are big, red, and hook-jawed, weighing 3-to-5 pound on average. Most anglers are catching 2-4 quality fish. Trout can be seen swirling and chasing shad all over the lake, especially in major coves. Trollers and bank anglers alike are still having success. This has been by far the best fishing we have seen in years. Most trollers are catching fish in the top 15-20 feet of water, so downriggers aren’t necessary. It is important when trout are near the surface to have plenty of line out while trolling (your lure should be at least 100 ft. behind your boat). Your boat chop will spook the fish from the water’s surface, and you want to give them time to come back up and see your lure. Another great way to keep your lure out of the boat’s chop is to use a side planer. Many fish have been caught in the main lake, as well as at the mouths of major creek arms and coves and upriver between the two bridges. Using a crawler or crawler/spinner combo (wedding rings or Uncle Larry’s) with ProCure nightcrawler scent is working well. Shad-patterned lures continue to produce many excellent fish. Try a broken-back or Countdown Rapala, a Cop Car or threadfin shad Needlefish, or an Excel lure. Most trollers are not using dodgers or flashers. Glory Hole Sport’s BIG FISH OF THE WEEK (salmonoid) goes to Arnold Boatman from Manteca for his 7.8# Brown trout caught near the spillway while trolling a homemade silver lure during the afternoon. Arnold also caught nice fish, some over 3# on another day this week while fishing with Ken Howze using gray Needlefish. Other successful trollers this week were: Howard Thielbar, Jamestown (5.8#), Dennis DeHart, Los Gatos (5.4#), Jacob Parker, Antioch (4.8#), David Eastwood, Arnold (4.1#), Harold Garibaldi, Acampo (3.7#), Jay Daniels, Wilton (3.7#), Glade Faulkner, Toaly (3.7#), Larry Gross, Fiddletown (3.8#), Ed Weikum, Mountain Ranch, David Eastwood, Arnold (3.3#), Bob Reinhardt, Jr., Morgan Hill (3.3#), Don Myshrall, Mokelumne Hill (limit of planters). Bank fishing has still been going strong with successful anglers using a variety of colors of Power Bait including yellow, rainbow glitter and green or chartreuse. A crawler/marshmallow combo has been working well also. Bank anglers who came into Glory Hole Sports with nice fish this week include: Jim Secora, Tuolumne (4.7#), Al Judnich, Sonora (4.3#), Dave Camden, Arnold (4.0#), Jim Comphel, Twain Harte (4.1#), Fred Roberts, Modesto (4.0#), Frank Jocksch, Millbrae (3.7#), Mike Derby, Jr., Rail Road Flat (3.5#), Jessica Keyes, Linden (1#).

Kokanee: Done for the season, although trollers are picking up a few 8” fish.

Bass: Bass are suspended holding in 30-40 feet of water for the most part, with an occasional angler reporting catching shallow fish during overcast skies or some of our warmer rainstorms. A few anglers have reported observing an early spring behavior with the bass. Target the mouths of creek arms and submerged islands, and up into the deeper creek arms. When the wind comes up, the fish will sometimes move shallow to chase the bait that the wind is blowing into the shore. Drop-shot rigs with shad-patterned or crawdad-colored worms are going to produce the most fish, but bigger fish will be caught with brown jigs or swim baits. Jigging a spoon over submerged islands, 30-60 feet deep, is another good choice for winter bass fishing.

Catfish: slow though an occasional angler does catch one now and then. Dave Fong of Sonora came in with an 11pound cat caught near Bear Creek while trout fishing with green Power Bait. Dave wins the Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week (catfish) with his big cat. Tuttletown, Angels Cove, Glory Hole Point, or under the 49 Stevenot Bridge are all good spots to try for big cats. Use mackerel, anchovies, or sardines, a sliding sinker, leave your bail open, and be sure your hooks are sharp.

Crappie and bluegill: Slow. Try fishing live minnows or trying to entice them with jigs in red/white or purple/white. Target coves or some of the major creek arms that have a lot of stand-up trees in them fishing at 30-40 ft. depths. As always, fish tight to structure.

 

Lake Pardee

Lake Pardee will finally re open the gates for the 2006 season on THURSDAY February the 2nd for Campers and Recreational Vehicles only. The gate will be manned until 11 PM both Thursday and Friday for the opening. Fishing for shore anglers will begin FRIDAY morning the 3rd at 12:01 AM and at daybreak the same day for boaters. The Lake Pardee Management and Staff are looking forward to welcoming back all our friends both old and new.

Lake level is normally 10 foot or more below the spillway this time of year in anticipation of runoff from winter storms. The forecast is calling for some wet stuff this weekend so some dirt and debris will end up in the water but it never lasts long and the clarity quickly recovers to 10 feet or beyond.

Three plants are scheduled by Lake Pardee and another by the Department of fish and Game prior to season opening.

All facilities (except the pool) and services will be available on opening weekend. Check the Marina for all your fishing, boating, bait and snacking needs. The Coffee Shop is always a great place to start whether it’s a full breakfast or just a steaming cup of coffee to kick start your day.

Good Luck---Tight Lines.

For information or reservations call (209) 772-1472

 

The Lake Camanche Fishing Report - January 24, 2006

LAKE CONDITIONS:

Lake Camanche’s current elevation is 217.56 feet above sea level, a drop of 4.4 feet since last Sunday. The surface temperature at the dam is 53.8 degrees F. and drops to 50.6 degrees at the bottom. The surface temp readings upriver are 49 degrees, a result of lots of inflow from Pardee Lake. The lake waters are slightly colored with a Secchi dish reading of 11 feet at the dam and 6 to 9 feet at the upriver sampling locations.

Gate hours for North and South shores are 5 A.M. TO 11 P.M.

TROUT: There were lots of anglers out yesterday taking lots of limits of 1 pound to 6 pound Rainbows. Most trollers did best with floating Rapalas in Fire tiger or gold/black back. Another hot ticket is to troll Sep’s Scented Pro Grubs in chartreuse; pink or orange about 4 feet behind a ¼ ounce split shot or try Needlefish in bright colors, such as the #581 pearlescent white or #054, which is chartreuse with fire dots. When the skies are cloudy or overcast, the fish are right on the surface; if the sun appears , use leadcore to get down to 15 feet deep or so. John and Shirley Bartlett, of Ripon, caught 2 limits of beautiful rainbows this week. They were trolling with Uncle Larry’s spinners, and also wedding rings, and caught most of their fish up the river. Rich and Maureen Drawbert, from Camanche, caught their limits of trout while fishing in shallow water near the islands outside of Camper’s Cove. They were using Power Bait.

Bank angling has improved lately, thanks mostly to the fog and overcast keeping the ‘bows close to shore. Use Power Bait in orange or chartreuse near the North ramp or South Chevron Point. Casting and retrieving the Magic Bullet works off the banks early and again late in the day.

South Shore pond action is very good since we planted the pond with over 600 pounds last week. All sorts of stuff work at the pond; best bet is to use Power Bait in chartreuse or white. Jim Murray, from Camanche, caught a 13.11 pound rainbow from the pond this week using a Pistol Pete lure.

This week’s trout plant of 1,200 pounds will be at North Shore.

BASS: The W.O.N. Bass tournament was held at Lake Camanche on Saturday. We congratulate Leandro Sanchez and Bill Martin for winning the meet with a big fish of 8.41 pounds, and a total weight of 16.62 pounds. Jay LeClerc and Bob Haag had a 5 fish limit weighing 14.63 pounds, and Taylor Parsons and Jeremiah Payne had a total weight of 14.5 pounds. Brown or purple jigs, and worms in brown, purple, or blue were some of the favorite baits. Most bass were in 15-30 feet of water.

BOTH NORTH SHORE AND SOUTH SHORE STORES ARE CURRENTLY CLOSED DURING THE WEEK AND OPEN ON THE WEEKENDS ONLY. BOAT RENTALS ARE AVAILABLE DURING THE WEEK BY TELEPHONE RESERVATION ONLY. PLEASE CALL NORTH SHORE (209-763-5166), OR SOUTH SHORE (209-763-5915) FOR DETAILS. BOTH SHORES ARE OPEN EVERY WEEKEND (WEATHER PERMITTING).

Northshore store:(209) 763-5166

North gate: (209) 763-5922

Boat rental reservations are recommended.
Phone North: (209) 763-5166 Phone South: (209) 763-5915.

Southshore store: (209)763-5915

South gate: (209) 763-5913

Gate hours for North and South shores are 5 A.M. TO 11 P.M.