It will be a full agenda for the outdoor crowd this weekend. Saturday marks the start of the pheasant and wild turkey seasons, waterfowl season is in full swing, and fishermen will be out on Clear Lake going after bass, crappie and catfish.
After weeks of unbelievable fishing pressure on Clear Lake because of a series of major bass tournament, the number of fishermen on the lake has slacked off considerably. Future Pro Tour will hold a two-day team event Saturday and Sunday. The tournament operates out of Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa and will draw approximately 65 teams. The weigh-ins both days start at approximately 3 p.m.
It”s the last major bass tournament of the year to be held on the lake.
The bass fishing is starting to improve as more schools of shad are showing up at a number of locations around the lake. The bass are feeding on the shad and other small baitfish.
The hot lure continues to be a lipless crankbait in the bright shad color. The best technique is to just cast and crank and keep casting and reeling in because sooner or later you will catch a fish. Drop-shotting a plastic worm also has been effective as have live jumbo minnows.
The good news is the bass are starting to move beneath the docks in many areas. Some of the better areas have been the docks at Library Park in Lakeport, the docks at Lakeside County Park, the docks along the Nice-Lucerne shoreline and the docks in Jago and Konocti bays. The shoreline near the Clearlake Oaks Keys also has been producing some decent bass.
The bass are also tightly schooled. Typically fishermen report working a long stretch of shoreline and catching nothing, but then, all of sudden, they will catch fish after fish in a very small area.
The crappie fishing has been nothing to brag about although a few fishermen are catching a decent number of the tasty fish. The docks at Jago Bay are giving up a few crappie as are the docks at Kono Tayee. A few crappie are also being caught at Shag Rock.
Catfishing action has been fair to good depending on where you fish. While bass fishing near Rattlesnake Island, one fisherman reported using crankbaits to catch five catfish. Catfish also are being caught at Library Park in Lakeport.
No local lakes rae scheduled to be stocked with trout this week. Trollers at Upper Blue Lake are catching a few trout, but it”s hardly worth the effort. Bass fishing has been fair at the lake.
Turkey hunters open their fall season Saturday and bagging a bird should be no problem as there are turkeys everywhere. Several people have wanted to know how you clean a wild turkey. A turkey can either be plucked or breasted out. For those who prefer to pluck a turkey, it”s best to heat a bucket full of water. Cut off the head, wings and tail of the turkey and dip the carcass into the hot water. Completely submerge the bird and hold it in the water for about three minutes. Then just grab a handful of feathers and give a sharp jerk. The feathers will just fall out.
If you want to breast the bird, first pluck out the breast feathers and then take a sharp knife and fillet out each side of the breast. Cut off the legs and discard the rest of the bird. Cook the bird much as you would a domesticated bird.
Most ducks hunters will tell you that mallards are the best duck to eat because they don”t eat fish, only aquatic weeds, seeds and other vegetation. A recent trip to Library Park in Lakeport showed that”s not true. On Thursday, I observed a small group of mallards corral a school of shad and silverside minnows at the Fifth Street ramp and they gobbled up the minnows like they were popcorn.
