Bass tournament anglers return to Clear Lake this weekend for the Diana Wilson Memorial Team Tournament. The two-day tournament is replacing the annual Bob”s Marine Tournament and its purpose is to honor the late Diana Wilson, who was a fixture for many years in the Bob”s Marine event.
Fishermen can sign up for the tournament starting at 6 p.m. today at Konocti Vista Casino. The entry fee is $200 per team and includes all options. There also will be a seminar in the conference room tonight at the casino on how to fish the lake by well-known guide Larry Hemphill as well as a talk by a biologist on the condition of the lake. It all begins at 6:30 p.m. and is open to the public.
The tournament is expected to draw approximately 50 teams. The weigh-in starts at approximately 12:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the casino. The tournament is a six-hour event, something required by the Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW). The DFW requires all bass tournaments from May 15 to Sept. 15 be no more than six hours in duration each day in order to protect the fish during the hot summer months.
The bass pros will find the fishing has tightened up considerably. Most of the fishermen are happy to catch two or three fish for an entire day on the lake. As an example, the winning team in the Clear Lake Bassmasters team tournament held last weekend caught only three bass for a total of 10.75 pounds.
The best action is still in the deeper water in the south end of the lake. Jigs and drop-shotting a plastic worm have been the top producers. A few fishermen are having success early and late on topwater action. What is surprising is the lack of success in the north end of the lake. One reason for the recent poor success rate could be the massive amount of bait fish in the lake. Juvenile crappie, carp and silverside minnows are everywhere.
One place where the fishing has been good are the docks at the Indian Beach Resort in Glenhaven. According to owner Ken Taddie, his clients have been doing very well on bass, catfish and bluegill around the resort”s docks.
Whereas the bass fishermen are finding slow action, the catfish action continues to be outstanding. Catfish are being caught at just about every location around the lake, including the docks at Library Park in Lakeport, Lakeside County Park, Redbud Park in Clearlake, Henderson Point, Shag Rock and Rattlesnake Island.
Trout action has been very good at the East Branch of the Russian River. The stream was stocked this week. I fished the stream with Gary Hill of Kelseyville on Thursday morning and we both limited out in less than an hour. The trout also were nice-sized with several in the 14-inch class. Power Bait has been the top bait and the trick to success is to fish the deeper pools that are shaded. At Upper Blue Lake, both trout and bass are being caught. Several anglers reported limiting out on trout before switching to bass fishing, which is also very good.
The Zone A deer season is almost over and closes Sept. 21. Hunters are hoping for some cool weather in the final days of the season as this has been one of the hottest seasons on record. The B zones open Sept. 20.
To those who want to learn all about Clear Lake, be sure to attend Greg Giusti”s talk tonight at Lakeport Christian Center, located at 455 S. Forbes St. in Lakeport. The talk starts at 6 p.m. and is open to the public. Few people are as knowledgeable about the ecology of Clear Lake and Lake County as is Giusti. He is a very entertaining speaker as well. His main topic is the current condition of Clear Lake.
