VALLEY

• NEW MELONES RESERVOIR — Melanie Lewis of Glory Hole Sporting Goods in Angels Camp says kokanee action is slowing and anglers are having to work to catch limits. The kokes are congregating in the main lake at 50 to 80 feet. The fish usually move south late in the season, and the best areas are around Rose Island and the dam. Trout fishing is also slow except for those fishing at night under lights. Trollers are targeting deeper parts of the lake at 40 to 50 feet with shad-patterned lures such as ExCels, Needlefish, Apex or Countdown Rapalas scented with Bang or ProCure Threadfin Shad. Night fishermen are dropping night crawler/Power Bait combinations or small minnows. Upcoming trout/kokanee derbies include Central Valley Anglers Saturday, and the Jackson Rancheria $50,000 Kokanee Power five-lake Mother Lode Shootout, Sept. 24-25. Catfishing has been outstanding with several big cats landed this week in shallow, warmer water. For trout, the best action is at night, but quality fish are being caught in daylight. Crappie are sticking close to submerged trees in creeks such as Bear Cove, Coyote Creek or up the river. The lake dropped two feet to 95 percent capacity. Call: (209) 736-4333, Monte Smith (209) 581-4734, Danny Layne (209) 586 2383, Sierra Sport Fishing (209) 599-2023.

• SAN LUIS RESERVOIR / O'NEILL FOREBAY — Anglers continue to work the banks at night for occasional large striped bass on Lucky Craft 128s or white flukes. Mickey Clements of Coyote Bait in San Jose said the spotted shad or Ghost Minnow colors are the best. Clements added that anglers have been using mudsuckers in addition to the lure with a few fish landed around Portuguese Cove. In the Forebay, the popular area under the bridge is choked with weeds, making it difficult to toss lures, so anglers are heading to check 12 where the stripers have been boiling in the early evenings. Zara Spooks, PopRs, and River2Sea Bubble Poppers are all working. Call: Ly's Fishing Goods (408) 629-9644; Coyote Bait and Tackle (408) 463-0711.

• McSWAIN RESERVOIR — Stephanie Powell at the marina reported trollers are scoring limits with blade/crawler combinations or Wedding Rings tipped with a night crawler behind a dodger around the floating restrooms near the second fence line. Garlic or rainbow Power Bait or night crawlers combined with a marshmallow are working from the shore and the peninsulas along the marina, the brushpile, or the handicapped docks. Calaveras Trout Farm planted the lake last week and there is a DF&G plant this week. Call: (209) 378-2534

• McCLURE RESERVOIR — Manny Basi of the Bait Barn in Waterford said the top-water bite is strong on Super Spooks, Rico's, or PopRs in white. Drop shotting with Reaction Innovation's Bad Shad Green or Pro Gold Pro Worms from the banks to 20 feet also works. Another option is dragging twin-tailed Hula Grubs in colors 301 or 330. Diana Mello of A-1 Bait in Snelling said bass anglers are going for live minnows and crawdads, and 29 crappie were taken on minijigs in Horseshoe Bend. Anglers are starting to target trout under lights near Bagby but few are trolling for king salmon or kokanee. Bank anglers are tossing salmon eggs, rainbow glitter Power Bait or Kastmasters from the south ramp for planted trout. Call: A-1 Bait (209) 563-6505, Bub Tosh (209) 404-0053.

• LAKE DON PEDRO — Monte Smith of Gold Country Sport Fishing heard that bass fishermen were landing trout while drop shotting near the dam. He trolled his Chucker T lures at 35 to 50 feet in the area and got 11 rainbows and 4 small king salmon by 9:45 a.m. The trout ranged from 14 to 22 inches with several in the 19- to 20-inch range. He followed up by going after kokanee at 65 to 85 feet with standard gear and got limits. Smith said the kokanee are starting to absorb their scales in their normal turn for the spawn. Guide Danny Layne put a client onto a 7.5-pound, 24-inch king trolling at 75 feet in Middle Bay. The king hit a rolled shad injected with Pautske's Liquid Krill. The fish are close to the banks in the submerged grass. Call: Monte Smith (209) 581-4734, Danny Layne (209) 586-2383, Bait Barn (209) 874-301.

• DELTA — The Sacramento River salmon season opened last week and most anglers in lower Suisun Bay are tossing heavy spinners from the shore at 1st Street in Benicia. Interest in sturgeon has been minimal with the arrival of river salmon season, but a few are still hitting ghost/grass shrimp combinations in the Napa River. Panfishing has been good in the back sloughs with wax or meal worms. Guide Jay Sorensen anchored inside Three Mile Slough on the San Joaquin side near Buoy 1 on Sunday due to high winds, and boated four legal stripers from 24 to 29 inches on the incoming tide. Guide Randy Pringle has been scoring with the IMA Skimmer top-water stickbait in Chartreuse shad or bluegill before switching to the Strike King Zero or 6-inch Berkeley Hand-Poured worm in Oxblood on a Zappu Head. He's been fishing the current along the outside of the weedline. With flat conditions, the bite is very subtle and a slow presentation is necessary. Call: Randy Pringle (209) 543-6260; Stan Koenigsberger (925) 570-530, Mark Wilson (916) 682-1630, Intimidator Sport Fishing (916) 806-3030, Jolly Jay's Guide Service (209) 478-6645, Gary Vella (209) 652-7550

OCEAN

• SAN FRANCISCO BAY — The striped bass bite broke out on the central bay rockipiles Tuesday. Capt. Jim Smith of the Happy Hooker called conditions "wide open" for big fish and his group boated 20 limits by 8:30 a.m. Salmon fishing made a major improvement Sunday with the Wackie Jackie out of San Francisco putting in 12 salmon to 26 pounds for eight anglers working straight bait around the Duxbury buoy and reef. The Tigerfish went north off Duxbury for 25 salmon to 35 pounds. Saturday, the Superfish and Tigerfish started looking for salmon, but went out to the Farallons and settled for 290 rockfish and six lings for 39 anglers. The Captain Hook and New Huck Finn out of Emeryville put in 59 limits of rockfish and 74 lings to 20 pounds at the Farallons. The majority of halibut and striper action has switched from the south to the central bay from Alcatraz Island to the Golden Gate to Angel Island.

• HALF MOON BAY — The salmon bite is sporadic, so party boats stuck to rockfish over the weekend. The Huli Cat came home with 19 limits and six lings after working San Gregorio to Tunitas Creek at 140 feet on Sunday. After a hot bit Saturday, there were 100 surf anglers working the beaches in Pacifica on Sunday. But the bite slowed, proving the fish are on the move. Call: Happy Hooker (510) 223-5388; Emeryville Sport Fishing (510) 654-6040, Don Franklin, Soleman (510) 703-4148.

• MONTEREY/SANTA CRUZ — Sonny Arcaleo of Chris's Landing in Monterey said the salmon are biting "like wild dogs." The Checkmate put in 33 salmon for 20 anglers Sunday while a boat from Randy's Sport Fishing had 25 limits. These boats were mooching, creating minimal damage to the fish without losing lead to the bottom of the ocean. The Caroline put in 20 limits of rockfish Sunday. Chris is running daily rockfish and salmon trips. Call: Chris' Landing (831) 375-5951, Bayside Marine (831) 475-2173, usafishing.com.

TROUT PLANTS

Reservoirs and lakes that will be planted with trout during the week of July 24:

Tuolumne — Beaver Creek; Cherry Lake; Herring Creek; Lyons Canal; Lyons Reservoir; South Fork, North Fork and Middle Fork Tuolumne River; Moccasin Creek; Pinecrest Lake; Powerhouse Stream; Middle Fork, South Fork and Clark Fork Stanislaus River. Mariposa — Merced River downstream of Redbud Bridge

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