Salmon plentiful after start of season | The Sacramento Bee

Here are the best places to fish in the Sacramento region, Northern California and beyond for the week of July 13, 2015.

King salmon have begun to show up at the mouth of the American at Discovery Park. The river opened July 16, and a crowd of anglers is expected to be trolling small plugs. Shad are still present between the dam and Sunrise Boulevard.

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An increase in flows from 1,000 cfs to 3,000 cfs has sparked another striper bite, with anglers catching keepers and shakers on pencil poppers between the 10th Street Bridge and Shanghai Bend. Salmon season opened July 16, but few salmon are present in the river, which was 70 degrees on Sunday.

The 5 mph speed limit went into effect on Monday. Fishing for bass suspended in open water has been good for anglers tossing jigs and plastics in crawdad and shad colors. The Hoble Cove ramp is the only launch still open.

Salmon have been reported throughout the section of river, which opened to king fishing July 16. The river will open as scheduled, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The coolest water is from Chico to Red Bluff and that’s where most guides will be concentrating their action.

Largemouth bass remained tops in the San Joaquin Delta system, and the bass are loading up on buzzbaits or topwater lures in the early mornings along with punching Missle’s D-Bombs under grassy mats. A 15-plus-pound largemouth was caught and released. Moving current is the key to bass fishing. Numbers can be taken on Havoc Flat Dogs on a Zappu head just outside of the weed line. Striped bass fishing is best in the Antioch area with 5 to 10 keepers to 30 inches taken on a daily basis from the Antioch Fishing Pier. Jumbo red worms or wax worms are working for panfish in Whiskey Slough, Bacon Island Road, Holland Tract, Orwood Marina, Clifton Court Forebay, and off of Eight Mile Road. Crappie action is best off of Eight Mile Road with live minnows. Fresh and frozen shad is unavailable at the present time.

Fishing for king salmon at the mouth of the river is heating up, according to guide Curtis Palmer of River Secrets Guide Service. “Last week fishing was the best that it has been this year to date for trolling in the bay. There were times when 3 or 4 boats had fish on at the same time. Thursday was apparently the hottest fishing day of the week. The majority of the fish were 15 pounds and slightly larger. I know of several Chinooks that were 20-22 pounds, which is a really nice fish. There are still a few late running springer's getting caught that were busting at the seams full of roe. I have said this a couple times before, and I am going to say it one more time: I expect the Rogue Bay will have a banner year for salmon fishing that will hopefully mimic the ones we experienced a dozen years ago.”

Some steelhead are being caught at the mouth of the Applegate River. Fall Chinook salmon should be on a steady improvement through July on back-bounced plugs like the Kwikfish with a sardine wrap, small pieces of roe or nightcrawlers. “You can now keep wild fish below Dodge Bridge,” said Troy Whitaker at U-Save Tackle in Grants Pass. “Action on the Upper Rogue continues at a good pace on back-trolled plugs with roe or sardine wraps. Lake fishing continues to be good on the lakes. Applegate is yielding good action on smallmouth bass on Senkos and crawdad colored crank plugs. Trout are falling to trolled Wedding Rings followed by nightcrawlers.

Pretty much holding in the normal summer pattern with lots of river users on the weekends, according to Scott Heemstra of King’s Sport and Tackle. “Flows are hovering around 70-80 cfs with temps right around 70 degrees. The bass fishing has been decent in the Guerneville area with small Rooster Tail spinners producing well. The shad fishing is over, so we won't see any anadromous fish until fall. Fishing structure that's shady or in the morning or evening times are most productive.”

King Salmon are at the mouth of the Umpqua River and boats are returning with multiple catches of fish, according to guide Curtis Palmer of River Secrets. “With ocean conditions being fishable, it has been luring the majority of vessels away from the mouth of the river and into the ocean where coho and Chinook have both played a part in anglers being successful in their trip. It is still a little bit early for concentrating on salmon fishing at Windy Bend on the Umpqua River. I suggest that anglers concentrate at the mouth of the Umpqua River and slightly offshore when conditions allow. The Roseburg area has continued to show more rocks and less water. The few anglers that have been fishing for smallmouth bass have been ecstatic with the numbers of smallies they have caught on their trips. Fishing pressure is low due to high temperatures.”

“Summer steelhead fishing on the North Umpqua River can be one of the most peaceful fishing experiences anywhere, so I was surprised to receive reports of steelhead being caught virtually every day last week,” said Guide Curtis Palmer of River Secrets. “The reason is due to a lot warmer water temperatures on the lower Umpqua River causing special regulations to become adopted in order to protect our returning fish that became held up in the lower warmer water. With that being pointed out, I am starting to believe that the North Umpqua must have received one or two fair-sized runs of early summer steelhead.”

Steelhead fishing has been slow. Flows Sunday at Iron Gate Dam were 902 cfs.

Fishing has slowed for trout and steelhead. Flows at Seiad Valley were 1,030 cfs on Sunday. Halfpounders have been reported near Orleans.

Bright salmon are being caught by anglers trolling spinners and Kastmasters near the mouth. Above the estuary, fishing is slow. Flows on Sunday at Terwer were 2,970 cfs. The water temperature was up to 71 degrees on Sunday. The Blue Creek section is now closed until Sept. 14.

Flows at Douglas City were 439 cfs on Sunday, while flows at Hoopa were 822 cfs. Warm water has slowed salmon fishing on the lower river. Kings are being caught near Douglas City on roe and tuna balls.

Find the concentrations of bait in the deeper areas and you’ll find the bass. The bite for better-sized fish continued to be the topwater bite with buzzbaits, poppers, walking baits and frogs all producing. The structure bite with jigs is also improving. The other good structure approach is using a Carolina rig with a Brush Hog, Sweet Beaver or lizard.

The kokanee have moved into deep water on structure and are schooling up from 65 to 85 feet deep on drop-offs. The bigger Rocky Mountain Tackle (RMT) dodgers paid a big role coupled with Apex spoons, Radical Glow spinners and Uncle Larry’s spinners with Pautzke Firecorn. Drop-shot rigs worked over rock piles offshore and points in the Narrows using Roboworms and tubes worked well for bass.

Smallies continued to smash G-Splash poppers around main lake points before the sun comes up and goes down. During the day, use a drop-shot rod with 4-inch Roboworms in Oxblood or Aaron's Magic.

G-Splash poppers and Sammy 128s worked on the top of main body points provided most of the action for the smallies to 2 1/2 pounds. The upper main body near Cherry Creek has kicked out a few big largemouth bass. Crappie are hitting LV100s in the ghost pattern fished in the 10- to 15-foot range.

Recent thunderstorms slowed the fishing, but it should pick back up when the weather warms up again. Try nightcrawlers behind dodgers in 25 feet on the east side of peninsular and east shoreline for trout.

Fishing should be good here all summer since water condition are consistently cold and clear. Go early if you want to use dry flies.

Try running watermelon dodgers with Uncle Larry’s pink tiger spinners or needlefish spoons for trout. There are still a few macks from 6 to 10 pounds biting spoons or custom painted plugs.

You can still troll in 50 to 60 feet of water with five colors of lead core but fish are headed down. Anchoring in 50 feet of water with a threaded nightcrawler down 25 feet is producing limits to 2 1/2 pounds.

With the Hex Hatch still going strong, so has the fishing, but be on the water early for the surface action. A popular and technique here is retrieving dark or olive colored leeches on a sinking line.

Fishing is at its best here early before the sun gets high in the sky and then right at sunset, as there are a variety of hatches going off. The Power House No. 2 riffle has been fishing well, but has also been a little crowded.

Fish the shoreline and structure for better action early and late when hatches are going off. The callibaetis and damsel flies are coming off daily. Fishing has been fair to good, but check the special regulations here.

The fishing here has been good, even if the water is a little stained.

Fish early and then fish the shade pockets mid-day. The evening bite has been fair. Good fishing should continue over the next few weeks.

Remember to fish early and late, as there is a lot of traffic out there now. Spotted and smallmouth bass fishing has been good. Try the I-5 Bridge in 40 to 65 feet for rainbow trout with Apex and Wiggle Hoochies. For salmon work from 100 to 120 down rolling shad and or anchovies.

Bass and trout fishing is slow.

The city of Dunsmuir has stocked hundreds of 14- to 22-inch rainbows. Trout fishing is very good from Dunsmuir to Shasta Lake, where numerous hatches have sparked good nymph and dry fly action. Gear anglers also are catching fish.

The river is closed to all fishing between Keswick Dam and the Highway 44 bridge from April 27 to July 31. Trout fishing has been good below the Highway 44 bridge, although the river stretch between the bridge and Anderson is crowded. Egg patterns are working best. Salmon season opened July 16 below the Red Bluff Diversion Dam and Aug. 1 above it.

Fishing for stripers and shad has been slow. The river opened to salmon fishing July 16, but kings will be scooting right through the warm water heading for cooler water upriver.

Fishing pressure has dropped in the deepwater channel at the Port of Sacramento. Crappie and catfish fishing is very good in the sloughs and ditches near Sacramento for anglers using small minnows and wax worms. Salmon season opened July 16, but it’s not expected to be very good here unless anglers intercept a moving school of fish heading upriver towards cooler water.

The lake is at 12.7-percent capacity. With the water level so low, shore fishermen can cast into the river channel where the fish congregate to find cooler water. Try the inlet from a float tube in the early morning or evening.

The lake is at 94.4-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week. Drew Meteer at Caples Lake Resort reported fishing was good since EID/KUP stocked 3100 pounds of trophy trout in the lake a couple weeks ago. Shore anglers were catching some 3- to 5-pound rainbows off the dam using nightcrawlers and floating dough bait. DFW planter rainbows were hitting nightcrawlers, floating dough bait, Kastmaster spoons, and Panther Martin spinners at Wood’s Creek inlet and Emigrant Bay.

The West Carson is scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week. Another week of thunderstorms, hail, and rain kept the East Carson running muddy and slowed the fishing. The West Carson was running clear and getting most of the fishing pressure. 3500 bicyclists participating in the 129-mile “Death Ride” this past week kept anglers out of the area due to the overwhelming bike traffic. Look for clearer water and better fishing this week.

The lake is at 52-percent capacity. Trollers were picking up a 1 to 3 rainbows on flasher/worms at 4 colors deep. The most consistent action was for boaters anchored by the dam in 30 to 40 feet of water using floating dough bait on the bottom. Shore anglers at Mallard Point who could reach deeper water by casting 50 yards off shore were scoring the occasional limit. Larger boats launching at Honker Cove were hitting the rocks at the end of the concrete, so it could be “small boats only” very soon.

The lake is at 70-percent capacity and scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week. Heavy recreational boat traffic made it tough for shore fishermen and kokanee trollers had to get out early in the morning to beat the traffic. Try for the kokes at 50 to 80 feet deep between China Cove and Loch Leven using pink or orange hoochies.

The North Fork at Belden was stocked by the DFW this past week. PG&E water releases this past week blew out the North Fork and fishing was slow despite the plant. When the river clears up, fishing should be fantastic.

The lake is at 30-percent capacity. Wiggins Trading Post reported shore fishing was best at the dam using nightcrawlers. The Frenchman boat launch was now for small boats only with 4-wheel drive strongly recommended.

Trolling at Gold Lake was the best bet for planter rainbows using flasher/worms at 10 to 12 feet deep on the west end of the lake. The bite was okay at Sardine, Salmon, and Snag lakes.

The lake is at 80-percent capacity. Dale Daneman at Dale’s Foothill Fishing Service reported catching 11 rainbows on his last trip. The first 4 in the early morning were 15 to 20 inchers and the rest were 10- to 13-inch DFW planters. The bite lasted 4 hours then shut off. A single Sep’s brown grub trolled in the top 25 feet did the trick.

Small boaters and float tubers were picking up some nice fish in the deeper water in front of the dam.

The lake is at 68-percent capacity. Brett Brady at Bare Bones Guide Service reported a good bite for planter rainbows everywhere on the lake using flasher/worms and Apex at 30 feet deep.

The lake is at 80-percent capacity. Sly Park Resort reported shore anglers were still picking up planter rainbows at the dam using worms and floating dough bait.

Mike Nielsen at Tahoe Topliners Sportfishing reported hit-or-miss action for limits of macks to 8 pounds jigging with a 3-ounce Williamson Vortex tipped with a live minnow. One day the bite was good and the next tough. Zach Gordon at Tahoe Sportfishing reported the fleet was working for near-limits to limits of 3- to 5-pound macks mooching live bait 140 to 190 feet deep from Homewood to Tahoe City. Kokanee action was still slow, but small boaters focusing on kokes were picking up to 9 salmon on flasher/spinners at 45 feet deep over 100 feet of water off Camp Richardson.

The lake is at 52-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week. Pete Robinson at the Georgetown Ranger Station reported a friend fished here this past week and picked up a few rainbows.

The lake is at 26.4-percent capacity. With the lake so low and warm, smallmouth bass fishing on rocky shores was the best bet this past week.

Trout season closed and there were no perch fishing reports yet.

The fishing was slow here.

The lake is at 89-percent capacity and scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week. A friend of Dale Daneman at Dale’s Foothill Fishing Service said he fished here for several hours and only caught a few 10-inch DFW planters. The big macks in the lake must be eating well.

The lake is at 16-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week. James Netzel at Tight Lines Guide Service reported a little tougher bite for kokanee this past week, but he was picking up some rainbows and the occasional mack. The kokanee were running 15 to 17 inches and still hitting dodgers trailing RMT hoochies and spinners in pink at 50 to 60 feet deep in front of the dam.

The Douglas County Topaz Lake Recreation Area launch ramp was for small boats only due to the low water level, though some recreational boaters were launching off the shore at the “primitive area”. Fishing was slow with all the thunderstorms rolling through the area, but should improve as the weather stabilizes.

Flows were dangerously low here and the water temp was in the low 70s. Anglers need to leave this river alone to protect and preserve the fishery.

The lake is at 74-percent capacity. Kyle Neeser at Crystal Basin Tackle and Guide Service reported kokanee trolling was 1/2 limits at best—7 or 8 fish for 3 anglers. The kokes were running in two year classes, 12 to 14 inches and 15 to 16 inches. Neeser said they were using a Wild Thing Dodger trailing small hoochies and spinners in red or orange at 30 to 50 feet deep over 80 feet of water.

The Little Walker and West Walker at Pickel Meadows and the Canyon were stocked by the DFW this past week and are all scheduled for more DFW plants this week. The river flows cleared by the weekend after thunderstorms earlier in the week, and fishing was very good. The leader of the “How Big is Big” Fishing Derby is an 8.2-pound rainbow caught by Clifford Clark of Reseda on floating dough bait near Chris Flat campgrounds. Mono County will stock 400 pounds of 3-pound average rainbows on July 15.

Shad action is all but over in the upper Delta, but a late run made its way into the American River. Smallmouth bass are still in the upper river along the rocky structure, and crankbaits, live minnows, or wacky-rigged Senkos are effective. Sturgeon fishermen are scarce, but a few diamondbacks are holding in lower Suisun Bay. An early run of striped bass is anticipated, but most stripers are found along the Benicia shoreline. The river salmon season began on July 16.

Easy fishing summed up the week, with limits of bass coming aboard, mixed with a few halibut, by early morning for Bass Tub, Happy Hooker and California Dawn. Then boats went off to add rockfish and lingcod. An 8-pound ocean whitefish was brought aboard California Dawn at the Farallones. Salmon boats like New Easy Rider, El Doardo andFlying Fish had an up & down week, with limits or goose eggs both possible, from one day to the next.

Tomales Bay halibut picked up the pace and bit pretty well near the mouth of the Bay and near Hog Island. The striped bass bite along the beaches near Lawson’s Landing continued, but showed signs of turning spotty. Bodega Bay anglers hauled home back-stressing sacks of rockfish and lingcod after fishing on New Sea Anglernear Elephant Rock.

Top score for the week was on Wet Spot when 4 people caught 21 rockfish, 1 lingcod, 2 striped bass and 6 salmon. Note that the salmon count alone was 1.5 salmon per person. New Seeker, Super Fish and Sundance also fished salmon and Sundance had a 30 pounder. Sea Wolf, New Huck Fin, New Salmon Queen and Tiger Fish went after bass and then ran out the Gate to add a load of rockfish and lingcod.

The highlight of the week for the entire coast was a 114-pound opah, caught aboard charter boat, Scrimshaw, while hunting tuna. A fair number of albacore were caught. Pacific halibut bit crazy and there were limits taken. The biggest flattie weighed 75 pounds. Salmon fishing was decent and at times good, with the average size improving week by week.

Rockfish and lingcod were uber-steady for Telstar, which also went out to scare up some salmon at mid-week. The salmon weren’t big, but it was nice to catch some. The story of the week was a 31-pound lingcod aboard Telstar. Private boaters ran 20 miles out and did come back with some albacore. One feller caught a misplaced dorado.

Party boats like Queen of Hearts, New Capt. Pete and Huli Cat headed down the coast and racked up large scores of lingcod and rockfish from Ritz Carlton, Martins Beach, Tunitas and Pescador. Private boaters turned north out of harbor and hunted salmon near the Channel Buoys. Shore fishers had grand battles with striped bass, using baits, poppers or hardbaits.

Bass fishing couldn’t get much better. Bass Tub had limits one morning by 7:30 a.m., then went out for rockfish, cabezon and lingcod to round out a half-day trip.

Catfishing remains solid with chicken livers, prepared dough baits, or nightcrawlers in Jackson Creek or Carson Cove. There was a small local night catfish tournament over the weekend with a morning weigh-in. Crappie to one-pound are being taken on mini-jigs or small minnows near Carson Cove. Fishing fees have been dropped to $5.00 for the summer, but the use fee remains at $10.00 with a launch fee at $5.00. Trout stocking with resume in October when the water temperature is cool enough to sustain plants.

Holdover trout are hanging around in the deeper water near the dam, and there are a few kokanee that have come in from overflows from Lake Pardee. The lake is as shallow as 60 feet near the dam, and boaters must be careful and watch their depth. Largemouth bass and catfish remain the top species in the warm water conditions. Chicken livers, prepared dough bait, or nightcrawlers are best for the whiskerfish with deep-diving crankbaits, Senkos, or drop-shot plastics working for largemouth bass. Both the North and South Shore Launch Ramps are open. Recent releases from Pardee have stained the water in the main lake.

The kokanee, king salmon, and rainbow trout action has slowed considerably within the past week. The kokanee are holding in open water off Jenkins Hill, but they have been reluctant to strike traditional kokanee gear. PPK Tomahawk spinners in black/white are working for the occasional rainbow trout. The lake continues to steadily release water, and patience is required to launch a boat from the one-lane ramp at Fleming Meadows. Bass fishing remained best with live minnows from the bank, and large minnows have reemerged in area bait shops.

The South Barrett Cove launch ramp has closed as the water level has dropped to 12% of capacity. The North Barrett Cove ramp is still operational with no time restrictions. The ramp requires a long walk back to the parking lot unless you arrive early. Few bass fishermen are heading to the lake due to the difficulty of walking to the banks. Live minnows from the shoreline remain the top technique. Information on the launch ramp is available at 855-222-5253.

The McSwain Marina is now closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The water temperature of the lake remained over 70 degree. Trout fishing is slow for bank anglers, and trollers are few and far between. The best action for trout remained up the river arm at depths to 35 feet with PPK Tomahawk spinners in bright color patterns There are a number of spotted bass that have entered the lake from upstream McClure. There will be no future trout plants for the summer, and a decision for future plants will be reviewed in August based upon the water temperatures.

Catfish remain the top species with the whiskerfish roaming the shallow. A weightless presentation with frozen shad, mackerel, sardines, or mackerel are producing numbers of catfish. Trout fishing is fair for trollers pulling large plugs at depths from 50 to 70 feet. A few anglers are picking up limits of kokanee with Uncle Larry’s spinners or micro-hoochies behind a large dodger. There is a topwater bite for spotted bass in the mornings and evening while working the bottom during the daytime with ½ -oz. jigs at depths to 45 feet. The launch ramp is limited to the dirt ramp at Glory Hole Point, and a 4WD tow vehicle in essential.

The striper bite has slowed considerably as the lake continues to drop in elevation. The stripers are boiling on the surface throughout the lake, chasing small shad. The low pool of water is concentrating the shad schools, and the stripers are busy chasing the baitfish. As a result, the stripers are reluctant to take a trolled anchovy or shad on a harness rig. The lake has dropped to 15% of capacity, but launching a boat is still possible.

The lake has closed due to a major reconstruction of the RV Park over the remainder of the summer, and it will reopen in February 2016 with heavy trout plants anticipated for the opener.

Plans have been announced to drain the lake in September to meet agricultural and environmental obligations, but it appears that the lake will be open for the summer months.

Hikers making it down to the North Fork from the trailheads above Foresthill were catching plenty of 9- to 12-inch rainbows in the deeper pools using spinners.

The lake is at 54-percent capacity. Emerald Cove Marina reported they were still launching boats at their ramp. Kokanee were still hitting dodger/hoochies for trollers at the dam and up in the North Fork. Catfish were hitting in the coves.

The lake is at 55-percent capacity. North Shore Resort was still launching boats, but warned about shallow hazards such as islands and rocks as the water level continued to drop. Ron Franks of Folsom fished this past week and caught 12 bass on oxblood craws at 10 to 15 deep in the Rock Creek arm and near the dam.

The lake is 40 feet from full. Catfishing really took off this past week with 16 and 17 pounders caught at night off the docks using anchovies and sardines. Bass, bluegill, and redears were very active too. Trout fishing was hit-or-miss in deep water for trollers and bait drifters with only 1 or 2 fish caught per person.

The lake is at 91-percent capacity. Lisa Rogers at Skippers Cove Marina reported a 20-inch brown trout was caught on a nightcrawler at Missouri Bar above the confluence of the North and South Yuba. A houseboater was catching 1 or 2 rainbows on trolled threaded nightcrawlers in the main body near the dam in the mornings.

The lake is at 39-percent capacity and scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week. The Foresthill Ranger Station reported the French Meadows launch ramp was still open. All the campgrounds were open with water.

The lake is at 44.9-percent capacity. Small boats were still launching below the ramp through the rocks and gravel, but 4-wheel drive was required. Trollers were still picking up trout and kokanee.

The lake is at 37-percent capacity—down 5.5 feet this past week. Guide Ron Gandolfi reported bass fishing was good early and late in the day on topwater lures—poppers, Spooks, and buzzbaits. Tubes, Keitech swimbaits, beavers, drop-shot worms, Paradise Tackle Company finesse jigs, and Senkos were all working on steep rocky points and walls at 20 to 30 feet deep.

The lake is at 93.8-percent capacity. No report was available.

The lake is at 55.7-percent capacity. Jim Caldwell at NID reported trollers were catching 4 or 5 fish per boat using flasher/worms near the dam. Some smallmouth bass were hitting worms and jigs on rocky banks. The launch ramp at Cascade was out of the water. Launching was still good at Scott’s Flat Marina.

The lake is at 45-percent capacity. Boats were still launching, but fishing was slow. The campgrounds and day-use area were all open.

The lake is at 54-percent capacity. The campgrounds should open at the end of July as work progresses on cleanup and repairs after the King Fire. Shore fishermen were picking up a fish or two on worms or floating dough bait.

The lake was at 135.1-foot elevation at press time—89.7-percent capacity. The early morning bass bite was good on topwater along rock banks, then later in the day switched over to crankbaits. 1/4-ounce spinnerbaits were working well over the tops of the weed beds.

– Western Outdoor News

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