12-30-13 Fishing Report
Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding
1,047,722
acre-feet of water. The lake level rose very little this week and is
currently at 949 ft. above sea level and 137 ft. from full. The water
is fairly clear in some areas and slightly stained in others. The water
temperature dropped quite a bit due to freezing weather and snow fall
and is in the mid to low 50's. The recent cold snap was enough to
complete the annual turn over of the lake. The docks have been moved
back to the middle ramp on Glory Hole Point.
8-year old Matthew Baptista of Escalon caught a nice limit of rainbows on rainbow/garlic Power Bait.
Trout:
Very Good. The trout are still biting with anglers landing some nice
limits of planted and holdover rainbows. The fish have moved from the
main lake toward the coves and creek channels. Most fish are being
caught in fairly shallow water. The surface temperature has dropped to a
stable winter temperature forcing the majority of the trout out of the
deeper water. The Department of Fish and Game has had multiple plants
so far for the month of December. Bank anglers have
been doing really well of off Glory Hole Point and near the Tuttletown
boat launch. Most anglers report having success floating Power Bait on a
standard bait rig. Many different colored dough baits seem to work
with rainbow, chartreuse, salmon egg, and pink being favorites. Also,
the fish seem drawn to the garlic scented bait. If you are fishing with
a color that is not scented try adding some garlic scented oil to
entice more bites. For anglers who prefer using artificial
presentations, try fan casting Kastmasters and Krocodiles. Another way
to catch them is with a mini jig under a slip float or behind a bubble.
Glory
Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week goes to 7-year old Makenna Tutthill of
Murphys. She landed a chunky 3.10-pound holdover rainbow trout while
bank fishing with Power Bait. She and her 9-year old brother Bradey
Tutthill reported catching a bunch of fish in just a few hours off of
Glory Hole Point. 
Tadeo and Josh Fernandez of Turlock brought is some nice rainbows.
Trolling anglers
should try fishing from 30' to the surface. With a large majority of
fish moving to shallow water, it's a good idea to troll near the
shoreline or use a side planer. Trolling spoons have been working
well. Speedy Shiners, Needlefish, and Excel Spoons are all good
choices. Another setup that catches them is a nightcrawler threaded
onto a straight shank hook or a trolling fly tipped with a chunk of
crawler. Be sure to let out plenty of line, 150-200'. This is a great
time of year to catch some large brown trout. When trolling with
multiple rods it's a good idea to have one setup for browns. Try using
large jointed plugs or rolling shad. When that rod hits it could be a
fish of a lifetime. We do
encourage catch and release for the brown trout as The Department of
Fish and Game will no longer be planting them. Carefully measure, weigh
and photograph trophy fish and send us pictures and information.
Kokanee: Done for the season and done spawning upriver. The fish generally start biting again in the spring mid-April into May.
Bass: Fair.
The bite seems to be getting better for most anglers. The spotted bass
in Melones are chunks. When you do catch them they are usually quality
2-4 pound fish. Most fish are schooling in deep water from 40-70' and
moving up throughout the day to feed. It is very important to use your
electronics to locate fish and bait. Try using vertical jigging spoons
near the balls of bait. A great cold water tactic is drop shot rig.
Try using small shad patterned bait and light fluorocarbon line to get
these finicky fish to bite. Another good thing to keep in mind is with
cooling water their metabolism will slow also. Try slowing down a bit
and using baits that crawl across the bottom. A ¾ oz. football jig is
hard to beat for this style of fishing. Try using a crawdad colored
twin tail grub, Brush Hog, or Beaver as a trailer. Also, use plenty of
scent and reapply multiple times throughout the day to help the fish
locate your bait. With the Department of Fish and Game planting
rainbows now is a good time to target giant fish with trout patterned
swim baits. If you do keep a bass, please keep the small
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:
Slow. The catfish will be moving to deep water near rock piles and
ledges. Most anglers don't target catfish at this time of the year.
But, the ones that do will hook into some lunkers. Melones cats tend to
be fish eaters. Frozen shad, anchovies, sardines, and mackerel work
well for bait.