American Bass tourney visits lake Saturday

Clear Lake Team Tourney sign-ups open Jan. 31

The bass tournaments return to Clear Lake beginning Saturday with an American Bass team event scheduled out of Konocti Vista Casino in Lakeport. The field should include some of the better tournament fishermen competing in it and it should take at least 20 pounds to win it. The weigh-in starts at 3 p.m.

Fishermen who plan on entering the 33th annual Clear Lake Team Bass Tournament scheduled for March 21-22 can begin signing up Jan. 31 starting at 9 a.m. at the Lake County Chamber of Commerce office, located at 875 Lakeport Blvd. in Lakeport. The blast-off numbers for the first day of the tournament are issued in the order fishermen sign up. Some fishermen will wait in line all night to get a low blast-off number so that they can be off first on the opening morning of the tournament. The reason tournament fishermen want to be the first out is because they want to be the first to arrive at their secret fishing spot.

The tournament is sponsored by the Lake County Chamber of Commerce and Konocti Vista Resort and Casino. The tournament goes out of Konocti Vista Casino. The entry fee is $200, which includes the big-fish option. As in past years the tournament will pay back 100 percent of all paid entry fees. Entry forms can be obtained online from the chamber’s web site at www.lakecochamber.com. Local tackle shops also have the entry forms. For more information call 263-5092.

Bass fishing

Overall the bass fishing on Clear Lake is rated as good. Most fishermen report catching from five to 10 fish per day. The overall size has been ranging from 1-4 pounds with an occasional 6-pounder.

The A Rig is still the top-rated lure and the better areas have been in the south end of the lake from the Narrows on down. Jigs as well as plastic worms also have been effective. The trick to success is a super-slow retrieve. Live jumbo minnows are guaranteed to catch bass and all the bait shops have the minnows in stock. A few bass are being caught at Lakeside County Park. The State Park is also giving up some bass.

Crappie tourney

The Clear Lake Crappie Association has scheduled a tournament for Feb 22. It goes out of Clearlake Oaks and the entry fee is $60 per team. Fishermen can sign up at Limit Out Bait and Tackle in Clearlake Oaks or at Lakeport Bait and Tackle in Lakeport.

Crappie/bluegill

The crappie and bluegill action continues to improve. Crappie are being caught off the bridges at the Clear Lake State Park and bluegill are everywhere.

Other lakes

Upper Blue Lake was stocked with 1,000 pounds of trout this week and the fishing should be good for the weekend. Fishermen can get services at the Narrow Resort.

One fisherman fished Highland Springs Reservoir earlier this week and caught four bass and a bunch of bluegill. He fished from a kayak

Duck season

Duck hunters enter the final week of the season, which closes Jan. 31. To date the hunting success has been rated only

fair in many of the waterfowl refuges in the Sacramento Valley. Quail season in Lake and Mendocino counties closes Sunday. This has been an excellent year for quail hunting.

Stay safe

Fishermen on Clear Lake need to be extra careful when out on the water. The water temperatures have been ranging from as low as 40 degrees to as high as 52 degrees. Be sure to also wear your life jacket. With the low water temperature you’ll only last about 30 minutes if you fall in the water.