41 Years Serving Sportsmen

Vol . 42 - ISS . 13

Our 40th Year

Since 1982

“ The Magazine for West Coast Sportsmen !” INSIDE

Area Reports

Hot Summer Trout fishing at Lake Shasta

T he heat of mid-summer is not when most folks think of good trout fishing in our lower elevation reservoirs . But it has been my experience that the Best trout fishing in Lake Shasta is in late August ! John Brassfield and I headed up to Shasta on a hot Thursday afternoon . We stopped at our cabin at Sugarloaf Cottages in Lakehead to unload some gear , then launched the Fish Sniffer Rogue Jet Coastal 21 at the ramp next door . It was about 3 in the afternoon and the air temperature was 95 degrees , which isn ’ t too bad for Shasta in August .

GONE FISHING by Paul Kneeland

We didn ’ t expect too much of an afternoon bite with the water temperature at 82 degrees , but were pleasantly surprised . We headed down the Sacramento arm of the lake to the main body . I told John I wanted to look for the two stainless steel tube downrigger weights that I had lost in May at the Spring Trout & Salmon derby . I had a pretty good idea of where they were , so we headed first to Waters Gulch . I remembered a large rock jutting to the surface of the water in the spring , and as we idled up to the shore , I could see a similar big rock about 30 feet out of the water . I jumped out of the boat , and had a hard time clambering up because of all the loose dirt and shale below the big rock . I managed to walk a short way around the slope , and suddenly I saw downrigger cable snaking behind a large rock . And low and behold , there

John Brassfield of Trucksmart Stores shows off a fat 3 ½ pound rainbow caught on a Mack ’ s Lure Humdinger at 80 feet deep at Lake Shasta .

Photo by Paul Kneeland , Fish Sniffer staff

was my tube weight , snubber and even the release clip !! What a lucky find ! Then we ran over to Digger Bay , where in the spring we were trolling into the marina area when my downrigger banged once and my weight was gone ! I couldn ’ t figure it out , because I didn ’ t become hung up – it just seemed to fall off ? As we arrived in Digger Bay , I was looking for something that would have taken my downrigger ball . There were a couple of trees that were the right distance

CONTINUED ON PG 22

NOAA , UCSC & New Rayann Salmon Research Project

M

onday , August 21st , a couple of melatonin gummies , 2:30 a . m . and 2:47 a . m . alarms set , gear packed , French press prepped , weather checked , and I was off to bed at 6:30pm . The anxiousness , excitement , and curiosity made it a little tricky to fall asleep , as it was the first time this year I was going salmon fishing in the morning . This was no

WHAT ’ S HOT by Cat Kaiser

ordinary salmon fishing trip , though . This was a catch-and-release tagging project for research during the closed salmon season and an opportunity of a lifetime . First , I would be fishing on the New Rayann with Captain Johnny ( Fresh ) Atkinson , and I knew if there was only one boat out there looking for salmon , this was the boat that was going to find them . Second , and most importantly , this fishing trip was day five and six of a

The first salmon of day five of the study is ready to be measured for fat content , length , and girth .

Photo Courtesy of Cat Kaiser six-and-a-half-day study and research project . This study , per the NOAA tracking link , https :// rb . gy / mncbv is “ The first acoustic telemetry project in California ’ s Central Valley specifically focused on understanding the relationship between water temperatures and migration of adult Chinook salmon . This study , conducted by University of California - Santa Cruz ,

in affiliation with NMFS - Southwest Fisheries Science Center , and with funding from the CA Water Resources Control Board , is intended to inform potential water temperature targets to ensure successful migration of adult Chinook salmon through the Central Valley watershed .”

CONTINUED ON PG 20

September 8 , 2023

FRESHWATER REPORTS Lake Amador - Bullards Bar Lake ........................... 10 Collins Lake - Del Valle Reservoir ............................ 11 Ebbetts Pass Region .............................................. 12 Eagle Lake - Ebbetts Pass Region .......................... 13

Eagle Lake - Folsom Lake .................................. 16 Los Vaqueros Reservoir - Lake Oroville ............. 17 Pardee Lake - Prosser Reservoir ........................ 18 Prosser Reservoir ................................................ 19 Sacramento River - Shasta Lake ......................... 21 Rio Vista / Delta - Stampede Reservoir ................. 22 Lake Tahoe - Truckee / Little Truckee Rivers ........ 23

SALTWATER REPORTS Fisherman ’ s Wharf / Berkeley - Half Moon Bay ..... 27 Monterey Bay ........................................................... 29

FEATURES

Where ... When ... How ...

GO FOR IT : Staff ........................................................ 4 MAP FEATURE : Dan Bacher ................................ 14-15 SPOTLIGHT ON CONSERVATION : Dan Bacher ....... 26

STAFF TACKLE

What We ’ re Using

Ernie Marlan targeted striped bass on the California Delta . He found a nice school of fish in the 5-10 pound range that he caught and released while using a lipless crankbait . He used a Lew ’ s Elite TLE610MH 10-20lb rod team up with an Elite Ti reel spooled up with 30lb braid and a 16lb fluorocarbon leader .

Paul Kneeland fished Shasta Lake with John Brassfield in the Fish Sniffer 21 ’ Rogue Jet Coastal . They caught rainbow and brown trout to 21 inches and 4.2 pounds using a Lamiglas 7 ½ foot ultralight graphite rod with a Daiwa Lexa low profile line counter reel loaded with 6 lb test PLine flourocarbon line .. They trolled Mack ’ s Lures Humdingers , Hot Ticket and Silver Horde spoons in black shad , white / red and Glow colors behind Vance ’ s Tackle cannonball flashers off the Canon Downriggers at 80 to 95 feet deep and 2.2 mph .

Dan Bacher fished for rainbow trout at Loon Lake in the Crystal Basin . He used a Berkley Ugly Stik GX2 6 ’ 6 ” medium action spinning rod , teamed up with a Shakespeare GX235 spinning reel filled with 8 lb . test P-Line CX Premium Fluorocarbon Coated Line . He fished with 1 / 8 oz silver / blue Kastmasters and Berkley Tequila Sunrise Power Bait on a # 14 Eagle Claw gold treble hook on a sliding sinker rig .

Fish Sniffer Magazine Volume 42 Issue 13 | Page 2