Fishing spots in the Delta

D

DLL

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Without giving away your favorite fishing hole, are there any "decent" fishing spots close to WillowBerm? Like the bedrooms or something in the area? We will be releasing everything we catch, so it is a place I can relax and Chris can drown minnows.

I know enough about fishing to know you don't ask someone where their favorite spot is, but I am interested in my bride having a good time.

Any suggestions -- close to WB? One person suggested staying in the slip. Boss says I am not getting the "big picture" here. thanks
 
One of my slip neighbors caught two stripers last weekend that were legal keepers. That was fishing off the boat at the marina. I see bass boats get into the bedrooms fairly often in the morning, but they never seem to have much luck there.
 
Dave,

We used to have a slip neighbor who faced the same as you and would fish off the back of the boat for stripers while in the marina. She was surprisingly successful.
 
Thanks, we are watching the garage sales and Craigslist for people selling used tackle, etc.

Dave, you are right about the slips, we see people anchored just upstream from us, and they are catching fish of some kind.
 
The Santa Clara Shoals on the SJ Channel can be a hot spot for strippers when they are running. You'll see hundreds of fisherman out when it is hot.

I like to tuck behind the tules along the Mandeville/Webb Tract/Bradford islands. Protected from wakes and some are protected from winds. Water is usually around 20 ft deep........
 
Where on the SJ are the Santa Clara Shoals, Flutterby or anyone?

DBH
 
DBH,

If you are coming down the Mokelumne and turn to starboard in the San Joaquin, you will pass Happy Harbor, Delta Bay etc. and the river turns to the left then back to the right, the Santa Clara Shoals are just past that. They are shown on the nautical charts.
 
SC Shoals are right where Fisherman's Cut comes in to the San Joaquin, at lt #33 & 35.
http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/18660.shtml

When the River Boat used to be "the old" Moores RB, the old bar tender and his wife used to troll right out in front, and just nail the stripers. I tried it several times, but my luck was never any good (skunked every time!).

There should be (used to be) lots of small stripers all thru that area, plus lots of cats and even carp. I used to do OK on the Moke, within 1/2 of the 12 bridge, either side. Or try the mouth of the South Fork of the Moke (just past B&W), but careful it's shallow in areas.

Recently, when feeding the resident fish at RB II off the visitors dock with my neice, we saw 20 lb plus carp (HUGE!), bluegill, even black bass and catfish coming up to the surface to feed on fresh baked bread, LOL...

Also, try right along the rock levee, on the upstream side of the HiWay 12 bridge, across from B&W.

If you are in to trolling, we used to do very good trolling off the Northern levee of the SQ, from SC shoals, to the mouth of 3-mile. You have to stay pretty close to shore, and concentrate in 15' of water. Use enough weight to bounce the bottom. You have to be on the bottom. It's a lot of work, but fun. Even caught a salmon once, but I doubt we could do that again even if our lives depended on it...
 
Carp will not take the bait used for stripper/catfish, etc. They are vegetarian. Very big fish, but very boney and not much flesh. Good if you like fish soup, etc.
 
Fishing the Delta is very dependent on the tides. People will fish just before and during the outgo. Look at the Striper fishing on the delta tutorial on the coastsidefishingclub dot com web site.
 
quote:
Originally posted by Flutterby

Carp will not take the bait used for stripper/catfish, etc. They are vegetarian. Very big fish, but very boney and not much flesh. Good if you like fish soup, etc.

Click to expand...
 
quote:
Originally posted by Flutterby

Carp will not take the bait used for stripper/catfish, etc. They are vegetarian. Very big fish, but very boney and not much flesh. Good if you like fish soup, etc.

Click to expand...

Liz,
I was just mentioning the carp to illustrate the diverse wildlife - sometimes when fishing, some think there's not a fish around, but they are there, LOL. PS I have a friend that has fished for and caught carp (asian carp is the species in the Delta). Use a very small hook, and one kernal of corn. He also to to use a homemade bait, basically dough with special ingredients.

As metioned, Stripers are finicky about tides - I'm not an avid striper fisherman, but usually at the end/start of the tides things can change quickly. I have friends that plug for them, and when they find some schoolies, they can C&R 30 or more in short order. The spots they fish are secret - they are very reluctant to reveal much, LOL.

Another spot that has a history of producing is San Andreas shoals, right by Korths. It's very shallow there also, so be advised.

If youy want to target larger stripers and have a real blast, try using live bait. You can catch these in/near any Marina. Bluegill, splittail, goobies, etc. Fly line them (w/o any weight), and let them just swim around. Shallow water with a very slow or no current is ideal. Let your reel free spool, with the clicker on. When a striper chases your bait, the biat will run for it's life - than Bam! After a short run, put the reel in gear. It's an easy and fun way to fish, and not much will bother your bait except a decent size striper.

This works extremely well in Sherman lake, and franks Tract.

Now that we can fish with two rods inland, you could also plug while dunking that live bait. Use a 3/4 oz rattle trap. Light colored in lower light conditions, or overcast, and a dark colored if it's bright sunlight outside. Most colors work, but a spotted chartouse or a silver/black are popular.

Please let us know how you do!
 
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