NORTH COAST RIVERS

North Coast streams and rivers are regulated by low flow closures. Always call ahead to determine the condition of the river you want to fish. If not mentioned, the river is closed or no reports. The DFG’s Low Flow Closure Hotline for north coast rivers is (707) 822-3164. For the Russian River and counties of Mendocino, Sonoma and Marin, call (707) 944-5533.  South Central Coast streams number is (831) 649-2886. Many streams close, and others change to artificial/barbless only on, March 31 and others on April 25. Trouble identifying salmon or steelhead? Go to: http://www.swr.noaa.gov/fmd/identify.htm.

ROGUE RIVER, Gold Beach, Ore.—As late as it is, there was still a flurry of good fishing action for late-run springs here as rains cooled down the river, and the last of the fish spurted upriver. Guide and WON Field Reporter Curtis Palmer reported catching 2, losing 1 and having 2 more takedowns on June 24, but it’s not something you can count on at this time of year, he said. From here on out, salmon fishing will mostly be relegated to trolling the estuary for staging fall-run fish.

RUSSIAN RIVER—Summer time water activities have taken over the river, as they do every summer, and the only fishing is found for smallmouth bass early and late in the day.

TRINITY/KLAMATH RIVERS

KLAMATH RIVER, Klamath Glen—Salmon fishing near the mouth of the Klamath continued to be only fair with anglers putting in lots of time for one or two fish an outing.  Steelhead is improving, though, and, as some anglers  start to target them, fishing should improve even more.

KLAMATH RIVER, Iron Gate Dam—The salmon fly hatch is continuing and should last another couple of weeks.  Fishing is good for trout from 10 to 20 inches with big nymphs being the ticket most days, and big dry flies attracting vicious strikes on a few others.  While dry fly fishing during the hatch is often iffy, the adrenalin rush of the occasional surface strike keeps anglers throwing the big bushy salmon fly imitations.

TRINITY RIVER–The release at Lewiston was down to 2,000 cfs, high, but fishable, and good anglers were now catching a couple of salmon  an outing on backtrolled plugs or drifted roe in the Douglas City to Junction City section of river.  Fishing was still tough farther downstream in the Burnt Ranch area, but a few were being hooked there.

SIERRA LAKES/RIVERS

BOCA LAKE—The lake is at 74-percent capacity.  Mountain Hardware and Sports reported that fishing was slow here—try early or late and don’t expect much!  Try the inlet for the best chance of getting a bite.

CAPLES LAKE—Dave at Caples Lake Resort reported that trollers were picking up a mix of rainbows, browns, and macks at 20 feet deep from Wood’s Creek and Emigrant Bay.  Shore anglers were catching some fish at the dam and spillway.

CARSON RIVER (East, West)—Alpine County is scheduled to make another 1800-pound plant of 1- to 2-pound rainbows in the East and West Carson this week.  Due to the heavy plants over the past two weeks, fishing was excellent on both forks this past week, according to the Carson River Resort.  Limits included fish up to 2 1/2 pounds and were taken on salmon eggs, worms, 1/8-ounce Panther Martins, and flies.  The East Fork was fishing well from Hangman’s Bridge to the upper bridge about 5 miles to the south.  The West Fork was running lower and fish were being found in the deeper pools.

DAVIS LAKE—The lake is at 79-percent capacity.  Fishing has slowed here due to lots of floating weeds.  Ed Dillard at Dillard’s Guided Fishing recommended bait fishing over trolling.  Dillard anchored off Lightning Tree in 15 feet of water and cast into 20-foot deep water in the creek channel using lemon twist Power Bait for 16- to 18-inch rainbows.  Trollers who find water free of weeds, usually from Honker to the dam, can do well using firetiger Sockeye Slammers and red-dot frog Needlefish at 12 feet deep.  Some schools of fish have copepods, others don’t.

DONNER LAKE—The west end has been producing rainbows, small macks, and few kokanee for shore casters using Kastmaster spoons, Power Bait, and nightcrawlers.  Trolling was great this past week for 10- to 12-inch kokanee salmon at 40 to 65 feet deep on hoochies and spinners behind dodgers—all colors were working!!

FEATHER RIVER CANYON—Mike Hanson at the Caribou Crossroads Resort reported that fishing in the North Fork was a little slow.  The river needs another DFG plant.

FRENCHMAN LAKE—The lake is at 75-percent capacity.  Ed Dillard at Dillard’s Guided Fishing spent two days here this past week and found good action both bait fishing and trolling.  He anchored in 25 feet of water at Big Cove and did well for 14- to 16-inch rainbows on Power Bait.  Trolling 25 feet deep over 50 feet of water produced fish on firetiger Sockeye Slammers and red-dot frog Needlefish in the middle of the lake off the Frenchman’s boat ramp.

GOLD LAKES BASIN—Upper Salmon Lake and Snag Lake are both scheduled for a DFG trout plants this week.   Bassett’s Station reported that some small rainbows were coming out of Gold Lake and Lower Sardine Lake.

ICE HOUSE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 92-percent capacity.  Trollers were picking up some rainbows running dodger/grub or worm combos in the top 20 feet.

INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR—Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters (TFFO) reported that blood midges and damsels were working for anglers fishing out of float tubes for 14- to 18-inch rainbows, plus a few of the larger Alpine County trophy trout.

JACKSON MEADOW RESERVOIR—Trollers were still picking up some nice rainbows in the east arm of the lake south of the boat launch, and to the right of the dam, according to Mountain Hardware and Sports.

JENKINSON LAKE (Sly Park)—According to Sly Park Resort, smallmouth bass fishing was good in the Narrows.  Trollers were picking up some rainbows when the winds were down.

LAKE TAHOE—Strong winds over the weekend blew most boats off the water.  Before and after the wind, the fishing was good for macks and kokanee.  A Tahoe Sportfishing captain, Zach Gordon, caught a 12 3/4-pound brown trout while bouncing a live minnow off the bottom in 70 feet of water off Ski Run at South Shore.  Macks were hitting for North Shore charter boats from 60 to 350 feet deep and running 3 to 10 pounds.  Trolling spoons, Sling Blade/Koke-a-nut combos, F5 craw FlatFish, and J-Plugs all produced from Crystal Bay Point to Sugar Pine. 9- to 14-inch kokanee were hitting flasher/spinner combos tipped with corn at 20 to 50 feet deep at South Shore.  A 13-pound mack was caught on kokanee gear, but it probably ate the koke that was on the line before the angler realized what he had hooked!

LOON LAKE—The lake is at 87-percent capacity.  The lake was still producing limits of rainbows when the winds settled down for trollers running dodger/grub or worm combos in the top 15 feet.  One angler had 40 fish in an 8-hour day toplining dodger/worm combos, according to Ken Mathis at Ken’s Custom Tackle.

PROSSER LAKE—The lake is at 72-percent capacity.  Mountain Hardware and Sports reported that fishing was slow.  The best times to fish were at first light and late evening, but you had to do a lot fishing to do a little bit of catching.

PYRAMID LAKE—According to Joe Mendes at Eagle Eye Charters, the Sacramento perch bite has begun.  His first two exploratory trips produced 14 and 16 perch averaging 1 to 1 1/2 pounds with fish up to 2 1/2 pounds.  The perch were hitting 3/8-ounce red/white marabou jigs on the sandy area near rocks in the Hell’s Kitchen area.  Trolling for trout was productive in the same areas at 25 to 35 feet deep with Father Murphy Vibrators.  The trout season ends on June 30.  Trout can still be taken on a catch-and-release basis while fishing for perch.

RED LAKE—TFFO reported that anglers using float tubes to reach the inlet were catching some nice brookies and cutthroats.

SILVER LAKE—Fishing should be okay at the dam for shore anglers.  Plasses Resort did not have any reports available on the trolling, but it should be good for a mix of rainbows, browns, and macks at 20 to 25 feet deep.

STAMPEDE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 85-percent capacity.  According to Mountain Hardware and Sports, kokanee trolling was still good but the fish had dropped deeper—55 to 68 feet deep.  The kokes were hitting dodger/hoochie combos in orange and glow patterns.  Trout were hitting in the shallower creek arms for trollers and shore casters.  Smallmouth bass were hitting craw Shad Raps, CD Rapalas, and jigs from boats in the Davies Creek arm.

TOPAZ LAKE—According to Topaz Landing Marina, the trout trolling has slowed due to warm weather and winds.  Boaters were happy with 2 or 3 fish per person while running Rapalas and flasher/worm combos in the middle of the lake over deep water at 20 to 25 feet deep.  Shore fishing was very slow due to the warm water temps.

TRUCKEE RIVER—TFFO reported that the main river above the Boca outlet was high (400 cfs) but fishable for fly casters using caddis, yellow sally, and PMD dries.  The flows were upped for rafting and the main river is loaded with rafts from 9 to 5.  For the best fishing, get out early or late when the rafting traffic subsides.  With flows down, fishing in the Little Truckee was tough.

UNION VALLEY RESERVOIR—The lake is at 93-percent capacity.  The kokanee bite was still good when the wind was down.  Kyle Neeser at Crystal Basin Tackle and Guide Service reported catching 1 1/2 limits of 14- to 14 1/2-inch kokes on pink hoochies or spinners behind watermelon Wild Thing dodgers at 25 to 30 feet deep all over the lake.  Al Chambers of Cool picked up a 22-pound mack on his own this past week after taking an educational trip with Ken Mathis of Ken’s Custom Tackle and Guide Service in the recent past.  The 38 1/2-inch Mackinaw hit a dodger/herring rig 40 feet deep over a 50-foot deep hump surrounded by 80 feet of water.

WEST WALKER RIVER—The Little Walker and West Walker are both scheduled for DFG trout plants this week.  Sam Foster at the Toiyabe Motel reported that trout fishing was outstanding.  Anglers were still catching a few 2- to 4-pound Mono County fish along with all the DFG planters they wanted on bait, lures, and flies.  The flows were at 170 cfs, “outstanding fly fishing conditions”.  Mono County may still be making a trophy trout plant in time for the July 1 (Fourth of July) weekend.  The Northern Mono County Chamber of Commerce will be making a 750-pound plant of 3 to 5 pounders the week of July 8.

SACRAMENTO VALLEY

AMERICAN RIVER—What had been some of the best shad fishing in many years, according to Al Bunch of American Fly Fishing, slowed somewhat with increased flows and cool air and water temperatures.  However, shad continued to be caught in decent numbers from Grist Mill to Sailor Bar.  The good news is that the cooler water should slow the spawn and shad should hang around in the river longer than they would if temperatures were warmer.  Striper fishing has only fair, with a few relatively small fish being caught on weighted streamer flies, swimbaits, sardines, and minnows.  Some monster stripers are regularly being observed attacking shad, but few are being caught. 

FEATHER RIVER—Steelhead fishing was quite good in the Low Flow Section all the way down to Gridley using small nymph dead-drifted under indicators.  Shad fishing continued to be good, as well, above and below Shanghai Bend all the way to the Afterbay.  Lots of salmon are being spotted, raising hopes for a good opener on July 16.

FOLSOM LAKE—Fishing for trout and landlocked king salmon continued to hold up surprisingly well in spite of surface water temperatures in the mid-70’s.  Landlocked king salmon to 20 inches were still being caught up the North Fork on Speedy Shiners trolled between 25 and 30 feet deep.  Bass were being taken off outside points between 15 and 20 feet deep up the North Fork on drop-shotted and Carolina-rigged plastic worms.  Try Pop-R’s,  crankbaits and swimbaits early in the morning.

MATHER LAKE—It’s producing some nice bass and even a few crappie.  Use weightless Senkos for the bass, mini-jigs for the crappie.  Some of the bass weigh up to 5 pounds.

RANCHO SECO LAKE—A few bass were being caught on crankbaits, ripbaits, swimbaits and Senkos by float tubers early and late, but redeared sunfish continued to provide the best action on worms under bobbers.  Trout fishing has slowed nearly to a stop, though.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Sacramento—The Deep Water Channel provided the best chances for some action last week with clams, chicken livers and mackerel producing catfish to 10 pounds, and bloodworms, sardines and minnows producing some striped bass to 8 pounds.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Tisdale—There aren’t many folks trying for stripers any more, but the few who did last week, did quite well.  Power trolling minnows downstream below Ward’s Landing produced some very good results on stripers from 3 to 8 pounds, with Bob Bradbury of Johnson’s Bait and Tackle reporting that he and his partner caught between 15 and 20 striped bass on one of his outings last week.    

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Redding —Trout fishing slowed a bit in strong winds and increased flows—11,500 cfs which put quite a bit of debris in the water.  Anglers were still getting around 20 fish a trip, with some as big as 4 pounds, on crickets, small plugs, Glo-Bugs, and nymphs under indicators.  Some guides like Al Brown of Al Brown’s Guide Service, and Dave Jacobs of Professional Guide Service are running combo trips in which they fish for trout in the morning between Redding and Anderson, then switch to fishing for shad around Los Molinos in the afternoon.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Dunsmuir—Trout fishing has been excellent on both the Upper Sacramento River above Shasta Reservoir and the McCloud River, according to Bob Grace of Ted Fay Fly Shop.  There’s even been some good dry fly fishing going on in the evenings just about anywhere on the Upper Sacramento.  On the McCloud, it’s fishing for wild fish below the dam, and fishing for planters above the lake.

YUBA RIVER—Shad fishing was outstanding, once again, for waders  walking in off of  Hallwood, and for jetboaters coming up from the mouth.  One fly fisher said he and his partner hooked 80 shad in  a single outing.

NORTH COAST LAKES

CLEAR LAKE—It was a disappointing week thanks to the weather that dropped 20 degrees and the water level also dropped as water was diverted for farming. When things settle down, try a frog in the early morning or with jigs, swimbaits and spinnerbaits on structure in the deeper portions of the lake.

LAKE BERRYESSA—The kokanee and salmon fishing continues to be good in terms of sizes, but water releases have slowed the bite some. Look for the action to heat back up when they stop releasing water after this next week.

LAKE SONOMA—Try the dam and bridge areas for a mix of steelies from 10 inches to 2 pounds. They are releasing water so the bite slows down and everything begins to migrate to that area. But there’s so much food in the area you really have to put your lure right in front of them to get them to bite right now. Try 55 feet.

UPPER BLUE LAKE—The winds were up here, but anglers going out are catching limits to 2 pounds mixed in with the new planters. Try going down 30 feet with a Kastmasters, Needlefish or a wooly bugger with an action disk.

NORTHEASTERN AREA

LAKE ALMANOR—Fish are snacking most of the day on an abundant supply of bugs right now so expect to work a little harder for your limits.

BATTLE CREEK RESERVOIR—According to Rim Rock Ranch, despite the cold weather this past week, hatches were prolific but the fish were reluctant to take anything. The water is clear and you can see lots of fish but they showed no sign of being hungry. With warming weather the fishing should improve again.

BAUM LAKE—Fishing has been hot and cold here. Try lures and floating baits. The fly fishing should be picking up as there have been a few more hatches going off.

CASSEL FOREBAY–Closed until further notice for repairs. All water has been drained into the natural creek channel that flows into Baum Lake in order to work on structure repairs in the canal. Upstream from the Cassel Bridge saw little open water, as fishermen were stacked nearly arm to arm. Although the pressure was heavy if you could find a place to fish, the fish were cooperating. Floating baits and worms were the preferred baits to catch some nice fish.

EAGLE LAKE—The Project Eagle Lake Trout (PELT) 4th of July Fundraiser is Saturday, June 30 at the Eagle Lake RV Park and Store. With a horseshoe tourney, casting contests, a free kids raffle for 3 to 12 years of age, giant raffle with great prizes, seminars from Eagle Lake’s top fishing guides, hamburgers and hotdogs; it’s a great family activity. The day’s events begin at 9:30 a.m.

FALL RIVER—Fishing had been fair to good, thanks to a hex hatch.

MANZANITA LAKE–Hatches were noticeable absent as the weather was very cold with even a trace of snow on Friday. Those fly fishermen who braved the weather had it tough, but a few nice fish were taken nevertheless. Ants and beetles enticed some strikes for a few.  Fishermen will do better as warmer weather returns. This lake has special restrictions so be sure and read the regulations.

MCCLOUD RIVER—Water conditions are excellent and the fishing continues to be good with hatches late in the day.

PIT RIVER—Fishing has been very good lately with good hatches but the wading here is tough.

SHASTA LAKE—Ripbaits and crankbaits worked along the rocky shores have been the best bet for numbers of bass, while 4-inch plastic worms have been the ticket for some bigger fish in the Pit Arm of the lake. Both trout and salmon have been producing limits but you’ll have to go deeper for them now.

UPPER HATCREEK—Despite the unseasonably cold weather fishing was good and those who braved the weather caught fish. Most of the fish taken were pansized but a few fortunate fishermen brought in some great brookies. Even though big fish are not always part of the catch, there are a lot of big fish here. Crickets, worms and eggs were the top baits and the bite was good despite the cold. DFG continues with generous plants that should include a large number of big brooders leading up to the July 4 holiday. Fly fishing on the upper creek was slower. Crystal buggers were the top producer for fly casters.

NORTHERN FOOTHILLS

AMERICAN RIVER—The Georgetown Ranger Station reported that the river was running low and very clear.  Fishermen were seen in the section below the bridge at the confluence of the North Fork and Middle Fork at Hwy 49.

BULLARDS BAR—The lake is at 95-percent capacity.  Cold windy, rainy weather over the end of this past week and weekend made for tough fishing.  Some kokanee should be hitting for trollers, and small spotted bass should be hitting all along the banks on drop-shot worms.

CAMP FAR WEST—Bass fishing was pretty good.  One angler picked up 10 small bass, with four over 1 1/2 pounds, on drop-shot morning dawn worms.  Another angler picked up 3 bass to 2 1/2 pounds on 4-inch green pumpkin Senkos at South Shore.  No word on any catfish.

COLLINS LAKE—The lake is down 7 feet from full.  The trout fishing was good this past week with lots of rainbows coming in for shore anglers and trollers working the area at the bridge.  Shore anglers did well using worms and Power Bait, while the trollers were running flasher/worm combos and Cripplures.  Boaters also did well drifting with worms and Power Bait.  Bass to 2 1/4 pounds were taken on plastic worms, nightcrawlers and crawdads at the boat dock and along the east side.  Catfish action heated up with several fish running 4 to 5 3/4 pounds brought to the scales.  Power Bait, nightcrawlers, and chicken livers all worked for the whiskerfish.  Night fishing at the docks was good for a mix of trout and catfish.

ENGLEBRIGHT RESERVOIR—The lake is at 93-percent capacity.  Dillon Davis at Skippers Cove Marina reported that trout trolling was very good from the marina to Dixon Hill running threaded nightcrawlers, with or without a dodger, in the top 10 feet for rainbows running 9 inches to 2 pounds.  Lots of small rainbows were still being caught at the confluence of the Yuba forks at the upper end of the lake on the shallow sand flats on Power Bait and worms.  Davis reported seeing a large group of 5- to 9-pound bass cruising the shore in 3 to 4 feet of water in the area from Cherokee to Buck’s Beach—someone needs to come up here with a swimbait and catch a new lake record!!

FRENCH MEADOWS RESERVOIR—The Foresthill Ranger Station reported that construction was complete on the dam upgrade project.  Visitors heading to the lake need to be on the lookout for free range cattle on Mosquito Ridge Rd.  Will Fish Tackle reported that rainbow trout were hitting flasher/worm combos from the boat ramp to the dam.

FULLER LAKE—Fishing should still be productive for trollers since the lake was planted two weeks ago.

HELL HOLE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 84-percent capacity.  Will Fish Tackle in Auburn reported that trollers were still catching good numbers of 14- to 15-inch kokanee on dodger/hoochie combos 40 feet deep at the powerhouse.  Some macks were taken trolling black/white/red dot Lyman plugs run 70 feet deep at the dam.

LAKE OROVILLE—The lake is at 94-percent capacity.  Guide Ron Gandolfi reported that bass fishing was still very good.  Anglers can catch lots of smaller fish on drop-shot worms.  Gandolfi picked up fish to 4 pounds burning lipless crankbaits close to points and ambush sites in the West Branch, North Fork, main lake slot, and dam area.  Small Keitech 3.8 swimbaits were also taking better quality fish down to 20 feet deep.  Coho trolling and mooching was still good at the dam and Green Bridge from 25 to 50 feet deep—meter the bait first before committing to any area.

ROLLINS LAKE—Will Fish Tackle reported that trollers were picking up some 14-inch brown trout running black/gold F7 and F9 Rapalas at the Bear River inlet in the early morning.  Bass fishing was good at Greenhorn on topwater plugs.  Johnny Anaya at Long Ravine Resort reported that one angler picked up two 24-inch rainbows on red Power Bait at the Bear River inlet.  Heavy recreational boat traffic on the weekends makes it tough on fishermen—try during the week for better results.

SCOTT’S FLAT LAKE—The lake is scheduled for a DFG trout plant this week.  Jim Caldwell reported that lots of smallmouth bass, and a few largemouth bass, were hitting worms and jigs from the right side of the marina to the dam and along the dam itself.  Trout fishing was best at 40 feet deep at the inlet.

SUGAR PINE RESERVOIR—The Foresthill Ranger Station reported that they had received no reports about the fishing here, but the lake hasn’t been stocked by the DFG for at least 5 weeks and could use a new plant.

STUMPY MEADOWS RESERVOIR—The Georgetown Ranger Station reported that trollers and shore fishermen were still catching 12- to 14-inch DFG planters.  Trollers were doing best at the inlet, while shore anglers did well from the boat ramp to the dam.

THERMOLITO AFTERBAY—The lake was at 130.2-foot elevation at press time—59-percent capacity.  Boaters were having no problems launching at Wilbur Road, but you might get wet putting in at Monument or Larkin due to shallow water on the ramp.  If the water gets up in the tules and the weather warms back up, try frogs.  Cold weather and strong winds shut down the fishing this past week.

NORCAL SALTWATER

BERKELEY—Berkeley boats found good salmon fishing between the N Buoy and Point Reyes. The average weight was 15 to 18 pounds though some much larger fish were mixed in. Trolling with harnessed anchovies proved most effective. Halibut bit inside the Bay, with Red Rock and Paradise serving as hotspots.

BODEGA BAY—A DFG biologist was reported to have checked in over 400 salmon coming into Bodega Bay on Saturday alone. Besides great salmon fishing, thanks to good weather, anglers are finding excellent rockfish and lingcod fishing.

DILLON BEACH— With flat water and little wind, boaters hauled in salmon from Elephant Rock to Bodega Head, trolling near the surface with harnessed herring or watermelon Apex Hotspots. Halibut are biting around Hog Island in Tomales Bay for boaters using live jacksmelt they jigged up with Sabikis. Crabs are a bit soft and light but quite abundant.

EMERYVILLE—Monday was the only day that Emeryville Sportfishing center posted scores under one fish per rod. The rest of the week saw action ranging from one fish per rod to limits, with limits common. Over the weekend fishing remained strong with limits of salmon reported on the C-Gull II, New Salmon Queen, Super Fish, Talisman and Sundance. Limits or near limits of rockfish with plenty of lingcod in the mix were reported by Sea Wolf, New Huck Finn, New Seeker and Super Fish.

EUREKA—The first albacore of the season out of Eureka hit the deck Friday. Marc Schmidt of Eureka made a 60- mile run in rough weather to boat a 21-pounder. He and a friend had another one hooked up but it came unbuttoned. What has come to be considered the best salmon season in memory continues unabated.

FORT BRAGG—Calm weather brought out fisherfolk in force. Skilled and experienced private boaters with plenty of patience limited on salmon, most boats caught fewer. The Telstar and Trek II both divided fishing time between salmon and rockfish. The salmon bite this week was on the slow side but easy limits of rockfish and large aggressive lingcod made for great days of fishing.

HALF MOON BAY—Salmon fishing improved as the week progressed, with anglers expecting a fish per rod average with many more lost opportunities. The tough part is that salmon are hanging out in waters thick with jelly which made fishing messy. Limits of rockfish proved easy for anglers aboard the Ankeny Street. The Huli Cat posted limits of salmon for the first day of summer and continued catching good counts through the weekend.

MARTINEZ—Wind made fishing difficult. Lack of the best shrimp baits made for less than stellar fishing for those who tried, according to Lisa Rezentes of Martinez Marina Bait and Tackle.

SAUSALITO—Party boats scored well on salmon. The Blue Runner posted limits nearly every day this week. On Sunday afternoon the New Rayannwas reported to be tied to the dock with limits of salmon.