By Terry Knight ? Record-Bee outdoors writer
LAKE COUNTY — The most common question the operators of the local tackle shops is, where are the bass at Clear Lake? Good question because overall the fishing leaves a lot to be desired. Most of the guides have been struggling to have their clients catch 3-5 bass for a full day on the lake. According to guide Ross England, the fishermen have to keep moving until they locate bass. He also said the bass are feeding heavily of crawdads and are back in the tules.
I can confirm that. On Monday, after couple days on the lake with few bass to show for my efforts I decided to go back to the basics which was rigging a 1/0 wide gap hook with a 1/8-ounce worm weight and pegging the weight tight to the hook with a toothpick. I used a 6-inch red-colored plastic worm rigged Texas weedless style. I pitched the worm back into the pockets in the tules and allowed it to sink. I then twitched the tip of the rod which made the worm dance on the bottom. The bass went crazy and within a 100 yard stretch I caught and released 10 bass with the largest weighing 5 pounds. The bass were back in the tules feeding on crawdads which were confirmed by all the grebes around me. The grebes would dive down and come up with a crawdad in their bills. They did this time and time again. Other fishermen reported also reported catching bass by shaking a plastic worm and many said they saw crawdads. The bad news is that for every fisherman that is catching 5-10 fish there are at least three or four who either catching none or only a few.
What is surprising is the poor fishing for those casting topwater lures or plastic frogs on the weed mats. Hopefully that will change in the coming weeks. There are some large schools of silverside minnows and juvenile bass and as these bass seek the protection of the weed mats the larger bass will follow to feed on these smaller fish. That”s when a plastic frog or Horney Toad cast to the mat will result in a blow-up.
The best bass fishing continues to be from the Narrows to the north end of the lake. The problem in the Lakeport area is the heavy weed mats which makes access to the docks nearly impossible in many areas. In areas where you can gain access to the docks a plastic worm or jig cast either under the docks or to the shady side have been producing some decent action.
The big news on the fishing scene is the outstanding catfish action. Catfish are being caught all around the lake. For example, one fisherman has been catching up to five catfish per evening while fishing from the docks in Library Park in Lakeport. The docks at Lakeside County Park have also been good for catfish. The top bait has been either cut mackerel or nightcrawlers.
The other good news is after weeks of poor crappie fishing the action has been improving. Crappie are being caught off the many docks that are around the lake. At the Indian Beach Resort in Glenhaven the fishermen report catching from 4-8 crappie per evening with some weighing as much as 3 pounds. Also this past week a fisherman caught a rainbow trout on a crappie jig at the resort”s docks. Trout in Clear Lake are extremely rare but occasionally one is caught.
These trout migrate down to the lake from the feeder streams.
The East Branch of the Russian River was scheduled to be stocked with trout this week. To reach the area take the Potter Valley Road off Highway 20. There are a number of places where you can park and walk down to the river. Most of the successful fishermen use nightcrawlers or small spinners. At Upper Blue Lake the trout action has slowed because the lake hasn”t been stocked in at least three weeks.
For those who have a youngster and want to catch some bluegill, Highland Springs Reservoir is loaded with these small panfish. All that is needed is a can of redworms and a small bobber. The reservoir is located on Highland Springs Road just past the airport out of Lakeport.
