The bass action slowed to a dribble this week on Clear Lake. Most of the fishermen are saying they are lucky to catch four or five fish bass for a day’s effort. The anglers are blaming the cold weather for the slow action. The water temperature has been rising to only about 48 degrees by mid-afternoon. The action isn’t likely to improve much during the weekend as storms are forecast to hit the area by Saturday morning.
The bass have moved into their winter pattern, which means they have become very lethargic. Bass are cold-blooded creatures, which means their body temperature stays in the same range as the environment around them. Unlike warm-blooded creatures that eat more when they are cold to raise their body temperature, a bass metabolism just slows down in the cold. Studies have shown that during the summer months a bass will take a day to digest a crawdad. During the winter months it can take as long as a week to digest that same crawdad. When the water temperature dips down to below 50 degrees, a bass will only feed once every five days or longer.
The trick to success during the winter months is to slow down the retrieve and just inch the lure along the bottom. Without question the best bait for bass during the winter are live jumbo minnows. There is a reason that just about all the local fishing guides use live minnows almost exclusively during the winter months and that is because it is the most reliable method of catching bass. A live minnow rigged on a hook resembles a minnow in distress to a bass and means an easy meal.
The minnow can be rigged several ways. The most popular method is to rig the minnow beneath a slip bobber. The minnow is cast out and the slip bobber allows the minnow to sink to the desired depth. This is especially important when fishing in deep water. Another method is to rig the minnow on a drop-shot setup. This allows the minnow to swim in a small circle. A third method is to attach a small spilt-shot weight about 6 inches up the line from the minnow. The bass should be allowed to take the minnow deep into its mouth before setting the hook.
Some of the better areas on Clear Lake for minnow fishing are Rocky Point, the Nice-Lucerne shoreline, Shag Rock, Rattlesnake Island, the deeper water near Redbud Park in Clearlake, Henderson Point and Soda Bay. One reason the minnows are so effective this year is because of the billions of bait fish in the lake such threadfin shad, small bluegill and crappie.
Whereas the bass fishing has slowed considerably, that isn’t the case for crappie and bluegill action. Large crappie and bluegill are being caught all around the lake. In fact, some of the guides have switched from bass fishing to bluegill and crappie fishing for their clients. The small minnows have been very effective on the large crappie. During the winter months the crappie tend to go deeper and it often takes some searching to locate a school, but once you do the action can be nonstop. The best bait for bluegill is nightcrawlers rigged beneath a bobber.
The good crappie fishing bodes well for the upcoming crappie tournament scheduled for Jan. 26. The tournament is a team event with an entry fee of $60 per team. The tournament is limited to a field of 50 teams and if the field is full, first place will be guaranteed $1,000. The tournament goes out of Clearlake Oaks and the headquarters is Limit Out Bait and Tackle shop in Clearlake Oaks. For more information call 998-1006.
A few trout are being caught at Upper Blue Lake but overall the fishing has been slow. The lake is not on the current stocking list.
