FishwithJD

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American River Steelie Question

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Hi JD,

I’m getting my gear, boat and friends (shuttle drivers) ready for a few trips down the American River this winter and was wondering what your outlook for the winter steelhead run looks like. Also, do you plan on booking any drifting trips down the American?

Thanks…
Scott

Hey Scott,

Yep, I will do trips this winter on the American. As far as the outlook goes, that a tough one. Luckily, you can’t really base the steelie forecast on the salmon returns. Last season, the hatchery had a pretty good push of fish — around 3,000 steelhead — so, I’m not sure why we can’t expect to see something similar this year. Famous last words, of course…

While the drought is a bad deal, the low water we’re likely to find this winter will force the fish into some pretty well-defined spots.

Good luck!

Fish Counts at Coleman Hatchery??

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JD, Do you happen to know how many Salmon made it to Coleman hatchery this year?

Just wondering before I take off for Sarajevo for my last adventure.

Thanks, Ricardo

Hi Ricardo,

I don’t know how many kings made it back to the Coleman Fish Hatchery, though the biologist told me the total run in Battle Creek was around 12,000…a number he called “pathetic,” so it does not sound good!

Be safe over there and thanks for your service!

–JD

Bows not Biting!

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JD,

On Nov 6, two of us went to Bowman Lake for the first time with our boat…what a long bumpy road! We used the rock boat ramp down to the lake and launched. The weather was good, plenty of sunshine, but the wind came up and made it hard to troll. Plenty of fish on the fishfinder but could not get a bite. We tried everything in the tackle box, top water, downrigger, trolling close to the shore. Then my friend started throwing rip bait toward the bank and caught a brown. After that he caught three more browns to three pounds! He had just the right rig for the browns. It was late , so we left the lake. Why do you think the rainbows were not biting? Do you have any experience with Bowman Lake?

Thanks, Ken P.

Ken, it’s a good question…in the fall, all trout put on the feed bag as they prep for the lean winter months ahead, so it’s strange that the ‘bows weren’t biting. Perhaps Bowman simply has a better population of browns than it did in the old days. And if the brownies are eating rip baits, I’d be okay with that!

Mystery Foam invades Sac River

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Salmon anglers launching on the Sacramento River this week noticed a scary mystery foam washing into the river from the Colusa Basin Drainage Canal. The canal drains a vast agricultural plain in the northern Sacramento Valley and, in the best of times, it pumps very thick, brown and warm water into the Sacramento River. Now, we’ve got this junk…


Click here to read more…

Snagging Tips??

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JD,

My brother and I were recently fishing here in Colorado, looking mainly for trout, but also for kokanee. At one of the reservoirs, we saw quiet a few people snagging, and bringing up a lot of fish! We found a couple of snagging hooks on some line left there, so we tried it out, but no luck! We thought we were doing it right, and we know the fish were there. I was wondering if maybe someone could give me a few pointers on the basic techniques of snagging.

–Bridget

Well, sorry to say I’m not going to be of much help for ya there! I know there are a bunch of out-of-work Sacramento Valley salmon snaggers that could probably offer some tips, though!