Six Tips for Better Buzzbait Success
VOL. 37 • ISS. 21
caused by The Carr Fire near Redding,
“ The drift boat and raft anglers are catching limits of Chinooks while fishing plugs, spinners, roe and tuna balls,” said Tim Brady of Trinity Outdoors.“ Most of the kings are in the 8 to 12 lb. range. They are also picking up some steelhead, mostly wild fish going up to 5 pounds.”
“ With the extra water in the river, the salmon aren’ t as concentrated in the usual holes as they are normally, so the shore anglers aren’ t doing as well as the boaters,” explained Brady.
Brady said anglers are focusing most on the stretch of river above and below Junction City. Fishermen should also see increasing success on salmon and steelhead below Del Loma, where spinners are very effective.
Brady hasn’ t heard any bass, trout or salmon reports from Trinity Lake over the past couple of weeks, since there has been so little fishing pressure, due to smoke moving in and out of the area with the wind.
Anglers interested in hooking rainbow trout should try fishing nightcrawlers, PowerBait, spinners and flies on Lewiston Lake.
- Dan Bacher
WEST DELTA
Striper Bite Gets Better And Sturgeon Are Available Too!
BRANNAN ISLAND- Fishing in the West Delta is solid at this point for both stripers and sturgeon. That’ s the good news, the better news is that the action is going to get even better in the coming weeks.
“ Weather is cooling and the water temperature is now down to about 68 in the morning,” related Captain David Hammond of Delta Pro Fishing.“ The fishing is crazy good right now. Yesterday was really good. We had 34 keepers and did a lot of catch and release fishing. We could have been off the water by 8 with limits. Our first 21 fish were keepers.”
“ I’ m expecting solid fishing through November 1 and it might continue right on through Thanksgiving depending on the weather.”
“ Weeds have been an issue. You’ ve got to move around and do your best to avoid the weeds. There are fish in both the San Joaquin and Sacramento. Work hard during the ends and beginnings of the tides. Those are the key bite windows right now,” added Hammond.
Hammond is getting his fish while trolling shallow and deep running Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows. Bait anglers are getting lots of action, but if you are using cut baits you can expect lots of shaker action. If you want to hook something bigger than average while bait fishing soak a live bluegill, pike minnow or split tail. You’ ve got to have a good deal of patience while waiting out bites on these large baits, but the rewards can be great!
Sturgeon anglers are scoring well in the upper reaches of Suisun Bay while soaking both salmon roe and eel. Shrimp will work too, but there are a lot of bait stealers around that love to gobble shrimp baits before the sturgeon get a chance to bite.
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Sutter Basin Duck Calls are Available at these Locations:
PACIFIC EXTREME SPORTS Sacramento, CA( 916) 646-3474 SWEENY’ S SPORTS Napa, CA( 707) 255-5544 UNION ACE HARDWARE Marysville, CA( 530) 743-4621 KITTLE’ S OUTDOOR SPORTS Colusa, CA( 530) 458-4868 SUTTER ORCHARD SUPPLY Yuba City, CA( 530) 673-8068 FINS FUR & FEATHER SPORTS Paradise, CA( 530) 876-8800 SPORTSMAN’ S WAREHOUSE – Chico • Rocklin • Redding – 1-800-286-3076
FRESHWATER
BASS FISHING SPOTLIGHT By Mark Fong
Six Tips for Better Buzzbait Success
Nothing is more exciting than a vicious top water
strike and buzzbaits have a well deserved reputation for generating giant blowups and big bass. Buzzbaits
have been around for a long time but with the flood of newer and flashier baits, buzzbaits have lost some of their luster in the eyes of many anglers.
Northern California Bass Guide, Ron Gandolfi of Paradise relies on buzzbaits to put fish in the boat for his clients. Recently I made a trip with Gandolfi to Lake Oroville where we got on a good topwater bite and it was the buzzbait that took center stage. Just in time for some great fall topwater action, we share six quick tips for better buzzbait success. Ron Gandolfi On Choosing the Correct Buzzbait“ Buzzbaits work great in all types of water,” explains Gandolfi.“ I think it is the noise factor that draws so much attention. Whether it is around matted vegetation or tules or clean water you can fish buzzbaits in all types of water, it is such a universal bait.”
In clear water Gandolfi relies on a ½ oz white Persuader American buzzbait in the blade in blade or clacker style blade. Both these blade styles produce a subtle sound. If there are a lot of bait fish around, he likes to add a plastic swimbait such as a Keitech as a trailer.
When the water is stained or muddy, Gandolfi switches to a chartreuse Persuader Double Buzz in chartreuse and in low light conditions he favors darker colors like a combination of black and red. The two side by side counter rotating blades make the Double Buzz a noisy flashy bait that draws a lot of attention from aggressive bass.
Presentation Matters
As with any bait, the proper presentation creates more opportunities for success. When target fishing with buzzbaits, casting accuracy is extremely important. When possible, cast past the target and make sure the bait is up and running as it enters the strike zone. Also it is important to get the bait up and running on the surface the instant the bait hits the water.“ By throwing the buzzbait properly and to the right spot, the success rate will be much higher,” advises Gandolfi.
Attention to Detail
Retrieve speed depends on how active the fish are. Generally speaking, the warmer the water temperature means that the fish will be more active.“ If you are
Sept 28- Oct 12, 2018
getting bumped quite a lot, it probably is because you are not going fast enough,” explains Gandolfi.“ A good tip is to add a trailer hook and speed the bait up a bit.”
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Fall Fishing
While it is true that buzzbaits take their share of summer time bass, don’ t put your buzzbaits away when summer gives way to fall. Fall brings about shorter days and cooling water temperatures. Weed growth that flourished during the heat of the summer begins to thin out as bass aggressively put the feedbag on in preparation for winter. This combination of events can set the stage for some of the best buzzbait opportunities of the entire year. Once the water temperature into the low 50’ s the buzzbait bite goes away.
Positive Connections
When bass are less aggressive, they have a tendency to swipe at a buzzbait without getting the hook. As such I always use a trailer hook when fishing a buzzbait. I thread a 3 / 0 Gamakatsu trailer hook over the buzzbait’ s main hook and fasten it with a short piece of the supplied rubber tubing. When fishing open water, I will substitute a size 2 Gamakatsu treble for the traditional single hook. This works especially well for both smallmouths and spotted bass which have a tendency to slash at the bait.
The Last Cast
Do yourself a favor and don’ t forget about buzzbaits. Get on the water now for some great fall top water excitement.
To learn more about Ron Gandolfi or to book a trip, please visit his website at www. lakeorovillebassguide. com / about. htm or contact him directly at. Ron guides on a number of Northern California Lakes and works hard to create fishing memories for his clients.
Sportsman’ s Warehouse Waterfowl Weekend Set For September 29 & 30
man’ s Warehouse California locations on September 29 and 30. The festivities will include free seminars and product demos from top waterfowlers and manufacturers. There will be hot buys on selected waterfowling gear. For more
Closer and closer they come. You can hear the wind in their feathers. The shotgun automatically finds your shoulder. Your eye sorts through a half dozen potential targets before focusing on a lone greenhead. The shotgun roars and the bird crumbles … Welcome to the 2018 California duck season! The waterfowl season is right around the corner and now is the time to check out your gear and make sure you have everything you need for a successful 2018 duck campaign. Luckily for you if you do find yourself lacking critical gear or even critical knowledge, Sportsman’ s Warehouse is hosting a special Waterfowl Weekend events at their stores around Northern California. Waterfowl Weekend is slated for Sportsinformation about Waterfowl Weekend see the advertisment in this issue of the Fish Sniffer! Sportsman’ s Warehouse has several locations around northern and central California. The Rocklin Sportsman’ s Warehouse is located at 6640 Lonetree Blvd. For more information call( 916) 782-9900. In Chico, 765 East Avenue,( 530) 897-0500. In Rancho Cordova 2344 Sunrise Blvd,( 916) 635-7800. In Redding, 1659 Hilltop Drive,( 530) 222-5500. In Fairfield, 1590 Gateway Blvd( 707) 389-7400. In Fresno, 8468 N. Friant Rd.( 559) 261-2900. In Rohnert, Park 5195 Redwood Dr.( 707) 585-1500. In Eureka, 3456 Broadway( 707) 298-6100. In Stockton, 10536 Trinity Parkway( 209) 851-7400. In Vasalia, 1650 W. Visalia Parkway( 559)
308-7100