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.

CHETCO RIVER, Ore.—The river got rain last week and went up to just under 2,000 cfs and all the estuary fish blasted upriver, according to Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. The river doesn’t open until Nov. 3, but it could be opened earlier if it keeps getting rain.

COOS RIVER, Coos Bay, Ore.–The red hot fishing is over for the season, but there is still good fishing to be had by those willing to fish the river instead of fishing the crowds, according to guide and WON Field Reporter Curtis Palmer of River Secrets. Some fresh Chinook’s just below the forks of the river caught over the weekend. The salmon were hitting spinners and didn’t want anything to do with the usual plug cut herring. Earlier in the week the action was up the South Fork on coho, and kings could be caught easily on roe with a bobber by fishing closer to the bottom of the river. The silver’s have been reacting well to Brad’s Wiggler’s. There are usually fresh fish to be caught into November and you might be the only boat on the river during the week. The farther up the river you go, the more salmon you will find. Some of those salmon have been in the river much longer than fish you might find at Marshfield Channel. I suggest starting somewhere in the middle trolling, while covering lots of water until you find the fish and quality you want.”

COQUILLE RIVER, Bandon, Ore.–Wild coho retention was still open this past weekend, and that was a good thing, because my friends that fished the Rocky Point area couldn’t find anything to catch other than coho, said guide Curtis Palmer of River Secrets. Trolling bait fish is working for the coho, and even though they didn’t find any king salmon, there could be some still in the lower river.

COQUILLE RIVER, Coquille, Ore.–You better get to the boat ramp early if you want to have a designated parking spot. The upper river is busy with boat traffic, but I haven’t heard of anybody catching any Chinook’s or coho over the weekend, said Palmer.  “During the middle of the week, I was told of a few Chinook’s being caught near Arago, and I was told that they caught the salmon while fishing bobbers with roe close to the bank around high tide.”

EEL RIVER—Only calling for 1/2-inch of rain here, and may or may not open up. The DFG dove the main stem Eel at the bottom in early October, and not good clarity and low flow, so not many fish. They think there’s  a ton of Eel River fish waiting off shore. And that the first rain will bring in all the fish. Main Stem Eel is at historically low levels, so it will take a lot of rain to open it up, according to guide Mark Wakeman of Pipe Creek Guide Service.

ROGUE RIVER, Estuary, Gold Beach, Ore.–Fishing is good depending on the day and what your definition of good is, reported Curtis Palmer of River Secrets. “I received a report on Saturday of a client who lives in Gold Beach,” he said. “They were trolling the bay and managed to put 3 Chinook’s in the fish box. As a husband and wife fishing on a relaxing Sunday, this would easily classify as a good day fishing. I was also told of a local guide limiting out his client’s by 1 p.m. They were all nice-sized Chinook’s, with 3 of them being native and 1 of them being a hatchery fish from Indian Creek.

ROGUE RIVER, Shady Cove—Pete Petersen of The Fishing Hole in Shady Cove said there’s plenty of summer steelhead, and some guides are getting as many as 17 fish a day throwing copper John’s in chartreuses and red, or copper black Otis Bugs as the October caddis begin to hatch. Water is cold, so nymphing is still the ticket. Guide below are using spae rods and swinging flies above and below Dodge Bridge getting 3 to 6 steelies per rod. There’s a some 3-year steelies this year running to 8 to 10 pounds, but most are 3 to 6. You can keep 2 hatchery steelies. Bait season begins Nov. 1 in the entire river.

RUSSIAN RIVER—Flows out of Coyote Dam were increased on Oct. 15, and that brought fresh water down, and some salmon began showing in the river. The mouth closed, the water backed up, and then blew out, pouring thousands of cfs, and drawing in better numbers of kings and some steelhead, according to Scott Heemstra and Kings Sport and Tackle in Guerneville. The current storm will bring in even more fish. Salmon must be released, but anglers can keep 2 hatchery (fin-clipped) steelhead.

SMITH RIVER—The river opened briefly from low flow closures last week, went to 2500 cfs on Tuesday, then dropped to 400 on Wednesday, then closed. The incoming rain is expected to dump enough to re-open the river by the weekend, according to guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing, who said that there were some nice salmon caught, and multiple fish by some guides. Most were on plugs. Call ahead for conditions, and check the low flow closure report.

UMPQUA RIVER, Roseburg, Ore.–Coho fishing is very good from the confluence of the North and South forks down to the Umpqua boat ramp. “I have been getting many good reports all week long,” said guide Curtis Palmer. One report came in telling of a grandfather that had caught 16 coho on Thursday and Friday, with not a single fish being a hatchery fish that could be harvested. On Saturday he took his grandson to the same spot fishing, so he could get in on some of the fun. The grandson’s first 2 fish were hatchery Coho that were tagged and taken home. This was one report of only two reports that Palmer received that reported hatchery fish being caught. There are lots of fish in the area, but not very many hatchery fish.

 

TRINITY/KLAMATH RIVERS

KLAMATH RIVER, Klamath Glen—Salmon fishing was up and down again last week, but the storm should open up the mouth, bring fresh water down the river, and, along with it, lots more fish, both some more salmon as well as steelhead.  Fishing for them was fair from Blue Creek to Johnson’s Riffle, and fly fishers were swinging steelhead streamer patterns like burlaps and green-butted skunks, as well as drifting nymphs under indicators.  Spin fishermen drifted nightcrawlers and swung spinners.  Call ahead before making the trip, because river levels are likely to rise significantly.

KLAMATH RIVER, Iron Gate—There were still lots and lots of salmon jamming the upper end of the Klamath, and anglers were scoring on drifted and backbounced roe.  Fish are getting increasingly dark, though.  A few more steelhead are starting to show, and anglers’ attention is starting to turn to fishing for them with flies, bait and lures.

TRINITY RIVER, Junction City—Low flows have made for tough driftboating as well as fishing in the clear water, but anglers were still catching a mix of bright and darker salmon.  Fishing should improve greatly with the  storms, which got underway on Sunday. Steelheading has been picking up, and some fish as big as 12 pounds were caught last week.  Some nice coho salmon were caught, as well.  They are almost all hatchery fish, but still cannot be kept.

TRINITY RIVER, Willow Creek—Good numbers of big steelhead are swimming upstream through the lower river centered on Willow Creek, and are being taken by both driftboaters pulling plugs, as well as bankies swinging lures and even flies.  But, rains hit the area on Sunday, and anglers should call ahead before making the trip.

 

NORCAL SALTWATER

BERKELEY—The Happy Hooker has striped bass down pat. They returned to port with full limits of striped bass plus a couple of hefty halibut to 17 pounds.

BODEGA BAY—The New Sea Angler nailed limits of quality rockfish all week except for Thursday when 10 anglers put 30 albacore onboard from just 32 miles off of Bodega where 60-degree water pooled up.

EMERYVILLE—Rockfish action was strong along the coast. Lingcod counts improved and salmon fishing averaged just under a fish per rod along the Marin coast. On Friday the New Seeker had 9 passengers boat 7 salmon to 25 pounds. The Tiger Fish saw 24 people haul in limits of rockfish plus 26 lingcod to 25 pounds. On Saturday the weather and sea conditions kept boats close to shore. The New Salmon Queen had 15 passengers catch limits of rockfish and 2 lingcod to 8 pounds. On the New Seeker, 19 folks scored 11 salmon to 21 pounds.

EUREKA—Tough weather kept boats in the harbor where they began preparations for the upcoming Dungeness crab season when they intend to run crab trips regularly.

FORT BRAGG—Salmon provided good action again this week, averaging about 1 fish per rod off of Virgin Creek. Rockfishing is closed for boat-based anglers, however jetty and surf fishers and shore-divers were able to keep right on targeting healthy dinners. The boats Fish On and Trek II are preparing for Dungeness crab season opening November 3.

HALF MOON BAY/PACIFICA—Rockfish limits generally came early on the Queen of Hearts and on some days they came very quickly for light weekday loads of fishers. Perch bit admirably well for pier and shore fishers at Pacifica. Nearby rocky shoreline areas produced rockfish and cabezon but big seas limited access at times.

MARTINEZ—Striped bass went nuts and even sturgeon provided decent action for shore, pier and boat fisherfolk. Stripers preferred bullheads and grass shrimp. Sturgeon greedily ate ghost shrimp. Striper action in particular was rated excellent.

OAKLAND—Leopard sharks to 5 feet long bit well off of Oakland Airport. Perch bit locally. Stripers and halibut were fooled by slow-trolled specialty rigs baited with live shiners.

PORT SONOMA—Striped bass maintained their aggressive behavior, biting well in both the Petaluma and Napa rivers, with the advantage going to the Petaluma. Good tides helped drive the bite for stripers and also stirred the appetites of sturgeon in the lower rivers. China Camp produced stripers. The entire upper San Pablo Bay lit up with action on leopard sharks and bat rays.

 

NORTH COAST LAKES

CLEAR LAKE—The tough bite continues for two reasons: the first being all of the tournament pressure and the second, the abundance of bait for bass to feed on. Try either jumbo minnows or swimbaits in baitfish colors.

LAKE BERRYESSA—Bass fishing has been good but will get going even better once the water cools down a bit. Cover water with topwater or Lucky Craft’s BDS3 in shad patterns until you locate feeding schools of fish. They are ambushing bait in and around the shallow grasses in all the shallow bays and creek channels. A little rain this week will help to start a cool down.

LAKE SONOMA— The main lake provided plenty of bass action. Anglers fishing Senkos and dropshot worms caught a few smallmouth bass to 2 pounds around the Narrows to the marina. Look for the bass to feed up in the next few weeks as the water temperatures drop and the lake starts to turn. Steelies have been caught between 45 and 65 feet, but look for that to change as the water cools down.  Then, they’ll come up.

 

NORTHEASTERN AREA

LAKE ALMANOR—It’s beginning to feel like winter here, with a storm to start out the week, conditions will be unsettled for a few days afterwards. Bass were in 7 to 20 feet depth around stumps and near sharp drop-offs hitting plastics.

BAUM LAKE—Cooler weather and water got the bite going here and is helping to clear the weeds. Conditions are improving but no new reports.

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. The section above the canal near the post office is fishing well but does not accommodate a lot of fishermen. There’s been no indication as to when repairs may be completed or when the forebay may reopen.

FALL RIVER—The Fly Shop reported a good bite one day and then fair the next.

MCCLOUD RIVER—It’s open from Ash Camp down through Ah-Di-Na but the south and southeast sides of the river are closed due to the possible danger of falling trees. There are lots of hatches but the fish must be spooked, as it wasn’t fishing very well.

PIT RIVER—The Pitt has been fishing well everywhere and there are some hatches going off. The trout are feeding up for the winter and October should be a good month here. Rain should set off more hatches.

SHASTA LAKE—The bite seems to be in transition as anglers either found trout or not. The trout and bait have moved up, now found between 25 and 40 feet. The Sac and McCloud arms are full of shad, making it a good spot to fish for bass.

 

SIERRA LAKES/RIVERS

BOCA LAKE—The lake is at 44-percent capacity.  Some nice browns were seen cruising the dam, according to Mountain Hardware and Sports—try a Rapala.  Browns were also seen moving toward the inlet to stage for the spawn, as well as some nice macks.  Kokanee were still moving up into the Little Truckee to spawn and fly casters using Glo-Bugs were doing well on the trout feeding on the loose salmon eggs.

CAPLES LAKE—Earl Pennington of South Lake Tahoe reported catching limits of 11- to 13 1/2-inch rainbows for two consecutive days trolling Sep’s brown grubs and threaded nightcrawlers behind Sep’s Side Kick dodgers.  He caught 12 fish by himself one day in 2 hours, and the next day he and a friend landed 50 fish in 4 hours—the fall bite is wide-open!!  Lots of shore anglers were seen at the dam, the Spillway, and Wood’s Creek.  Several other boaters were all catching fish.  The EID boat ramp will close on November 1.

CARSON RIVER (East, West)—Alpine County planted 1800 pounds of trophy trout this past week—the DFG plant was postponed due to a truck breakdown; they’ll try again this week.  Fishing was fantastic, with rainbows to 5 1/2 pounds coming in to the scales at the Carson River Resort.  Two East Bay anglers checked in with two limits that totaled 26 pounds—2.6 pounds per fish average!  Spinners, spoons, Rapalas, and bait were all working.  Alpine County will make another plant the first week of November.

DAVIS LAKE—The lake is at 67-percent capacity.  Ed Dillard at Dillard’s Guided Fishing reported that trolling as good for 15- to 18-inch rainbows using cinnamon wiggle tail flies in the top 5 feet near the island.  On his last trip, Dillard caught 12 fish in 2 hours.  Downriggers worked best due to the large amount of weeds and algae floating on the surface that hindered toplining.  Fly fishing was great for casters stripping nymphs either on an intermediate sinker or under an indicator in Mosquito Slough.  Double-digit catches were possible from float tubes and small boats.  Shore fishing was good at Long Point and Fairview for anglers using Power Bait on a 3-foot leader

DONNER LAKE—According to Mountain Hardware and Sports, the west end trout fishing was very consistent.  Vertical jigging humps and ledges at 50 to 80 feet deep was producing 4- to 8-pound macks for experienced anglers.

FEATHER RIVER CANYON—Caribou Crossroads Resort reported that fishing was “fairly decent” for native rainbows running 11 to 17 inches.  Fly fishing was excellent for one angler who was in the store when WON called.

FRENCHMAN LAKE—The lake is at 59-percent capacity.  Wiggins Trading Post reported that fishing was very good for trollers, fly fishermen, and shore anglers.   Trolling flasher/worm combos at the dam was producing 18-inch rainbows.  Fly fishermen were picking up fish to 3 1/2 pounds on black woolly buggers at Snallygaster, and shore anglers were catching multiple limits of 14- to 16-inch rainbows on worms, Power Bait, and marshmallows at Turkey Point.

GOLD LAKES BASIN—Mountain Hardware and Sports in Blairsden reported that Gold Lake was still kicking out limits of rainbows on a silver/pink Thomas Buoyant fished on 2 colors of leadcore.  Shore fishing was good near the lodge at Packer Lake for trout averaging 10 to 14 inches.  Sardine Lake fishing was best by the boat ramp.   The rainbows at Salmon Lake were only 8 to 12 inchers.

ICE HOUSE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 67-percent capacity.  Kyle Neeser at Crystal Basin Tackle and Guide Service reported that trollers were seeing 30 fish days toplining a variety of dodger or flasher/worm or grub combos—the fall feeding frenzy is happening!!  Dale Daneman at Dale’s Foothill Fishing Service did well on the Sep’s brown grub trolled from the top to 20 feet deep.

INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR—The lake was planted by the DFG this past week and fishing was much improved.  Alpine County will plant 1800 pounds of trophy fish in November.

JACKSON MEADOW RESERVOIR—Mountain Hardware and Sports reported that few fishing reports were available from here, though there were lots of deer hunters in the area.

JENKINSON LAKE (Sly Park)—Sly Park Resort reported that smallmouth bass fishing was good in the Narrows.  5 1/2- and 6 3/4-pound macks were caught vertical jigging this past week by local anglers Kenny Campini and Mary Signor.

LAKE TAHOE—Strong winds played havoc with anglers this past weekend.  Earlier this past week, Big Mack Charters reported good action trolling 300 feet deep off Carnelian Bay.  13-year old George Parker IV had a great birthday reeling in 8 macks to 7 1/2 pounds, plus he lost 4 or 5 more!  Chuck Self at Chuck’s Charter Fishing reported picking up limits of macks in 2 hours most days before switching over to trolling in 15 to 45 feet of water for rainbows to 6 1/2 pounds using spoons off Tahoe Vista and Kings Beach.  Mike Nielsen of Tahoe Topliners was trolling for rainbows in the early morning at South Shore and Rubicon/Meeks Bay in 35 feet of water 10 to 12 feet deep with CD 7 and CD9 Rapalas before switching over to vertical jigging for macks at 140 to 150 feet deep with minnow tipped Williamson Abyss and Benthos jigs for good numbers of 3 to 6 pounders.

LOON LAKE—The lake is at 50-percent capacity.  The fall bite is on!! One troller reported catching 80 fish—all 10- to 12-inch rainbows.  The trout were literally hitting anything put on a hook—even a single piece of corn trolled on a topline!!

PROSSER LAKE—The lake is at 34-percent capacity.  With the lake so low, the dam was still the best spot to look for trout cruising the shore.  Casting a spoon or Rapala could yield a nice rainbow.  Smallmouth bass fishing was rated slow.

PYRAMID LAKE—Joe Mendes at Eagle Eye Charters reported that windy conditions made fishing difficult after mid-week week.  Fish numbers were cut in half by the weather—from 40 to 50 fish days down to 12 to 25 fish.  Trolling a bleeding frog U-20 Flatfish at 25 to 35 feet deep from Hell’s Kitchen to the Pyramid produced consistent action.  The bait schools were still near the surface, but the cold front forecast for the early part of this week could change that.

RED LAKE—Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters reported that trout fishing was hit-or-miss at best.

SILVER LAKE—Earl Pennington of South Lake Tahoe fished with 2 friends this past week and they landed 29 rainbows on Sep’s Side Kick dodgers trailing threaded nightcrawlers.  The trout ran 11 to 13 inches and were caught all over the lake.  Launching was tricky due to the low lake level.

STAMPEDE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 75-percent capacity.  Trout fishing was good in both the Sagehen and Little Truckee arms.  Brian Nylund of Mountain Hardware and Sports reported catching 18 rainbows from 12 to 15 inches casting a rainbow trout Kastmaster from the shore in the Sagehen arm in the afternoon after work.  Kokanee were still moving up the creeks to spawn and the DFG was planning another egg gathering day soon.

TRUCKEE RIVER—Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters reported that action was good in the Sparks area on size 14 or 16 hare’s ear nymphs with a size 20 dropper.  Mountain Hardware and Sport reported that fly fishing in CA was good from Truckee to Stateline on dark stones, BWO and baetis nymphs, and sculpin streamers.  Brown trout were very active as they prepared for the spawn.  The river was flowing in the mid-200 cfs through Truckee and the high-300’s below the Boca outlet.

UNION VALLEY RESERVOIR—The lake is at 54-percent capacity.  The fall feeding frenzy is on!!  Boating was made tougher here due to the closing of the main gate off Ice House Road.  Boaters must access the lake from Pea Vine Ridge Road to the ramp near the dam.

WEST WALKER RIVER—Pam Hamic at the West Walker Motel reported that fishing was slow, but anglers seeking out the deeper holes were still finding trout willing to hit worms and salmon eggs.

 

SACRAMENTO VALLEY

AMERICAN RIVER—Most of the salmon being caught are well past their prime, but there are quite a few in Nimbus Basin compared to only a week ago, possibly because the hatchery fish screens were tampered with, a recurring problem.  Remember the river closes to fishing Oct. 31 from the USGS Gagging cable below the hatchery to the power lines crossing the river at Ancil Hoffman Park.  Steelhead fishermen were hooking halfpounders to 20 inches and an occasional adult, mostly in the Sailor Bar Area.  Fly fishers are scoring on caddis nymph imitations under indicators while spin fishermen are drifting nightcrawlers and swinging Kastmasters and No. 3 Blue Fox spinners.

FOLSOM LAKE— Water temperatures are cooling, and the water level has almost stabilized, so bass are getting more comfortable and are transitioning into a decent fall bite.  Look for birds and boiling bait.  In lieu of that, use electronics to find concentrations of bait over submerged rock piles and points, and drop-shot Robo-Worms.  Fishing for landlocked king salmon continued to be good by trolling Speedy Shiners from 60 to 65 feet deep in front of the dam over the river channel, and by the new outlet construction zone.

FEATHER RIVER—Salmon fishing below the Outlet was very good right up to the end of  salmon fishing down to a point 200 yards above the Live Oak Boat Ramp.   But, a drop in flows to 2,100 cfs killed salmon action downstream from there.  Steelheading continued to be outstanding, though, both in the main river all the way down to Boyd’s Pump and in the Low Flow Section, where, unfortunately, it’s hard to avoid accidentally hooking salmon.  Fly fishers were dead-drifting  nymphs and egg flies under indicators  while spin fishermen were drifting nightcrawlers, Glo-Bugs, and swinging spinners.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Sacramento—Salmon fishing slowed quite a bit for much of the week, but anglers putting in their time were occasionally intercepting new waves of salmon  which might be encountered anywhere from Clarksburg to the airport and still scoring a couple of salmon to limits.  And, late fall run numbers should be building any time.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Red Bluff—Lots of salmon were still present in the Balls Ferry area, but not as many as before, but still providing plenty of action.  However, most of the fish were well past their prime.  Rain is highly anticipated and should bring plenty of new fish upriver–the bright, larger, hard fighting fall run.  Fish are in better shape, generally, in the Corning area.  Plugs seemed to be working better than roe, but if they aren’t working, backbounce roe.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Redding—Trout fishing was outstanding from Redding to Anderson for both fly fishers dead-drifting nymphs under indicators and spin fishermen drifting crickets, Glo-Bugs and small lures.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Dunsmuir—Trout fishing continued to improve, and larger fish are coming from the lake all the way up to Sims with some over 20 inches.  Use larger nymphs like No. 8 rubber legs when targeting them.

YUBA RIVER—Trout fishing continued to be pretty good with most fish now being caught on nymphs, although a few were still being caught on hopper imitations.

 

NORTHERN FOOTHILLS

AMERICAN RIVER—The Georgetown Ranger Station reported it was getting colder in the mountains and hikers weren’t making the effort to get down to the Middle Fork very often.  With rain and snow in the forecast this week, it might be a good time to fish at a lower elevation near the road after the weather clears.

BULLARDS BAR—The lake is at 62-percent capacity.   Emerald Cove Marina reported that there was little fishing pressure on the lake over the weekend—only two boats on Sunday.  There should be an improving bass bite as the water cools—try Senkos and swimbaits at 25 to 35 feet deep on the points.

CAMP FAR WEST—With the lake at less than 20-percent capacity, launching could be a problem for larger boats—there was only 10 feet of concrete ramp left in the water.  Bass fishing was good this past week for anglers using green pumpkin Brush Hogs and morning dawn worms in 8 to 10 feet of water in the Rock Creek arm—one angler caught 11 bass with 8 coming in the first 30 minutes in the early a.m.

COLLINS LAKE—Trout fishing was picking up as the water temp cooled. Trollers caught limits on flasher/worm combos at 30 feet deep at the dam this past week.  Catfish were still hitting anchovies—one angler caught four cats from 4 to 6 3/4 pounds.  The trout planting program will start next week—the rain forecast for this week will drop the water temp enough to begin the stocking of 1000 pounds loads of catchables and trophy fish.

ENGLEBRIGHT RESERVOIR—The lake is at 94-percent capacity.  Will Fish Tackle in Auburn reported that a customer caught a limit of 12- to 16-inch rainbows trolling a dodger/Needlefish combo above the “No-Ski” buoys.  Skippers Cove Marina said the pen-rearing fish will arrive this Thursday—1800 pounds of 2 to 4 pounders and 200 pounds of 6 to 8 pounders.

FRENCH MEADOWS RESERVOIR—The lake is at 53-percent capacity.  The Foresthill Ranger Station reported that all the campgrounds were now closed, but the boat ramp will remain open for use until snow closes the road.

FULLER LAKE—The lake was planted by the DFG this past week. Shore fishing and trolling should be good.

HELL HOLE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 52-percent capacity.  The lake was rising but there was only one boat on the lake over the weekend—fishing was slow and with the campgrounds closed, it’s a long ride for a day-trip.

LAKE OROVILLE—The lake is at 52-percent capacity.  Guide Ron Gandolfi reported that fishing was “awesome” with clients catching up to 70 fish per day on drop-shot worms and topwater.  The flatter pockets and points in the North Fork and Middle Fork were producing lots of 12 to 14 inchers from the bank down to 25 feet deep.  Drop-shotting prism or hologram shad, Aaron’s Magic, or bubblegum Roboworms worked the best for numbers of fish.  Spooks and Pop-R’s were catching fish boiling on bait.

ROLLINS LAKE—Casey Reynolds of Auburn reported that the NID run resorts at Long Ravine and Orchard Springs were closed for the season.  Catfishing should be good in the channels in the longer coves.  Bass fishing should be good along the riprap at the dam and near the culverts in the back of Long Ravine.

SCOTT’S FLAT LAKE—Trollers were still doing well for limits of rainbows at the dam and Cascade Shore on flasher/worm combos.

SUGAR PINE RESERVOIR—The Foresthill Ranger Station reported that all the campgrounds were closed, the day-use areas were open to walk-ins, and the boat ramp would remain open until snow closed the road.

STUMPY MEADOWS RESERVOIR—The Georgetown Ranger Station reported that the campgrounds were closed, but the boat ramp was open to free launching.  Few anglers were fishing this past week.

THERMOLITO AFTERBAY—The lake was at 134.3-foot elevation at press time—87-percent capacity.  Flows dropped this past week, but rain was in the forecast for early in the week—the cold front could slow the bass bite.  Look for the bass along the tules banks to be a little tighter to the cover—pitch Senkos and jigs.

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