Fish Sniffer Magazine Volume 43 Issue 07 | Page 20

20 June 7 , 2024

VOL . 43 • ISS . 7

lake being so full . We started trolling near Dekka ’ s rock and I landed a beautiful 21 inch brown on a red / black / white Hot Ticket spoon at 15 feet deep . That would be a money fish in the derby ! We caught a couple more smaller rainbows as we trolled upstream . With the full lake we were able to go under the McCloud River bridge and go upstream a little further . We landed 7 rainbows and 1 brown on Friday . Almost everything came on red / black / white Hot Ticket and Speedy Shiner lures trolled about 2.5 mph and 20 feet or less in depth . Friday evening , we convened at the Bass Hole for drinks and dinner , and good natured comraderie with the other fishermen in attendance . We enjoyed the excellent Basshole Burger with homemade fries that filled all of us to the “ gills ”. Back at our cabin , we had a touch of bourbon and a cigar and tried to figure out a plan for Saturday . Saturday morning , John and I headed down to the boat about 5:30 am . Weather had come in overnight , and it was blowing from the south about 30 mph and sheets of rain were going sideways up the arm of the lake . We just sat in the truck for about a half hour , thinking it would be ridiculous to go out in that mess ! Finaly we put on full rain gear and got into the boat and slowly headed into the south wind . We snuck into Salt Creek cove which sheltered us from the wind and trolled to the east . We trolled for about a half hour as the wind slowed down but it continued raining . Thank goodness we had put the side curtains on John ’ s boat ! We headed out the Sacramento arm and back up the McCloud to Dekka ’ s rock where we had caught fish yesterday . We trolled back and forth past the rock and back up for one 17 inch rainbow . We decided to move and ran out of the McCloud and over to Bass Cove which was somewhat sheltered from the wind . Another 17 inch rainbow came into the boat , but nothing very exciting . We had not seen any bait and only a few marks wherever we went . Finally we ran over to Dry Fork and trolled into the northern bay and started marking – and catching – trout . Nothing real big , but at least we had enough to weigh in . The weigh in for the derby is at the Bass Hole and Brews parking lot in Lakehead . Most fisherman had caught fish , and the top 10 folks all had at least one brown of 3 to 5 pounds in their bag . Big fish of the day was an 7.87 pound brown caught by the Nick Brito team . Sunday morning , we were on the boat and heading out before 5:30 . The weather was much nicer than Saturday . No rain , partly cloudy with just a nice trolling breeze most of the day . John and I headed back to Dry Fork where we caught fish yesterday . Within 5 minutes I had a good hit on the Red Racer Speedy Shiner at 25 feet deep and landed a 18 inch rainbow . A good way to start the day . We caught several more trout , but

Magnificent snow covered Mt . Shasta looms over it ’ s namesake during the Spring Trout & Salmon Derby .

Photo by Paul Kneeland , Fish Sniffer Staff nothing of any size . We ended up with about a dozen trout for the day , but again nothing big . Our largest was a 20 inch rainbow that came in at 2.99 pounds . Our best lures for the trip were Speedy Shiners in black / white / red , and Hot Ticket Lures in black / white / Red . We didn ’ t get anything on our favorite Mag Lips , Tasmanian Devils or Kastmasters . Back at the weigh in at the Bass Hole , there was a pretty good line up of folks weighing in which is always a good sign . To be in the money , you had to have landed at least one 3 to 5 pound trout . The winning team was the Nick Britto team with a total 2 day weight of 28.74 pounds and the grand prize of $ 2000 . Cash prizes were paid all the way down to 20th place . The leaders from our cabin were Kurt and Jen from Wyoming who came in 17th place and got a check for $ 145 ! The Shasta Lake Trout derbies are always a lot of fun for all of us . Shasta Lake is an amazing fishery , not only for trout , but for bass , crappie , king salmon and now kokanee ! The derbies feature an included dinner at the Lions Club in Lakehead with excellent food and great camaraderie . The weigh ins are always produced at the remodeled Bass Hole and Brews bar and grill in Lakehead that features many craft beers , great cocktails and good food . We stayed at the lovely Tsasdi Resort in Lakehead . Tsasdi features 20 cabins with one , two or 3 bedrooms , plus heated swimming pool , 230 foot concrete dock , game room , satellite TV and much more . They also have an incredible venue for weddings , retreats and reunions . For more information , give them a call at 530-238- 2575 or go to www . tsasdiresort . us For more information on the Spring Trout & Salmon Derby held in May of each year , go to www . kokaneepower . org . The Shasta Lake Fall Trout Derby held in October of each year is presented by the Shasta Lake Business Owners Association . For information , go to www . shastalaketroutderby . com

Fish Sniffer Publisher Paul Kneeland with a 21 inch German Brown caught on a Red Racer Speedy Shiner in the McCloud arm of Shasta Lake . Photo by John Brassfield , Fish Sniffer Staff

Kevin Smith of Kokanee Power shows off a 4 ½ pound brown caught 60 feet deep on a custom KPex lure at the Shasta Lake Trout & Salmon Derby .

Photo by Karla Smith

Nick Brito Team Jack Shultz Team Dale Gibbons Team Ryan Johnson Team C J Sierra Team Fred McAlister Team Tom Hamada Team Chris Hoagland Team Russ Millian Team Dan Henninger Team Kevin Smith Team Mark Sepelyak Team Warren Frederickson Team Pete Duvall Team Mike Giovacchini Team Gary Coe Team

Kurt Koch Team Doug Philpot Team David Mayo Team Bob Hamilton Team

28.74 lbs 21.02 lbs 20.08 lbs 19.73 lbs 19.59 lbs 19.54 lbs 19.12 lbs 18.76 lbs 18.74 lbs 18.55 lbs 18.33 lbs 17.83 lbs 17.53 lbs 17.29 lbs 17.13 lbs 16.99 lbs 16.68 lbs 16.66 lbs 16.66 lbs 16.02 lbs