Save Our Stripers!
www.saveourstripers.org

We need our chamber members help to defeat proposed legislation to deregulate the striped bass. A Kern County assembly woman has introduced legislation to open them to unlimited take, no size limit, commercial fishing, etc. as retaliation to our efforts to protect our delta water. If you feel this will affect your members businesses please visit the site and sign on in opposition:  www.saveourstripers.org.

If you have more questions, write or visit the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance at www.calsport.org. Note that all fishing organizations in our region and our state oppose this legislation. Our Department of Fish and Game disagrees with the premise of this legislation and is currently fighting a similar attack on our striped bass fishery in court. Your support in opposition is CRITICAL in helping to crush this legislation before it has a chance to ruin our fishery and harm your business!

FishDelta.Com - Fish Reports

FishDelta.com is a new Delta Chambers member. We will now be adding the link to their fishing reports each week on this page. Some of the reports are duplicates. CLICK HERE to read the FishDelta Reports.

Also, for those missing the old Delta Chambers Fish Forum, you can now go to FishDeltaBuzz and participate in their fishing forums. Click Here

Dan Mathisen
Email & Website

Delta Bank Fishing
by Roland “Innovate” Aspiras

As we come closer to fall and the anticipation of the coming salmon season, many of you have e-mailed me asking about the season dates and bag limit details. So, I went out and searched the Department of Fish and Game’s labyrinth of a website and found details in this document: http://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=22586

According to the document, the Feather River from 1,000 feet below the Thermalito Afterbay to the mouth opens to fishing on July 31st. So, those of you that have been itching to get into some salmon have the chance to do so in just a few days. The daily bag limit is 2 salmon.

I’m eagerly waiting for the area between the Highway 113 Bridge and Carquinez Bridge to open. Between September 4th and October 3rd there is a daily limit of 2 salmon. We’ll get into gear and tackle as we get closer to the opener.

As far as other species around Sacramento…

Striped bass are currently a good bet in the American River. I can’t suggest any good spots to try, only because the fish are on the move daily. Topwater plugs in the early morning and  late evening, and subsurface lures like swimbaits and jointed jerkbaits are good when the sun is up. Bait fisherman usually toss crawfish, live jumbo minnows, and cut frozen baits.

Shad are still available in the upper-most reaches of the river and are readily taking grubs and darts. Most of the fish have spawned and skinny, and some are possibly already making their way back to the ocean, dependent on what the water temps are holding at.

Catfish are readily available in the Old Sacramento River just about anywhere you can wet a line. Cut frozen baits, chicken liver, night crawlers and clams are all good for the catfish. This time of year you can literally catch cats by dropping your line straight down off the bank, depending on how deep the water is at your feet. Try a float too, you won’t be disappointed with the action if they’re around.

Bass fishing is a summertime favorite among anglers. I fished a couple of tributaries in the East Delta a few times last week from the bank, landing a couple of nice largemouth to 3 pounds. Punching mats with plastics was the ticket. Smallmouth fishing should be good on the Old Sacramento River – look for rocks and good current flow, along with some shade nearby and you’re golden. Try small 3 inch grubs on a darter head, spinnerbaits, and crawdad imitation crankbaits. Just keep in mind that smallmouth have a very slow growth rate. A 1-2 pound fish could be well over 3 years old. Practice catch and release so everyone can continue to enjoy this special fishery in the years to come.

To all, have a fun time on the banks and as always – make sure you pick up after yourself so the next person can enjoy the spot you just fished.

Roland “Innovate” Aspiras
Roland's Fishing Blog

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Isleton Area
by Can Nguyen -- Bob's Bait Shops

It was cooler than usual compared to previous years. It was hotter during the weekend and then cooled off the last couple of days with very strong winds until today. Likely the weather pattern will continue throughout this week.

The water in the Delta is much clearer now even though it was muddier during the last hour of the outgoing tide. Fishing for striped bass in the Delta was fair. There are too many small striped in the water system that makes fishing to get a keeper size of striped bass harder. In order to have more chance to catch a good size striped bass, use a big chunk of bait and wrap it with miracle thread or magic thread. Size 5/0 hook or better should be used in order to unhook easily and save the small striped bass. If using anchovy for bait, use it as a whole and just cut the head off. For sardine bait, use one sardine for either one or two baits if possible.

Recently, most keeper striped bass were reported by bank anglers who fish at night time. The good spots to fish for striped bass in the Delta area this time are Sherman Island, Decker Island, Rio Vista Bridge, Isleton public fishing pier, Isleton Bridge and the Dump Gate.

Sturgeon fishing has been slow. There was only under size sturgeon reported at Bay Point and Sherman Island on grass shrimp bait.

Catfish fishing was very good in the Mokelumne River, Georgiana Slough, Isleton public fishing pier and Seven Miles Slough. The good baits for catfish are crawdads tail meat, chicken liver, anchovy, or night crawler.

Fishing for small mouth, large mouth bass was very good along the Old Sacramento River, Steam Boat Slough, Georgian Slough, and Mokelumne Rivers. Live baits as mud suckers or minnows are best. However, artificial lures are also good to fish for bass. Good luck to you and have a nice coming weekend.

Can
Email & Website

Antioch-Oakley Area
by Chris Lauritzen -- Lauritzen Yacht Harbor

Tuesday I stopped over at the boat house at Lawson’s Landing to get some bait for a little halibut fishing at McClure’s Beach.  At the boat house I was talking to long time friend Carrie Apgar and there was excitement in her voice as she told me how well anglers had done this past weekend salmon fishing from Bird Rock to Elephant Rock all in 40 – 60 feet of water fishing with the wire right on the bottom.

Walt Compomizzo and Curt Renshaw had been out last Friday and Saturday in that same area and had had two great back to back days of fishing catching salmon to 25 lbs.

In talking to a guy that I met on the dock today that has fished the Bodega Bay area for a while seems to believe that we should see some very nice big salmon head up the Delta this year.

While this is a West Delta fishing column when it comes to salmon fishing what happens or doesn’t happen outside the Golden Gate certainly does impact us here in the Delta.  In years past as it relates to salmon run, Fish and Game had usually opened up salmon fishing in the Delta if I am correct usually around August 16th or so.  In looking at Inland salmon fishing rules it seems that as of May 28, 2010, there is going to be a salmon fishing season in the West Delta respectively from the Carquinez Bride to the Highway 113 Bridge just below Knights Landing. That area is called the Lower Sacramento River Zone. The season is going to be open from September 4 through October 3, 2010. The daily bag limit will be two Chinooks or what the Canadians call a spring.

If you are so inclined and want to spend a little more time on the Sacramento River fishing for salmon and want to move upstream in the Middle Sacramento River Zone you can fish for Chinooks from October 9, 2010 through December 12, 2010.

The Middle Sacramento River Zone is from the lower Red Bluff (Sycamore Boat Ramp) downstream to the Highway 113 Bridge at Knights Landing. The daily limit is still two Chinooks.

The black bass bite continues to be pretty hot at least in Sherman Lake, at least that is what one of my sources tells me.  The difference between winning the most recent black bass tournament and coming in third place was fishing the Sherman Lake area.

The heavy marine layer (heavy fog) kept a lot of people off the water this past weekend. When I opened up Saturday morning I had a pretty cool morning and a pretty good white cap just outside the harbor. That cap did not turn until about noon when the current changed the same was true on Sunday.

Chris Lauritzen

Lauritzen's Yacht Harbor
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Guest Report by
Dale "Fishwisher" Gillespie

Look for Dale's future reports.

Dale "Fishwisher"
Dale's Fishing Blog

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