Cold and unsettled weather that dropped the water temperature greeted fishermen on Clear Lake this week as the bass fishing began to settle into its typical winter pattern. The bass are also tightly schooled. Typically fishermen report working long stretches of shoreline and catching nothing before locating a small area loaded with fish. Some of the better areas have been Rocky Point, the stretch of shoreline from Clearlake Oaks to Lucerne, and the Clear Lake State Park.
The hot bait continues to be the Lucky Craft LV500. The best technique is to just cast and crank. In other words, keep casting and reeling in and sooner or later you will catch a fish.
The cooling water temperature apparently hasn’t had any effect on the fishing. For example, on Wednesday the water temperature dipped to 58 degrees and the bass were still reacting.
The other factor is the lack of fishermen. With no tournaments scheduled on the lake until late in January the recreational fishermen have the lake pretty much to themselves. This lack of fishing pressure has improved the fishing.
While the bass aren’t large, they are in excellent condition going into the winter. Most of the fishermen say the bass look like little footballs because they are so fat from gorging themselves on the threadfin shad.
The top bass bait for cold winter days is live jumbo minnows. Clear Lake Outdoors in Lakeport is now stocking not only jumbo minnows but small minnows, which are also great for crappie fishing. Big bass go crazy on the jumbo minnows, especially when the water temperature drops.
With the bass being so active, now is the ideal time to take a youngster or even a novice fisherman fishing. All you need is a medium-action spinning or casting rod rigged with 8-pound test line. Buy a couple of the Lucky Craft lures or live minnows at the local tackle shop and head out on the lake. Cast to the pilings at the docks and make a medium-speed retrieve. The trick is to keep moving until you catch a fish and then work the area thoroughly.
Bass are even being caught off the docks at the Fifth Street ramp in Lakeport and at Lakeside County Park. Earlier this week a fisherman reported catching 10 bass in a space of three hours while fishing from the dock at Lakeside County Park.
Gary Hill of Kelseyville has been loading up on large bluegill while fishing from his float tube at Henderson Point. He said nightcrawlers have been the top bait.
The only trout action has been at Upper Blue Lake where fishermen who are trolling and spending a lot of time on the water are bagging limits. The shore fishermen are settling for one or two fish.
The fall turkey season closes Dec. 11 and the success rate to date has been extremely high. Just about all the turkey hunters report seeing a lot of birds and most have bagged turkeys. On the other hand, the pheasant hunting in the Sacramento Valley has been poor. The problem is there are few wild pheasants left in the valley. Shrinking habitat during the past 10 years has reduced the number of wild birds by at least 80 percent.
A big thumbs up goes to the Lake County Rod and Gun Club, the Konocti Rod and Gun Club and all the volunteers who helped in the Lake County Junior Pheasant Hunt held Saturday. The hunt gave 26 youngsters the opportunity to enjoy an exciting hunt and have a quality day in the field with their parents and other adults. The hunt was successful because of the volunteers who showed up with their hunting dogs and expertise. Without these dedicated individuals there would have been no hunt.
