Bass fishing at Clear Lake slowed considerably this past week. Most of the local fishing guides report their clients caught from five to eight fish per day. That”s in comparison to two weeks ago when catches of 15 fish per day were common.
There is still some topwater action early in the mornings and late in the evenings. I fished on Wednesday evening with Mike Rothstein of Kelseyville and we managed to put only four fish in the boat during a three-hour period. We fished the area from the Lakeside County Park to the state park and used topwater lures. We found the bass widely scattered and covered a lot of water for our fish. The best action has been in the north end of the lake around the tules and docks. In the south end, the best action has been in Konocti Bay, Jago Bay and around Rattlesnake Island. Drop-shotting a plastic worm or casting a Senko are your best bet.
Actually, the conditions are perfect for frog fishing on the weed mats but there have been very few bass caught on frogs and even fewer off the weed mats. The water temperature has been as high as 85 degrees by late afternoon, which is ideal for the weed mat style of fishing. Unfortunately, the bass just aren”t there.
Just about all the guides and local fishermen believe the bass population is way down. Several of the guides have said they think bass numbers are down by as much as 50 percent. There are very few bass being caught or seen between 12-14 inches (1-pounders). Normally this class of fish should be making up the bulk of the catches but it isn”t happening. Three years of drought apparently have taken a toll on the 2- and 3-year-old bass.
Without question, crawdads are one of the best summer baits for bass. The problem is that up to now none of the local bait shops have been carrying them. Clearlake Outdoors, located on Soda Bay Road just outside of Lakeport, now has live crawdads. The crawdads sell for a dollar each. The best method of rigging a live crawdad is to take a size 1 hook and run it up through the shell mantle between the eyes. Be careful not to penetrate the crawdad”s brain. Rigged this way the crawdad will stay alive and healthy. Monofilament line in the 6- or 8-pound test is used. Attach a small split shot weight up about six inches from the hook. This will keep the crawdad from swimming on the surface. Cast the crawdad beneath a dock and allow it to swim freely. You can also use a live crawdad to sight fish. When you see a bass cruising, cast the bait to the fish and I can guarantee you the bass will grab it. Allow the fish to get the crawdad into its mouth and set the hook with a sweeping action.
One mistake a lot of fishermen make is to use too large of a crawdad. The best size is about the size of your little finger or even smaller. A large crawdad will often intimidate a bass.
Crawdads are also excellent for catfishing. In fact, they are the preferred bait among experienced catfishermen.
With the exception of a few areas, the crappie action remains slow. Some crappie are being caught off the docks at the Indian Beach Resort in Glenhaven. Kurt Elder of San Jose caught a 2-pound bluegill off the docks at the Skylark Shores Motel in Lakeport.
The East Branch of the Russian River is scheduled to be stocked with trout this week. Upper Blue Lake was stocked last week. The trout action has been good at Upper Blue Lake with little fishing pressure. Indian Valley Reservoir is still kicking out good numbers of bass and some crappie. The road going into the lake is rough and dusty.
