VOL . 44 • ISS . 2

The Port of West Sacramento and Sacramento Deep Water Ship Channel offer striped bass , largemouth bass and channel and white catfish for anglers to target year-round .

Photo by Dan Bacher

Access to the port area was opened by the City of West

Sacramento . Located at 2100 Jefferson Boulevard in West Sacramento across from the South River Road , the access features an all-weather vehicle parking area , an all-weather walking / biking trail and fishing access along the south bank of the Barge Canal . The barge canal is lined with trees , so anglers fishing during the heat of the summer can take advantage of the shade . The area includes picnic and sitting fixtures , port and environmental resource interpretive panels and trash and recycling receptacles . For somebody using a motorized boat , there are only two ways to

Rick Tietz of Blade-Runner Tackle shows off a limit of quality stripers that he landed while fishing his spoons in the Port of West Sacramento .

Photo courtesy of Rick Tietz get access to the port area - become a member of the Washington Outboard Club by getting on a waiting list or make the long run from Rio Vista or Hogback Island to the Deepwater Channel and port . However , there is a hand-carry boat ramp located at the Barge Canal Recreational Access in West Sacramento . Motorized boats aren ’ t allowed . The barge canal ramp is just fine if you want fish from a kayak , float tube , canoe or other non-motorized boat . Shore anglers park at this access and walk to their fishing spot ; you can ’ t park on the levees anymore . The access is only open from dawn until dusk . The port of Sacramento and Port of Sacramento first became known by anglers for the large channel catfish that were caught here in the late sixties and early seventies , but the average size of the fish has declined in recent years . The explosion of the catfish population was probably spurred by the influx of food and nutrients that took place when the port was finished in 1963 . Now most of the cats are fish in the 1 to 2-pound range , with an occasional larger white or channel catfish . Mackerel , chicken liver , nightcrawlers , minnows , sardines and prepared baits are your best bets for the whiskerfish . In recent years , the port and ship channel has supported a popular fishery for striped bass . Striped bass are caught throughout the year , but the port really gets going from October through April when the stripers move into the port to feed on the big schools of shad that congregate here . When the water is high and muddy in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and Delta sloughs like it has

Kevin Zhong of Sacramento proudly displays two chunky largemouth bass that he caught in the Port .

Photo by Dan Bacher

been after this February ’ s storms , the Port of Sacramento and Sacramento Deep Water Ship Channel offer anglers a chance to catch striped bass , black bass , crappie and catfish in clearer , protected water . Four anglers - Mark Wilson , Mike Steer , Ron Retzlaff and Neil Koepke – decided to check out the striped bass action in the channel and port during one January adventure . They were pleased with what they found after making a 30 mile run in a boat to the port from the Hogback Island boat launch on Steamboat Slough in Walnut Grove . “ We started trolling in the deep water channel about five miles from the port ,” said Wilson . “ As we trolled towards the port , the water became clearer and the water temperature rose