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FISHINLINES
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New Melones Reservoir - Glory Hole Sports' seventh annual fishing seminar was a great success, with around 500 people attending Saturday's event, and around 300 people participating on the On-The-Water lessons on Sunday. Knowledgeable guides treated attendees to informative and entertaining presentations on fishing. North River Boats were on hand to show off their beautiful boats. Pro-staff from tackle companies were on hand to show off their latest inventions and assist customers in our on-site store, where there were some great deals on merchandise. A free breakfast and barbecue lunch were provided, and attendees had a great time relaxing and telling fish stories while they ate. Hundreds of prizes were raffled off and given away, including gift bags full of lures and great baseball caps, as well as rods, reels, a fish finder, downrigger, guide trips with the wonderful guides who were on hand to share their knowledge, Maui Jims and Windjammers sunglasses, and many other wonderful prizes. Thank you to all of our wonderful vendors and to all of our friends, great fishing guides and Calaveras Bass Anglers, who help us throw this amazing event every year - we couldn't do it without you! If you attended the show, we would love to hear from you - tell us what you liked, and what you would like to see next year.

New Melones Lake is currently holding 1,626,000 acre-feet of water, and is at 67 percent capacity. The lake elevation rose three feet this week, and is now at 1,016 feet above sea level and 72 feet from full capacity. Surface water temperature is approximately 57-59 degrees. Water is fairly clear, with visibility to 20 feet. Caution - due to rising water levels, there is a lot of floating debris such as partially submerged logs in the water, as well as island tops and trees that are just under the water surface. Please be careful out there!

There was another trout plant scheduled for last week. Trout are moving out to deeper water, but are still relatively shallow - 10-25 feet deep. Fishing was red-hot for trollers recently, with easy limits of trout/kokanee. The waters just off of Glory Hole Point, and the mouth of Angels Creek have been hot spots. During our On-The-Water downrigger lessons, lots of kokanee and trout were caught by participants, as well as by anglers fishing on their own. Dennis Sullivan, Mike Hanko Jr. and Sr., Jim West, Kathy and Paul Simpson, Marland Jones, Bob Bedsworth, Cody Meyer and Joe Hallett were all successful. Bank anglers are catching a few fish off of Glory Hole Point, or under the 49 Stevenot Bridge, using rainbow or chartreuse Select Power Bait, or a nightcrawler/marshmallow combination. Minnows under a bobber are another good way to target trout from the bank this time of year. Dave McGarvey of Livermore won Glory Hole Sports' Big Fish of the Week contest this week. He trolled Wedding Ring with corn behind a watermelon dodger right on the surface near Glory Hole Point, catching a beautiful 6.86-pound brown trout. Come in for your free lunch, Dave!

Kokanee fishing has been red-hot! Guide Danny Layne, Monte Smith, Dave Braeger, Bruce Hamby, Vance Staplin, Bryan McGinty, Gary Miralles, Bob Bogness, Fred Thomasen, Joe Askamit, Bob Higgins and Warren Worthington all gave lessons during our On-The-Water downrigger lessons. All of the guides were very excited about the quality and size of kokanee they caught (many were well over a pound already) and say Melones has turned on! We want to thank the guides for their help, and for sharing their knowledge with our lucky customers. Trolling 0-20 feet deep in the waters off of Glory Hole Point and the mouth of Angels Creek seemed to produce the most fish, although some guides found fish as deep as 40 feet. Hootchies, Shasta Scorpions, Vance's Sockeye Slammers, Uncle Larry's Spinners, all tipped with shoepeg corn and trolled behind a dodger or Sling Blade were mentioned by many as the best lures.

There has been good bass fishing! Big bass continue to show up in the main lake, as well as major creek arms and coves. Fish are being caught as shallow as 5 feet down to 20 feet. Bass anglers from Calaveras County and Tuolumne County gave lessons during our On-The-Water fishing lessons, giving our customers a chance to take a ride in a bass boat and learn how to find the bass. The event raised well over $2,000 toward the planting of Florida Super-Strain bass for Melones. Anglers reported Senkos, Spinnerbaits, 6" Roboworms and green pumpkin Zoom Baby Brush Hogs as the baits that provided the most action. One lucky angler caught a 9-plus pounder on a Senko while fishing with Jerry McGowan. They took pictures and released her back into the lake. Seven-year-old Alex Gustafson caught some nice bass, and was very proud. As the big bass move into the shallows to spawn, we want to remind you to practice catch-and-release during this time of year, so that the bass can reproduce successfully.

For catfish, try Tuttletown, or under the 49 Stevenot Bridge. Use chicken livers or crawlers, a sliding sinker, leave your bait open, and make sure your hooks are sharp. Howard Cloud has been catching big catfish right by the Glory Hole Boat Ramp, using chicken livers. He had a fat stringer two weekends ago.

For crappie, areas with heavy structure at 10-20 feet deep near gravel would be a good choice. Try fishing live minnows or trying to entice them with jigs in red/white or purple/white.

Glory Hole Sports, 736-4333

Lake Don Pedro - Best spots to try are around partially submerged trees, near the marina and rocky points.

Sight fishing for spawning bass has taken over for anglers throwing swimbaits, white Zoom lizards or white Yum tubes with silver flake. Lots of big fish are being taken by anglers familiar with bedding bass tactics, but the normal angler might struggle with the bite. Wacky-rigged Senkos in green pumpkin or watermelon red are good baits to throw near shore. Trout exploded this week near the Flume and Moccasin areas on trolled watermelon Apexes at a 20-foot depth with fish to 14 inches.

852-2369, 989-2206, 848-2746.

Tulloch Reservoir - Fish the main part of the lake for the best action.

There is a solid bass bite going. Fish are in the middle of the spawn and are very aggressive off the points. Most anglers are using plastics and some regulars are sticking with crickets, but throw anything down to agitate the fish and they're likely to bite. For trout, shore anglers are using marshmallows and Power Bait. Trollers are using silver Needlefish eight feet deep with flashers.

881-0107, 847-3447.

McClure Reservoir - Fish in Barrett Cove, Horseshoe Bend, Cotton Creek and Temperance Creek for the best luck.

Top-water bass fishing using chartreuse Zara Spooks and sight fishing for bedding fish has opened up the bite this week on quality bass, Dwayne King of Fisherman's Warehouse in Manteca said. Fishing shallow early in the morning, then moving out a little deeper, is a good strategy for spawning and post-spawn bass. Three-eighths-ounce fish on jigs in a brown/orange/brown color scheme with a cinnamon trailer were producing more than 10 bass per day up to 2.5 pounds. Larry Llanes of Madera landed an 11.42-pounder on an ABT Titan 6-inch swimbait. Trout slowed, but this week crappie fishing under lights in Cottonwood Creek was good.

563-6505, 378-2441

McSwain Reservoir - Try your luck at the brushpile, in front of the campgrounds and marina, and at Gilligan's Island and the handicap dock.

There are lots of planted trout in the reservoir. The good weather should make the bite very solid, John Kemper at McSwain Marina said.