Warm summer weather greeted the fishermen on Clear Lake this week. The result is that the bass are now on moving on their spawning beds and the more successful fishermen are sight fishing their bass. Fishing for spawning bass is called “sight fishing’ because you get to see the fish all the time. The bass will be guarding their nests and eggs or small fingerlings. The primary predator of the eggs and small bass are bluegill and a male bass will attack anything that comes near their nests, Fishermen use this aggressive behavior to catch their fish. Sight fishing is especially popular during bass tournaments because it produces larger fish. Often a fisherman will tease a bass for up to 30 minutes before it attacks the lure. The local tackle shops carry the plastic worms which are ideal for sight fishing.
Overall, the bass fishing is still only rated as fair although there have been a few days where the fishermen caught up to a dozen bass. This year fishing pressure has been unbelievable. On any given day the parking lots at the boat ramps have had at least 8-10 boat trailers and on weekends the parking lots are full. This is surprising with the high cost of gasoline. Several fishermen have said that it costs more than $200 to fill up their boat.
There are several large bass tournaments scheduled for the next two months and many will be going out of the Library Park in Lakeport. The lake level is dropping at a rate of about a an inch a week. As of Thursday, the lake level was plus 7.6 feet on the Rumsey Gauge.
In addition to the bass fishing the crappie fishing has been good and improving. Local crappie guides clients have catching up to a 20 crappie a day. The fishermen fishing from docks at Library Park in Lakeport have also been catching good numbers of crappie as well as bluegill.
Trout are being caught in the East Branch of the Russian River off the road to Potter Valley, The stream has been stocked with trout several times during the past month. Upper Blue Lake is fair for trout. Boaters trolling various lures have been having the best luck.
Now is the perfect time to take a hike in the backcountry. The Mendocino National Forest has dozens of trails. Mount Konocti would be another great choice. The weather has been perfect for a hike up the mountain. Just take plenty of water and some food and take your time. Another great place to hike is the Clear Lake State Park. The park has plenty of well kept trails and is a safe place to hike or picnic.
