After a torrid week of bass and crappie fishing, Clear Lake anglers are facing brutal weather conditions for the weekend. Heavy rain and high winds are forecast for the next week. The good news is that the rainfall should bring up the lake level. With more than 5 inches of rain forecast for Lake County the Clear Lake level could hit 6 feet on the Rumsey Gauge.
Earlier this week just about every fisherman reported catching from 15 to 30 bass a day. Local fishing guide Ross England said that on Wednesday he guided a client that boated 75 legal bass. England said he has never had a client catch that many fish in a single day. The fish were caught on a variety of lures and included plastic worms, jigs and crankbaits.
The winning team of the American Bass team tournament on Sunday had a single day weight of 37 pounds, anchored with a 10 pounder. There were a number 20-pound limits weighed in.
Once these storms pass the excellent fishing should return. The bass are in the lake by the thousands and many of them have moved up shallow preparing to spawn. Bass will start to stage during March. The smaller males will move into the shallows first followed by the larger females. The main spawning takes place during early April and May.
Swimbaits and jigs were the top lures in the tournament, with both the north and south ends of the lake producing good numbers of fish. Many of the more successful fishermen have been working the tules from the state park to Lakeport. The water temperatures have been ranging from as low as 48 degrees to as high as 54 degrees.
The Nice-Lucerne shoreline has been giving up a lot of bass in the 2- to 3- pound class. Another hot area has been from Shag Rock to Henderson Point. The shoreline from the Lakeside County Park to the State Park is also loaded with bass. In fact, some of the more successful fishermen have been pitching plastic worms back in the tules and catching bass that will range in size from 2 to 5 pounds.
The upcoming Clear Lake Team Bass Tournament is only two weeks away. The tournament is sponsored by the Lake County Chamber of Commerce and Konocti Vista Casino and is scheduled for March 19-20. To date 40 teams have entered so far and typically on the final week at least 60 teams will sign-up. The entry fee is only $200 per team and includes big fish option. Fishermen can sign up as late as 4:30 pm on March 18. At the chamber office in Lakeport.
It’s not only the bass that are attracting fishermen. The crappie action is as good as it has been in years and one of the better areas continues to be the Clear Lake State Park. Bank fishermen are standing shoulder-to-shoulder and having little trouble catching a 25-fish limit using crappie jigs. Actually crappie are being caught all around the lake. Fishermen are reminded that the daily limit is 25 fish and that game wardens have been out checking fishermen.
There was report earlier this week of a threadfin die-off in the Clearlake Oaks Keys. This is not unusual as the water in the keys will lose oxygen and shad will die-off. There have been no other reports of a shad or fish die-off.
The good news is that good numbers of hitch are being seen making their runs up the creeks. Earlier this week there were an estimated 1,800 hitch seen in Kelsey Creek. Hitch have also been seen in Adobe Creek as well as Middle Creek. This could be one of the better runs of hitch in the past three years.
Upper Blue Lake is scheduled to be stocked with trout during the week of March 14. To date the trout action has been very good. Lake Pillsbury will also receive its first stocking of the year the same week.
