It will be a busy weekend for the outdoors crowd. The bass, crappie and bluegill at Clear Lake are biting like crazy and the spring wild turkey season opens Saturday.
As the last two bass tournaments on Clear Lake have shown, the lake is literally on fire when it comes to fishing. Just about everyone who can cast a lure is catching fish and that means from boats and even the shore.
Most of the fishermen in the tournaments reported catching between 20-50 bass per day. The bass are ranging in size from a pound to more than 10 pounds. Just about every location on the lake is producing good numbers of bass and a wide variety of lures have been successful. Jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, all types of plastic worms and jigs have been successful. Most of the local fishing guides are using jumbo minnows.
Both the north and south ends of the lake have been very productive and the reason is that the lake is literally alive with millions of threadfin shad. In fact, massive schools of shad can be seen at Henderson Point and even the docks at Library Park in Lakeport are home to large schools of shad.
Local fishing guide Richard Pounds says his clients have been averaging between 25-60 bass per day, the largest hitting the 11-pound mark. Pounds says live jumbo minnows are his bait of choice.
One of the hot spots for shore anglers are the docks at Library Park in Lakeport. I counted a dozen fishermen casting from the docks on Saturday and they were all catching bass ranging for a pound to more than 5 pounds.
Crappie fishermen are also reaping the benefits of the shad explosion. The crappie are gorging themselves on the shad and some of the crappie are weighing up to 2 pounds. Clear Lake State Park is now open for fishing and boating and the crappie are biting. A few fishermen are having success at Lakeside County Park. The only problem is the park is still closed to all vehicles, so you have to hike in. There are no major bass tournaments scheduled for the next few weeks and that means recreational fishermen pretty much have the lake to themselves.
Hitch are native fish in Clear Lake and have been here for thousands of years. It had been feared the hitch population was in a sharp decline and concerned citizens have been taking steps to make sure the hitch don’t become extinct. The good news is that the high water this year has resulted in hitch being able to make it up the streams that flow into the lake so that they can spawn. There have been a good number of hitch sightings in the local streams. Biologists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) announced they will be doing extensive research this summer on the hitch. They will be seeking answers as to whether the hitch actually spawn in the lake itself and studying other habits
Turkey hunters take to the hills Saturday morning for a month-long spring hunting season. The general season runs through April 30 and there are wild turkeys everywhere. Lake County is considered one of the best turkey hunting areas in the state. In fact, the county is literally awash with wild turkeys.
Turkey hunting has become one of the most popular hunting sports in California. Most of the turkeys are located on private land, but there is also a good population located on public lands. The Mendocino National Forest as well as Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands, such as the Cache Creek Wildlife Area, are awash in turkeys. The Knoxville Wildlife Area, located near the gold mine out of Lower Lake, also has a good population of turkeys.
Hunters are reminded that the hunting hours for the spring turkey season are one-half hour before sunrise to 5 p.m. and only non-lead shot can be used in shotguns. The limit is one bearded turkey per day and three for the season. In addition to a current California hunting license, you must have an Upland Game Bird Stamp. Junior hunters aren’t required to have the stamp but must have a current junior hunting license.
