While most of the fishermen entered in the fourth annual Bob”s Marine Bass Tournament found the fishing tough, that wasn”t the case with the team of Sieg Taylor of Kelseyville and Chris Lienau of Modesto. The pair beat out a field of 108 teams to win the event with a two-day total weight of 46.24 pounds.
Taylor and Lienau anchored their catch with a pair of 9-pound-plus bass and won $4,140. Taylor said they caught their bass in the deeper water using swimbaits.
Taylor is no stranger to winning bass tournaments. He was won four bass boats and a wad of money during his career. He says Clear Lake is his favorite body of water.
Most of the fishermen said they found the fishing had tightened up. Many struggled to put a limit of five bass in the boat. In fact, it took only 30.58 pounds to earn a check.
By far the most productive lure during the tournament was a Senko fished tight to the weed mats or beneath the docks. A few bass also were caught on jigs and plastic frogs. Zara Spooks worked early in the morning but didn”t produce as the day wore on.
The most productive areas during the tournament were the rockpiles in the south end of the lake. Bass also were caught off Long Tule Point and at Rocky Point. Kudos to the staff of Bob”s Marine for running a great tournament. They took great care of the fish and the fishermen. I heard nothing but praise about the tournament.
There is no question that the bass fishing at Clear Lake has slowed down considerably. Even the experienced anglers are working hard to put a limit of fish in the boat. The lake is also changing daily. The weed mats are starting to disappear in some areas and the lake level continues to drop. The secret to success is to keep on the move until you locate fish.
The East Branch of the Russian River was scheduled to be stocked with trout this week. Upper Blue Lake was stocked last week and the fishing has been decent for trollers working the middle of the lake. Bank fishing has been slow.
Bass are the best bet at Indian Valley Reservoir. I fished the lake on Thursday and caught a fair number of both largemouth and smallmouth bass. Jigs and drop-shotting a plastic worm tight to the rocks produced most of the fish. The bass are schooled and you have to cover a lot of water to locate the fish. There has been very little kokanee or trout action. Boats can still be launched at the dam, but care must be used because the ramp is almost out of the water.
Zone A deer hunters are heading into the final week of their season (Zone A closes Sept. 23). The hunting has been poor to date. Several of the private clubs have failed to take a single deer and other hunters say they just aren”t seeing many deer.
The Zone B season opens Saturday and most of the hunters will be in the Mendocino National Forest hunting at the higher elevations. The cooler weather should help the hunting.
Hunters are cautioned that the fire danger is very high. The game wardens also will be out checking hunters for loaded guns in vehicles and for trespassers. If you”re driving around the national forest at night and see a big buck in your headlights, there is a good chance it is the deer decoy the wardens use. If you are dumb enough to shoot at the decoy and get caught, you can expect to pay a fine of at least $500 and you won”t be taking home any venison.
