10 March 28, 2025 VOL. 44 • ISS. 3

LAKE AMADOR

The Trophy Trout Bonanza Continues

IONE – Lake Amador continues to be the Mother Lode’ s trophy trout factory.“ We brought up 1000 pounds of Cutbows and monster trophy golds in there,” said Lee Lockhart at the Lake Amador Resort..“ It looks like the rain is gone for a while, but it left us with a completely full lake that is currently spilling. We love seeing that water go over the spillway.”“ There is lots of action for anglers using PowerBait from shore and trolling Speedy Shiners from boats. There are only 10 days left until the end of the derby. Now’ s a great time to go after those tagged derby trout. It looks like there are still about 100 fish out there,” said Lockhart. Koke Machine Guide Service reported 10 fish by 11:00 a. m. for two anglers during a recent trip to Amador. The fishermen landed the trout while

trolling Speedy Shiners from the Dam to Jackson Creek. Big fish honors got to Gary, who landed a 12 lb. Amagold on one trip and a 7 pounder on his latest fishing adventure. He caught the biggest one on a spinner and the 7 pounder on a secret bait on the dam. Rosalia Herrera from Elk Grove used PowerBait from the shoreline to catch a tank of an Amagold weighing around 10 lbs. Tony Hobbs bagged a nice limit of trout while using Speedy Shiners with DG Guide Service. Tony Evers caught a trophy Amador Gold using Rainbow PowerBait on the North side of the Dam. it weighed in at 7.5 lbs.

- Dan Bacher

Kelly Lindstrom shows off a fine striper from the delta fishing with Captain Rickey Acosta.

Photo courtesy of Feeding Frenzy Sport Fishing

LAKE ALMANOR

Water Clarity and Fishing Picking up now

Cool mornings and pleasant afternoons have been the vibes on Lake Almanor lately. Runoff flows have slowed, and the water level has seen little to no movement lately, currently sitting basically five and a half feet from full at 4488.6 ft. Water clarity, which has been very poor in the east basin, is definitely improving. Much of that water now shows green instead of“ chocolate milk” brown. Hamilton branch continues to kick out dirty water reducing clarity the closer you get to the mouth. The west basin along the peninsula has much better water visibility. Water temperatures are currently running in the upper 30’ s to 40 degrees. Action for trollers is picking up in the east basin, from the dam to Dorado and even up by Big Springs, as the watercolor has improved so has the bite. The Rec 1 side of the peninsula is also showing signs of life. This week the fish have been biting from the buffet, with lots of options for anglers. Worms, plastics and trolling flies continue to work while hardware like spoons and Rapala’ s are starting to get some attention. The fish have branched out, now using more of the water column to hunt for pond smelt and can be found from 10 to 35 feet. The catch continues to be a mix of Browns and Bows with rumors of some large fish making an appearance. Bank anglers throwing lures, bait and flies have been working the coves of the west shore with some success as is typical for this time of year. Fly anglers are getting grabs on slow stripped streamers in pond smelt patterns as well as cinnamon colors. Traffic on the lake is light with an increase on the weekends. The Canyon Dam Boat Ramp is currently open and useable. Looks like the milder weather pattern is going to stay for a while! Report courtesy of Almanor Fishing Association.

AMERICAN RIVER

Steelhead Bite Slows Down, Stripers and Shad Expected Soon

RANCHO CORDOVA – When water releases to the American River below Nimbus Dam were running at 4,000 cfs, there was a“ great steelhead bite,” reported Kailyr Perry, fishing guide. However, the fishing has slowed down since the flows went down to 1300 cfs.“ We were catching chrome-bright fish in the 4 to 8 lb. class,” said Perry.“ We averaged about 4 fish per trip. However, on my last trip to the river, we caught only steelhead smolts.”“ We fished with plugs, beads and divers with roe in the stretch of river from Sailor Bar to Rossmoor Bar,” he stated. Now anglers should look forward to the spring shad and striper runs in the river, along with a few spring steelhead. Perry noted that the striped bass bite should pick up in the Sacramento at the mouth of the American with the arrival of warmer weather. Steelhead spawning at Nimbus Fish Hatchery is over for the season.“ Well, folks, that’ s a wrap on spawning season,” the hatchery reported.“ The fish ladder has been drained, and will remain empty until the salmon return again in the fall.”“ The visitor center remains open every day, and while the raceway ponds are empty at the moment, we anticipate that the baby salmon will be moved outdoors in a few weeks. Meanwhile, you can feed fish at the American River trout hatchery raceways just downstream from the visitor center.,” they concluded.

- Dan Bacher

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