Bass fishing settles into pattern

Bass fishing on Clear Lake has settled into the typical winter pattern. The catch a bass the angler has to be patient and work the fishing areas slowly and be supper careful. The bass have been holding in the deeper areas around the submerged docks.

One of the hot lures this week has been the A Rig. A fisherman from Sacramento reported catching 9 bass in one small area in the south end of the lake using the A Rig. In addition, he said he had a number of bass follow the rig right up to the boat before turning away. Most of the fishermen are rigging three swimbaits with hooks and two as teasers. Several fishermen reported that they located the bass holding tight to the bottom in 20 feet of water. They have rigged the A Rig with small swimbaits such as a Keitech and the retrieve has been super slow with pauses. The bass are picking the lure off the bottom and slowly swiming off with it.

The rig actually comes with five wires rigged like a spoke. By California law the A Rig is limited to three hooks but the other two wires can be rigged with hookless swimbaits. To a bass the entire rig resembles a school of minnows. The entire rig is cast and allowed to settle on the bottom. The rig is retrieved slowly. The best type of cast to use is a lob cast. When a fish strikes be sure to make a sweeping hook set. The good news is that the price for an Alabama Rig is very reasonable, costing less than $50. You have to have a fairly stiff casting rod. The only downside is that it takes considerable effort to make long casts and if you cast for several hours your arms and shoulders can get very sore. The good news it is the ideal lure for winter bass fishing.

The bass have definitely moved into their winter pattern and most of the fishermen report that the best action has been in the deeper water in the south end of the lake, or along the Lucerne shoreline. Just about all the fishermen say that to be successful you have to keep on the move until you find a school of fish and then work them very slowly. Live jumbo minnows have been sucessful

As of Thursday morning, the lake level was at a minus .74 feet on the Rumsey Gauge. Predictions are that the lake level will at Zero feet within two weeks. When that occurs all the public ramps should be open.

There are no bass tournaments scheduled for the remainder of December. The sighup sheets for the upcoming Lake County Chamber of Commerce have been printed and are available at the local chamber office in Lakeport. Within a week all the local tackle shops will also have sign-up sheets available. The tournament dates are March 12-13.

Trout action at Upper Lake has slowed, The lake hasn’t stocked in several weeks. There has also be a lack of fishermen.

Duck hunting in the Sacramento Valley has slowed to a crawl. Most of the hunters have been averaging less than five birds a day. On Clear Lake the hunting success has been even less.