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The lake should see increased activity on the bass fishing scene during the long Labor Day weekend. Along with the recreational fishermen out on the lake there will be a number of fishermen prefishing for several tournaments, including the annual Bob’s Marine team tournament scheduled for Sept. 9-10. It’s one of the more popular bass tournaments on the lake and it goes out of Konocti Vista Casino.
The hottest lure at Clear Lake continues to be the Senko, rigged wacky style and it really doesn’t matter which color you use. The secret to success has more to do with the time of day you fish and how you fish. The Senko is most effective early in the morning and late in the evening. In addition, drop-shotting a plastic worm has been deadly on the smaller bass. Most fishermen report having little trouble catching from 15-50 bass a day. The only problem has been the 100-degree-plus heat, which is driving the fishermen off the lake during the daytime hours..
A few fishermen have been finding success using plastic frogs cast to the weed mats. Only a few areas have the weed mats and you have to cover a lot of water to locate them.
In areas with few or no weeds, crankbaits such as the Speed Trap or lipless crankbaits have been effective. Drop-shotting a plastic worm or casting a jig has been very effective as well. This is especially true in the deeper water in the south end of the lake where there are rockpiles. The bass action is also improving in the north end of the lake. Hal Brown of Sacramento fished the docks north of Lakeport Wednesday afternoon and put five fish in the boat, the largest weighing 7 pounds. The bass were all taken on a 6-inch oxblood-blue plastic worm rigged drop-shot style. The lake level is dropping but overall the lake is in good shape.
Catfish action is starting to improve and one of the better areas has been at Lakeside County Park where catfish are being caught off the docks and the rocky point. Cut bait and nightcrawlers are catching most of the catfish, some of which are weighing up to 15 pounds. Crappie action has slowed.
Indian Valley Reservoir is still kicking out good numbers of bass. The larger bass are being caught on small crankbaits such as the LV500. The trick to success is to work the points and fish the deeper water. The road going into the lake was recently graded and is in good shape.
Saturday is a free fishing day throughout the state with no fishing license being required.
The only action at Upper Blue Lake is for bass. A jig retrieved slowly at a depth of 25-35 feet has been successful on bass to 4 pounds. Trout are far and few between as the Department of Fish and Wildlife hasn’t stocked to lake in more than a month.
The dove hunting season gets underway today and runs through Sept. 15. Most of the dove hunting takes place in the Sacramento Valley, however a few hunters go after doves at the Cache Creek Wildlife Area in eastern Lake County. This year the limit is 15 birds per day with a possession limit of 45 birds.
There is also a new breed of dove in California, the Eurasian Collared, a native of the Bahamas. The dove looks very similar to the morning dove but has a black band on its neck and is larger. There is no limit on the Eurasian Dove.
Deer hunters who have access to private land are finding success. Butcher Larry Poff of Kelseyville says that as Thursday he has processed 80 bucks and all but a few have been taken on private ranches. He bagged a trophy buck on Wednesday that was a 3×3 and had a 21-inch spread.
