The stormy weather all week has kept all but the hardiest of anglers off the lake. From all indications the fishing will come to a standstill this weekend. The good news is the lake level should come up by a foot when the recent series of storms is over.
Prior to the storms the fishing was rated from poor to fair. The results of the Clear Lake Bassmasters club tournament held Saturday showed that out of six boats (12 fishermen), only 10 fish were weighed in. The winning weight was 9.9 pounds for two fish. A few fishermen not competing in the tournament did mange to catch some nice bass on swimbaits in the south end of the lake.
A few fishermen are finding success using live jumbo minnows along the docks at Nice and Lucerne and at Henderson Point. Deep-running crankbaits and LV500 lipless crankbaits are also attracting a few bites. The water temperature has been ranging from a low of 55 degrees in the morning to a high of 62 degrees by mid-afternoon. The fishing pressure has been nil. On any given day there have been fewer than 10 boats on the entire lake.
If the projected rainfall totals from the series of storms forecast to hit the area are accurate, much of the lake will be muddy. Rodman Slough is already dumping muddy water into the lake and that will only increase.
Fishermen are being warned to be on the lookout for floating debris such as trees and logs and even parts of docks. One fisherman reported Sunday he hit a submerged log, which wiped out the lower unit on his outboard motor.
The good news is that the muddy water should improve the catfish action. Catfish are holding at the mouths of the streams and looking for any food that washes down. Areas such as the mouth of Kelsey Creek and Rodman Slough should provide excellent action.
Prior to the storm, the crappie action was rated good for the few anglers out fishing. For years the Kono Tayee area has been one of the better crappie areas on the lake. Fishermen are being warned not to tie up to the docks at Kono Tayee. It is legal to fish near the docks but you”re not allowed to touch the docks as they are private property. Every year there are confrontations between fishermen and the Kono Tayee dock owners.
Trout action has slowed to a crawl at Upper Blue Lake. The lake hasn”t been stocked in nearly a month and most of the fishermen have been happy to catch one or two trout.
Local bass pro Mark Crutcher of Lakeport is competing in the Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship on DeGray Lake in Arkansas. Crutcher is teamed up with Ken Mah of Elk Grove. They are the only fishermen from Northern California who qualified for the tournament. They”ve weighed in seven fish so far for a two-day weight of 12 pounds, 6 ounces, which puts them in 35th place. The top six teams compete on Friday and Saturday. The tournament features a live weigh-in each day starting a 1 p.m. on the Bassmaster web site.
The winner of the tournament advances to the Bassmasters Classic in 2015. The tournament got underway Wednesday with 159 teams. It closes Saturday.
Crutcher and Mah qualified by fishing in the Angler”s Choice circuit in Northern California.
Duck hunters are hoping the recent storms will flood the rice fields in the Sacramento Valley and put the ducks on the move. To date the hunting has been mediocre at best. Duck hunting on Clear Lake has been fair for the few hunters out on the lake. Hunters are reminded they can”t hunt within the confines of Clear Lake State Park or Anderson Marsh State Park.
