Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding
1,553,922
acre-feet of water. The lake level dropped close to one foot this week,
and is currently at 1009 ft. above sea level and 78 ft. from full.
Water temperature is warming daily with the average being 54-56 degrees
and some parts of the lake 58-60 degrees in the afternoon. The lake is
clear, to slightly stained with some debris floating on the surface.
Trout:
Fair.The bite has been good for some anglers, and fair for most. The
trout are scattered throughout the water column from the surface to 30
feet. Trolling anglers try fishing the main lake near
the dam/spillway and Rose Island. Uncle Larry's Spinners and Wedding
Rings tipped with a chunk of crawler is a good presentation to start
with. Try using various colors at various depths until you find what the
fish want. Green and chartreuse are good springtime colors for trout.
Guide
Gary Burns of Take It to the Limit Guide Service caught multiple large
browns rolling shad in the main lake including a massive 9-pound,
3-ounce fish landed by client Jeff Wilson.
Bank anglers
struggled a bit with very few limits being caught. Most of the fish
that are being caught are planters, with an occasional larger holdover
in the mix. A great way to catch some nice fish is with a live minnow
fished under a slip-float. This rig is easy to use, and you can target
many different depths. All you need is a bobber stop, slip-float,
swivel, spit shot, and a mosquito hook. This is a great rig for kids
because trout, bass, crappie, bluegill, and catfish will eat live
minnows.
Winner
of The Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week Contest goes to Darwin
Parrish of Murphy's. He caught a handful of nice trout on a Rapala,
including a hefty 3-pound, 9-ounce rainbow.
Kokanee:
Good. The fish are scattered from 20-50 feet. The fish are a good size
for this time of the year 13-14" and very chunky. Try fishing the main
lake with a finesse trolling setup. A Glitterbugs pink Micro Hoochie or
an Anglers Market Kokanee Bites trolled behind a small tear drop dodger
is great way to get a limit. Pink, watermelon, and silver have been good
color choices for dodgers. Another lure that produces a lot of kok's
and some large trout every year is an Apex.
Judy
and Ben Rogers had a couple of good days on the lake. They report
catching their fish on Father Murphy's Bugs trolled behind a mini
dodger.
Don't
forget to tip your lure with shoe peg corn that has been soaked in
garlic, anise, carp spit, or kokanee special Pro Cure scent.
Bass:
Good. The big ones are still showing up and more of the smaller easy
to catch fish too. The giant fish are being caught on mainly jigs,
worms, and swim baits. Try fishing main lake points leading into
spawning areas. These are staging areas where the fish will stacked up
before they spawn. Also it is a good time to use soft plastics such as
Senkos, Brush Hogs, and lizards. These bait will catch there fair share
of fish and will also produce an occasional lunker fish.
This
week local angler Dennis Lee caught and released a 10-pound, 8-ounce
largemouth. He reported catching this fish on a Mission Fish swim bait.
We
have been seeing a lot of big spotted bass being caught and we possibly
have a world record swimming around out there. The current state
record and world record was caught May 3, 2001 out of Pine Flat Lake. It
weighed 10-pounds, 4-ounces. If you catch a fish that is larger, and
want it to be recognized as a state record, it must be weighed on a
certified scale. The post office or the grocery store meat department
has a certified scale. It is very
important to practice catch and release during the spring months! If
you do keep a bass, please keep the spotted bass and release the big
female (largemouth) black bass. Glory Hole Sports can teach you the
difference, so you can practice good conservation of the species.
Catfish:
Melones catfish tend to be fish-eaters rather than bottom foragers, so
use live minnows, frozen shad, mackerel, or anchovies for best
success. The water is warming and the bite will pick up.
Glory Hole Sports employee Robert Peffer spent a night fishing for cats. He brought one in that weighed 5-pounds, 10-ounces.
Crappie:
Good. Spring is here and the crappie bite is starting. The fish we are
seeing are chunky slabs up to two pounds. There are fish in 15-40 foot
of water, in the backs of creek channels near submerged timber. Live
minnows or red worms fished under a slip-float, with a bobber stop is a
good way to target these fish. Also, try using Beetle Spins and mini
jigs on light spinning tackle.
Larry Cook of Sonora caught a few nice crappie including a slab that weighed 2-pounds, 1-ounce.