Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition 3804 Feb 1-15 2019 | Page 6

4 FRESHWATER Feb 1-15, 2019 FRESHWATER REPORTS ALMANOR Winter Fishing Pressure Light CHESTER - With the exception of a few locals, there is nearly zero fishing pressure at Lake Almanor. There is good chance of visiting anglers hooking up with both browns and rainbows, but at this point few have taken the plunge and made a trip up to this north state trout factory. If you are a troller looking to get your trout on, the East Shore is a good bet. “This time of the year I typically do best with either Arctic Fox flies or soft plastics. The trout will be feeding on pond smelt in the top 20 feet, so that’s where you’ll want to make your presentation. The water is cold, so a slow troll typically works best,” advises Bryan Roccucci of Big Daddy’s Guide Service. Local anglers working from the bank typically hook up at this time of the year while fishing Geritol Cove near the dam. For rainbows PowerBait and Power Eggs will do the trick. For a shot at a brown, inflated worms or natural colored salmon eggs work the best. If you’d like to hit the water for some winter trout action, give Captain Roccucci a call at (530) 370-1001 and he’ll put you on some epic fish! AMERICAN RIVER Drift Boaters Hook Up As More Steelhead Show ORANGEVALE – Shore anglers and drift boaters are experiencing decent fishing for steelhead on this popular urban river as big numbers of steelhead show at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery. “We’re seeing lots of steelhead now,” said Gary Novak, hatchery manager. “A total of 1,328 steelhead have gone up the ladder to date. During the latest spawn, we spawned 24 pairs of steelhead. We released the steelhead back into the river, but the trap was all full again this morning.” The hatchery has taken a total of 550,000 eggs to date. “We plan to taken 1,000,000 green eggs so we can meet our goal of 430,000 smolts.” Novak noted that the fish that were released during the high water year of 2017 are the steelhead that are coming back now. Most of the steelhead are in the 7 to 11 lb. range. After not catching any fish on his previous venture, Jerry Lampkin of TNG Motor Sports Guide Service ended up with two steelhead on his latest drift boat adventure between Sailor Bar and Sunrise. “Michael J Peckham and I caught and released two downrunner steelhead,” said Lampkin. “We hooked the 30 inch male while swing ¼ oz. chrome Little Cleo and landed the 28 inch female while back trolling a chore Hot Shot.” Lampkin also reported that bank anglers are catching some fresh steelhead while fishing salmon roe, spinners and spoons in the Gristmill area. The stretch of river that reopened to fishing on January 1 is from the U.S. Geological Survey gauging station cable crossing about 300 yards down-stream from the Nimbus Hatchery fish rack site to the SMUD power line crossing at the southwest boundary of Ancil Hoffman Park. Water releases to the American below Nimbus Dam remain at 1800 cfs. - Dan Bacher AMERICAN BASIN/ JENKINSON RESERVOIR Fishing Pressure Light on Sierra Lakes AUBURN – With the storms moving through the Sierra Nevada, few anglers have been reported fishing for trout in the American River or Yuba River watersheds in the past couple of weeks. “I haven’t heard of anybody fishing at Sugar Pine Lake lately,” said Craig Newton at Willfish Bait and Tackle. “However, some locals are doing well on trout at Scotts Flat Lake near Nevada City. “They reported catching limits of rainbows while flat lining with dodgers and worms.” The CDFW scheduled a trout plant in Halsey Forebay in Placer County for the week of January 13 to 19, as well as a plant in Fuller Lake in Nevada County the same week. Another option is Jenkinson Lake near Pollock Pines. Trolling from a boat with nightcrawlers and dodgers and minnow imitation lures or bait fishing with Power Bait, Mice Tails and worms is your top prospect for hooking rainbows. Mackinaw trout are also possible this time of year for bank anglers fishing off the second dam. Most of the macks hit nightcrawlers, although throwing out a trout swimbait or a rainbow Rapala with your second rod is also worth a try. BERRYESSA LAKE Bass Enthusiasts Target Shallow Water with Umbrella Rigs NAPA - The water is cold at Lake Berryessa, but that hasn’t stopped the black bass from biting an array of baits in shallow water. Shane Latreille at Sweeney’s Sports reported solid fishing on this most recent trip to the lake. “I caught a 7-1/2 pound largemouth while throwing an umbrella rig,” said Latreille. “My fishing partner and I hooked and released between 15 and 20 fish. The fish were all largemouth and smallmouth bass; we didn’t catch any spotted bass. The fish ranged from 1 to 3 pounds, with the exception of the big fish.” “Reaction baits, including umbrella rigs and Keitech swimbaits, are providing the best action. The bigger fish are showing in shallow water. In fact, the big fish hit in only 1 feet of water off the bank,” he stated. “The water clarity was spotty where we fished in the lake’s north end,” he noted. “The water clears up as you move into the main lake.” Crappie are also providing decent fishing. He recommended fishing minnows and crappie jigs around structure in Have You Been Dreaming of a Boston Whaler? Check Out the 2019 Models at Oakland’s Outboard Motor Shop… O akland, California’s one and only Outboard Motor Shop has been solving problem for boaters in the East Bay and beyond since 1926. That’s 85 years of customer service! Outboard Motor Shop is proud to offer a full line of Boston Whaler boats. Boston Whaler provides the safest, easiest to own, most exciting boats on the water. Since Boston Whaler’s founding almost 60 years ago, they have conceived and built peerless designs that meet boaters’ diverse and changing needs. Only Whaler can bring you a legendary, innovative boat that is engi- neered for a lifetime of enjoyment and dependability. Only Whaler can bring you the Unsinkable Legend. If you’d like to learn more about the 2019 Boston Whaler line up, drop by the Outboard Motor Shop or give them a call. Outboard Motor Shop is located at 333 Kennedy Street in Oakland- (510) 533-9290. On the web at www.outboardmotor- VOL.38 • ISS. 4 William headed over to Collins Lake for a family fishing trip recently and successfully battled this impressive rainbow trout. Photo courtesy of the COLLINS LAKE RECREATION AREA, Oregon House. Markley Cove and the south end of the reservoir. For trout, Latreille suggested trolling with Kastmasters and other spoons in the Putah Creek arm. Expect to bag rainbows ranging from 1 to 4 pounds. “I saw eight boats trolling for trout in the north end,” he noted. - Dan Bacher BULLARDS BAR/ ENGLEBRIGHT RESERVOIRS Kokanee Limits The Rule SMARTVILLE - If you like to eat kokanee salmon, Bullards Bar is one of the best places to hook these tasty fish this winter. Plus the limit is 10 fish per day - and 20 in possession. Rob Reimers of Rustic Rob’s Guide Service found great action on his last two trolling adventures before the latest storms moved into the region. “On our latest trip, the water was clear and the bite was hot, catching our limit of nice kokanee in three hours,” said Reimers. “The fish ranged from 10-1/2 to 11-1/2 inches long. We started trolling at 35 to 40 feet and went up to 45 to 50 feet by the end of the trip. We used Brad’s Continued on Pg 8