Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition 3806 Mar 1-15 2019

Up-To-Date and Published Locally... By Sportsmen... For Sportsmen! Chabot Lake Map Feature MADE IN U.S.A See Page 22 Vol. 38 - ISS.06 Our 37th Year I Since 1982 March 1 - 15, 2019 “The Magazine for West Coast Sportsmen!” Joining A Bass Club… still remember the first time I’d heard about the Folsom Bass Team. In the fall of 2017, I noticed a flyer hanging in the communal kitchen of our office building; I can’t recall the exact verbiage, but it must have read something like, “Ever thought of joining a bass club?” or “Do you enjoy fishing?” or “Hey girl, are you looking for a new way to spend your money?” Whatever it was, it sure caught my eye. A couple of weeks later, I received a private message through Fishbrain, which is largely regarded as “Instagram for anglers”. The message was from Michael Allen, a fellow tenant, Fishbrainer, and tournament angler who thought the club might be a great way for me to expand my horizons and meet some like-minded individuals. At the time, I had only been fishing for about a year, and only in ponds and very small lakes. What could I possibly contribute to a club? A source of ridicule and laughter? I politely (hopefully) declined and didn’t give it another thought for months. Once Spring rolled around and I was having more success, Here we see a Folsom Bass Team member with a hefty Delta largemouth. The Folsom Bass Team is a group of Sacramento I thought area anglers that are dedicated to the sport of fishing and about the supporting conservation for the state’s warm water fisheries. club again. Photo courtesy of THE FOLSOM BASS TEAM, Facebook. Our building managers throw a Cinco de Mayo festival felt welcomed almost immediately. Meetings are held at a Round Table each year for their tenants, so Pizza on the west side of Folsom — more I messaged Michael to find out if he’d specifically, in the back of that restau- be there. He said yes, and we ended up rant inside a large banquet room embla- chatting about fishing and the club for zoned with Dallas Cowboys signage. nearly an hour, getting sunburned while Not strange at all for California, right? shoving down complimentary street tacos Club business was discussed before and margaritas. I attended my first monthly club meeting an awards presentation was held for the previous month’s tournament. The as his guest that following June, and GONE FISHING by Stacy Barawed T “ CONTINUED ON PG 26 Low Water Steelhead prefer high water to low water. When the water is high, steelhead are more at ease. Plus, there tends to be a constant dribble from the tap of fish coming out of the ocean. When the water gets low, steelhead get nervous. Sometimes fresh fish stop ascending the river altogether. Just about the only time I prefer low water condi- tions are on rivers that are really difficult or dangerous to wade. There’s also a handful of rivers that run filthy brown until they get really low. Those rivers are the places to be when the drought is on. Mike McNeilly fishes for a long list of different species, but he’s especially Possibly passionate about chasing steelhead. Here we see him with a big Eel River the worst he Fish Sniffer recently ran a piece I wrote detailing how to catch steelhead in high water. That’s when an epiphany struck me. I need to write an article about the exact opposite condi- tions; low and clear water. It was a pretty obvious connection. For the record, on most rivers I would chrome. Photo by MIKE MCNEILLY, Fish Sniffer Staff. 37 Years Serving Sportsmen rivers to fish when the water is low are the popular hatchery rivers where the fish congregate in known spots. If you want to see some gun shy steelhead, try fishing for them when they are being pestered from dawn till dusk seven days a week. To exacerbate the situation, fresh fish aren’t coming in to replenish the ones that make a mistake and get caught. Those are the definitions of tough conditions. It’s best to leave those poor fish alone and head to greener pastures, but sometimes that’s not an alternative. Here’s a few tips for catching pressured steelhead. The First Light Bite I don’t think of a steelhead as a very nocturnal fish, like, say a brown trout. WHAT’S HOT by Mike McNeilly CONTINUED ON PG 11 Governor Gavin Newsom Calls for End to Twin Tunnels, but Backs One Tunnel See Page 27 Special Section Baja Roundup PG 35 INSIDE Area Reports FRESHWATER REPORTS Lake Amador - Bullards Bar/Englebright Reservoir...................4 Lake Camanche - Clear Lake...................................9 Colllins Lake - Del Valle Lake.............................. 10 Don Pedro Lake - Folsom.................................... 15 Klamath River - Rio Vista................................ 16-17 Rollins/Scotts Flat - San Pablo Reservoir............ 21 Santa Clara Valley/San Luis Lakes - West Delta....................................................... 22 SALTWATER REPORTS Berkeley - Martinez........................................ 32-33 Monterey Bay......................................................35 FEATURES Where...When...How... SPRING LAKES GUIDE..........................................6-9 TROUT ANGLERS CHALLENGE..................12-14,17 BAJA ROUNDUP......................................................34 BASS FISHING SPOTLIGHT: Arlando Abella..........23 BULLETIN BOARD.....................................................3 CATCH & RELEASE - FLY FISHING: Cal Kellogg......5 FISH SNIFFER COUNTRY: Cal Kellogg...................31 GO FOR IT: Staff.......................................................18 HOW-TO: Cal Kellogg..............................................20 KAYAK FISHING SPOTLIGHT: Kevin Hofer ............. 11 MAP FEATURE: Dan Bacher...............................22-23 SPOTLIGHT ON CONSERVATION: Dan Bacher......27 STAFF TACKLE What We’re Using Cal Kellogg - fished Lake Chabot for rainbow trout. Cal utilized a 7’ Fenwick HMG 70 ML rod rated for 4 to 10 pound test teamed with an Abu Garcia Cardinal S spinning reel. The reel was filled with 8 pound moss green Trilene Big Game line and a 8 lb. Vanish fluorocarbon leader was employed. Cal caught three rainbow trout near Coots Landing while fishing inflated night crawlers coated with garlic scent Pro-Cure Super Gel. Paul Kneeland - fished Shasta Lake with John Brassfield of Trucksmart Stores in the John’s 18’ Duckworth. They caught rainbow trout to 19 1\2 inches and 3 1/2 pounds, using a Lamiglas Fish Sniffer special 7’ 6” light action graphite rod with a Daiwa Lexa 100 Line Counter reel loaded with 8 lb test Yozuri Topknot flourocarbon line. They trolled custom painted white & black wing Tasmanian Devils and Hot Ticket spoons in smoking perch color scented with Pro Cure Trophy Trout on the surface and off the Canon Downriggers at 13 feet deep at 2.5 mph. Dan Bacher - fished for steelhead on the American River at Sailor Bar. He used a Berkley Ugly Stick GX2 6’ 6” medium action spinning rod, teamed up with a Shakespeare GX235 spinning reel filled with 8 lb. test P-Line CX Premium Flourocarbon Coated Line. He tossed out 1/4 oz. gold/red and silver/blue Little Cleos, coated with garlic scent Pro- Cure Super Gel.

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