Fishing for both bass and crappie continues at a torrid pace on Clear Lake. Warmer than normal weather has resulted in some of the best action this year. For example, the American Bass team tournament held Sunday produced some huge weights. The winning team of Sandy and Bryan McGeoch of Lakeport weighed in a five-fish limit of 29.21 pounds. They also caught the big fish of the tournament, a 9.3-pounder. Their winnings came to $2,463.
The top 11 teams all had more than 20 pounds. The fishermen said they caught their bass a variety of ways, including drop-shotting a plastic worm, casting a jig, and using deep-running crankbaits and swimbaits. Most of the fishermen said they found their bass in less than 10 feet of water and one of the better areas was the flat off the mouth of Rodman Slough. More than 15 boats were staging in that area at one time. It’s not just the tournament fishermen who are loading up on bass. Ken Scott of Lakeport fished with Gary Hill of Kelseyville earlier this week and they caught a good number of bass each of the three days they fished. Most of the fish were caught between Long Tule Point and Lands End. The most successful lure was a Senko rigged on a splitshot or by drop-shotting. Scott and Kalene Strugnell fished with Ponce Hernandez and won the Clear Lake Bassmasters club tournament Saturday with a five-fish limit weighing 26.7 pounds. Their big fish weighed 8.3 pounds. The bass have started to move into the shallow water and the best action has been in 6-8 feet of water above the rocks. Without a doubt a shaky head jig rigged with a plastic worm or even a Senko can be a deadly combination. The shaky head jig is built so that when it’s on the bottom the jig head rests on the bottom and the hooks stick straight up. There is a small coil spring on the head of the jig and the head of the worm is screwed on the spring. The hook is embedded into the body of the worm. When the jig is resting on the bottom, the tail of the worm sticks up into the water and the water action will make the worm move back and forth. After the jig is cast it should be allowed to settle on the bottom. There are several ways to retrieve the lure. One is to barely move it along the bottom and the other is to give it a slight hop and allow it to settle back to the bottom. The jig comes in several weights and all the tackle shops carry them. The word is out on the excellent crappie fishing at Clear Lake. Once you locate a school of fish it takes no time to catch a limit. Docks at from Glenhaven Beach to Clearlake Oaks are loaded with crappie, some weighing as much as 2 pounds. The best lure is the standard red-white crappie jig fished slowly along the bottom. Shag Rock is another good area. A spokeswoman at Indian Beach Resort in Glenhaven reports the crappie fishing is still excellent off the resort’s docks. The resort allows visitors to fish from the docks for a daily fee of $10. Catfish action is rated as fair. The big problem is a lack of fishermen. Most of the fishermen have been targeting bass and crappie although that should change as we move into the spring months. Trout action at Upper Blue Lake remains very good and boaters are having the most success. The best area is along the shoreline from the Narrows to the north end of the lake. Power Bait remains the top trout-catcher although a few anglers have been trolling small crankbaits or spoons. The lake is scheduled to be stocked next week. Lake Mendocino is full and bass are being caught. Last week an 8-pound bass was taken. The smallmouth bass fishing also has been good.
