Catfish grab the spotlight this weekend as the annual Clearlake Oaks/Glenhaven Catfish Derby gets under way at noon today. The derby wraps up noon Sunday. Derby headquarters are the Clearlake Oaks Firehouse, where the awards ceremony will start 1 p.m. Sunday. There also will be a barbecue and raffle.
If past derbies are any indication, it should take at least a 25-pound catfish or better to win the grand prize package of a boat, motor and trailer. It”s unlikely the lake record for catfish of 33 ? pounds will be broken, but you never know.
Most of the catfishermen will be concentrating in the south end of the lake near Rattlesnake Island or near the City of Clearlake. Cache Creek also will see a lot of fishermen.
The preferred bait for the derby contestants will be either jumbo minnows or cut bait and many will be drift fishing. The fishermen will be allowed to fish around the clock and many of the more knowledgeable fishermen will be anchored at their favorite fishing hole all night.
The weather is forecast to be perfect for the derby, with warm temperatures and light winds.
The Indian Beach Resort at Glenhaven held a catfish derby over the weekend and the winner was Ron Pulliam of Sacramento. He reeled in a 27.8-pound catfish. The derby drew approximately 50 fishermen.
Bass fishermen also will be out in force this weekend. 100 Percent Bass has a team tournament scheduled for Saturday. The tournament will operate out of Redbud Park in Clearlake, with the weigh-in starting at 3 p.m.
Overall the bass fishing on Clear Lake remains excellent. Most of the fishermen are having little trouble catching from 20 to 40 fish per day.
There are still some bass on the spawning beds but most have completed their annual spawning cycle and have moved back in the tules or are holding on the rockpiles.
The good news is that bass are starting to take topwater lures. I fished just south of Lakeport near the Konocti Vista Casino and Resort on Tuesday and found an excellent topwater bite. The bass were holding off the points and the hot lure was a Skitter Pop. The trick to success was to cast back in the holes in the tules and give the lure a quick jerk. In one area I caught seven bass on nine casts, and this was at noon.
Most of the fishermen are catching their bass on shaky head jigs rigged with a 6-inch plastic worm or by drop-shotting. Both the north and south ends of the lake are producing a lot of fish.
Crappie are pretty much of a no-show. A few are being caught in the south end of the lake and the occasional crappie is being caught near the Fifth Street ramp in Lakeport. But overall the crappie fishing has been very poor.
The trout and kokanee action at Indian Valley Reservoir has slowed down considerably. I fished the lake for bass on Thursday and the kokanee fishermen were struggling. The bass fishing is fair to good but most of the fish are small, weighing about a pound.
The lake level is dropping fast as Yolo County draws out water. The good news is that the road into the lake from Highway 20 has been recently graded and is in excellent shape although it”s dusty.
Trout action at Upper Blue Lake is rated fair for trollers working the middle of the lake. Bank fishing has been slow.
The East Branch of the Russian River was scheduled to be stocked with trout this week. The area receives a lot of fishing pressure but there are also plenty of trout.
The ocean salmon fishing has finally improved. Earlier this week Bob Patterson of Kelseyville fished on the party boat Rumblefish and all nine fishermen on the boat limited out on salmon to 20 pounds.
