( 209 ) 295-4868 40800 Highway 88 , Pioneer , CA 95666 www . bearrivercampground . com
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FRESHWATER
14 July 6 - 20 , 2018 VOL . 37 • ISS . 15
FRESHWATER REPORTS :
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AMADOR LAKE cont .
that were 5 + lbs .,” said Lockhart . “ 2500l bs . went to the launch ramp and 2500 lbs . went to the spillway .”
Anglers are using chicken liver , hot dogs , sardines , anchovies in 10 feet of water tight to the shore throughout the campground area ..
Lori Lockhart said bluegill are hitting throughout the lake near submerged wood . Use a redworm , mealworm or piece of a nightcrawler for the best results .
“ Expect a good night bass bite as we approach the full moon ,” Lockhart added . “ Use a crawdad crankbait , Robo Worm or Senko off the main lake points for the best success .”
The lake is only 3 feet from full - Dan Bacher
AMERICAN RIVER
Shad Go On Evening Bite
SACRAMENTO – If you want to hook shad on the American River at this time , your best bet is to fish in the evenings .
“ Anglers are still catching shad on the American River , but the fishing has slowed down from what it was a couple weeks ago ,” said Alan Fong at Fisherman ’ s Warehouse . “ The fish are going on their best bite for 1-1 / 2 hours in the evening . My brother , Don , has been catching and releasing good numbers of shad while fishing both flies and pink plastic grubs under a bobber in the evenings at Sunrise .”
You can expect the top shad action in the upper section of the river from the El Manto Hole to Sunrise , although fishermen are still hooking shad in the lower section .
The striped bass bite on the American hasn ’ t picked up yet . “ The stripers are still eating the shad ,” noted Fong .
Anglers targeting stripers should throw big swimbaits , Zara Spooks , Pencil Poppers and other lures early and late in the day from Sailor Bar to Howe Avenue .
Bureau of Reclamation water releases to the American River below Nimbus Dam remain at 3,500 cfs .
- Dan Bacher
BERRYESSA LAKE
Quality Largemouth , Spotted and Smallmouth Bass Top Catches
NAPA - Larry Hemphill , fishing guide ,
• Trout
• Bass
• Crappie
• Bluegill
• Catfish
Largest Trout Stocking Program North of Sacramento
Lakefront RV Camping
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800-286-0576 www . collinslake . com P . O . Box 300 . Oregon House . California 95962 3715
Sandy and John Settles hit Lake Berryessa on June 6 and caught some very nice rainbows . Photo courtesy of KRISTY CARPENTIER , Walnut Creek . reported another good trip featuring a 15-16 pound limit and a big fish of all three species – largemouth , spotted and smallmouth bass – at Lake Berryessa .
“ I caught a 4 lb . largemouth , a 3-1 / 4 lb . spotted bass , and a 3 lb + smallmouth ,” said Hemphill during the trip with a wellknown outdoor writer . “ The smallmouths have been tough to find lately .”
“ I have known the writer for many years and fished with him several times . He was struggling to catch bass , which is not like him . He finally did catch a few . It was a hoot having him take photos in different spots around the lake ,” said Hemphill .
“ This has been the best spring for bass - size-wise , that I have ever seen ,” said Hemphill . “ Am I doing all the right things ? I seriously doubt it !! The bass are just bigger this year , plus the hundreds of small largemouth that have now dropped out of sight .”
“ There are ‘ jaws ’ roaming around everywhere on their post-spawn bite ,” he stated . “ There are still a lot of fairly shallow bass eating drop-shot worms and wackyrigged Senkos . I would start adding small nail weights as the water warms . They will go deeper as hot weather sets in .”
“ I did get a few topwater bass but was too late for a good bite . I did notice that some quality bass were hanging just on the outside of newly forming weed beds ,” added Hemphill . The trout fishing continues to be great at Lake Berryessa . “ I slowed it up and got into some bruisers ,
Great Fishing for Rainbows , Browns and Lake Trout !
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( 209 ) 295-4868 40800 Highway 88 , Pioneer , CA 95666 www . bearrivercampground . com
catching a limit of rainbows ranging from 2.5 to 3.5 lbs .,” said Rich Crispi of TW Guide Service after his latest trolling adventure . “ We boated about 14 trout , with about 6 planter bows and the rest quality fish .”
He used Apex lures and pink radical glow tubes with spinners , behind RMT 5.5 Bahama Mama and 50 / 50 hyper plaid Bahama Mama dodgers . “ The fish are pushing down , but can still be caught high up at first light ,” he tipped .
BULLARDS BAR / ENGLEBRIGHT RESERVOIRS
Kokanee Salmon Get Bigger
SMARTVILLE - The kokanee salmon fishing at Bullards Bar Reservoir continues to be excellent – and the fish are getting bigger .
Cal Kellogg , Fish Sniffer Editor , reported epic kokanee fishing at Bullards Bar during a trip to the reservoir with Brett Brady of Bare Bones Guide Service .
“ We trolled at 55 to 65 feet deep ,” he said . “ The nicer fish are hitting deeper . We caught kokanee averaging 13 inches
GREAT FISHING AT CAPLES LAKE !
on Highway 88 at Carson Pass
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long on Brad ’ s Killer Fish , hoochies , Uncle Larry ’ s spinners and other lures , tipped with white corn . Our top fish was just a little under 15 inches . Gena , my wife , two other anglers and I bagged our 10 fish limits of kokanee .”
Rob Reimers of Rustic Rob ’ s Guide Service confirmed the top-notch kokanee fishing at Bullards Bar on his most recent trolling adventure using Brad ’ s Kokanee Cut Plugs .
“ We boated 10 fish limits for two ,” said Reimers . “ It was a great day fishing for kokanee at Bullards Bar with Manny of MSJ Guide Service . We used the new Brad ’ s kokanee dodgers ; they worked very well with a fast side to side movement .”
“ On a trip I made to the lake about 1-1 / 2 months ago , the kokanee were mostly in the 10 to 11 inch range , with the top fish going 13 inches ,” said Alan Fong of the Fisherman ’ s Warehouse . “ However , a customer showed me a photo of five fish ranging from 14 to 15 inches long that he had landed on his latest trip to Bullards Bar .”
“ The larger fish are showing best at 45 to 50 feet deep ,” noted Fong . “ The fish are hitting micro-hoochies and other lures , tipped with white corn , behind dodgers in the dark day area .”
Bullards Bar is holding 849,348 acre feet of water , 95 percent of capacity and 113 percent of average .
At Englebright Reservoir , anglers continue to target rainbows while bait fishing with PowerBait and nightcrawlers or trolling with spoons , spinners and nightcrawlers behind dodgers .
Englebright is holding 65,767 acre feet of water , 94 percent of capacity and 98 percent of average .
- Dan Bacher
CAMANCHE LAKE
Summer Bass Fishing Going Strong
BURSON - Anglers getting on the water early and late in the day are hooking quality largemouth and spotted bass at Lake Camanche .
Ernie Williams reported a “ beautiful day in the water , with Grampa and son ., a good 45 + fish day . All of the fish were caught pm soft plastics . We observed a water clarity of 14 ’ and water temperature of 78 *.
Part-time Camanche resident and
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Ken Salvi caught this 4 lb , 24 inch German brown in July 2017 near Emigrant Creek . For information , call ( 209 ) -258-8888
CAPLES LAKE RESORT P . O . Box 88 , Kirkwood , Ca 95646
www . capleslakeresort . com
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