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. South Central Coast streams number is (831) 649-2886.New low flow closures for Mendocino, Sonoma and Marin counties, Oct. 1-April 30, call (707) 822-3164 for Mendocino, (707) 944-5533 for Sonoma, Marin and Napa.

ROGUE RIVER, Gold Beach, Ore.—“The river temperature on Saturday was 70 degrees, so just 4 more degrees and we will probably see the same large numbers of fish being caught in the estuary by trollers as we did back in 2003,” said WON Field Reporter and guide Curtis Palmer of River Secrets Guide Service. “Last week,  fishing was super good on Tuesday. The temperature dropped to 60 degree’s and a large number of salmon came racing into the bay and up the river. I heard of a bunch of salmon being caught on the first few miles of river, and a few boats managed to catch 3-4 fish. As the water warmed the fishing started slowing down, but there were still chrome springers being caught.

ROGUE RIVER, Grant’s Pass, Ore.–Springer action remains best in the Shady Cove to dam areas, although water is running high but is expected to drop this week, according to Troy Whitaker at U-Save Tackle in Grant’s Pass. Best bets for boat anglers have been roe or sand shrimp, or Kwikfish with sardine wraps.  Bank anglers are scoring using Corkies at the Slide Hole, Hatchery and Casey Park.  Anglers are also using spinners to catch salmon and a few trout. Trout season on the lakes is slowing a little due to warming waters, but the anglers are also catching trout on spinners. Lake Selmac is warming, bass and bluegill action has been good, but trout fishing is slowing.  Applegate Lake is producing bass action on smallmouth and largemouth bass on cranks and plastics.  Trout action is fair on Pautzkes Fire Bait.  Trolling is okay too, dragging 20-40 feet deep with Wedding Rings and flashers.  Lost Creek Lake bass fishing is improving with a salmon fly hatch on the lake. Plastic worms also are working well.  Trout anglers are trolling with small worms or wedding rigs with worms.

UMPQUA RIVER, Reedsport, Ore.–The fishing is hot on the lower Umpqua River, said guide Curtis Palmer of River Secrets in Roseburg.  “Guides and locals have been finding limits of Chinook’s while trolling the river this last week,” he said. “With the heat wave running through the valley, the coast picked up some wind and dense fog. Near Roseburg, at the top end of the river, we had about everything caught at some point last week. Spring Chinook,  which are slowing down, shad are also slowing down and as for summer steelhead, I didn’t hear of any being caught, but they are around. Smallmouth bass are starting to bite and will just get better.”

UMPQUA RIVER, North Fork, Glide, Ore.—Fishing has been fair for some and poor for others. The tackle shops have been reporting that the number of salmon being weighed in is slowing down, but that may be because of fewer bank fishermen as in past years.

 

TRINITY/KLAMATH RIVERS

KLAMATH RIVER, Iron Gate – The salmonfly hatch is in full swing, making for good fishing for halfpounders and small adult steelhead near Hornbook. Flows out of Iron Gate Dam were 1,010 cfs on Sunday, down another 100 cfs from last week.

KLAMATH RIVER, Happy Camp – Conditions are good and anglers are catching a mix of spawned out adult steelhead and halfpounder steelhead. Pressure is very light. Flows at Seiad Valley were 1,370 cfs on Sunday, down around 200 cfs from the week before.

KLAMATH RIVER, Klamath Glen – Springer fishing was fair to good last week near Klamath. Flows on Sunday at Terwer were 4,630 cfs. The water temperature is up to 66 degrees.

TRINITY RIVER – Spring salmon fishing is still slow, although fish are expected to begin showing up after two good weeks of springer fishing on the lower Klamath. Flows Sunday at Lewiston were 1,110, while flows at Junction City were 1,030. Some springers were reported near Hoopa last week.

 

SACRAMENTO VALLEY

AMERICAN RIVER – Shad fishing has been fair on the American, where some spawned out stripers also are being caught.

FEATHER RIVER – Cut baits are catching an occasional striper on the Feather, while shad fishing is slow. Shad fishing, however, is still good on the Yuba for anglers using 1-inch grubs.

FOLSOM LAKE – Spotted and smallmouth bass are suspending off the points in 20 to 30 feet of water. Anglers using drop-shot rigs are doing well in the mornings. Trout and salmon fishing was hit and miss last week.

RANCHO SECO LAKE – Bass and trout fishing is slow to fair.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Dunsmuir – 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.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Redding to Red Bluff –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 to excellent below the Highway 44 bridge. Salmon season opens July 16 below the Red Bluff Diversion Dam and Aug. 1 above it. Shad fishing is fair to good near Red Bluff.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Red Bluff to Colusa – Shad fishing has been good. Chartreuse, orange and hot pink 1-inch grubs are working well.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Knight’s Landing to Colusa – While shad fishing has begun to slow, some stripers are still being caught as small schools of fish move through the river. Anglers are using cut bait, as no large or jumbo minnows have been available.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Sacramento – Jigging for stripers has been fair in the deepwater channel, but most of the fish are too small to keep. Crappie fishing is very good in the sloughs and ditches near Sacramento for anglers using small minnows and wax worms.

 

NORCAL SALTWATER

BERKELEY—Salmon fishing gained consistency. New El Dorado III and Flying Fish came back in with the salmon flag flying. Boats scored big on lingcod and rockfish. California Dawn worked Central Bay for a fine combination of bass and halibut, topped by a whopping 36 pounder. Happy Hooker had a fabulous week inside the Bay, posting limits of bass to 22 pounds and a nice pick at halibut.

BODEGA BAY/LAWSON’S LANDING—Ten straight days of crab limits (1,290 crabs) proved how good the late season crabbing has been. New Sea Angler got limits of rockfish and high counts of lingcod on trips to Point Reyes and to Elephant Rock. Lawson’s Landing employees got 2 halibut inside Tomales Bay and then a private boater got 2 more the very next day.

BROOKINGS, Ore.—Vast baitballs of anchovies showed up in the Port of Brookings boat basin, igniting expectations that salmon fishing will bust wide open any day now. Wind has been the limiting factor. Capt. Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing reported that lingcod and rockfish bit with savage abandon.

EMERYVILLE— Limits of salmon were proven possible, thanks to C-Gull II’s highly successful run on Friday. Sundance managed a fish and a half per rod. Other Emeryville boats worked for lingcod and rockfish. Every trip saw limits of rockfish and some nice lingcod to 20 pounds.

EUREKA—Trips to the Lost Coast aboard Shellback and other charter boats were legendary for catching big lingcod to over 30 pounds and piles of good rockfish, all in shallow water using swimbaits. The June season for Pacific halibut began well, with fish to 64 pounds taken. Salmon fishing was spotty, overall.

FORT BRAGG—Lingcod and rockfish were more than hungry through the week and Telstar cleaned up on the bottom fish. Over the weekend, brown salmon water moved in, which affected the rockfish bite but brought hopes that the days ahead will be good for salmon. Trek II got limits of lingcod to 24 pounds. Samurai caught 2 salmon and lost 3.

HALF MOON BAY—Party boats Huli Cat, Queen of Hearts and Riptide made limits or near limits along the coast from the Ritz Carlton to Pescadero. Lingcod and rockfish bit well and one angler took home a 9-pound wolf eel. Sandy beaches were blitzed by hungry striped bass.

SAN FRANCISCO—With increasing consistency in the salmon bite, San Francisco boats had good options. Wacky Jacky posted an 18 pounder on the Whoppers List. Bass Tub went for bass and sacked up full limits. While at it, a 45-pound leopard shark was put aboard the popular boat.

 

SIERRA LAKES/RIVERS

BLUE LAKES—Upper and Lower Blue Lakes are scheduled for DFW trout plants this week.  Flashers and worms were working for cutthroats to 18 inches and rainbows to 15 inches.

BOCA LAKE—The lake is at 13.4-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Brian Nylund at Mountain Hardware and Sports said the west side of the lake was a good option for shore anglers wanting to get away from the east side fishermen and boat launching activity, and the crowds at the inlet.   Artificial scented eggs were working well.

CAPLES LAKE—The lake is at 95.8-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Drew Meteer at Caples Lake Resort reported fishing was slow near the resort.  Try at Wood’s Creek inlet near the EID ramp where the DFW stocked the lake.

CARSON RIVER (East, West)—The East Carson and Silver Creek are scheduled for DFW trout plants this week. Todd Sodaro at Todd’s Bait and Tackle at the Creekside Lodge reported the East Carson cleared up and anglers were “destroying the rainbows”.  A 9 pounder was caught in Markleeville Creek on a prince nymph.

DAVIS LAKE—The lake is at 55-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Ed Dillard at Dillard Guided Fishing reported trolling was very slow.  The best bet was anchoring near the island and dropping floating dough bait to the bottom.  Expect to catch 1 to 5 fish for a couple anglers.

DONNER LAKE—The lake is at 71-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Trollers were picking up 13- to 15-inch kokanee at 25 to 35 feet deep in the early morning and 30 to 40 feet deep later in the day using pink, orange, blue, and purple hoochies.  Rainbows were hitting at the boat ramp and outlet lagoon.

FEATHER RIVER CANYON—The North Fork at Belden was scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week.  Fishing was slow, so this plant should make a huge difference in angler success.

FRENCHMAN LAKE—The lake is at 34-percent capacity.  Ed Dillard at Dillard Guided Fishing reported trollers were catching limits of rainbows to 3 pounds on copper/redhead Dick Nite spoons fished 3 to 4 colors deep.

GOLD LAKES BASIN—Gold Lake is scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week.  Mountain Hardware and Sports in Blairsden reported fishing was good at Upper Salmon Lake.

ICE HOUSE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 84-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Trolling should be good using dodgers with worms or a brown grub in the top 20 feet.

INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR—Alpine County was scheduled to stock the lake this week with 1800 pounds of 1- to 6-pound rainbows for the kids’ derby to be held on June 13.  Fishing should be good for the next couple weeks after the plant.

JACKSON MEADOW RESERVOIR—The lake is at 76-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Brett Brady at Bare Bones Guide Service was doing very well for 12- to 16-inch rainbows using small Apex, RMT spoons, and dodger worms at 20 to 40 feet deep.

JENKINSON LAKE (Sly Park)—The lake is at 85-percent capacity and scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week.  Denise Cole at Sly Park Resort reported Austin Wilson caught a 6 3/4-pound largemouth bass from shore using a swimbait.  Shore anglers were still picking up rainbows at the dam using worms and floating dough bait.

LAKE TAHOE—Chuck Self at Chuck’s Charter Fishing reported catching limits of macks to 6 1/2 pounds by 7:00 on Sunday trolling North Shore at 250 to 400 feet deep with plugs and glow spoons.  Mike Nielsen at Tahoe Topliners Sportfishing said he was still picking up a few 1- to 4-pound rainbows and browns trolling Rapalas 30 feet deep in 45 feet of water and jigging 3- to 4-pound macks in 110 to 150 feet of water.  Zach Gordon at Tahoe Sportfishing reported Capt. Bobby scored rainbows to 8 pounds and browns to 4 pounds at the Keys.  Most boats were after macks at South Shore and the west side mooching live bait at 60 to 110 feet deep.  Some nice kokanee were hitting flasher/spoons at 30 to 40 feet deep in Emerald Bay, but the bite on the main lake remained sporadic.

LOON LAKE—The lake is at 53-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  With the lake level coming up, boats were launching on one lane of the ramp at the campgrounds.  Fishing should be good.

PROSSER LAKE—The lake is at 26.5-percent capacity.  Smallmouth bass can be found all over the lake, you just have to find them using darthead worms, tubes, and jigs.  The best rainbow action was in the Prosser Creek inlet channel.

PYRAMID LAKE—Cutthroat fishermen only have until June 30 to hit the lake before the season closes until October 1.  Trollers were doing well on both sides of the lake.  According to Crosby’s Lodge, the top fish caught this past week was taken at Hell’s Kitchen on an Apex—a 12 1/2 pounder.  George Molino at Cutthroat Charters reported his trips were producing 15 to 17 trout to 8 pounds trolling Apex from Warrior Point to Spider Point.

RED LAKE—Fishing was slow.

SILVER LAKE—The lake is full.  By last report, trolling was good for rainbows, but a recent flying ant hatch could have slowed the bite.

STAMPEDE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 17-percent capacity and is scheduled for a DFW trout plant this week.  James Netzel at Tight Lines Guide Service reported he was still doing very well for limits of 15- to 16-inch kokanee trolling dodger/hoochies at 15 to 55 feet deep—check the meter for the activity level in each area for the best results.  Launching was still a big problem and 4-wheel drive was highly recommended!!

TOPAZ LAKE—Chuck Fields at Topaz Landing Marina reported the lake was still dropping and he was just about ready to close his ramp.  The County Park announced that they may close their boat ramp in another week or so.  Call ahead to Topaz Landing for launching conditions at 775-266-3550.  Fishing was slow.

TRUCKEE RIVER—The main river was running very low and moss was becoming a problem.  Flows were at 40 cfs through Truckee and only 100 cfs at Farad.  The Little Truckee was down to 67 cfs.  The fishing here was likened to “shooting fish in a barrel” because the trout were stacked up in the remaining deeper pools and easy to catch.

UNION VALLEY RESERVOIR—The lake is at 81-percent capacity and was stocked by the DFW this past week.  Ken Mathis at Ken’s Custom Tackle and Guide Service reported that nice limits of kokanee were taken on dodger/hoochies or spinners at 35 to 45 feet deep in the early morning or late afternoon.  The mack bite was slow, only producing one or two fish to 4 pounds trolling or jigging on mid-lake rocky humps at 70 to 80 feet deep.  Look for the macks to suspend under the kokanee schools and hit a dodger/herring.  Crawdad trapping was very productive!

WEST WALKER RIVER—The Little Walker and West Walker at Pickel Meadows and the Canyon were stocked by the DFW this past week and all were scheduled for more DFW trout plants this week.  Pam Hamic at the West Walker Motel reported trout fishing was good since the river started clearing up.  Easy limits of rainbows were hitting worms for those that wanted a fish dinner and others were practicing a lot of catch-and-release using Panther Martins and flies.

 

NORTHERN FOOTHILLS

AMERICAN RIVER—The Silver Fork was stocked by the DFW this past week and the South Fork at Coloma is scheduled for a plant this week.

BULLARDS BAR—The lake is at 59-percent capacity.  Emerald Cove Marina reported kokanee trolling was good for 12-inch salmon at the dam using dodger/hoochies or spinners at 50 to 70 feet deep.  The bass bite was slow for bigger fish, but try shad Senkos on steep points and walls at 25 to 40 feet deep.

CAMP FAR WEST—The lake is at 71-percent capacity.  Ron Franks of Folsom caught 32 bass on his last trip using lizards and craws in the main body and Bear River arm at 8 to 10 feet deep in 70- to 74-degree water.  The South Shore Resort is now open Friday to Sunday until Labor Day.

COLLINS LAKE—The lake is 32 feet from full.  Trout fishing was the best bet for rainbows to 7 1/4 pounds.  Shore anglers and trollers were doing equally as well.  Most anglers were picking up 2 to 3 trout.  Bass to 3 pounds were hitting nightcrawlers and plastic worms.  Bluegill and redear sunfish were hitting worms.

ENGLEBRIGHT RESERVOIR—The lake is at 96-percent capacity.  With recreational boat traffic increasing, fishermen were picking up trout and bass in the quiet of the marina using nightcrawlers.

FRENCH MEADOWS RESERVOIR—The lake is at 45-percent capacity.  Will Fish Tackle in Auburn reported fishing here was slow.  Boats were still able to launch at the French Meadows ramp.

HELL HOLE RESERVOIR—The lake is at 52-percent capacity.  The Georgetown Ranger Station said anglers were catching kokanee, trout and macks.  Launching was good for all boats.

OROVILLE, LAKE—The lake is at 44-percent capacity—down another 3 feet this past week.  Bass fishing was good for mostly spots to 2 1/2 pounds on Senkos rigged either on a wormhead or nail-weighted wacky, and darthead or drop-shot worms from the shore to 20 feet deep.  The bigger fish were on steep points and walls in the slot with lots of smaller fish showing in the West Branch.  An A-rig should be working with the fish chasing pond smelt. King salmon to over 3 pounds were hitting RMT 5.5 dodgers trailing RMT Bill Fish and spinner hoochies at the dam and in the North Fork at 30 to 60 feet deep, according to James Stone at Elite Sportsmen Guide Service.

ROLLINS LAKE—The lake is at 97.5-percent capacity.  According to Will Fish Tackle in Auburn, fishing was slow.

SCOTT’S FLAT LAKE—The lake is at 62-percent capacity.  Mike Dowd at the marina reported bass anglers were picking up some nice smallmouth bass to 2 1/2 pounds on Roboworms near the Ditch Tender’s House.  A few rainbows were hitting flasher/worms at the dam and the Deer Creek inlet.

SUGAR PINE RESERVOIR—The Foresthill Ranger Station reported the lake level was higher than expected and launching was good.

STUMPY MEADOWS RESERVOIR—The lake is at 62-percent capacity.  The Georgetown Ranger Station reported shore fishing was good for planter rainbows using floating dough bait and worms.

THERMOLITO AFTERBAY—The lake was at 135.1-foot elevation at press time—89.7-percent capacity.  Bruce Gibson at the Paradise Tackle Company reported bass fishing was good for smaller fish along the tule banks using spinnerbaits and Senkos.  The bigger fish were moving offshore to the humps and brush piles on the main body at 13 to 15 feet deep and hitting jigs.  Look for the frog bite to develop on hot afternoons in the weed beds using black/yellow (blackbird) colors.

 

NORTH COAST LAKES

CLEAR LAKE—With the weed growth exploding all over the upper end of the lake, the few spots that you can find clear of weeds will have lots of company on them. With probably two-thirds of the fish having spawned, it seems that they are starting to get more active with their feeding cycle and there’s a more aggressive bite. The topwater bite is steadily getting better with the frog bite, popper style bite and topwater stick baits such as the Zara Spook working.

LAKE BERRYESSA—With warmer weather coming, look for the kokanee and trout to drive deeper and start being easier to catch. There is still some pretty good bass fishing to be had for all three species of smallmouth, largemouth and spotted bass. Just get out early and late to avoid the boaters. The lake continues to drop but still has a little color, which is great for keeping the bass from going too deep yet.

LAKE SONOMA—Bassers will find good action on main body points with a G-Splash popper or Gunfish targeting around any structure on the point. After the sun comes up, head to the quieter 5-mph or no-ski zones for added bites using Senkos, jigs or drop-shot Roboworms in natural colors. Target primary or secondary points with deeper water access and slow down with a slower presentation. Fish grass in the creeks with a LuckyCraft LV500 along the grass lines to target bigger largemouth bass.

 

NORTHEASTERN

LAKE ALMANOR—The bass spawn is winding down, but there are still plenty of fish. Try swimbaits, drop-shot and Texas rigged 6-inch worms. Trout continue to frequent areas that are producing bug hatches along the west shore. Fish are from all depths from the surface to the bottom since the hatches are off the bottom.

BATTLECREEK RESERVOIR—Kastmasters and worms always do well here, so those would be good choices to start out your day. Check special regulations here. Fishing has been best early in the morning.

BAUM LAKE—Expect more good fishing here with more hatches, which are going off before the sun is high. Fishing should be good here all summer.

BUCKS LAKE—Fishing at the lake for trout has been a little on the slow side, but that has been tempered by a wide open koke bite from 25 to 35 feet. They are still only 12 or 13 inches but healthy, thick fish. There are still some 2- to 4-pound Macks on koke gear and you can find 1 to 3 fish up to 18 pounds if you are working for them. There bite just slows down this time of year.

CASSEL FOREBAY—Power Bait, worms and eggs are good go-to baits. There is always more pressure on the weekends, but there should be plenty of fish for everyone. An overcast sky will help the bite here.

EAGLE LAKE—The fishing has been hot and with all the drought concerns, Eagle Lake is still the place to go. Anglers are allowed to keep two fish per day with a total of four in possession. Limits are being caught by many people. The launch ramp is working well, but if you have a larger boat, make sure to raise the motor until you are out at the end of the launch ramp dock just as a precaution.

FALL RIVER—The Fly Shop in Redding continued to rate the fishing as good here. There are lots of big rainbows and good hatches along the upper river but the lower section is also starting to produce from Island Dr. all the way to the confluence.

UPPER HAT CREEK—Worms, eggs, dry flies and lures all work well here. Fishing is at its best early before the sun gets high in the sky and then right at sunset. The Power House no. 2 Riffle has been hot but expect company. There are lots of hatches going off.

MANZANITA LAKE—Fish the shoreline and structure for better action. Remember that this is a catch and release, single hook, artificial lure only lake. Remember to check Lassen Park’s special regulations for this lake. Fishing has been fair for some and great for others. Go early or late to avoid the kayakers and other boaters.

McCLOUD RIVER–River conditions are excellent and so is the brown and rainbow trout fishing thanks to all of the hatches. Look for rising fish before jumping in to fish. The fishing continues to be good here but it may be getting a little more crowded.

PIT RIVER—Water conditions are good and with plenty of hatches going off the fishing has been great. This is a go-to river in the springtime so expect some company at the popular spots.

SHASTA LAKE—Fishing was fair for rainbows, but not brown trout or salmon. Fish a little deeper as the water warms. Shad have not moved down into the main body yet. But if you are fishing for bass your chances of finding them in the upper Pitt are better since they are shallower up there. Look for shad boils and then fish some kind of moving bait like a spinnerbait or a small swimbait in shad. Just remember to fish early and late, as there is a lot of traffic out there now.

WHISKEYTOWN RESERVOIR—Fishing is starting to improve, which means they are catching a few more quality fish in the 13- and 14-inch range, although the majority are little kokes measuring 8 to 10 inches. Fish the Curtain and both sides of the 299 Bridge. The larger fish seem to be deeper, like 60 to 80 feet. Pink Apexs and occasionally pink Scorpion spinner with beads have been working. The smaller ones (for kidsare in the 30- to 50-foot range.

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