Bass fishing at Clear Lake is about as tough as it gets. Even the local fishing guides have been working hard to put a few fish in the boat for their clients. The mystery is why the fishing is so slow. The fish are out there and the population has been stable, but they are not biting. The best action has been on live jumbo minnows. As the water continues to cool the minnow action will improve.
The months of December through February are the prime times to use live minnows on Clear Lake. While minnow fishermen are doing only fair, those using artificial lures are really struggling and most are happy to catch three to five fish for an entire day on the lake. Lipless crankbaits retrieved yo-yo style have been effective and a few fishermen are having success casting deep-running crankbaits and white spinnerbaits. Plastic worms rigged drop-shot style also have been responsible for some nice bass.
The bass continue to be tightly schooled and the trick to success is to stay on the move until you locate active fish. One problem continues to be the massive amount of baitfish in the lake. Earlier this week I used by underwater camera to watch a large bass suspended beneath a dock at Library Park. Juvenile bass and other minnows would swim right in front of his nose and he just ignored them.
The best action is still in the deeper water in the south end of the lake. The bass have been holding at depths of 10-15 feet above the rock piles. There are now only three public ramps open for launching — the ramp at Clearlake Oaks and the ramps at Third and Fifth streets in Lakeport. Boaters should be extra careful when launching at the Third Street ramp because the ramp drops off just about where the wheels of the trailer are in the water enough to float off the boat. In other words, don”t back the trailer all the way down the ramp. The Fifth Street ramp has plenty of water.
Whereas the bass fishing on the lake is slow the catfish action remains very good for fishermen using either live minnows or nightcrawlers. Some of the better areas have been Henderson Point and Horseshoe Bay. The deeper water around Rattlesnake Island is also giving up some nice catfish.
Trout action is still rated good at the East Branch of the Russian River. The season closes Nov. 15 and the river probably won”t be stocked again this year. Upper Blue Lake was stocked this week and the fishing should be good for the weekend. Bass fishing continues to be very good for bass between 1-3 pounds.
Whereas the fishing at Clear Lake has slowed down the bird watching is peaking. A kayak is ideal for viewing birds and there are now eagles, cormorants, grebes, pelicans and hundreds of other wild birds. The winter months bring a lot of migratory birds to the lake. A good example are the white pelicans. Their numbers are increasing because of the millions of small fish. An adult pelican will consume up to 4 pounds of baitfish in a day. I recently saw a flock of snow geese pass above my home. Occasionally a flock of snow geese will land on the lake but they are not common.
As expected, the duck hunting has slowed down. The refuges in the Sacramento Valley averaged from one to three birds last weekend. A change in the weather is needed to make the hunting improve. At Clear Lake, the duck hunting has been very slow and few hunters are out on the lake.
The good news is quail hunting in the Mendocino National Forest has been excellent.
