Algae bloom hurting fishing
WWBT holding bass tournaments Saturday, Sunday in Lakeport
The Wild West Bass Trail ( WWBT) takes the spotlight this weekend at Clear Lake this weekend as it will hold a pair of tournaments, the first on Saturday and the other on Sunday. The weighins take place Saturday at 3 p.m. at Library Park in Lakeport and Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Skylark Shores Resort in Lakeport. Each tournament is expected to draw in the neighborhood of 100 boats.
The bass pro will find challenging conditions as the lake has changed dramatically during the past two weeks. Not only has the bass fishing toughened up, but there have been massive algae blooms because of the hot weather. The slowdown in fishing was illustrated during the three- day FLW tournament held last week. The tournament featured some of the top bass pros in the West but even they had a hard time putting a five-fish limit in the boat. In fact, a couple of the full-time pros didn’t even catch a limit.
Another example of the slowdown is local fishing guide Bob Myskey, who fished all day Tuesday and had only one bite and caught no fish. He even canceled a pair of upcoming guide trips because he thought it was unfair to book trips when the fishing was this slow.
Myskey also said the algae problem on the lake was unbelievable. “Every location where I went was thick with the bluegreen algae and the smell was terrible,” Myskey said. Other fishermen echoed Myskey in complaining about the algae.
The reason for the massive algae bloom is because of the hotter-than-normal weather. The hot sun makes the algae bloom. Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, is a living organism and is one of the oldest living fossils in the world, going back billions of years. It lives in the water and reproduces by photosynthesis, which means that sunlight causes it to bloom and make its own food. Even though many people hate it, blue-green algae serves a purpose. The plant produces oxygen which all living things require. In fact, different forms of algae produce 70 percent of the oxygen on earth and without algae we couldn’t live.
Algae are actually tiny water plants that cycle normally between the bottom and the surface, floating up and sinking down. During the day, algae generates oxygen within the lake and at night algae consumes oxygen. In addition to supplying oxygen, algae supplies food for many of the creatures in Clear Lake. Baby fish feed on the plankton that is part of algae.
The algae should start to disappear within a few weeks and the lake should clear up. Normally by the end of October the algae is gone. Of course, we need some rain. The lake level has finally dropped to 1 foot on the Rumsey Gauge and Yolo County has stopped taking water. There will be a small amount of water released in order to maintain the fishery below the dam.
Other lakes
Upper Blue Lake has been giving up a few trout but overall the fishing has been very slow. Lower Blue Lake has been producing a good number for bass for float tubers and kayakers. Gary Hill of Kelseyville fished the lake using his float tube last weekend and said that he caught more than 20 bass.
Deer season
The B-zone deer season is in full swing and hunters who can find a place to hunt have been bagging some nice bucks. Hunters should check with the Mendocino National Forest authorities on what areas are open.