Unlike previous Thanksgivings, I didn’t have a fishing trip planned. This year a friend and I tried to plan a camping trip for the holiday but the current air quality combined with the forecasted rain caused us to cancel. In a lot of ways, Thanksgiving is the end of the fishing year. From now until the first of January, I’m usually busy with coaching and all the holiday activities. It’s also a time to get all of my gear in order to include the boat that I recently purchased. As with a lot of used boats, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done to it. So, as things start to wind down for me, I’m excited about the new fishing season coming up. I’m finally back in a bass boat where I’m the most comfortable, I committed to another season of tournament fishing, and I have my eyes set on a few events at the front of the boat. It’s been a long comeback but I’m excited and ready for the upcoming season.

Delta Report:

Striped bass fishing continues to pick up for anglers fishing a variety of techniques. The three techniques that are working right now are drifting live bait, trolling broken back rebels, and spooning jigs where schools of fish are present. Largemouth bass fishing has been hit or miss lately. As the water temperature has dropped, the bass have become more lethargic. Slower moving baits are more likely to draw the attention of some of the larger fish. The bluegills are still biting around boat docks, anglers are catching them while fishing with red worms.

New Melones Lake:

Fishing continues to be tough on the lake right now. Fishing for bass has gone from great to fair as there are fewer fish being caught right now. Anglers having success are relying on their electronics to find schooling fish. There are some big limits being caught but those anglers have been tight lipped about their whereabouts and techniques. All clues lead to a swim bait bite. There are very few trout catches reported as there aren’t too many anglers making the trip to the lake as in the past. The current launching conditions remain the same.

Don Pedro:

Fishing for trout is fair to good for anglers trolling speedy shiners around 50 feet deep. Most anglers trolling are choosing to focus on fishing around the graveyard area. Bass fishing has slowed, anglers are reporting catching them while working their drop shot rigs through schools of baitfish once found while using their electronics. It’s recommended that you launch from Blue Oaks as the lake has dropped to 68 percent making it an easier walk to your vehicle than if you were to launch out of Fleming Meadows.

Lake Amador:

There are a lot of good reports coming from the lake recently as they’ve began their stocking program of trout that have not disappointed anglers that are visiting the lake. Those having luck are catching fish from both their boats and from land on a variety of baits. Most anglers fishing from the bank are preferring to fish with a variety of Power Bait products. Those fishing from their boats are either trolling, tossing Kastmasters or anchoring around the dam area while fishing with Power Bait. Once again the lake has been planted with lightning trout, I’ve never seen one in person, I just might have to get out there and try catching one myself.

Lake Camanche:

Trout plans have begun on the lake and anglers are reporting catching trout while fishing near the dam. There are a lot of nice trout being caught right now by anglers fishing the ponds as they’ve also been planted recently with Mt. Lassen trout and lightning trout. Bass fishing continues to be good on the lake right now. I’m not sure what it is about this lake but the winter bite is usually incredible for those anglers that know how to fish offshore.

Tip of the Week:

Batteries are an important part of a boat, a lot of anglers come home from a day of fishing, hook up the chargers, and forget about the batteries until the next fishing trip. There are some chargers that will allow for this but most chargers will continue to heat the batteries shortening the life of the battery. The best way to insure your batteries last long is to charge them right away, and remove the charger immediately after the batteries are charged.