Fish Reports

Anglers aboard the Reel Addiction 2 enjoyed outstanding action on a special Veterans Crab Combo Trip out of San Francisco Bay. Captain Shawn Taylor guided the charter to the Farallon Islands where conditions aligned perfectly for triple limits. The boat finished the day with full limits of Dungeness crab plus 60 rockfish and 8 lingcod for the group. Weather was beautiful and the fishing was excellent at the Farallon Islands! As of the time of this posting, this Friday still has availability for crab combo trips and the weather looks excellent. When Ben says “When I tell you its good… Im trying to tell you that these are the ocean days that you and the whole family want to be out on!” he means it. Reel Addicted Sportfishing has both boats running strong with Captain Shawn Taylor and Ben Mechling, so book now while the action stays red hot.

Anglers at Dixon Lake are enjoying some solid trout action this week, with beautiful Lightning trout highlighting the catches. Tom Guzman checked in with a standout fish, a gorgeous Lightning trout he picked up while working the weed lines with a black and gold jig. Guzman highly recommends adding Magic Fish Water scents to jigs or PowerBait for better results, noting the scent made a noticeable difference on his trip. The lake just wrapped up its popular trout derby, and the overall winner brought in an impressive trout that tipped the scales at over 5 pounds. Congratulations to the top finishers and everyone who participated! Dixon Lake remains open year-round (closed Christmas Day) and is located at 1700 La Honda Drive, Escondido, CA 92027. Thanks to the lake’s Aquaculture Permit from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, a state fishing license is no longer required. Anglers 8 years and older do need a daily fishing permit available at the concession stand: $10 for adults, $7 for youth and seniors. A second-rod permit is $5 (except during derby events). With Lightning trout still active along the weed edges and more stocked fish settling in, conditions are prime. Grab some scents and get up to Dixon while the bite stays strong!

Isabella checked in after another strong day chasing crappie and bass on Clear Lake, working the midlake zone where the bite is building daily. “The crappie schools are getting bigger and more active each day!” Isabella said. She boated crappie to 3 pounds and picked up a few solid bass while targeting long stretches of docks in 20-30 feet of water. The fish are suspending 12-18 feet down and responding well to small, precise presentations. Her go-to setup was the bait fuel NanoSnak in monkey milk color rigged on a 1/8-ounce head. “Livescope makes it a whole lot easier too,” she added, pointing out that forward-facing sonar is key to staying locked on the suspended schools as they slide along the dock lines. Midlake bass and crappie are firing up fast. Get out there while the action stays this strong!

A rare opportunity hit the market recently with a house overlooking Bullard’s Bar, giving anglers easy access to the lake’s turquoise waters and deep kokanee runs that pull in trollers from all over California. Built in 1977 with a ranch-style layout and metal siding, the place sits on a 65,693 sq ft lot at 2,800 feet elevation, just a mile from boat launches on either side. Bullard’s Bar runs steady for kokanee on its classic turquoise waters, where anglers head for those hot bites in the blue depths that turn it into a real fishing spot. Folks around here say the lake’s outdoor perks are picking up, with quick launches leading to solid catches for trollers working schools in steady levels and good clarity. The trick to getting kokanee here is to tip your hooks with corn, something they just can’t resist on the rigs. “The water turns that amazing blue turquoise shade, and the kokanee hit the lines hard,” one guide said, pointing out how you can fill limits without dealing with long drives. This spot stands out with its uncommon view right over Bullard’s Bar, and it could be years before another place like it comes up for grabs. If it catches your eye, reach out to Gary Young at Gary@graniterealestate.biz or 530-887-9700. Hit the water soon while the deal’s fresh.

🎣 California Fish Plants for 11/30/2025 - 12/6/2025 18,650 lbs of Trout, bites are coming in HOT Cool November weather is turning California waters into trout hotspots. This week, California is expected to have 18,650 lbs. of trout planted across 29 locations as we head into December. With unannounced plants, last week saw a revised total of 18,650 lbs. of trout across 25 locations. We’re also restocking on the sold out MADE Baits in a ton of new colors + dropping some new spoons this week. Perfect with a lot of the California waters clearing up. (You want that flicker action with that shine)

Fishing Collins on 11/25, I was reminded that it ain’t over until it’s over. 2 clients and I spent 6 fruitless hours mostly trolling the lake for exactly nothing. No takedowns, not even a stink eye. We tried spincasting for a bit in along the east shoreline, but that didn’t do any good either. Disappointed and frustrated, we headed back to the launch. But as we were literally tying up to the dock, I noticed one solitary trout, about 3 pounds, cruising near the surface. On a whim, and I almost didn’t do it, I cast a grub I’d been using earlier. And while that particular trout didn’t bite, 5 or 6 others followed my grub back to the dock. And that’s when we all noticed there were even more fish- an entire school of nice, Collins-sized fish. There were even a few lightning trout mixed in. We got the two other spinning rods back out and started tossing. In 20 minutes we had these four rainbow to about 5 lbs, 2 on a copper Mepps spinner and 2 on Power Bait we just tossed in and soaked. The grub got nothing but looks! We would’ve stayed longer and I’m certain we would’ve caught more, but the young guy had borrowed his girlfriend’s car and had to get to work. I have a hunch they’d just done another stocking and maybe these fish hadn’t yet moved away from the dock, but I didn’t see a truck, and nobody was fishing nearby. Craziest end to a morning of fishing I’ve experienced in a while. It was a good lesson to not be afraid to try something completely different, and to never totally give up until the boat’s out of the water and the tie-downs are on!

Tom Mailey of Get The Net Fishing Guide Service reported in with solid results from a recent outing on Lake Amador, hooking four out of six trout including a lightning trout and a cutbow hybrid. “4 for 6 at Amador with a lightning trout and a cut bow mixed in. Wasn’t lights out but getting better for sure,” Mailey noted. Anglers trolled at speeds of 2.2 to 2.7 mph, using a mix of lures for top notch results. Two fish hit on a chrome Hot Shot at 15 feet over the side, including a big one lost right at the boat. Two more came on a bright red Speedy Shiner top-lined 175 feet back, while the fourth fell for a frog pattern Speedy at about 15 feet over the side. Three of the four trout struck in front of the Rock Creek arm, with the last coming from the main body. Trout action is clearly on the upswing here. Bundle up and hit the water before the bite heats up even more.

Fishing report by Tom Mailey of Get The Net Fishing Guide Service, in partnership with The Fish Sniffer.

Check out the new Issue of The Fish Sniffer magazine for November 29, 2025 In this issue of The Fish Sniffer, we are moving from Fall into Winter. Much cooler temperatures, rain and some snow has come to Northern Californial. Trout, salmon, bass, panfish, stripers, catfish and all other species will go on the bite to fatten up for the lean winter ahead. Check out the articles in this issue of The Fish Sniffer, including information on catching 3 different varieties of trout at Lake Amador, the beginning of the great fall season at Eagle Lake and much more. Check out Dan Bachers conservation features with some very good news about the future of salmon fishing in Northern California. Read how to catch more fish and enjoy the wonderful outdoors in Northern California for the season. The golden mussel problem is still impacting boaters all over the state and has caused major boat launch closures and strict new inspection and quarantine rules several lakes in our area. These rules are starting to change, with Lake Pardee and Lake Comanche announcing they will allow outside boats on their waters next year, with banding and inspections in place. Be sure to check out the regulations at any lake you want to fish before you go. All you need to know about fresh and saltwater fishing in Northern California is now available in the new issue of The Fish Sniffer Magazine!

BODEGA BAY – The Dungeness crab season is in full swing and anglers have been catching limits of rockfish and limits of crabs on recent crab/rockfish trips aboard the New Sea Angler out of Bodega Bay Sportfishing. On his latest fishing adventure on Nov. 21, Rick Powers reported in with 140 Dungeness crab to 2-1.2 pounds and 140 rockfish for 14 anglers. “The weather conditions were great and we finished with full limits of crabs and rockfish by noon,” Powers noted. The previous trip aboard the New Sea Angler yielded 20 Dungeness crab up to 2.5 pounds. 120 rockfish and 2 lingcod up to 10 pounds. Anglers are using an array of bars, jigs, swimbaits and other lures, tipped with squid strips, to land the lingcod and rockfish. The recreational groundfish regulations in the San Francisco Management Area (from Point Arena to Pigeon Point) are available here: https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=185056&inline Willy Vogler at Lawson’s Landing in Dillon Beach shared a report from Kelley Roy about the excellent crab fishing available now in the outer bay. “We dropped nets shallow and deep with both depths getting crab, but the shallow probably did a little better than the deep. There were some nice, very nice jumbos in the mix. We were able to get 3 decent limits - easy day,” Roy stated. The outer bay has been pretty consistent when you can fish it from here. There’s some blank spots and some great spots and a lot of in-between spots. Make sure you put your hoops in a not blank spot before you give them a soak. I have heard that 30 to 50 feet of water has been pretty good,” Roy said.

SAN FRANCISCO – The live bait season is over on San Francisco Bay, so charter boat captains have switched to crab./rockfish combos and crab only trips through the end of the rockfish season on December. “Today we had a crab only charter and it was another fabulous day on the ocean!,” reported Mike Rescino of Lovely Martha Sportfishing on November 21. “We finished up 28 limits of delicious crab.” On a recent crab/rockfish combo, Rescino said, “Today we had lights out fishing catching 27 limits (270) of crab, 27 limits (270) of rockfish and 9 lingcod!.” His previous crab/rockfish combo also yielded top-notch results. “Today we had a private combo trip and finished up with 18 limits (180) of tasty crab and limits (180) of rockfish along with 8 lingcod,” Rescino stated. Captain James Smith of California Dawn Sportfishing also reported stellar crab/rockfish combo action outside of the Golden Gate. “We experienced lights out fishing and crabbing today. Both boats checked in with limits of crab and rockfish,” said Smith on November 21. “The final count aboard the California Dawn 2 was 27 limits of rockfish (270) and 27 limits of crab (270). The final count on the California Dawn 1 was 21 limits of rockfish (210) and 25 limits of Dungeness crab (250).”

MONTEREY - Charter boat trips out of Chris’ Fishing continue to produce full limits of rockfish, along with some hefty lingcod. The Checkmate checked in from a trip on November 21 with limits (110) rockfish and 6 lingcod for 11 passengers. The boat ended up on the previous trip with limits (120) of rockfish and 6 lingcod, reported Chris’ Fishing. A previous fishing adventure aboard the Caroline yielded limits of rockfish (130) and 6 lingcod for 13 fishermen. Anglers are using shrimp flies baited with squid strips, jigs, bars, swimbaits and other offerings to nail the bottomfish. Anglers out of Santa Cruz are concentrating on Dungeness crab and rockfish. “There were some nice crab caught today in 110-130 feet of water,” said Todd Fraser of Bayside Marine on November 21. “The deep water rock fishing was good. The wind was not bad, but the swell is building.” “The wind was not as bad as expected,” he reported on November 20. “There were some calm periods and anglers caught crab and rockfish. The lingcod were on the bite near the inshore rock piles.” Recreational fishing regulations allow take of rockfish, cabezon, greenling and lingcod in all depths for state waters in the Northern, Mendocino, San Francisco, and Central Groundfish Management Areas through December 31, 2025: https://wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Ocean/Regulations/Groundfish-Summary

IONE - The Lake Amador management is now releasing loads of trout every week from their on-site hatchery and fishing is perking up. “We released 1000 lbs. yesterday, half at the Dam and half down closer to the spillway,” said Lee Lockhart at the Lake Amador Resort. “The lake came up 4 feet so far and the clarity is amazing! Powerbait seems to be the best choice from shore and trollers are doing well with slower moving lures. Trout should be a bit shallower now after the rain; the top 15’ should be the most productive.” The lake level is now 22’ from full, the surface water temperature is 59 degrees and the water clarity is 10’. “We released 1000 lbs. of Cuts and Golds today, over half right in the middle of the Dam and the rest closer to the spillway,” said Lockhart on his previous report. “Most anglers are saying fish are running all different depths with most in the 10-20’ range for morning and 15-30’ after noon.” Robbie Dunham of Koke Machine Guide Service reported 7 trout up to 4 pounds landed on his most recent trip to Amador. He used Speedy Shiner lures at 10’ to 30’ from the dam to Jackson Creek. Successful anglers include Walter Villalobos, who landed four scrappy trout while fishing from the launch ramp area. Jesus, Rob, Edson, and Angel all put together a nice stringer of five trout using worms, spoons, and jigs from the corner of the Dam. Finally, Isaac, Jesse, Matt, and Jack went out by boat and caught 5 trout in Cat Cove while using pink, white, and copper colored flies.

SACRAMENTO - If you like to catch big, bold rainbow trout or black bass, now’s the time to hit the waters of Lake Berryessa. Just ask Nate Kelxh of Big Nate’s Guide Service. “Today I had returning clients Pastor Sean, Gil, and Parjeet out in Berryessa and they absolutely hammered them,” said Kelsch after a recent trip to the reservoir. “ I spoke with Sean yesterday. as the weather forecast wasn’t looking good, and he opted to go for it ‘No matter what’ so I devised a game plan for the storm and in.” “To no one’s surprise, we were the only boat on the lake as the wind was blowing, the rain was coming down, and there we were right in the middle of it,” he explained. “Time to knuckle down and get on the fish!!! Good thing we went because it was lights out fishing. My crew scored three big limits of beautiful rainbow trout and 1 extra for me) 3 bass, a slab crappie, and a monster Sacramento pike minnow before lunch. We even landed all four fish during quadruple hook-up.” “If you aren’t running the Trigger Spoon, Trigger Spoon Jrs and Optomizer Jrs from my Catch America fall/winter packages, you are definitely missing out on what you should be catching,” he continued. “Today we ran all of them as well as some stick baits smothered in Chrome Killer Scent from 16 ft down to 60 ft and had success at all depths. Speeds were between 2.4 and 3.1mph.” After another trip, Kelsch reported, “This morning I had Bob, Christine and Kevin out on Berryessa for some more red hot huge Eagle Lake trout action and this group absolutely crushed them. They scored limits by 10:30 a.m. It was hard for me to keep all the rods in the water!” “We had fish flying out of the water from 40 ft down to 3 ft in the air, Trigger spoon Jrs, Trigger spoons and stick baits led the charge from 15 ft to 45 ft, again smothered in Chrome Killer Scent on the new Big Nate’s Trolling Rods.,” he concluded. The spoon bite for largemouth, spotted and smallmouth bass is going strong at Lake Berryessa. Don Paganelli of Paganelli’s Bass Fishing reported catching and releasing between 20 and 25 bass while using Blade Runner Spoons at Berryessa on a recent trip. “We even caught some trout while spooning at 40 to 50 feet on the main body of the lake. The fish were2 all nice and fat feeding on shad. We had lots of hits and misses, but that’s spooning. Get out while it lasts,” he urged. On his latest fishing adventure, Paganelli reported, “Lake Berryessa smallmouth bass along with spotted and largemouth bass joined the party for some spooning action. Fish are showing from 40 to 50 feet and are still feeding on shad. We moved around a lot on this day trying to locate better fish.” Reclamation now requires all boats launching at Lake Berryessa to participate in a seal program to prevent the spread of invasive golden mussels. All vessels wishing to launch at Lake Berryessa will be inspected, according to the Bureau of Reclamation: A red quarantine seal will be applied for 30 days during which the vessel will not be permitted to launch. Vessels that have finished the 30-day quarantine may return to the lake and have the seal removed by authorized staff and will be allowed to launch. For questions about this new protocol and vessel decontamination, contact BOR-Berryessa@usbr.gov. Lake Berryessa is holding 1,358,787-acre feet of water, 85 percent of capacity and 118 percent of average.