Fish Reports

Joel and the team at Vivid Snares are kicking off crab season when it opens on November 1 with their Crab Fishing Derby. It is catch and release, female Dungeness only, from pier, jetty or surf, and packed with prizes. With anglers eager to get back to crabbing, the November 1 to 30 derby is shaping up to be a standout event. Participants can gear up with Vivid Snares lead free crab snares built to hold tight to Dungeness.

Pyramid Lake kicked off with solid action and anglers are already scoring on jigging techniques. Mini jigs handcrafted by Mike from Made Baits have been getting the job done as fish move around and hold at different depths. Float tubers are finding success by working a mix of depths and staying mobile to stay on schools that are shifting throughout the day.

🎣 California Fish Plants for 10/26/2025 - 11/1/2025 Cooler temps are perfect for trout action—don’t miss this week’s plants California anglers are in for steady trout opportunities as cooler fall weather settles in. This week, California is expected to have 10,000 lbs of trout planted across 13 locations. Expect this to climb throughout the week since the private plants are ON. Consider it an early winter season. With unannounced plants, last week saw a revised total of 34,650 lbs of fish across 44 locations. I know, pretty great considering we’re not even in November.

🎣 Mid-week Fish Plants for 10/19/2025 - 10/25/2025 Hey anglers, here’s your midweek update. 24 additional spots are planting fish, bringing totals to 25,750 lbs. of trout and 1,000 lbs. of catfish across 40 locations. Cooler temps continue to boost trout activity statewide, with more private plants joining the mix at popular lakes and reservoirs. Locations like Amador, Jess Ranch, and Collins are really ramping it up. Might as well consider this winter season already!

🎣 California Fish Plants for 10/19/2025 - 10/25/2025 Big trout drop this week, don’t miss the kickoff of PRIVATE plants! Cooler fall temps mean trout are moving and biting across California. This week, 9,200 lbs. of trout and 1,000 lbs. of catfish are being planted across 16 locations statewide. Private plants are starting across the state at places like Lake Gregory, Collins Lake, and more.

Check out the new issue of The Fish Sniffer Magazine for October 17, 2025.

In this issue of The Fish Sniffer, we celebrate the arrival of Fall. Much cooler temperatures and even some rainfall have occurred, setting the stage for excellent fishing in Northern California. Trout, salmon, bass, panfish, stripers, catfish, and all other species are on the bite to fatten up for the lean winter season.

Check out the articles in this issue, including a full report on the opening week at Pyramid Lake, the Fall Rio Vista Striper Derby, and the 25th Annual Shasta Lake Trout Derby. Learn how to catch more fish and enjoy the great outdoors in Northern California this fall season.

The golden mussel problem continues to impact boaters statewide, causing major boat launch closures and strict new inspection and quarantine rules at several lakes. These rules are beginning to change, and some lakes—like Oroville and Bullards Bar—now allow same-day launches following an inspection. Always check the regulations at any lake before heading out.

All you need to know about fresh and saltwater fishing in Northern California is in the new issue of The Fish Sniffer Magazine!

LA GRANGE - If you want to hook a potluck mixture of rainbow trout, king salmon, and black bass, Don Pedro Lake is the place to go.

“A family that fished with me kept two kings, three rainbows, and three bass that they caught,” said Monte Smith of Gold Country Sportfishing after his most recent trip. “Their total was 17 trout, as they were camping at the lake and had really no use to keep so many fish and released most of the fish.”

“The bass were on a tear today as we had two quadruple hookups and several doubles that kept them busy releasing most of them. What a great trip it was with a great family. We beat the oncoming weather back to the dock,” he observed.

On a previous trip on Don Pedro, Smith said, “The group of five beat them up pretty hard. They lost many, even a really good king just outside the net. The big schools of bass that would come racing through our gear and give everyone a great fight kept them busy at times. These guys were a blast to have onboard and are already figuring another date.”

They landed trout, king salmon, three species of bass, and even a kokanee — next year’s fish, according to Smith.

Smith has been trolling homemade spoons at 40 to 75 feet deep. The rainbows ranged from 1½ to 3 pounds.

“We’ve seen a lot of kings from 2 to 4 pounds this season,” he added. “Next year those fish will be 4 to 6 pounds,” Smith concluded.

Don Pedro Lake is holding 1,551,623 acre-feet of water, 76 percent of capacity and 113 percent of average. The lake level is 789.18 feet elevation.

• Dan Bacher

OREGON HOUSE – It’s feeling more and more like fall around here — beautiful quiet weekdays and comfortable camping weather. The lake is about 32 ft below spill, which is normal for this time in the irrigation season, and the surface water temperature has cooled down to 70.8 degrees.

While it’s definitely a different feel than “full to the brim,” it has its own beauty, especially when it’s still and glassy, and especially when the only sound is water dripping off your kayak paddles.

This is just about the slowest time of year for trout fishing. Even so, in September, longtime Collins Lake angler Jimmie Trejo and his friend John Hilton managed to bring in more than a limit of trout and a couple of bass to fill out the stringer.

They were trolling white Speedy Shiners out on the main body of the lake, where it took 300 ft of weighted fishing line to get down deep enough for those trout! Jimmie was out on the water again this week and brought in another nice bass weighing 5 pounds from out near the island.

Aside from trout, there is still some good warm-water action. Bass are scattered and you might even get a few unexpected bites while trolling. Or else when you’re fishing for bluegill… Keegan, Brody, and Colson reported catching a 4.5 lb largemouth bass while they were reeling in a bluegill — I’d doubt it EXCEPT… when I was a kid, the exact same thing happened to me and my brother at Collins Lake on the east bank of Elmer’s Cove on a #12 hook with a 4 lb test leader no less.

We had no net, and I remember my brother bear-hugging a big largemouth down in the mud to bring it up on shore. That’s quite a catch, gentlemen, and a story you can tell for years to come!

The biggest catfish I’ve seen in the last couple of months came from Hopkins, who caught it down by the dam. That lunker weighed in at 7.2 lbs! Great catch!

Finally, we have Brayden, Sawyer, Jax, and Dylan, who brought in two big catfish weighing in at 6.5 lbs and 7 lbs — and a bonus crappie. Nice catch!

As the lake continues to cool, we look forward to a great trout planting season. Our schedule (subject to change, conditions permitting, yada yada…) is currently to have a trout plant every week from the second half of October through the first week in May.

In the meantime, don’t let this weather go to waste — get out and enjoy fall in the California foothills!

• Ed Palma

PORTOLA – Trout fishing has improved dramatically on Davis Lake with the cooler weather, according to Cal Kellogg, who reported catching and releasing 17 rainbow trout up to 22 inches on his latest kayak fishing adventure on Lake Davis.

“I hooked all of the fish while trolling at 10 feet with orange Catch America Metal Head lures,” said Kellogg. “The trout were feeding on insects, but I’m not sure what kind. The water at Davis was heavily stained, so using bright-colored lures produced the best success.”

“Abdul Masiri, Catch America CEO, caught 8 fish, including a 23-inch brown, while trolling from his boat the next day,” said Kellogg. “He trolled gold and chartreuse Trigger Spoons by himself at 10 feet deep. Both of us fished with leadcore line.”

Ed Dillard of Dillard Guided Fishing confirmed the hot fishing on the last trolling adventure of his season on Davis. “The trout fishing was great – we hooked 40 fish,” said Dillard. “The red Baby Simon copper red was working at 6 to 10 feet. The fish were 10 to 21 inches long.”

He noted that the boat docks are now out at Camp 5, Lightning Tree, and Honker.

Bank fishing for trout is “pretty good” at Eagle Point, Camp Five, Fairview, Honker, and Catfish Cove, reported Jim Graham at J&J’s Grizzly Store and Campground. Anglers are experiencing the best success using worms and PowerBait in the early morning and evening hours.

Graham said he hasn’t heard any reports from anglers targeting black bass or brown bullhead catfish lately.

On July 23, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife planted 20,000 subcatchable rainbows in the reservoir.

Davis is holding 5,770 acre-feet of water, 79 percent of capacity and 125 percent of average.

• Dan Bacher

SACRAMENTO – Trollers fishing Lake Berryessa are bagging big numbers of kokanee salmon, king salmon, and Eagle Lake–strain trout, while bass fishermen are picking up large numbers of spotted, largemouth, and smallmouth bass.

“After almost a two-week break for vacation, I am back on Berryessa and the limit train rolls on, baby,” said Nate Kelsch of Big Nate’s Guide Service after his latest fishing adventure. “My three-man crew scored limits of big, beautiful kokanee and a couple of nice king salmon by 10:30 a.m.

Epic fishing continues. We used exactly what I had been using before my vacation — Catch America 6-inch Offset Dodgers with Tpex lures from my Kokanee Kit, tipped with Chrome Killer Corn, on the brand new Big Nate’s Signature Trolling Rods — and we batted 1000%. If you use this gear, you will catch fish,” he added.

“The best depths were from 45 ft to 87 ft, chasing marks as I kept my eyes glued to the graph. The fish are a bit lethargic with the full moon, so keeping the presentations in their face is crucial,” he concluded.

Kelsch is now booking potluck trips, catfish trips, and crappie/bass trips on Berryessa.

On one recent fishing adventure at Lake Berryessa, Don Paganelli of Paganelli’s Bass Fishing reported that the “bass bite is still going.”

“The spoon bite was slow starting with only two largemouth, but the dropshot bite was great with 15 fish up to 3 pounds. A little cooler weather is all we need to get the fall bite going,” he forecasted.

However, on the following trip, Paganelli reported slow bass action. “I had a day towards the end of last week during that storm — and the fishing was really slow. That low-pressure system shut the bite off. We ended up with three bass total. We were dropshotting Robo Worms in the Aaron’s Magic color at 25 feet deep in the main body of the lake. The bite should get much better with the steady weather,” said Paganelli.

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.

• Dan Bacher

BODEGA BAY – If you like to catch rockfish and big lingcod, it’s hard to beat fishing out of Bodega Bay right now.

Captain Rick Powers of Bodega Bay Sportfishing reported superb fishing for lingcod and rockfish on his bottomfishing adventures off the Sonoma County coast. On his latest trip, Powers reported 28 lingcod up to 17 pounds and 140 rockfish for 14 anglers. “The weather conditions were flat – beautiful weather,” Powers noted.

Anglers are using an array of bars, jigs, swimbaits, and other lures tipped with squid strips to land the lingcod and rockfish.

Willie Vogler at Lawson’s Landing in Dillon Beach confirmed the top-notch rockfishing available off the Sonoma County coast. “Rockfishing is about as good as it gets right now, as all depths are open and the lingcod have moved in closer to shore in order to make more lingcod,” said Vogler. “Go help out a rockfish by catching a lingcod. Heck, get a pair of them. Probably get a few rockfish as well (we can’t help all of them).”

“I had forgotten how good fresh rockcod is. Now I remember. They’re out there and not too far, but a bit farther will be better. Close in has been hit hard. The 120 to 300-foot area has been left alone for a bit, but beware: the forbidden fruit that we call quillback rockfish appear to be quite plentiful, despite their low numbers officially recorded.”

One angler, Gage, checked in with one halibut weighing 19 pounds while using a jig. Another fisherman weighed a halibut going 21 pounds that he caught on live jacksmelt, according to Vogler.

“There has been almost decent halibut fishing this week, although the last few days the bar and, God forbid, Dillon Beach proper have been off-limits due to high surf,” noted Vogler. “It makes it hard to fish the outgoing tide when it carries you towards your doom. There are a lot of jacksmelt out in the ocean for bait, but that’s not helpful if you can’t safely get there.”

“The halibut should continue to be somewhat active until some weather cools the water down below their comfort zone, and I don’t think today’s wind was enough to do it, but a few more days will,” he forecasted.

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

• Dan Bacher

ALAMEDA COUNTY – The weather is perfect, school is in, and the crowds are light. Seasonal plants may have ended, but there is still plenty of action to be had.

Lake del Valle – Paul Clouse and Al Hurwitz continue their quest for DV smallies and are starting to see some decent numbers. Last week the pair took a total of 12 fish (one bluegill and 11 smallmouth). The smallies were mostly on the dink side, except for one weighing 2 pounds. The fish were mainly caught on the western shore of the lake opposite Swallow Bay trolling 1/4 oz Panther Martin spinners in a salamander pattern at 16–21 feet below the surface in 20–30-foot water columns at a speed of 2.0–2.4 mph. Largemouth remain another solid target, with a decent morning and evening bite, and with water temperatures slowly dropping the bite window is stretching longer into the day. Additionally, the fish are moving into deeper water and are a bit easier to target in the cleaner water. Catfish are still more than available, panfish are at about their largest size of the season, and there are still some outliers such as the occasional striper. Weedless plastics, chatterbaits, shallow divers, and spinners will all work for bass. Cut baits like anchovies and sardines are best for the cats, and worms under a bobber or small jigs should produce both crappie and bluegill. There was a surprise DFW trout taken this week. A caution advisory for algae remains in effect but has had little effect on the fishing. The water level is good, and water temperatures have been between 75 degrees in the morning and 79 degrees in the afternoon.

Contra Loma – There has been little change to conditions, and the bite remains slow for mostly dink bass. Catfish action has been fair and should remain consistent for the next several weeks. There should also be a decent crappie bite. There is a caution advisory posted for algae. Construction Notice – Intermittent Closures. Construction continues for the Uplands Facilities Improvements Project and North Dock Repair. Impacted areas include: West Shore Picnic Areas, East Shore Parking Area, and intermittent trail closures on the West Shore Trail near Channel Point and the north fishing dock. The swim lagoon remains closed.

Lake Temescal – Things are slow. Catfish action remains decent and there are still plenty of smaller panfish. Currently there are weed mats formed by filamentous algae and while it is not necessarily a health hazard, it has made finding open water a bit of a challenge. The lake should clear once the temperature drops. The Park District is installing an Oxygen Saturation Technology (OST) system into the lake in spring of 2025. There may be some limited park disruptions, but the addition of the system should be great for the water quality.

Lake Chabot – Continues to produce a decent number of smaller bass on plastics. There should still be plenty of catfish action and you can still count on a sunfish bite. If you’re searching for bass, try throwing plastics and crankbaits along the West Shore Trail, or along the East Shore Trail out to Raccoon Point, Possum Cove, or by boat fishing the shallows near the Warm Water Landing. Catfish action should be good for anglers fishing the shoreline across from the marina. There is a caution advisory posted for algae, and algae may be present on much of the shoreline.

Shadow Cliffs – Remains slow with only a moderate mix of dink bass, some smaller sunfish, and a fair catfish bite. Try fishing sardine wraps, anchovies, and chicken livers with scent applied from the point closest to the boat launch, or the dock on the far side of the tube. The early morning and late evening are generally most productive. Bluegill action has been good, and they are starting to reach some decent size. Try a mix of lures including small spinners, jigs, and worms under a bobber. Fishing from the docks is generally most productive. There is a caution advisory posted for algae.

Quarry Lakes Park (Horseshoe Lake, Lago Los Osos, Shinn Pond) – There has been little change in the action. The Horseshoe bass bite remains slow with mostly dinks, but catfish should still be on the feed. There is a danger advisory due to algae at Niles Swim Beach and the beach is currently closed to swimming. Lago Los Osos bass action has been good but for mostly dinks and the occasional fish to 2 pounds. Shinn bass action has been moderate with the occasional fish to 1.5 pounds.

Please Note: There have been some changes to the personal watercraft inspection process, so please call ahead if you are planning to launch on any of the EBRPD lakes. It’s better to be prepared than get turned away.

Please send me your pics! Or reach out to me for additional information at email: ctw1930@gmail.com, or by text at 571-481-8040.

• Chuck Wolf, EBRPD Angler’s Edge

SAN FRANCISCO – Striper fishing continues to be hot on San Francisco Bay, while anglers fishing outside of the Golden Gate are landing limits of rockfish and big numbers of lingcod.

Mike Rescino, Captain of the Lovely Martha, reported limits of stripers on his latest live bait drifting adventure inside San Francisco Bay on October 10. “We caught limits of striped bass again,” said Rescino. “Today was another fantastic half day on the bay! We finished up with 15 limits (30) of quality bass and 7 halibut.”

Out of the Berkeley Marina, Captain James Smith of California Dawn Sportfishing has been fishing the Farallon Islands and the San Mateo County coast with great success for rockfish and lingcod. “We had both boats out today fishing and enjoying the airshow,” said Captain Smith on October 11. “The islands were off the hook again. CD1 had a charter that opted to fish the coast.”

The final count for the California Dawn 2 was 19 limits of lingcod (38) to 26 pounds, 16 limits of striped bass (32), 150 sand abs, 4 rockfish, and 1 halibut. The California Dawn 1 checked in with 18 lingcod for 18 anglers, 114 rockfish, and 2 halibut.

• Dan Bacher

FOLSOM – The fishing for king salmon and rainbow trout has been tough on Folsom Lake, but that should all change soon as the surface water temperature cools down and the fish become more active.

“It’s a case of quality over quantity,” said Tom Malley of Get the Net Fishing Guide Service. “There are some nice salmon pushing 6 to 8 pounds on the lake now. We landed one king weighing 4 pounds and lost a bigger fish at the net on Saturday. We hooked and lost a big salmon on Sunday, while my fishing buddy landed one weighing 5 pounds.”

“You’ve got to get out before first light; there’s been a window of about 45 minutes when the fish bite lately. We’ve been trolling with white and green Pro-Trolls and green Jig-Its, both tipped with anchovy fillets. The fish have also been hitting Trigger Spoons,” he advised.

“The depths have varied depending on the day,” he said. “Two weeks ago, we hooked two kings at 35 feet deep while fishing with Trigger Spoons. The key is slow trolling and hitting the drop-offs, as long as you watch out for sunken trees. You need to bounce your weights on the bottom.”

On one trip, Malley reported, “We had a slow morning on Folsom with one chrome-bright six-pound king salmon caught — and on the kid’s birthday, to boot! We caught the fish off Brown’s Ravine at 45 feet, at a speed of 1.8 mph on, believe it or not, a yellow Thomas Buoyant I was using as a cheater spoon. So it was just the kid and the fish.”

For black bass, Don Paganelli of Paganelli’s Bass Fishing Experience recommended fishing Robo Worms on drop-shot rigs in the creek channels leading into the coves at Folsom. “Use your electronics to find out where the fish are when the lake level is down like this,” Paganelli stated. “Target the outside points. Don’t let the low water fool you — you can catch bass when the water level is dropping. However, watch the weather — storms moving through can cause the action to slow down a little or a lot.”

The good news is that fishing for trout, salmon, and black bass should improve with the arrival of cooler weather and the fall turnover.

The open launch ramps are Granite Bay Stage 2 and Brown’s Ravine Hobie Ramp.

Folsom Lake is holding 442,707 acre-feet of water, 45 percent of capacity and 93 percent of average. The water level is 409.04 feet in elevation.

Here are the boating requirements:

Vessels completing the 30-day quarantine may return to Folsom Lake, have the seal removed by authorized staff, and be allowed to launch. Boaters wishing to return to the lake in the future will have the option to have their boat sealed upon exiting the water and will not be required to quarantine thereafter as long as the seal remains intact.

All trailered vessels are subject to the inspection, quarantine, and seal program. Hand-launched, non-motorized watercraft, such as kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, rowing shells, outrigger canoes, and rowboats are not subject to the inspection, quarantine, and decontamination requirements. Hand-launched watercraft with electric trolling motors, such as fishing kayaks, are also exempt from these requirements.

DBW maintains a list of contacts at: https://dbw.parks.ca.gov/inspections
Additional information on the golden mussel prevention program, including inspection site locations, frequently asked questions, and hours, can be found at: www.parks.ca.gov/FolsomLakeGoldenMussels

• Dan Bacher

YUBA CITY – The salmon season in the section of the Feather River from 200 yards above the Live Oak boat ramp to the Highway 99 bridge remains open through October 31. The bag limit is one Chinook salmon:
https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=202686&inline

Rob Reimers of Rustic Rob’s Guide Service has been reporting limits of bright Chinooks on most trips. On his latest trip, he reported two kings in the boat by 10:30 a.m. He has been catching his salmon while anchor fishing with Silvertron spinners out of Boyd’s Pump.

On a previous trip he reported, “Kevin and Wendy came all the way from Hawaii to catch salmon on the Feather River and it didn’t disappoint. They caught their limits along with Gary.”

Brian Willis at Johnson’s Bait and Tackle confirmed the top-notch salmon action. “Justin Mitchell and I have been catching limits of salmon on most of our trips from Star Bend down,” said Willis. “We’ve caught fish ranging from 15 to 30 pounds. All of the fish have been beautiful and bright. We also hooked and lost a steelhead on a Silvertron during a recent trip,” he stated.

Shore anglers are catching some steelhead on the Feather while drifting roe imitations or salmon roe from Live Oak up towards the outlet, Willis noted.

Striper fishing is also on the upswing. “I caught and released two stripers in the 20-pound range while throwing Evergreen Amazon topwater lures below Star Bend,” he added.

Upstream migrating fish totals through the Feather River Fish Monitoring Station between Jan. 1 and Sept. 25, 2025 are:

• Spring-run Chinook salmon (April 16 through June 30): 17,733
• Fall-run Chinook salmon (July 1 through present): 4,201
• Steelhead: 374

EL GRANADA – Rockfishing adventures along the San Mateo County Coast continue to yield limits of colorful rockfish, along with some lingcod and an occasional halibut.

“All-depth rockfishing is now allowed off our coastline,” the Half Moon Bay Sportfishing Center reported. “The state and federal fishery management agencies have both approved changes to the rockfishing off our coastline effective September 18, 2025, to no depth restrictions through the end of the year. That means fishing the Deep Reef is in play, as well as fishing as deep or as shallow as we’d like.”

For example, the Queen of Hearts returned to the dock with 210 rockfish and 2 lingcod for 21 anglers on October 11. The boat checked in with 120 rockfish and 5 lingcod for 21 anglers on October 10.

The Center is now taking reservations for Dungeness crab and rockfishing trips beginning on November 1 through the end of the year.

Salmon fishing is closed for the rest of the year as the 7,500 fall harvest guideline has been met. News about a salmon season in 2026 will be discussed in fishery management meetings beginning in February 2026.

“Perch are hitting along the coastline, and squid and anchovies are showing up outside the harbor,” the Center stated. “Folks continue to enjoy catching rock crab off the fishing pier inside the harbor as well as on the jetty. Recreational Dungeness crab season is closed until the first Saturday in November, but the rock crab season is open all year using either hoop nets or snares.”

“If you’re interested in monkeyface eel, there’s loads of them available hidden in the jetty rocks for poke-pole anglers. Striper fishing along the beaches has slowed down, but there are still a few being landed here and there. Halibut have moved in with some good-size fish in the mix,” the Center concluded.

• Dan Bacher

FORESTHILL – Rainbow trout were hitting at French Meadows Reservoir as an early winter storm was getting ready to hit the Sierra Nevada.

“Limit-style rainbow fishing is available to both boaters and shore anglers,” reported Cal Kellogg of fishcalkellogg.com. “On my latest kayak trip to the reservoir I caught and released 16 rainbows to 18 inches. I used a bunch of different baits, but I had my best success while trolling with nightcrawlers 16 to 18 inches behind Mini Willow Leaf dodgers with three colors of leadcore at 1.8 mph.”

“If you plan to shore fish, I recommend rigging up one rod with an inflated nightcrawler about 30 feet off shore and another rod with a nightcrawler under a bobber,” Kellogg advised. “I think the next two to three weeks should yield outstanding trout fishing at French Meadows and other lakes in the High Sierra.”

SOMES BAR – I have some first-hand info to share today. We sent seven boats out fishing over the last three days covering the Coon Creek to Stuarts Bar areas. In summary, we are seeing very few steelhead.

Here are our actual totals from the seven total boat days: we netted three adult steelhead and three half-pounders, and dozens of smolt were hooked. There were several half-pounder hits on the flies that did not lead to a netted fish.

My personal boat run today with two expert fly fishermen only produced one netted adult (about 4 or 5 pounds) and zero half-pounders. So, there just aren’t many steelhead in this stretch of the mid-Klamath.

However, the general river quality is fishable. Clarity varied over the last three days but averaged about 2–3 feet in depth. River temps are in the mid-60s, and the river is flowing at 1,600 cfs in Orleans. We continued to clean off moss globules from our flies after every other cast.

The typical number of smolt interacted with on each guide day totaled around a dozen to two dozen per boat. The large number of smolt interactions is encouraging as far as potential growth for the future steelhead population, but we are obviously hit hard by the current loss of the half-pounder population and the small numbers of adults.

We have more rain predicted at the end of this week and early next week, so we are hoping that there might be more pods of fish migrating upstream with increasingly cooler water temps.

It has been tiring to fish hard all day with only one or two fish hits, but that’s fishing — so on we go.

The Klamath and Trinity rivers are closed to all take of Chinook salmon this year due to the collapse of the system’s fall-run Chinook salmon populations.

• Doug Cole, Marble Mountain Ranch Fishing Lodge and Guide Service

LIVERMORE – Anglers are experiencing top fishing for striped bass and catfish, though the trout fishing should perk up at Los Vaqueros Reservoir as the water cools and fall trout plants begin.

“Fishermen are picking up stripers while fishing from shore and rental boats,” said Carlos Robles at the Los Vaqueros Marina. “Anglers brought in stripers in the 21- to 24-inch range today. One angler also landed a 10 lb. striper. Bait fishing with anchovies is producing the best success.”

South Cove, the pier near the marina, Cowboy Cove, and Howden Cove are among the better spots to target striped bass.

Channel catfish are also hitting around the lake, including off the pier near the marina. Although Robles has seen some catfish in the 8-pound class caught, most are in the 2- to 5-lb. class. The South Cove, Cowboy Cove, and Oak Point are among the better spots to target catfish with anchovies, chicken liver, and nightcrawlers.

“A few trout — not many — are being caught by anglers fishing along the shoreline,” he added. “Most anglers report catching the rainbows on PowerBait.”

Robles expects the trout plants to resume in late October or early November. The water temperature at the marina was 68 to 69 degrees at press time.

If you are interested in renting a boat, the marina recommends calling ahead to check current wind conditions as they are unpredictable and can impact the ability to safely rent boats to visitors. Wind speeds change suddenly, and boat rentals are typically suspended when they exceed 15 mph or when heavy gusts are forecasted. Remember — rental boats are first come, first served. Weekends and some weekdays sell out quickly.

The reservoir is holding 145,000 acre-feet of water. For more information, call (925) 371-2628.

• Dan Bacher

SANTA CRUZ – While most anglers are focusing on rockfish and lingcod now that all depths are open, a few bluefin tuna are beginning to show in the Monterey Bay region.

Three bluefin tuna caught by local anglers were recently weighed in at Bayside Marine. One angler landed an 87 lb bluefin while trolling a Mad Mack lure. Another fisherman brought in a bluefin while trolling 16 miles out from the harbor.

“There was only one boat looking for bluefin today,” said Todd Fraser of Bayside Marine on October 11. “He caught his fish in the middle of the bay on a Mad Mack.”

“However, the majority of anglers caught a mix of rockfish and lingcod up the Santa Cruz County coast,” said Fraser. “The deep-water rockfishing was also great straight out of the harbor.”

Anglers landed the bottomfish while fishing bars, jigs, swimbaits, shrimp flies, and live bait.

Some quality striped bass were caught near the San Lorenzo River mouth on Lucky Craft lures, Fraser noted. Some big halibut have been weighed in at the store lately. For halibut, Fraser recommended drifting live bait or trolling lures from Four Mile Beach to Davenport.

Charter boats out of Chris’ Fishing Trips in Monterey reported excellent fishing for rockfish on recent outings. The boats are returning with daily limits of rockfish, along with a few lingcod. Anglers are using shrimp flies baited with squid strips, jigs, bars, swimbaits, and other offerings to nail the bottomfish.

The Checkmate returned with limits of rockfish (200) and 7 lingcod for 20 anglers on Saturday, Oct. 11. On the same day, the Caroline tied up at the dock with limits of rockfish (170) and 8 lingcod for 17 anglers. The Checkmate also returned with limits of rockfish (200), including limits of vermilion, and 8 lingcod for 20 anglers on October 10. The Caroline reported 150 rockfish and 32 lingcod for 18 anglers the same day.

Effective August 28, 2025, recreational 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

• Dan Bacher

ANGELS CAMP – While kokanee salmon fishing has petered out as the fish go upriver to spawn, fishing for rainbow trout is excellent at New Melones Reservoir, according to Kyle Wise of Headhunter SportFishing.

“I had two new clients out this morning, and despite yesterday’s adverse weather conditions, including winds, lightning, and rain, the morning bite proved to be exceptionally productive,” Wise reported. “They rapidly caught their limit of ten fish by 9:30 a.m. while using Tspoons and Speedy Shiners smeared with Pautzke’s Garlic/Herring Fire Gel, down to a depth of 100 feet.”

After his previous fishing adventure, Wise reported, “I ran another birthday trip, and what a morning our two clients had. Find the bait balls and find fish. We were able to catch limits of trout and a few kokanee, plus a brown to cap the morning off.”

Boaters interested in participating in the seal program can obtain a quarantine seal to attach to their boat and trailer at this time. Please visit the Glory Hole boat launch location between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. to obtain one from a park ranger free of charge, to begin the 30-day quarantine period prior to any future boat launching at New Melones.

For questions about this suspension and the new protocol, contact a New Melones staff member at (209) 459-7290 or visit the New Melones website.

New Melones is holding 1,620,496 acre-feet of water, 68 percent of capacity and 122 percent of average.

• Dan Bacher

NAPA – If you’d like to troll for stripers on the Napa River from Cuttings Wharf, the bite is going strong on trips with Dennis Grossi of Grossi’s Guide Service.

Dennis continues to get limits of stripers for his clients on each trip. He reports trolling 1-ounce Rat-L-Traps in the sloughs and at the mouth of the sloughs. The last hour of the outgoing tide and the turn to the incoming tide have been best. Dennis noted that the fish have been averaging about 5 pounds.

• Ken Baccetti, President of the California Striped Bass Association (CSBA), Isleton-Delta Chapter

RIO VISTA – The striper bite for trollers in the Delta continues to be productive, according to avid trolling expert Mark Wilson. Mark reports that he and his friends have been trolling in a number of locations until they locate the fish.

They’ve trolled from the West Bank below the Rio Vista Bridge on the outgoing tide to the bottom of the tide using deep-diving Yozuri lures, and on the San Joaquin River from Eddo’s Marina to the Antioch Bridge and into Broad Slough using shallow-running Yozuris on the incoming tide for their best action.

Mark noted that on his last trip he and his friends caught 20 keeper stripers, retaining only their limits. Green or pink-colored Yozuris did the job on this trip.

The bait fishing for stripers has been tough in the Delta. “We ended up with two keeper stripers measuring 20 and 22 inches for two guys on the San Joaquin River while jigging P-Line Lazer Minnows on my latest trip on October 11,” said Cal Kellogg of fishcalkellogg.com. “There were lots of fish marks on the graph, but the stripers wouldn’t hit live bluegill or sardines. We also released two undersized stripers and a 15 lb carp. I think the reason the stripers weren’t hitting the baits was because they were on a reaction bite.”

If you would like more information about the California Striped Bass Association (CSBA), go to www.striper-csba.org. You’ll be able to access all information related to the four CSBA chapters. New members only pay $25, which includes a one-time $5 initiation fee. After the first year of membership, the annual dues are $20. Your membership helps strengthen our mission to protect striped bass and our fisheries. Some chapters will even give you a free gift just for joining.

The Isleton-Delta Chapter gives all new members two free Isleton Chapter decals and a chapter hat as a thank you for joining. Membership forms are available for each chapter on the website. Just click on your chapter of choice and go to the membership page, fill out the application, print it, and send your application and payment to the address listed. The Isleton Chapter also accepts credit cards online for new memberships, renewals, and events. The website also includes newsletters, photos, articles, and useful links to help you plan your next fishing trip.

• Ken Baccetti, President of the California Striped Bass Association (CSBA), Isleton-Delta Chapter