CA DELTA REPORT
Updated - 8/22/2007
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Bob’s Bait Report www.themasterbaiter.com

Even the summer is only a month away but the hot days with triple digits temperature is not happen frequent like previous years. Mid-80 to high 80 is very comfortable temperature for most outdoor activities including water surfing, jet skiing, boating, fishing, camping, or jogging.

Except the windy days, jogging along the levee road in the morning or in the evening is the best to see the beauty of the Delta rivers.

Fishing for striped bass was good last weekend with anglers caught limit striped bass on either bait or trolling. The hot spot for trolling striped bass is from Vieira Resort Walnut Grove. Isleton Bridge is always the good spot for either trolling or bait fishing.

I went out with Randy, a customer who is solo fisherman on that morning. When he stop by for a cup of coffee I asked him if I can join. He agreed. We trolling mostly around Isleton Bridge and I got 1 shaker about 17” and one keeper 20” on chartreuse, red head Broken Back Rebel. In north of Walnut Grove, at the yellow bridge, it’s 6 miles from Walnut Grove, bank anglers got their limit good size striped bass on blood worm.

There was also report number of good size striped bass caught along Mokelumne river from B&W resort up to the split between north and south Mokelumne River.

Catfish fishing is hot in most of the Delta Rivers. The good bait for catfish are crawdad tail meat, clam, chicken liver, anchovy, or night crawler. Catfish bites mostly in early morning or late afternoon.

Salmon fishing is still slow at this time and will picking up by lat September.

Sturgeon fishing was also slow. Most sturgeon caught at Sherman Island were under size and released.

Best luck to you all and keep on fishing.

Kokanee Slows

Melanie Lewis reports “We are starting to see more rainbows taken by trollers- usually in mixed limits with kokanee. They are fat and full of shad- most are in the two-to-two-and-a-half pound range. Brightly colored Apex or spinners are what they are hitting, without flashers. Anglers who caught rainbows while trolling this week include John Darroch, Larry Gross, Lindsey George, Bill Cheney, and Richard Kowski. If you are fishing from the bank for trout, you will have the most luck in the local rivers and creeks. Night-fishing under submersible light is also producing limits. Some night-anglers use minnows, but a nightcrawler threaded up onto your line with new chartreuse Double-Glitter Power Bait or spring green Select Power Bait on your hook seems to be the best combo
Bass bite has been up and down, with fishing best at dawn, dusk and night. not many big fish but plenty of action for small keepers and almost-keepers. Fish are filled-to-the-gills with shad. Target main lake points and steep banks in the south side of the lake, and upriver. While there are lots of fish being caught relatively shallow, bigger fish may be deeper. Drag a Carolina-rigged 4” or 6” green weenie worm or Zoom Baby Brush Hog in green pumpkin, 25-30 feet deep. Since the water is stained, you may want to add rattles or brass’n’glass to make a little noise. With all the baby bluegill and bass in the grass in the coves, throwing a crankbait or worm in those patterns should get some action. Night fishing for bass is fun, especially during a full moon. Use big black or June bug worms or Senkos, or black or black/red spinnerbaits.
Hang on to your poles! Big cats are spawning in the cove areas, and are aggressively biting. 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. Night fishing is always best for catfish, but we see plenty caught during the day, too. Dave Rannis of LaHabra wins Glory Hole Sports’ Big Fish of the Week Contest with his 11.1 lb. cat caught, along with two others, on sardines. Don Sicka caught 5 nice cats weighing up to 8 pounds. Derek, Peter and Dylan Barrington caught 4 catfish, including a 7.5-pounder.

Lake Pardee

Water conditions: The water level rose again slightly since the last report and is at spill. Clarity is presently good to 15 feet. The water temperature measured 77 degrees at surface and 74 at the 20 foot mark at the Marina, temperatures are slightly cooler in the body of the Lake and upstream locations.

Weather: Expect warmest temperature midweek then cooling into the weekend. Early morning starts, River Mouth and upriver destinations are presently the most popular.

Trolling: Conditions are basically the same as last report. Limits are the exception for trollers; most are finishing up the day with less than a limit. Boaters are working the Narrows, the face of the Dam and the larger coves upstream. The bite is still best between 6 AM and noon. Small lures, pink/white hoochies and beaded spinners tipped with lots of garlic or anise scented white shoepeg corn followed with a large silver/blue or watermelon dodger (some are also pulling a medium sized set of ball flashers lately). The warm weather continues to heat the surface and send the fish deeper in search of cooler habitat. Look for Trout at 30 feet and some small Kokes at 60 feet.

Shore Anglers: Some brave souls were dunking bait this morning across from the Marina at Stoney Point Landing-an umbrella is a must. Rainbow Point has been the hot spot lately, use white eggs and get 30 to 40 feet out into the channel that runs parallel to shore. Sliding sinker set up still the best method.

Some recent success stories: Skip and Linda Walde of Sunnyvale show off two very nice limits of Rainbow taken at Blue Heron Pt. using white eggs. Butch and Irene Walker of New Mexico bagged two 2.5 lb trout with yellow eggs, still fishing in Twin Coves, also in Twin coves Frankie Stevens landed this nice 2 pound Rainbow using a night crawler. Nice job!!

Still Fishing: Presently still fishing is hot, start at Twin Coves and work your way through the larger coves upstream.

As of 08/21/06 a total of 57,000 lbs of trout has been planted so far this season by Pardee Lake Recreation Inc. and the California Department of Fish and Game.

Camanche Bass and Catfish Action Decent
Reports from those who have been visiting Camanche are encouraging for the Bass anglers. The bass bite continues to be red hot this week. Lots of 1-4 pound bass are being caught around the rock piles and cliffs in the Lancha Plana area. Camanche Jack's worms and leeches in smoke, green, or purple are the colors most often mentioned. The submerged island tops in the main part of the lake have been giving up plenty of bass this week. Fish 10-15 feet deep, near deeper water. Tube baits and deep running crank baits are the ticket here. The big bass for the week was caught by young Dillon Parrish, of Elk Grove. He caught an awesome 6.2 pound bass on a minnow, fishing from shore in the campgrounds at North ShoreI have been fishing topwater lures, such as Ricos or Lucky Craft Pointer minnows in Rainbow or orange are taking some good ones as well. Works areas with wind pushed current around brush and thick grass cover near the Causeway and dike #1.

Catfish action has slowed down just a little but still biting. Use Mackerel, liver or nightcrawlers from 8 to 20 deep after dark. The Camanche arm and Causeway cove are among the hottest areas to try. Don't overlook the Trout or Beaver ponds at Southshore for after-dark Catfish.

Trollers who are on the water very early, or late, report finding fish from Hat Island to the Dam, above the old river channel. Now that water temperatures have topped 81 degrees the fish are very deep during the day .between 45-65 feet. Needlefish in chartreuse color, and R-Lures and Ex-Cel lures in green/gold, and blue/gold are reported as the most successful colors this week. The bait fishing at Dike 3 continues to be great for overnighters using Power Bait, Power Eggs, or night crawlers, especially when using underwater lights at night. Anchor in about 50 feet of water, and drop your bait to the bottom. The Camanche Hypolimnetic Oxygenation System, trade named the "Speece Cone", has been in operation since the 13th of August. The H.O.S. distributes oxygen to the lower lake waters at the dam. The southern end of the dam will soon become the best place to try for Trout as the oxygen-laden water provides ideal conditions within 30 feet of the surface. The "cone" usually operates until mid-to-late October to improve the waters released into the Mokelumne river fish hatchery.

Pennies on the dollar for fishing rods, reels, baits, lures, and more? You be the judge!