Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding 1,982,910 acre-feet of water. The lake level has been steady for the last three months and came up about a foot this last week. It is currently at 1051 ft. above sea level and 37 ft. from full. The water temperature is 53-58 degrees and clear with mud lines forming around the shore on windy days.
Trout: Fair. The weather let up a bit this week and we had more anglers on the water fishing. The fish seem to be headed for deeper water but there are still some shallow fish to be caught from the shore. We are seeing some nice rainbows this year, with a lot of fish weighing over 3-pounds. Bank anglers have been successful using bait. Try using a nightcrawler/marshmallow combo or Power Bait. When fishing nightcrawler use a worm threader and a worm blower. This way you bait will be on the hook straight and floating. When using Power Bait it is a good idea to use multiple colors to create a contrast. Trout primarily feed by sight and some colors will trigger fish better than others.
Matt and Mark Paredes of Atwater landed this limit of rainbow- the biggest one weighed 2-lb., 12-oz after it was cleaned. They used a crawler/marshmallow combo while bank-fshing near the marina.
Jesus and Alejandro and Geoge Sanchez caught these trout while bank-fihing with scented Pwer Bait in Melones Coves.
Trolling anglers did better this week due to the fish pulling off of the bank.
Dan Williams and Ken Burns of Las Vegas fished two day in a row upriver. They were trolling with lead core line using D. Willi's (homemade lure) and Needlefish in a rainbow trout pattern. They caught a dozen fish and most of them were brown trout. Their biggest one was a beautiful 2-pound 9-ounce brown. Also, we have had reports of anglers doing well using shad patterned Rapalas.
Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week Contest goes to Michi Marshall of Jackson. She caught a hefty 3-pound 8-ounce rainbow while trolling a wedding ring tipped with a nightcrawler. Along with this big fish she had four other nice ones, all caught while fishing the main lake from The Spillway to Coyote Creek.
Kokanee: The season is right around the corner. Guide Gary Burns (Take it to the Limit Guide Service) fished On Saturday. He caught and released a limit of 13 and ½ inch Kokanee, along with some rainbows too. He was fishing chrome or blue Shasta Tackle Sling Blades with a pink Glitter Bug Micro Hootchie tipped with garlic corn. The fish were caught in 13-20 foot of water in the main lake. Also, be sure to add Pro cure scent to your bait. Garlic, Anise, and Kokanee Special are all good choices.
Bass: Pretty good. We have Alabama rigs! The fish are starting to move shallow. The spotted bass are in the pre-spawn stage and being caught at 20-45 feet deep. The largemouth are being caught in wind protected coves and bays. Try using a Zoom Baby Brush hog on a Carolina rig or a 6 inch Texas rigged Robo worm. Also, natural colored baits in green pumpkin and watermelon seem to be working well.
Glory Hole Sports employees John Liechty and Hank Baxter went out for an afternoon of fishing and caught and released over 20 fish. They fished main lake points and shallow coves with jigs and soft plastics. Remember to practice catch and release, especially largemouth bass as we are seeing fewer each year.
Catfish: Slow. The water temperature is rising so those big cats should start to move shallow. There has been a mud line that forms around the shore line of the lake. This water will be warmer than crystal clear water and is a good place to target catfish. There is a large amount of shad in the lake this year for those large cats to fatten up on. Try using frozen shad on a sliding sinker rig. No winners for Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week Contest.
Crappie: This is prime time to target the crappie. Use Beetle Spins, Mini Jigs, and minnows in 15-25 feet of water. The fish will be staging for the spring spawn. Target standing timber, willow tree's and water inlets. We have heard of a few nice one's being caught.
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