Five-year-old Jacob Johnson and his dad Carl caught a 17.5 pound cat a Konocti Harbor Resort on a live minnow. Courtesy photo.

Brief relief from high temps came early in the week, but a warming cycle has us creeping back into the 100s again as we move towards the weekend. A pair of distant wildfires is burning placing a veil of heavy smoke over our lake and surrounding areas. Local media reports that smoke could affect air quality to unhealthy levels for some. With any luck, the winds will shift and blow the smoke out before the weekend. As for the fishing … most (but not all) would say it has been tough.

Experienced bass anglers report reasonably good success on jerk baits, some crank baits and spinner baits. It seems, according to most reports, that the bass want a fast moving bait. The fish are coming from depths of 15 to 20 feet to whack that fast-moving bait running in the 4 to 8 foot range. A couple of bass guys have reported having their premium bass lures mauled by aggressive catfish in the process.

Shore anglers are having a tough time finding water deep enough to be productive. Minnow fishermen are the exception to the rule as they are experiencing a surprisingly good bite on extra large minnows while fishing the drop offs and ledges near deep water.

The crappie bite is about as off as it gets. I’ve had one accidental angler (he was fishing for bass) tie into a couple of nice crappie over near the Rock Garden in Jago Bay. But most folks are not able to put together any sort of comprehensive crappie bite information. Bring on the cooler weather!

The catfish are out hunting for food like the bass are. Live minnows have accounted for some strong success. Others are fishing more traditional baits (clams, shrimp, mackerel and livers) in deeper water areas with varied success.

Five-year-old Jacob Johnson and his dad Carl of Sacramento nailed a 17.5 pound cat a Konocti Harbor Resort on a live minnow. Way to go guys!

Our next CatFest event is being planned for Saturday, Sept. 22. Stay tuned for more details in future weeks.

Bob Rider owns Lakeshore Bait & Tackle in Clearlake. Visit his Web site at www.994fish.com or call him at 994-FISH (3474).

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