Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3719 Aug 31- Sept 14 | Page 29

TAHOE cont .

are on tap . The most consistent action has been for the lakers , but when you find the kokanee quick limits are possible .

The gang at Tahoe Sportfishing mainly targeted mackinaw last week and they scored some impressive fish to about 11 pounds . Minnows trolled behind flashers have been the staple offering foe Tahoe Sportfishing skippers .

Mickey Daniels of Mickey ’ s Big Mack Charters has been enjoying solid action at the north end of the lake . Mickey ’ s clients have been hooking mackinaw up to 7 pounds . Some fish are being kept for the table while the others are tagged and released . Mickey employs a variety of different lures for his fish including Shasta Tackle Kok-A-Nuts teamed with Sling Blade dodgers .

Fish Sniffer reader Drew Stevens has been targeting kokanee at Tahoe with mixed results .

“ So far I ’ ve been up to Tahoe three times for kokanee in the past three weeks . I caught kokanee on all of these trips , but I haven ’ t been able to land a limit ,” said Stevens . “ All of the salmon I ’ ve landed have gone 12 to 13 inches . Paulina Peak dodgers teamed with micro hoochies tipped with tuna scented corn . While targeting the kokanee at the south end of the lake , I ’ ve landed mackinaw to 7 pounds on those tiny hoochies .”

TRINITY RIVER / LAKE

Higher , Cooler Trinity Flows Continue

WEAVERVILLE- The Carr Fire near Redding continues to present “ operational challenges ” for the Bureau of Reclamation ’ s Central Valley Project , including the Trinity Division , resulting in higher releases than normal into the Trinity River .

Few anglers have been fishing for salmon and steelhead on the Trinity River , but more anglers should start showing , now that Highway 299 is open 24 hours to thru traffic , reported Tim Brady of Trinity Outdoors .

The cooler water is expected to draw more salmon and steelhead up the Trinity River .

Due to the fire activity , Trinity Dam became isolated from the power network and continues to serve a local area of power for safety purposes , according to an announcement from Reclamation . Spring Creek and Carr power plants are currently down . As a result , Lewiston water elevations were managed by emergency increased releases from Lewiston Dam and Carr Bypass .

Reclamation managed to get Lewiston Dam releases to the Trinity River down to about 800 cfs in late July . The releases will remain here until further notice .

Trinity River flows have been a mixture of power penstock and hollow-jet outlet use depending on conditions . Increased releases from Lewiston Dam also help to decrease the heating and residence time at Lewiston – resulting in colder water temperatures .

“ We expect with the outlet mixture and increased releases that Trinity River temperatures will be at or cooler than previous days . This is the most dynamic system and temperature will be adjusted real-time when possible ,” added Erin Curtis of Reclamation .

WEST DELTA

Hot Weather Hammer Time For West Delta Trollers !

BRANNAN ISLAND - Yes , it ’ s hot and smoky and from a traditional perspective , way too early for “ fall ” striper fishing in the West Delta . However , a new generation of skippers such as Captain David Hammond

Big macks and big smiles . That was the scene on August 10 when these folks tested the waters of Lake Tahoe with the team from Tahoe Sportfishing .

Photo courtesy of TAHOE SPORTFISHING , South Lake Tahoe .

of Delta Pro Fishing have thrown out the traditional playbook when it comes Delta striper fishing .

Hammond has found that he can catch stripers , indeed , limits of stripers most of the year . This is the time of the year when conventional wisdom dictates that almost all of the system ’ s bass are either in San Francisco Bay or out beyond the Golden Gate , yet Hammond has been getting consistent limits while pulling Yo- Zuris in various parts of the West Delta .

“ We continued our streak of limits yesterday when the Morgan crew from Las Vegas flew in just to experience the hot Delta striper action that we are seeing right now ,” said Hammond .

Can bait anglers pull a limit of stripers in the West ? The answer is yes , but you ’ ll have to deal with a lot of shakers to get a keeper . The best option for bait guys is either drifting or anchoring and fishing with live baits , such as large mudsuckers .

Sturgeon fishing seems to be a slam dunk for the few anglers giving it a try in the upper reaches of Suisun Bay . Of course , the wind is a major factor as it always is this time of the year , but beating the wind is part of the game . The fish are there , the water is warm and they are feeding .

To hook up soak salmon roe and eel in deep water areas that show concentrated fish activity on your sonar .

WESTERN NEVADA

Lahontan Reservoir Offers Excellent Mixed Bag

RENO - The hot bite in Western Nevada can be found along with scorching hot temperatures at Lahontan Reservoir . The big desert lake near Fallon is pretty darned full for this time of year and in excellent condition . Water clarity is excellent for this usually turbid lake with 3-4 ’ of visibility .

This lake sits just slightly higher in elevation than Pyramid Lake , and the summer heat can be downright oppressive . If it ’ s 100 in Reno , it ’ s probably around 105 at Lahontan . The hot weather has not slowed down a potpourri bite of just about everything that fins in the lake ’ s waters .

This writer and his children used the most “ catch all ” bait of them all on a recent outing . We soaked night crawlers near the lake ’ s dam and caught white bass , yellow perch and carp . No big catfish , walleyes or wipers were found , but we had to throw in the towel near sundown .

A lot of the lake ’ s double digit sized predators go on the prowl after the sun goes down . Tossing crankbaits like Rapala Shad Rap ’ s after dark can lead to hooking , likely losing , and possibly landing a giant wiper . The problem with landing wipers is that they are notoriously hard on treble hooks . They are one of the hottest fighting fish in freshwater . They grow to 25 pounds in Lahontan .

The Truckee River is delighting cold water enthusiasts with robust catches of trout . Freshly planted Lahontan Cutthroat are common in the downtown areas , but even in the Reno metro area large wild Brown Trout are always a possibility . The fishing pressure on the Truckee is fair at this time . Competition from other anglers isn ’ t really an issue , but the summer rafting crowds can be really detrimental to the bite during mid-day hours .

- Mike McNeilly

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