Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3720 Sept 14-18 | Page 14

14 Sept 14- 28, 2018 VOL. 37 • ISS. 20

FRESHWATER REPORTS:

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COLLINS LAKE cont. livers. However, Isaiah Lopez caught his five pounder on whole baitfish.

Brady Blum took his pole and a jitterbug on the Hidden Spruce trail to the far side of Elmer’ s Cove where he caught a 3-1 / 2-pound largemouth bass. Zac Long caught three bass off the dam using rubber worms. Joe Friend from Yuba City caught his on the same bait but over by the boat dock.

It’ s beautiful weather for fishing! Expect to see the trout pickup even more after Labor Day as the surface temperature cools. Kids are back to school so the lake and campground are quieting down.

Summer fun is great but fall camping and fishing are more peaceful and more promising. Lake levels are good at 18 ′ down and in another month or two we’ ll start our fall trout plants. There’ s still lots of good fishing to look forward to in 2018!

- Ed of Collins Lake

LAKE DAVIS

Trout Bite Expected to Bust Loose with Cooler Weather

PORTOLA – The rainbow trout bite at Lake Davis should bust wide-open as the water temperature cools down more. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife made two recent plants of rainbow trout totaling 14,200 pounds at Lake Davis, greatly adding to the number of trout found in the lake.

“ Shore anglers are bagging trout early and late in the day off the points near Honker Cove while using nightcrawlers and PowerBait,” said Jeanne Graham of the J & J Grizzly Store and Campground.“ Then fish deep, around 15 feet, during the day. The water temperature has cooled down to 70 degrees and will get cooler with the cooler nights we’ re now seeing.”

One kayak angler, Danny Hernandez, reported catching three rainbows measuring 18 to 19 inches long while trolling rustcolored flies in Coot Bay.

“ The catfish are hitting all over the lake,” said Graham.“ Some of the better spots to target are the Lightning Tree, Eagle Point and Mallard Cove. Use dough baits and worms for fish in the 1 to 2 lb. range.”

For largemouth bass in the 2 to 4 lb. range, she recommended tossing plastic worms in the Lighting Tree or Camp Five areas. Bluegill are hitting red worms and pieces of nightcrawler in the same area.

Davis Lake is holding 71,131-acre feet of water, 86 percent of capacity and 118 percent of capacity.

Trout ~ Kokanee ~ Salmon ~ Shad

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DEL VALLE LAKE

Lure Tossers Score on Stripers

LIVERMORE – If you want to hook striped bass, it’ s time to hit the warm waters of Lake Del Valle.

The water

240 different size / color combinations!

Big rainbows are on the chomp at Don Pedro Reservoir. This beauty was caught on August 28.

Photo courtesy of GOLD COUNTRY SPORTFISHING, Oakdale.

temperature has been hovering around the low seventies, making it perfect weather to fish for the striped bass, according to the Lake Del Valle Marina. They’ ve been boiling out by the dam and in Heron Bay, but you need to get out there early in the morning with the top water action, with the top water action usually dying out about 8 to 8:30 a. m.

The striped bass are keyed in on the shad, so you want to try to imitate them with shad-colored plastic baits or working a Kastmaster on the top of the water. They will pretty much ignore any other type of lure. If bait fishing is more your speed, casting anchovies from close to shore, towards the center of the channel, is going to be your best bet for a striper.

The catfish have been coming along, hitting mostly on anchovies and chicken liver. A good bet is fishing bait near the tule patches or weed mats where they like to hang out. Move along if you are not getting bites within an hour.

Bluegill and other panfish have been biting red worms on a size # 8 hook. If the bluegill don’ t hit it quickly, then it’ s time to recast. They are aggressive.

The trout are still invisible. It’ s definitely a hard time for trout fishermen at Del Valle.

However, trollers are slamming the smallmouth and largemouth bass on

Panther Martins or Roostertails, trolling about 2 to 2.5 mph in about 30 feet of water, about 15 feet deep.

Also, if you are someone who likes to go find them, drop shotting a trusty Senko on the rockwalls has had phenomenal results. If you don’ t have the tackle for drop shotting, the reliable Texas rig in the heavy weeds produces as well. The ¼ to 3 / 8 oz. Kastmasters are also a pretty safe bet if you work them on the bottom.

DON PEDRO LAKE

Trollers Still Hammering Kokanee

LA GRANGE – Lake Don Pedro has emerged as the top kokanee lake in the Mother Lode, and this week was no exception with limits being the story. This has been quite a rebound for the lake that only produced a single kokanee during the 2017 Kokanee Power tournament, resulting in a change of location for the tournament for this season.

Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing said,“ I was on the lake twice this week, and we ended up with 15 kokanee both days although the quality improved on Tuesday. The fish continue to drop in the water column, and our best action has been between 65 and 75 feet although there are kokanee as deep as 100 feet. Purple was the color on one trip as the purple UV Apex lure kept getting hit while the other lures were slow. I made an adjustment and switched everything over to purple.”

“ The kokanee are starting to turn, but the meat is still good. They are absorbing their scales and definitely moving into the spawn mode. We are also picking up rainbow trout with the kokanee gear, and I hope to get a few more weeks out of the lake before switching over to salmon fishing in the Sacramento River around Garcia Bend,” said Smith.

The Marine Reconnaissance Bass Tournament was held over the past weekend, and 29 boats participated in the 2nd annual tournament. The tournament was taken by the team of Phil Davis and Tom Shores with a winning limit at 17.79 pounds including the first big fish at 5.96.

The Marine Reconnaissance Foundation tournament was operated by the New Jen Bass Tournaments, and the proceeds were split 50 / 50 for

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