Fish report through May 26

Don Pedro

Don Pedro has been on the elusive side for kokanee over the past few weeks, perhaps in response to the frequent cold fronts moving rapidly through Northern California. Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing said, “We were knocking the socks off of the kokanee a month ago, but the big concentrations of fish have scattered throughout the lake, making for a more challenging bite. The action wasn’t fast and furious on a recent guide trip, but we managed to put in two mixed limits of kokanee, king salmon and rainbow trout.” Smith found fair action for kokanee at depths from 55-70 feet with Rocky Mountain Tackle’s micro hootchie behind an RMT dodger, and they picked up a couple of kokanee to go with three king salmon to 3.5 pounds on the kokanee gear. After working in the early morning for kokanee and kings, they switched over to running heavy spoons on the downrigger at depths from 35-55 feet for lights-out action for rainbow trout. Kokanee Power will host its annual Phil Johnson Memorial team tournament at the lake on Saturday with information available at www:kokaneepower.org. Jim Pickens of the Fishermen’s Friend in Lodi touted rolling shad on a harness for king salmon, Apex lures or hootchies for kokanee, and spoons for rainbow trout near Fleming Meadows, Jenkins Hill or Middle Bay. For largemouth bass, Manny Basi of the Bait Barn in Waterford touted jumbo minnows from the shoreline with weekend anglers dominating the fishing scene at the lake. Plastics on the drop-shot are still the top technique for tournament anglers. Pieces of nightcrawler have also been popular for shore anglers targeting rainbow trout. The launch ramp is limited to one lane at Fleming Meadows. There is a courtesy dock and a long dock in the water, and patience is a necessity to launch on the weekends due to high interest in recreational boating and fishing. The lake dropped slightly to 704.4 feet in elevation and 41 percent of capacity. Call: Monte Smith, (209) 581-4734; Danny Layne-Fish’n Dan, (209) 586-2383; Gary Vella, (209) 652-7550; Bait Barn, (209) 874-3011.

McSwain Reservoir

There are still rainbow trout in the lake from the plant prior to the Merced Irrigation Trout Derby a few weeks ago. Few reports from the marina. A section of the Merced River is subject to an emergency closure for fishing due to low water conditions. Call: McSwain Marina, (209) 378-2534; McSwain Marina, (209) 378-2534.

New Melones Reservoir

New Melones remains an excellent option for rainbow and brown trout, largemouth and spotted bass, kokanee and catfish, but the launch ramp situation continued to limit the number of anglers on the lake. John Leitchy of Glory Hole Sporting Goods in Angels Camp said, “I have been launching by myself for months, and launching is even easier with a partner, although a 4WD tow vehicle is necessary.” The New Melones Lake Marina held a grand opening on Memorial Day weekend under new ownership and a complete remodel of the marina convenience store. Kokanee fishing has been very good with Gary Burns of Take It To The Limit Guide Service stating, “The kokes are looking good this year, and we have landed fish close to 14 inches long. The kokanee are scattered and schooling at depths from 45 to 51 feet, and a slow trolling presentation with pink Glitter Bug Micro Hootchies or Uncle Larry’s spinners at 1.5 to 17 mph in the main lake near the spillway and the dam is the most productive.” Bass fishing remained excellent with Leitchy putting his client onto a spotted bass at 6 pounds and a 4-pound largemouth bass using reaction baits. He said, “The cloud cover has allowed for a good reaction bite with topwater lures, swimbaits, and umbrella rigs. We landed the two large fish out of five big bites, but numbers can be taken on plastics on the drop-shot, Texas rig or on a shaky head.” Trout fishing is holding up with the best action for trollers working the main lake at depths from the surface to 20 feet with shad-patterned plugs on a top line in the early mornings before dropping down with a spoon on downriggers once the sun hits the water. Night fishermen are using submersible lights to attract quality rainbows to their minnows. Leitchy said, “There have been 4 to 5 big browns reported, but since DFW will not plant browns in the future, we encourage catch and release of this species.” Crappie action is starting to heat up around the abundant submerged structure with Beetle Spins, and catfish are biting frozen shad, mackerel, anchovies or sardines in the main lake coves. New Melones dropped nearly a foot to 849.61 feet in elevation and 19 percent of capacity. Tulloch rose in response to 507.03 feet in elevation and 93 percent of capacity. Recreational boating was heavy at Tulloch during the holiday. Call: Glory Hole Sports, (209) 736-4333; Monte Smith, (209) 581-4734; Danny Layne-Fish’n Dan, (209) 586-2383; Sierra Sport Fishing, (209) 599-2023.

San Luis Reservoir and O’Neill Forebay

Sales of white flukes escalated at local tackle shops, most likely due to Alvin Vang’s big striper last week. In addition to flukes, Storm 4-inch swimbaits in bluegill remain popular. The big striper ultimately weighed in at 66.12 pounds on a certified scale. Schoolie stripers are consistent from the banks with white flukes, ripbaits, jumbo minnows or blood worms near Romero Visitor Center, Goosehead Point or Dinosaur Point. Roger George of Roger’s Guide Service said the winds have been problematic for boaters in the last week. “I’ve seen several posted pictures of big stripers that guys have taken off the shore recently. But, I’m also getting a lot of calls from anglers who are concerned about fishermen who are keeping their limits of the bigger spawning fish rather than keeping the smaller ones. I think more guys know this isn’t the good ol’ days anymore and are trying to release their bigger fish when possible now,” George said. Boaters are finding their best action mooching or drifting jumbo minnows near the bottom at depths to 80 feet around the Trash Racks and the mouth of Portuguese Cove. Check 12 remained the top location for small striped bass with jumbo minnows, pile worms or blood worms. A 7.5-pound largemouth bass was landed on a white fluke at Check 12. Moving water is the key to getting in on the action. The main lake continues to steadily release water, and it released 3,877 acre-feet Monday to drop to 56 percent of capacity. Call: Coyote Bait and Tackle, (408) 463-0711; Roger George of Rogergeorgeguideservice.com, (559) 905-2954.

Ocean

Half Moon Bay: Captain Dennis Baxter of the New Captain Pete went rockfishing on Sunday south to San Gregorio, and they came through with limits of rockfish and a ling cod per rod for a light load. He was encouraged by the first signs of bait in the area for some time with anchovies along with squid showing up offshore. He said, “A few private boats are still scratching out a salmon or two, but there is no concentration of scores, so in the meantime, we will focus on rockfishing.” Second Captain Mike Cabanas of the Huli Cat took out a light load of seven fishermen Monday to the upper end of San Gregorio for seven limits of rockfish, including a 5-pound copper along with 12 ling cod to 12 pounds. Sunday’s score was similar with five limits of rockfish, including cabezon to 6 pounds, 5 ling cod to 9 pounds and a bonus wolf eel. Saturday’s score included pulling the crab pots for five crab per angler along with 133 rockfish for 16 anglers. Call: Happy Hooker, (510) 223-5388; Roger Thomas, Salty Lady, (415) 760-9362; Bait and Switch Sport Fishing Center, (650) 726-7133; Emeryville Sport Fishing, (510) 654-6040; Don Franklin, Soleman, (510) 703-4148.

Monterey/Santa Cruz: Chris Arcoleo of Chris’ Landing in Monterey reported rockfishing was the story of the weekend with the Star of Monterey heading south toward Twin Rocks for 41 limits of rockfish along with 28 ling cod. The Caroline fished Carmel Bay for 21 limits of ling cod. He said, “There were a number of cabezon in the sacks today.” Salmon fishing remained slow with a few here and there by private boaters near Moss Landing. Striped bass action along the Santa Cruz beaches continued to be excellent with sand crabs, blood worms, metal jigs or topwater lures. Call: Chris’ Landing, (831) 375-5951; Bayside Marine, (831) 475-2173; usafishing.com.

San Francisco Bay: Three boats ran up the Marin coast from Muir Beach towards Buoy 1 on Sunday with 35 passengers scoring 26 salmon to 18 pounds. This score was much better than on Saturday with two boats putting in nine salmon to 22 pounds for 36 fishermen. They weren’t able to fish offshore due to the wind, so they hugged the coastline and found a few fish. Rockfishing was a solid option with the Sea Wolf out of Emeryville Sport Fishing running to the Islands on Saturday for 212 rockfish and 37 lings to 15 pounds for 24 anglers. Captain James Smith of the California Dawn out of Berkeley went up the Marin coastline for 185 rockfish, including a cabezon, 12 ling cod and two striped bass and halibut back inside the bay for 19 anglers. Captain Jim Smith of the Happy Hooker out of Berkeley rebounded from a rough day Saturday, when the stripers didn’t bite, for 16 limits of striped bass along with seven big halibut to 25 pounds on Monday and 23 limits of striped bass to 19 pounds and four halibut to 15 pounds on Sunday. He has been working a wide swath of the Central Bay from Angel Island to Alcatraz to Mel’s Reef to the Berkeley Flats. That was a complete turnaround from Saturday, when they were working the same reefs and honey holes for 16 stripers and one ling. Out of Emeryville Sport Fishing, the Sea Wolf fished the Marin coast for 18 limits of rockfish, adding 27 lings to 14 pounds. The Huck Finn and Sea Gull fished in the bays and along the Marin coast. They had a great combined score of 148 rockfish, adding 40 lings to 14 pounds. Back in the bay, they added 37 stripers to 15 pounds for their 40 anglers. Keith Fraser of Loch Lomond Bait and Tackle in San Rafael said, “Our harbor is just loaded with bass, and drift fishing has been outstanding. One angler went out with two dozen shiners, and he hooked 20 legal striped bass to 14 pounds working from the Richmond/San Rafael Bridge to Red Rock, and he only hooked one shaker bass.” Trolling has been slow with the off-color water due to the wind and tides, and it was windy again Sunday after a relatively calm Saturday. Fraser really likes the upcoming series of tides for halibut this week, and there are plenty of shiners in the tanks.

Delta/Stockton

Shad remained the big story in the northern stretch of river from Clarksburg to Freeport. Stripers are still in the river, but fewer and fewer anglers are targeting the linesides, particularly with the migration of guides to more fertile waters. Sturgeon action is limited to a few fishermen hanging around in lower Suisun Bay. Johnny Tran of New Romeo’s Bait and Tackle in Freeport said, “Shad fishing has been very good near Freeport with bank anglers tossing out shad darts while boaters are using a double-hook rig loaded with grubs in front of a 1- to 2-ounce weight. Just put your rod in the rod holder, and let the shad load up on the grubs.” Alan Fong of the Fishermen’s Warehouse in Sacramento added, “There are larger females now in the mix, and anglers have landed as many as 25 shad near Clarksburg with 1-inch grubs in champagne or chartreuse.” Tran touted striped bass in the Freeport area with sardines, blood worms or pile worms while trolling has also been best in the north Delta. Clyde Wands, shallow trolling expert and innovator, found great action for stripers on recent trips to the north Delta, catching and releasing 30 keepers on the first trip, including stripers at 20 and 18 pounds. The majority of legal fish were in the 18- to 22-inch range, but they also landed an 8-pounder. The following trip was more of the same with 33 keepers to 11 pounds released, and he said, “The P-Line Predator Minnow was the hot lure for the deep divers with the Angry Eye working in the shallows.” Jim Pickens of the Fishermen’s Friend in Lodi confirmed the good striper action in the north Delta stating, “The best striper fishing in the Delta has been on the Sacramento above Rio Vista around Cache, Miner and Steamboat Sloughs along with the Deep Water Channel. Shallow trolling is producing, and some anglers are in the deep water using deep divers with up to 2 ounces of weight to get to the bottom.” Angry Eye’s, Yo-Zuri’s and Rebels all work well, and some anglers are having success on Rat-L-Traps. In the main Sacramento River near Pittsburg, James Nguyen of Dockside Bait reported, “There have been a few stripers over 10 pounds brought in within the past two days, and live splittail have been the bait for the larger fish. There are plenty of school-sized linesides taken by drifting mudsuckers or jumbo minnows, and we have some beautiful mudsuckers in the shop for the first time in several months.” The wind continued to plague anchor fishermen, and boaters need to chose their window when the river is relatively calm. Pam Hayes of Benicia Bait reported salmon smolt releases continue in the Carquinez Straits, and when the releases take place during the incoming tide, the smolts are pushed back toward the State Park and Glen Cove. Shore fishermen are tossing RatLTraps or similar lures for the stripers. Only a few sturgeon fishermen have been trying, and the best action has been around the Mothball Fleet and into Montezuma Slough. Largemouth bass continued to take center stage on the San Joaquin River with a slowdown in striper action over the past few weeks. Brandon Gallegos of H and R Bait in Stockton said, “There are tons of shaker stripers in Whiskey Slough, Eight Mile Road and along Bacon Island Road, but finding keepers is a problem. Sardines or anchovies have been the top baits, but there is little live bait in the river, as we haven’t had any fresh shad in over a month. The shadders are only finding a half-pound on all night trips, and there isn’t enough bait worth the effort.” Near Antioch, Doug Chapman of Gotcha Bait reported several fishermen were seeking stripers off the Antioch Fishing Pier during the holiday weekend, and a few keepers to 20 inches have been taken on live mudsuckers. Pile worms and sardines have also been effective for the small stripers. Largemouth bass fishing is outstanding with Randy Pringle, the Fishing Instructor, and Alan Fong of the Fishermen’s Warehouse in Sacramento reporting great action on recent trips. Fong has tied into larger bass with his partner losing one more than 8 pounds and another around 6 pounds also coming unbuttoned. He said, “We have consistently been finding spawned-out largemouth bass in the 4- to 5-pound range with Kincannon glide baits or the topwater Whopper Plopper. The cloud cover has allowed us to toss the topwater lures throughout the day.” Senkos are also working during the day. Bluegill, catfish and crappie are also showing signs of life, and Gallegos said, “Some of the largest red eared perch I have ever seen are coming out of Bull Frog Marina on red worms or jumbo red worms. Bluegill fishing is solid in Whiskey Slough, and there are also bluegill near Herman and Helen’s off of Eight Mile Road northwest of Stockton.” Chapman of Gotcha Bait said, “Anglers have been buying small to medium minnows for crappie, but they aren’t letting out where they are going.” Gallegos touted Tiki Lagun and Turner Cut off Inland Drive as the top spots for crappie. In the south Delta, catfishing is good with frozen clams in Big Break while crappie are found around Holland Tract with small to medium minnows. Construction began May 7 on the temporary rock barrier on False River, and area boaters have to reroute through Fishermen’s Cut to reach the main San Joaquin River from Bethel Island as False River is closed to boat traffic. Call: Randy Pringle, (209) 543-6260; Captain Stan Koenigsberger – Quetzal Adventures, (925) 570-5303; Intimidator Sport Fishing, (916) 806-3030.

This story was originally published May 26, 2015 at 7:29 PM with the headline "Fish report through May 26."