Bass fishing at Clear Lake should capture most of the attention from the outdoors crowd this weekend. The headliner is the two-day Fish For The Wish bass tournament on Saturday and Sunday. The tournament is a fundraiser for active duty military personnel as well as veterans. Proceeds help veterans and active military personnel who need financial assistance.
The tournament entry fee is $150 per person (a two-man team pays a total of $300). The tournament pays back 80 percent of entry fees to the fishermen and there will be two big-fish awards per day. Tournament headquarters is Konocti Vista Casino and weigh-ins begin at 3 p.m. each day. Tournament sponsors are Konocti Vista Casino, Clear Lake Outdoors and North Lake Medical Pharmacy.
Fishermen can sign up today at either Clear Lake Outdoors tackle shop in Lakeport or Konocti Vista Casino. Sign-ups run until 6 p.m. There is a dinner and raffle at the casino on Saturday night.
Tournament anglers should find the fishing from good to excellent despite the forecast of rain and wind for the weekend. Fishermen who were out on the lake this week reported catching anywhere from 20-40 bass per day, including some in the 8-pound class. Both the north and south ends of the lake are producing good numbers of fish. One excellent area has been the docks around Rocky Point. The Clear Lake State Park and Henderson Point are other excellent areas. The top lures have been jigs, spinnerbaits, shallow-running crankbaits and drop-shotting a plastic worm.
Fishermen also will be out on the lake prefishing for the upcoming American Bass (ABA) Tournament of Champions scheduled for Nov. 5-6.
Catfish action continues to improve and some 20-pound-plus fish have been caught. Most of the catfish are being taken by bank fisherman at Library Park in Lakeport and at Lakeside County Park. Soda Bay is another good area as is Shag Rock.
There is very little crappie action. The crappie are done spawning and have moved offshore. Some large bluegill are being caught at Henderson Point and Shag Rock.
The lake level is holding steady at 1.43 feet on the Rumsey Gauge and Yolo County has stopped taking water from the lake.
Trout fisherman are catching easy limits at the East Branch of the Russian River. The stream was stocked last week and was scheduled to be stocked again this week. Gary Hill of Kelseyville limited out on three separate days this week. On Monday, Hill said he caught a five-fish limit with only five casts.
The trout season on the Russian River closes Nov. 15. Trout are also being caught at Upper Blue Lake. The lake was stocked last week and boaters are catching most of the fish. Bass action at Upper Blue Lake is also good.
Duck hunters found slow action on Clear Lake for the opener. Only a couple of hunters reported having success and most of the hunters were happy to bag one or two birds. The federal refuges in the Sacramento Valley averaged only about two birds per hunter.
The fall wild turkey season opens Nov. 12 and the prospects are excellent for Lake County. Turkeys are being seen just about everywhere. There are also a lot of turkeys on public land such as the Mendocino National Forest and the Cache Creek Wildlife Area. The limit is one bird of either sex per day and a total of two for the season. Steel shot is required for turkey hunting.
