As the zebra and quagga mussels spread into Northern California a number of fishermen are concerned that if the mussels reach Clear Lake there”s a chance the lake will be closed to all boating. That is a possibility.
Earlier this week Lake Casitas (located in Ventura County) closed to all outside boating for at least a year. The action was taken by the Casitas Municipal Water District Board of Directors in order to prevent the spread of zebra and quagga mussels from entering the lake. Lake Casitas is a popular lake for trophy bass fishermen.
While no local lakes are yet infested with the mussels, many people say it”s only a matter of time before they enter Clear Lake. On Thursday, the county held a meeting with community leaders to come up with some answers to prevent the mussels from reaching Lake County. The suggestions ranged from placing inspection and decontamination stations at the entrances to the county to closing the lake to all outside boating.
The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) does have the authority to close a body of water and would be the agency to do it. The reason the lake could be closed would be to prevent the mussels from spreading to the Delta and other lakes from boats that are trailered from Clear Lake to those areas. No decision has been made on what plan of action to take. The DFG did inspect the bass boats entered in last weekend”s Vanity Cup tournament and the biologists say they didn”t find any mussels.
Everyone at the meeting agreed that if the mussels get into Clear Lake it would be disastrous to the local economy. A major part of the tourist business is based on Clear Lake and that includes fishing as well as other recreational boating activities.
The mussels would not only clog the water intakes around the lake but they would also use up the plankton that the juvenile fish use as food. The mussels are filter feeders and one mussel the size of your fingernail can pump a quart of water per day through its system. When you multiply that by the millions of mussels it means that just about all the plankton would be used up.
On the fishing scene, the bass fishing continues to improve on Clear Lake. Most of the successful fishermen are casting jerkbaits or working a plastic worm slowly through the tules and the rocks. The best action has been in the south end of the lake over the rockpiles. Fishermen using live minnows also have been scoring big on bass weighing up to 8 pounds.
The fishing pressure has been unbelievable. On Wednesday, I counted 19 boats working the shoreline from Willow Point in Lakeport to Long Tule Point.
American Bass will hold a team tournament on Saturday. Fishermen can sign just prior to the blast-off at the Tackle It tackle shop, which is located next to the Skylark Shores Motel in Lakeport. The weigh-in starts at 3 p.m. at the Skylark Motel.
The Holder Ford-Mercury team tournament is scheduled for March 15-16. More than 70 teams have signed up to date. Fishermen can enter the tournament as late as 5 p.m. on March 14 at the Holder dealership located at 2575 S. Main St., Lakeport. Call 263-5603 for more information.
There is good news coming out of Indian Valley Reservoir. The launch ramp at the dam is now open. The lake level is still down about 60 feet from the full mark but boats can be launched. The bass fishing should be excellent for both smallmouths and largemouths.
Upper Blue Lake is scheduled to be stocked with trout this week. The lake should produce decent trout action for trollers working the middle of the lake. Bass fishing remains fair but very few fishermen have been out after them.
