BASS FISHINGBass Fishing Sports Blog

Bassmaster magazine has named Bullards Bar Reservoir in Yuba County one of the top 100 lakes in the U.S. for bass fishing.

The reservoir is ranked 84th on the list, which ranks Falcon Lake in Texas in the top spot and also includes Lake Shasta, Clear Lake and the San Joaquin River Delta.

According to a press release, editors compiled it based on months of research from fisheries agencies, nominations from bass tournament organizers and comments from a panel of experts. Aesthetics, history and potential for large catches were among the criteria.

SUTTER COUNTY

Gallagher holding town halls

Sutter County Supervisor James Gallagher will host a series of town hall meetings this month to discuss issues with constituents, including flood control, economic development and public safety.

The hearings start Monday at the Sutter Yuba Association of Realtors, 1558 Starr Drive in Yuba City, and continue on may 14 at Robbins Elementary School, 17541 Pepper St., Robbins; may 21 at East Nicolaus High School, 2454 Nicolaus Ave., Trowbridge; and may 23 at Barry Elementary School, 1255 Barry Road, Yuba City.

All the town halls are at 6:30 p.m. Gallagher, whose District 5 seat encompasses part of Yuba City and southern Sutter County, is unopposed in his re-election bid this year.

MARYSVILLE

5 honored for stopping DUIs

Five employees of the Marysville Police Department were recognized this week for “their leadership and hard work with the Avoid the 9 DUI Traffic Grant,” according to a department press release.

Sgt. Chris Sachs, Officer Adam Barber and dispatcher Kelly Mincer received special recognition badges for their Avoid the 9 work.

Barber and Officer Corey Engelbrektson also received awards for their enforcement efforts.

The awards were given by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the state Office of Traffic Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“Marysville Police Department takes pride in traffic safety and making our streets safer for the motoring public,” Police Chief Wallace Fullerton said in the statement.

YUBA CITY

Sale on Saturday at canine thrift

Furniture, bric-a-brac and clothing are part of the Barking Lot Sale on Saturday at the Sutter Buttes Canine Rescue Thrift Shop in Yuba City.

The event, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at 855 Gray Ave., includes dogs available for adoption and Yuba-Sutter Domestic Animal Help officials with information on evacuation aid.

New and gently used items for the thrift shop are also being accepted during the day.

All proceeds benefit Sutter Buttes Canine Rescue. Call 755-2025 for more information.

YUBA COUNTY

Members sought for 2 commissions

New members are sought for two Yuba County commissions.

The Library Advisory Commission needs someone who lives in District 1, which encompasses most of Linda, while the Yuba County Commission on Aging just needs county residents.

Applications are available at the office of the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, 915 Eighth St., Suite 109, Marysville.

YUBA CITY

Street closures set for market days

Center Street in downtown Yuba City will be closed from 1 p.m.-9 p.m. Wednesdays through Nov. 7 for the Center Street Farmers Market.

The street closure, from Plumas Street to Rockholt way, was announced by the Yuba City Police Department Traffic Education and Enforcement Unit.

The farmers market plans to run 4 p.m.-8 p.m. Wednesday, weather permitting, with fresh produce, handcrafted items, live entertainment and a children’s play area.

For more information about the market, contact Twalla McCarty at or call 632-4419.

YUBA-SUTTER

Used tire disposal coupons available

Coupons are still available for the free disposal of used tires through the Regional Waste Management Authority and Recology Yuba-Sutter.

Residents of Yuba and Sutter counties can request the coupon, for residential use only, for a free drop-off of up to 19 passenger and light truck tires at the Recology transfer stations, at 3001 N. Levee Road in Marysville and the Ponderosa site on Ponderosa way in Brownsville.

Call the Regional Waste Management Authority at 634-6890 from 9 a.m.-noon weekdays for more information or to request a coupon.

YUBA COUNTY

Community fair is may 12

All-day entertainment, food concessions and health agencies are part of the 11th Annual Wheatland/Beale Community fair at Bear River School in Wheatland.

Sponsored by the Family Resource Center, the event is 9 a.m.-3 p.m. may 12 at 100 Wheatland Park Drive.

Activities include craft vendors, live music and demonstrations by the Beale Air Force Base 9th Security Forces dog.

Call Jodie Almond at 633-4061 for more information.

It will be a busy weekend for outdoor enthusiasts. There is a major two-day bass tournament, the bass are biting for the recreational fishermen, and the spring wild turkey season is in full swing.

Topping the list of activities is the second annual Konocti Vista Casino Team Bass Classic. the two-day tournament gets under way Saturday morning and winds up Sunday. the entry fee is $160 per team and the field is limited to 100 boats. Fishermen can sign up for the tournament starting today between the hours of noon and 4 p.m. at the casino. the weigh-in both days is at Konocti Vista and starts at 3 p.m.

The bass fishing is rated very excellent and is just a step away from breaking wide open. Most of the fishermen predict it will take 60 pounds or more to win the two-day Konocti Vista tournament. a number of fishermen who have been out prefishing for several upcoming tournaments report seeing bass in the shallows and a few have been on the beds. the water temperatures have been as high as 60 degrees in the afternoons and with warm weather forecast for the weekend the water temps could climb even higher.

When the bass go on their spawning beds the Alabama Rig should prove deadly on these fish. To a bass protecting a bed the sight of five swimbaits passing nearby will drive it into a fury. In addition to the rig, various types of swimbaits have been very effective. Other lures that are catching fish include a LV500 lipless crankbait retrieved yo-yo style, jigs worked slowly at the edges of the tules, shaky head jigs with a trick worm and even crankbaits.

Some of the more productive areas has been from Lakeside County Park to the State Park, Horseshoe Bend, the docks north of Lakeport, the Nice-Lucerne shoreline, Konocti Bay, Jago Bay, Clearlake Oaks Keys and the rockpiles near Rattlesnake Island. Bank fishermen also have been having success using jumbo minnows at Lakeside County Park and Library Park in Lakeport.

The other excellent news on the local fishing scene is that crappie are starting to show up around the lake. Ken Taddie of the Indian Beach Resort in Glenhaven says his guests have been doing very well on crappie weighing from 1-3 pounds while fishing from the resort’s docks. He said the best action has been at night and the average catch is five to 10 fish per angler. His guests are using live minnows and crappie jigs. Fishermen can access the docks for a small fee.

Catfish action is still a little on the slow side, mostly because of a lack of fishermen. a few catfish are being caught near Rattlesnake Island and in Horseshoe Bend.

Trout action rates from honest to excellent at Upper Blue Lake. the lake was stocked last week. There are no reports coming out of Lake Pillsbury but it was stocked two weeks ago and the lake level is at 85 percent. Fishermen going to the lake should use the county road out of Potter Valley because the Elk Mountain road is wet and slippery.

The excellent news is that Walker Ridge Road going into Indian Valley Reservoir has recently been graded by the Lake County Public Works Department. the lake is 90-percent full and the ramp at the dam is in excellent shape. the lake also has been stocked with trout several times during the past month. the lake also offers brilliant bass fishing, plus there are also crappie and catfish. the kokanee fingerlings place into the lake two years ago should also be weighing a pound or so.

Turkey hunters are still hoping for warm weather to trigger the gobblers into their mating mode. To date the hunting has been rated only honest. the hens are still flocked up and only a few are sitting on nests. that could all change by the weekend. normally the middle of April is when the turkey season kicks into high gear.

“Last week, we had more than 18 pounds and still didn’t get a check,” said Robert Mixon, who was at Lexington Mower Service getting his riding mower repaired. “If I can’t ride, I can’t mow,” said Mixon, who has been troubled by a balky knee for years.

The conversation quickly reverted to tournament fishing.

“If you don’t have a 6-or 7-pound fish, you’re not going to win a tournament,” said the Lexington angler. “We had seven bites with spinnerbaits, and every fish was a 3 1/2-pound chunk. But we couldn’t hook a really huge one.”

Chris Brown and David Wright, both of Lexington, found the huge ones at the March 17 Southern Championship Trail tournament at High Rock. their five-fish catch totaled 23.13 pounds and paid $910.

Tony Ravelle and Brandon Rowell placed second with 20.97 pounds and collected $450. Carter Sealy of Lexington and Derrick Loflin took the third-place award of $190 with 19.63 pounds. Randy Weddington and Ronnie Smith, both of China Grove, finished fourth with 19.39 pounds, winning $130.

Mike Kinard and Tony Lambert of Mt. Pleasant claimed the huge-fish prize of $240 with a 7.79-pound bass.

The Lexington team of Orlando Giles and Tony Waterhouse had a five-fish catch totaling 22.15 pounds to take the first-place prize of $910 at Sunday’s Carolina Angler Team Trail contest at High Rock. they added $161 to their bankroll by landing a 6.65-pound bass, the huge fish of the day.

Todd Haines of Concord and Jeremy Talbert of Albemarle finished second with 15.30 pounds and received $300. Jason Hathcock of Concord and John Barringer of Kannapolis took the third-place prize of $200 with 14.50 pounds. The Kernersville team of Danny and David Hayworth ranked fourth with 14.15 pounds and collected $120.

The huge catch of the day took place at the Sunday wildcat tournament at High Rock. Brad and Adam Younts of Southmont made the scales groan with a five-fish catch weighing 25.97 pounds, an average of slightly more than 5 pounds per fish.

Thirty-two teams from the Tarheel Striper Club showed up at High Rock Saturday for a club tournament amidst reports that the stripers were biting.

The stripers may have been active recently but not on this day which started with heavy morning rains that lingered until noon. Some fishermen blamed the slow fishing on the weather while others said the stripers were about to make their “fake spawn run” up the river.

“Everything is about a week early because of the warm weather,” said one participant. “I wouldn’t be shocked if the stripers are already on the go to the river.”

The Thomasville team of J.R. Wilmouth and his grandson Jordan Smith located fish near Second Creek to take their winning three-fish catch of 23.30 pounds. they were the only team to catch a three-fish club tournament limit.

They caught one striper in the morning; then hours later, they caught two stripers at the same time. The fish hit a white bucktail/white plastic trailer, a white Sassy Shad, and a green bucktail/green plastic trailer.

Robert Moss of Trinity caught one keeper, but the 12.50-pound striper was excellent enough for second place and huge-fish honors.

The final money place went to Robert Steele of Lexington and David Woodward of Charlotte, who had 9.30 pounds.

Wilkesboro’s Tracy Adams topped Saturday’s Bassmaster Weekend Series field of 40 anglers with 14.08 pounds on five fish and earned $1,948.

Rob Digh of Denver placed second with 12.83 pounds, a catch that included a 4.24-pound bass, the huge fish of the day. he banked $1,158.

Other Tar Heel fishermen receiving checks were Charles Whitaker of Troutman, third, with 12.76 pounds for $649; Derek Cummings of Clayton, fifth, with 12.00 pounds for $390; Kyle Whisenant of Charlotte, sixth, with 11.31 pounds for $357; and Duane Rinkus of Denver, seventh, with 11.19 pounds for $324.

Statesville’s John Miller ranked first among the co-anglers with 7.36 pounds and earned $974.

Tony Garitta is a fishing columnist for The Dispatch.

By Wayne Hooper March 19, 2012 2:00 AM

Two more e-mails from the readers.

“Hi Wayne, we are ancient acquaintances. back in the days when softball held more interest than fishing we played on opposing teams me for Pic-n-Pay and you for Burger Chef. (Where was that anyway?) I consider myself a novice when it comes to fishing. I’m a recent convert to freshwater bass fishing. I use mostly spinning rod and reel with plastic lures or various rattle lures.

“I’ve been reading about the use of rubber or plastic type worms or other creatures and have done honestly well with them. One of my questions has been what is the likelihood that when catching and releasing we are condemning the fish to a slow death? Also on occasion, as I’m sure you know, we lose a few and have to repair our line. What happens to those fish?

“We have been fishing in one area in (Maine) for about five years and we’ve noticed a certain drop off in the numbers of fish being caught. could this all be related to what we are fishing with?

“Mind you we only catch and release … along with some early releases. There have been occasions that I’ve caught two bass on the same cast of a lure with treble hooks under the midsection and tail. Needless to say this spot is not heavily fished. And we like it that way. thanks for some fantastic inspiration for getting out on the water in your columns.”

— Larry Lariviere

Larry, long time, no hear or see!

As far as killing the fish, they will be OK if you get the hook out quickly and put them back in the water ASAP. If the fish is hooked deep, then cut the hook and take out the plastic or rubber bait and let them go. the water will stop the bleeding.

If you break off, the fish will get rid of the hook within a matter of days, as something in their mouths eats away the metal. If you hook it in the side of the mouth, the skin will grow over it in time.

Now, I’m not saying that you won’t kill a fish accidentally, but with knowledge the number of fatalities will diminish.

What lures you’re fishing and the number of fish you’re catching shouldn’t have any effect on the lake you’re fishing, but the lake could have more predators in it than you reckon. the bass get used to the same ancient lures and will shy away from them at times. That’s why changing colors and shapes can make a huge difference.

As for bass, putting them back doesn’t hurt them. It will make them smarter, though. they have small-term memories, so from year to year or maybe even month to month, they will hit the same ancient lures. the reduced catching could be the color or type of bait you’re using. Try watermelon/red flake or black with red flake. If this doesn’t work take the ugliest bait out of your tackle box and heave it at the nearest dock or stump.

Then hang on, as a big fish is apt to slam it because it is something he has never seen, and he wants it out of his front yard.

Let me know how you make out.

“(I) liked your tale about lack of camera! Happened to me on the Connecticut River with what was close to or was a NH State Record brown trout. My fishing buddy Brad and I have caught big browns in Lake Ontario to over 15 pounds. this one was much bigger and stretched across the whole middle seat in my 15 foot Seacraft.

“Most beautiful fish. Hook jawed but not ugly. Spots the size of a quarter, both red and black. all I could do was to lift him up and slide him back into the river and watch him slowly drift away. I hooked him on a nightcrawler but in the jaw so the release was simple. I was using six-pound test line on a # 6 hook. What memories.”

Fantastic Bay Trout Unlimited’s 6th annual glide auction and fund-raiser will be held on Monday, March 26, at the Roundabout Diner in Portsmouth at the traffic circle. Doors open at 5 p.m. in the Function Room.

Cost is $25, which includes cash bar, door prize and raffles. Seating is limited. Prepay online at greatbaytu.org or pay at the door. Dinner buffet is 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

If you like glide fishing, be there.

Wayne Hooper is a member of the new England Outdoor Writers Association and a lifelong Seacoast resident. he can be reached at .

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The 25th annual Clear Lake Team Bass Tournament kicks off Saturday. without a doubt it remains one of the more well loved and oldest bass fishing tournaments to be held on the lake.

The first tournament took place in 1987 and in those days there were no bass tournaments held during the winter months. In fact, just about all the tournaments held back then were during the spring and summer, with the Tournaments of Champions taking place in the fall.

The goal of the original tournament was to lure fishermen to Clear Lake and Lake County during a time of year when tourism was at a low point. I was invited to be a guest speaker at the Lakeport Rotary Club and my topic was how beneficial bass tournaments are to the local economy. I suggested that Lake County host its own tournament and that it take place during the winter. John Lowman, then the publisher of the Lake County Record-Bee, and bill Burnetti, former owner of Bruno’s Food Store, agreed to sponsor the tournament if I served as director.

The first tournament was a one-day affair and started out with what was supposed to be a 75-team limit, but that was quickly increased to 122 teams. the entry fee was only $60 and the first-place money was $1,100. it took 19.62 pounds to win the event.

The field was increased to 200 teams and two days the following year with an entry fee of $100. the total purse was $20,000 and the winning team caught 28.32 pounds to take home the tidy sum of $5,000.

The tournament record for total weight by a winning team was set in 2007 when Russell Stansbury and Andrew Parson of Santa Rosa weighed in 70.7 pounds. They also caught the huge fish of the tournament, which weighed 14.58 pounds. the tournament annually drew fishermen from throughout the Western United States. In its heyday of the late 1980s and early 1990s, teams traveled here from as far away as Chicago, Spokane, Seattle and Salt Lake City. the tournament also received national media coverage.

As the tournament became more well loved, the entry fees and the prize money increased. the tournament reached its peak in 1991 when 225 teams competed for a purse of $51,875 and first-place money of $17,500.

In 1992, for the first time in the tournament’s history, it failed to reach the quota of 225 teams although the tournament did draw 185 teams and had a purse of $50,875.

The Greater Lakeport Chamber of Commerce took over sponsorship of the tournament in 1994. Northlake Ford ran the tournament from 2003 to 2007 when Holder Ford-Mercury took over the management of the tournament and ran it from 2008 through 2011.

This year the primary sponsors of the tournament are the Lake County Chamber of Commerce and Konocti Vista Casino. other sponsors include the Record-Bee, North Lake Medical Pharmacy, Lakeport Ford, Lakeport Camper and Truck, Bi-Coastal Media, Linnell Printing, the Clearlake Bassmasters and the Clear Lake Outdoors tackle shop. without these sponsors the tournament wouldn’t exist.

Because the tournament has been held during the winter and spring months weather has always played a major factor. one of the most nervous moments came in 1989 when thick fog settled on the lake at daylight. I delayed the blast-off until the fog cleared. Finally, after hearing the fishermen complain, I reluctantly agreed to let the boats go, despite visibility being less than 30 yards. the boats roared off in the fog. An hour later I received a call from a resident in Nice who had found floating debris near his dock, including life vests and a fishing license. A check of the name on the license revealed it wasn’t one of our fishermen. my blood pressure dropped by at least 20 points. it was later learned the debris had blown out of a boat three days prior to the tournament.

The worst moment came in 1992 when gale force winds forced me to cancel the second day of the tournament. I declared the first-day leaders the winners and gave them a check for $17,500. Not many fishermen appreciated me stopping the tournament and a number of angry fishermen nearly ran me out of town.

While it’s doubtful the tournament will ever be as huge as it was in 1991, it still remains one of the more well loved bass tournaments held on the lake. You don’t need to be a top pro to take home the money and the tournament offers more enjoyment than cash. this year the tournament is expected to draw approximately 100 boats and the winning team will take home about $4,000.

Fishermen can sign up for the tournament all week at the Clear Lake Outdoors tackle shop located on 96 Soda Bay Road in Lakeport. the deadline to enter is 3:30 p.m. Friday.

March 16, 2012

COASTWIDE – Plenty of bright red ink and hazard warnings highlight this weekend’s ocean forecast along the Oregon Coast, with hazardous seas sticking around into at least early next week. Swells will top 13 feet most of the weekend even though winds are forecast to die down late Saturday or Sunday.

For clammers, no minus tides are forecast this week but the afternoon lows will be good for clamming for the next three days. Bay clamming will be best and safest because of the wave surges from the churning seas.

Ocean crabbing is a bust for the foreseeable future due to perilous conditions.

The marine aggregate limit in Oregon is seven rockfish a day. new for 2012 is a rule that bans cabezon harvest until April to provide a chance to stretch out the cabezon quota.

Lingcod fishing has been very good when anglers have been able to get out. look for lingcod to be around kelp beds and near jetties when the ocean subsides enough for jigging. Black, white and red jigs are good March producers. the lingcod limit is two a day with a 22-inch minimum, and that is separate from the marine aggregate.

BROOKINGS – the bar conditions are extremely poor, so don’t expect any boat activity this weekend. Surfperch fishing has been very good at Winchuck Beach lately when surf and winds allow for it. when the waters settle down, lingcod fishing should be very good for those slowly dragging anchovies or herring along the bottom.

COOS BAY – Chinook salmon fishing opened Thursday for recreational anglers north of Humbug Mountain, but the ocean was far too rough for fishing and is likely to remain so through the weekend. when the ocean settles down, anglers can prospect for chinook in waters about 150 feet deep. Vary your depths with slowly trolled herring or anchovies with hoochies.

Crabbing will be slow off the public docks in the bay due to the heavy surge of freshwater from the rain. the low salinity will force crabs deeper into the bay and then back to the ocean.

Lingcod jigging near Cape Arago has been very good when the weather allows. Black rockfish catches have been low.

WINCHESTER BAY – Sturgeon fishing has been slow below the Highway 101 bridge. Crabbing is likely to be poor for a while because of heavy inflows from the ongoing rainstorms.

AGATE – a fresh batch of legal-sized trout that were stocked less than a month ago have spread throughout the bottom half of the reservoir. Heavy inflows last week raised the reservoir to 78 percent of full and put the trout off the bite. Try worms or PowerBait off the bottom near the dam or wind-drift worms around the shallows in 8 to 16 feet of water. when you get a trout bite, hit that stretch for a while. no gas motors are allowed. Small electric motors are legal.

APPLEGATE – this week’s projected in-flows could put a clamp on trolling or wind-drifting for rainbow trout, which don’t react well to heavy fluctuations in water levels there. Out-flows will remain at the bare minimum of 110 cubic feet per second as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to ramp up the filling of the reservoir. the lake is still 67 feet from full, up eight feet in the last week, and fishing pressure is very light. the facilities at Hart-Tish Park are closed and the low-water ramp at French Gulch is open and usable, as is the Copper ramp. for winter trout fishing, troll Triple Teasers or Wedding Ring lures with worms. Bass fishing is slow. no fresh fish are scheduled for stocking this week.

EMIGRANT – the lake has risen significantly in the past week and will continue to rise, putting trout and warmwater fish off the bite this weekend. Expect some turbid water throughout the reservoir, with cleaner but colder water on the upper end. no new trout are planned for next week.

A standing public-health advisory continues about eating all but trout from the lake because of elevated mercury levels.

HYATT – the lake is closed for the season.

DIAMOND – the lake is closed for the season.

LEMOLO – the lake is closed for the season.

EXPO – Fishing has picked up dramatically after the pond was stocked a week ago Tuesday with legal-sized rainbow trout. the pond is accessible at Gate 5 for the Jackson County Expo Park off Peninger Road. Fish Panther Martin lures and other small lures. Worms a few feet under a bobber have worked well for getting kids into the rainbows.

LOST CREEK – the lake is rising, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will step up its water releases today by 500 cubic feet per second in hopes of capturing as much of the inflow as possible to make up for a dry winter. the surface temperature continues to hover between 41 degrees and 42 degrees, and that has slowed the trout bite and made the bass bite terrible. Trolling should be best near the face of the dam and upstream of Peyton Bridge near the top of the reservoir, but anglers must stay in the cool water because the flowing water is part of the far upper Rogue River system that’s closed to fishing. Worms on Wedding Ring lures trolled slowly at varied depths often works well, especially with small flashers. the boat ramp at Stewart State Park is usable. the Takelma ramp near the dam also is open, but it can be hard to maneuver large boats and trailers there.

LAKE of the WOODS – the ice is thick, and ice fishing continued to be good this week near the resort, with catches of trout and perch on worms and jigs.

FISH – the ice is good near the resort and the Forest Service boat ramp, where anglers are catching a mix of rainbow and brown trout on worms and jigs.

WILLOW – the lake is set for its first stocking of the season Tuesday, and catches will be good off the boat ramp an hour or so after the fish are released. Casting worms or PowerBait from the bank will be best. PowerBait is the closest thing to hatchery raceway food and that’s all these fish have known in their lives.

Access to the county boat ramp is now available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ROGUE – it looks like a rough go for winter steelheading on the entire Rogue River as another heavy and cold storm moves through the region. the middle Rogue blew out Thursday and looks to stay that way until Sunday at the earliest, while the lower Rogue could be messy and turbid into next week. the upper Rogue can pull into shape as early as Saturday, provided the turbidity isn’t too terrible out of Huge Butte and Elk creeks.

That makes the upper Rogue the best bet for winter steelhead fishing, and the action will be focused more on the winter part of that description than the steelhead part.

In the upper Rogue, water releases from Lost Creek Reservoir will jump from 900 cubic feet per second to 1,400 cfs by noon today. Add tributary flows and it looks like flows will peak Friday at around 8,500 cfs at Gold Ray Dam. if the drop is fast, then the upper Rogue could be pretty good for winter steelhead Saturday and likely better Sunday.

Fresh winter steelhead will be on the move, and the best way to get after them will be plugs in migration lanes, either from driftboats or side-planers off the banks. K-11 Kwikfish and larger-lipped crayfish plugs will be the top offerings, with fishing best in water that’s 4- to 6-feet deep and away from the main current. the inside turns of gravel bars could be good. look for waves of fish to be moving through at a time.

In the middle Rogue, the conditions sent anglers packing Thursday when flows rose to 4,100 cfs of water with 15 NTUs of turbidity. Fourteen NTUs is considered the top end for muddy-water steelheading. the flows at Grants Pass will peak Saturday around 13,000 cfs, and that’s going to make steelheading there a bust into early next week. But when the river comes into shape, look for brilliant catches for boat and bank anglers with plugs, yarn balls or watermelon corkies with worms — a middle Rogue and Applegate River staple from way back.

In the lower Rogue, flows are forecast to leap to nearly 29,000 cfs tonight, and the drop is going to be pretty slow into late next week. when it does drop, the quest for spring chinook salmon will be in full bore off the bank and by boaters. Spinning anchovies or cut-plug herring will be tops for boat anglers, while bankies with larger Spin-Glo’s will work at places like Huntley Park and Dunkelberger Bar.

Anglers riverwide can keep one wild winter steelhead at least 24 inches long as part of the two-fish daily limit. the minimum size for hatchery fish to be deemed legal adults is 16 inches long. only five wild winter steelhead can be kept annually.

APPLEGATE – Releases from Applegate Lake will remain at just 110 cubic feet per second today, and look for those release levels to stay low through the weekend. Tributary flows will get winter steelhead on the move and flush the spawned-out summer steelhead kelts out of the system. Fish spoons or yarn flies for winter steelhead. the farther upstream areas likely will be better, depending upon turbidity. find the greenest water and pound it.

All wild steelhead must be released unharmed, and there is no fishing from a floating device.

UMPQUA – the system is forecast to be up and out of shape into the weekend thanks to the latest storm.

CHETCO – the river was way out of shape Friday and is forecast to peak at 32,000 cubic feet per second today, making winter steelhead fishing a tough thought through the weekend.

ELK/SIXES – Both rivers are way high and out of shape for winter steelhead fishing.

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A blue-ribbon panel that hopes to make recommendations that could make the Department of Fish and Game and Fish and Game Commission more efficient recently stated that in theory, the FGC sets policy while the DFG implements that policy.you notice the panel claims that’s “in theory.”In reality, the DFG more often than not will request the FGC to make a necessary change and the FGC OKs the request through a rubber-stamp process.Case in point: it was reported in this column in November the DFG was holding hearings to make major changes to striped bass fishing, including:* Raising the daily bag limit of stripers from two fish to six;* The possession limit would be double the daily bag limit;* Lowering the minimum size for striped bass from 18 inches to 12;* Clifton Court Forebay would be a designated “hot spot,” where the daily bag limit would be 20 fish with a 40-fish possession limit.why? Because these non-native fish were considered a threat to the Delta smelt and newly released baby salmon populations.OK, striped bass aren’t native to California and can be voracious feeders. it was in 1879 when 132 fingerlings were place on a train. They survived the trip and were planted in San Francisco Bay.Striped bass were introduced to California to feed a fish-hungry population and, 10 years after being planted into bay waters, a commercial fishery opened.The fishery was banned in 1935 when striped bass were declared to be a game fish and, therefore, could only be fished for by the recreational angler.Bass thrived in California waters and, yes, probably place a dent in the baby salmon population. But, it took years for the DFG to get a clue. it would release baby salmon by the tens of thousands in Suisun Bay at about the same time every year. Stripers really learned that schedule and waited with open mouths.so, the DFG says, OK, we’ll simply reduce the threat.it scheduled a hearing in Rio Vista, which had to be went because of so much angler interest. The greater interest was against the DFG’s proposal.Today, the limit on striped bass is two per day, 18 inches minimum, with four allowed in possession. Some years ago, the limit was three, 16 inches minimum. I won’t keep a striped bass unless it’s five to eight pounds, as there isn’t enough meat. I wouldn’t consider a 12-inch fish as being edible.well, there was so much angler outrage to the proposal that the FGC recently voted unanimously to reject DFG’s proposal.Therefore, there are no changes to striped bass fishing in California.Current fishingAdditional snow in upper-elevation regions will render some lakes inaccessible.Of course, for summer recreation, we need much more rain and snow. California isn’t unique. The honest-weather pattern is happening across much of the nation.a small storm waltzed across the north state last week, but the again promise of honest weather should get you out in the field with rod and reel, in small-sleeve weather after the sun rises.Lake Pardee: The spring opening is always highly anticipated by anglers throughout the north state, and because of all the honest weather, that’s right for this year. The gate will be unlocked and the entry booth manned on Thursday, Feb. 16, so you can set up for camping. Fishing activities will start bright and early, Friday, Feb. 17, with most anglers making their first cast of the day considerably before the dawn sheds light in the eastern sky.Collins Lake: They do some large spring trout plants, and they did a big plant — trout from four to 11 pounds — early this year due to the nice weather. Haul a crawler behind a dodger around the dam. you can also do well with Power Bait or eggs off a sliding sinker around the beach of the campground area at the lower end.Suisun-San Pablo Bays: I’ve not had much to say about the sturgeon fishery this year. we just haven’t had a winter. Rain causes rivers to rise, which drives out salt water-dependent creatures such as crab, starry flounder, kingfish and even sharks. These critters delight in pricey sturgeon baits, and most anglers don’t want to waste money on a fish they don’t want. While there is sturgeon being taken in Suisun Bay and San Pablo Bay, anglers face constant bites from those less-preferred critters swimming with the sturgeon.Sacramento River: there has been a decent sturgeon bite much closer to home. The waters between the confluence of the Sacramento-Feather rivers upriver to Knights Landing has yielded good catches of humpbacks. The usual shrimp baits should get you bit.Clear Lake: The good thing this time of year is there isn’t much boat traffic and you aren’t fighting the summertime moss. There’s a lot of bass being caught, many of which weigh more than five pounds, for those drifting live bait or tossing swim baits.Lake Amador: They’re planting up to 1,000 pounds of trout every day during the week. The smaller fish are three pounds, and the bigger fish hit seven. Fish from shore off the rocks of the dam, or the dirt area of the spillway. Power Bait, crawlers and eggs should place a limit on the stringer, but cast and retrieve a lure or white crappie jig while waiting for a bite on the bait rig.Bass are finally waking up, but you have to go down as much as 40 feet with a jig off the points.New Melones: Launch at Glory Hole, go around the point and head up the river. there has been a red-hot bite on spawning rainbows. Haul a crawler or shad-like lure. around Glory Hole, you can do well from shore tossing Power Bait off a sliding sinker.Contact George deVilbiss at .

Figured that after several years away from higher-level bass tournament competition I’d give it another try. I’d find out, at least, if I still had any game up against a field of really good anglers. I finished 91st out of 169 and hope the poor result isn’t my final answer.

Largely on the strength of an incredible Day two five-bass limit weighing 35 pounds, 7 ounces (anchored by a 10 ? pound whopper), Brandon Medlock of Lake Placid claimed the win and better than $35 grand in prize money.

Among local fishermen, Keith Fels of Ocala claimed the third-place paycheck, while Jeff Fitts of Keystone Heights also helped to uphold the collective reputation of North Florida anglers with a 10th-place finish. another Keystone Heights angler, Vince Parker, scored a fine fourth-place finish on the co-angler side.

Back to local fishing.

This is the season when most North Florida fishers usually focus on fresh waters. Bass and speckled perch have an eye on spawning in the shallows, and fishing for those two favorites can be exceptional in late January and all of February. This year, though, the question is, “where”? A long run of too-dry weather has the usual productive zones high and dry. some of our favorite lakes are altogether out of play.

Even in these conditions, the fish will find places to spawn, but it seems that this will be a good season to have a smaller, more maneuverable vessel capable of accessing shallow water and tougher-to-negotiate boat ramps.

Lakes Santa Fe and Sampson still offer access via at least one ramp. And the Harris Chain of Lakes near Leesburg, several sites along the St. Johns River, and a drawn-down Rodman Reservoir remain good possibilities for the area crappie or bass fisher.

In a driving rain two Wednesdays ago, Art Pina got off track while running the lowered reservoir and ran aground between Kenwood and Orange Springs. The Gainesville angler didn’t stray from the channel just a small, he ran no less than 200 feet into water far too shallow before his bass boat came to an abrupt stop. After stepping out into the mud and sand, Pina found he could not budge the Ranger. his friends, Charlie Hagler and Jason Howe were fishing nearby, but even the combined lengths of rope they had aboard would not reach the embarrassed basser. Fortunately about that time Shaw Grigsby, who happened to be enjoying the Rodman fishing that day, arrived at the scene. The added length of Shaw’s rope finally reached Art’s boat, and Shaw’s powerful Mercury soon pulled the stuck vessel back into navigable water.

As a nice post script to the tale, Art Pina returned to Rodman last Sunday and had a fantastic bass-catching day. Casting Texas-rigged plastic worms, he boated and released 15 nice largemouths, including a pair of 5-pounders.

Most inshore anglers have reported scant redfish and trout action along the Gulf Coast. Joey and Joseph Yarborough of Orange Heights and Josh Mitchell of Gainesville found similar fare last Friday at Suwannee for much of the day. That afternoon, however, the three men located fish in a big way. Anchored over a hole in near the river mouth and fishing shrimp on the bottom, they hauled in 40 good reds up to 27-inches, a few black drum and a couple of big sheepshead. they kept their three reds, and if they can find another such spot after Feb. 1, they’ll be able to harvest six of legal length.

Another good fish-catching opportunity is not too far off the Gulf Coast. several fishers came in early this week saying they caught lots of big black sea bass in water 25-to-35 feet deep. Sounds like good catches of the tasty and always-hungry sea bass in the one-to-two pound range can be made without much distress. in the gulf, only black sea bass at least 10-inches long can be kept.

The red grouper whose daily limit in the gulf was just increased from 2 to 4 fish at least 20-inches long are still biting well farther offshore. good weekend grouper catches were made out of most gulf ports in water 35 to 65 feet deep by anglers pleased to take advantage of the outstanding weather.

John Stork, Jane Inouye, Adam Means and Shorty the dog ran off Suwannee on Monday to small areas with hard bottom in water 65 feet deep. they anchored and dropped frozen baits to the structure. in just an hour and a half, they filled a triple limit — a dozen chunky red grouper.

Gary Simpson, a veteran tournament angler, operates Gary’s Tackle Box at L & S Trim.

It’s usually about this time of the year when fishermen start to suffer from a case of “cabin fever” and start to spend their spare time cleaning reels and straightening up tackle boxes. The spring shad runs haven’t started yet and the speckled trout are a bit “iffy” yet. some stripers are around and beginning to gather near where coastal streams start to meander inland. if you fall among these cabin fever few who really need a fishing “fix” you might consider trying some of our sluggish coastal streams to fish for the bowfin.

There aren’t a fantastic many anglers who really go fishing for this fish and it’s a shame because it’s about as hard a fighting sport fish as you’ll find and its spawning run should be getting underway very soon.

I was passing by a well-known coastal stream along the upper Pamlico River a few years ago when I saw a congregation of autos pulled off to the side of the road where the Highway 33 bridge crossed over the stream. I turned around, went back and found a safe parking spot and wondered down to the creek to see what the big attraction was. Probably 50% of the fishermen seemed to be tied onto some strong fish and whoops were heard as more anglers had strikes. I asked what in the world the guys were catching and one fisherman replied “grindles.”

Grindle is a local name for what many states consider to be a right sport fish and it’s a shame that some of our local anglers consider them to be “trash” fish. States to the north of North Carolina really raise “grindles” and they’re called by their proper name of “bowfin” (Amia calva for the scientists). They‘re also known as grinnel, brindle, blackfish, mudfish, dogfish, shoepike, cypress bass, cypress trout, choupique, scaly cat, buglemouth bass, German bass, brindlefish.

There are among a few angers here in North Carolina who really goes out fishing for the bowfin. this is particularly right in the spring when these fish are moving into the spawning areas up in the headwaters of some coastal streams.

Other enterprising areas of the state such as Jamesville along the Roanoke River and Highway 64 have held bowfin tournaments in past years. It’s unfortunate because it was a popular and fun contest that brought a lot of visitors to this part of the state.

Two of us took part in this tournament (we didn’t win anything) a few years ago and I was amazed at how much fun this tournament was. I suppose one of the main drawbacks of the contest was that it was held during August when it was terribly hot and humid. The small stream that was preferred by most of the fishermen was as hot to the touch as warm bathwater and I really had my doubts if very acceptable oxygen content was in the water.

Following the lead of other fishermen who appeared to know what they were doing to fish for these “mudfish” we started casting plastic worms and spinner baits into the log-choked backwaters where out mentors were fishing. It didn’t take too long to learn that there were fish there this hit our lures but we just couldn’t seem to get a hook to set in their mouths. we struck back when a fish hit much the same as we did when we were bass fishing but these hooks didn’t want to bite into the mouth of whatever fish was hitting these lures.

Finally one of the more experienced anglers came over to us and suggested that we let the fish hole the lure in its mouth a small longer and then really strike back on the line hard. he explained that the bowfin had exceptionally tough mouths and in order to get the hook into the fishes’ mouth you had to really make the hook dig in deep. we followed his advice and started to catch bowfin nearly as well as the others were doing.

The first bowfin we pulled into the boat proceeded to try and tear the boat apart as it flopped all over the deck. when we tried to subdue the fish it proceeded to try and take a bite out of our hand too. this was one mean fish!

Bowfin have a set of formidable teeth and an exceptionally strong jaw muscle to go along with it. we had to be constantly replacing the relatively fragile plastic worms and if we were using spinnerbaits we soon learned that if you brought a fish to boat with the spinnerbait in its mouth, you might as well throw the lure away. It was usually a twisted mass of wire and metal.

Since this tournament was a “kill” tournament where you did not have to bring the fish alive to be weighed in we were surprised to see some fishermen keeping their recently caught bowfins in live wells like you would bass in a contest. we learned the reason for this when we returned to the weighing station and found fish dealers there offering cash money for live bowfin. this was particularly right in the case of smaller bowfins of about around or less. Apparently these were aquarium fish dealers buying bowfins to resell to aquarium enthusiasts from population centers.

The bowfin is a truly prehistoric carry-over from the Jurassic age. It has an air bladder that allows the fish to literally gulp in air and live in oxygen deficient water where other fish can’t readily live. Bowfin that might be thrown on the bank or on the dry deck of a boat in hot weather can (and will) live for days. Don’t go sticking a finger in the mouth of one of these fish to pick it up. They could appear to be dead since they were throw on the bank two days ago and can take a plug from a finger.

I have heard of people eating bowfin and they have described the flesh as being “gelatinous.” It’s supposed to solidify upon being cooked. Curiously there is a strongly developing commercial marked for gravid (egg bearing) bowfins in certain areas of Louisiana where the eggs are harvested, salted down to preserve them and marketed as “Cajun Caviar.” I’ve read that it’s pretty tasty.

Many fishery managers cringe at any fish being called a “trash fish” and it’s for sure that the bowfin is a fine sporting fish. It feeds on about the same forage as a largemouth bass and it is a very strong fighter. It may be a bit of a mess to unhook but if you’re not going to kill and eat or save it for an aquarium hobbyist, release them to be caught again another day.

a raft of majors are spending around $50 billion expanding the coal seam gas export industry in Queensland. Source: AFP

GAS is rapidly emerging as the dominant Australian investment theme this year and quite possibly for the next decade.

BHP Billiton and partner ExxonMobil are pouring billions of extra dollars into expanding Bass Strait production in anticipation of steeply rising gas prices, a raft of majors are spending around $50 billion developing the coal seam gas export industry in Queensland and Woodside yesterday predicted a six-fold increase in gas demand from China and India by 2025.

Then there are numerous shale gas players of various sizes developing what they claim is a "safer" alternative to coal seam gas, not to mention BHP’s choice to splurge $19 billion on shale gas assets in the US.

All of which means that if we are going to meet those soon to be escalating gas and electricity bills – particularly in relatively gas-starved Victoria – it is high time to get a piece of the upside action.

One of the more fascinating plays at the moment is Karoon Gas, which has responded to a volatile share price with a very aggressive drilling campaign over the next couple of years that will cost Karoon and its much larger partners up to $1 billion.

Karoon shares were travelling north of $10 a year ago and fell as low as $2.60 earlier this month before hitting $4 at yesterday’s close.

One of the huge weights on the share price has been the fate of a 12 per cent stake owned by the Talbot Investment Group – the investment company founded by the late Ken Talbot.

And another was the since-abandoned attempt to float off the South American assets.

At yesterday’s annual meeting Talbot chief Don Nissan indicated he was very happy with Karoon’s direction and that the key stake had been bought by Ken Talbot as an investment rather than for speculation.

That relieves the imminent stock overhang, although the main game for Karoon will be discovery.

On that basis the company is fishing in the right waters, with plenty of prospectivity in its ambitious drilling program.

The Browse Basin is the key to Karoon’s hopes with a five to eight well drilling program over the next couple of years with partner ConocoPhillips doing most of the financial heavy lifting.

Offshore drilling tends to be a honestly binary equation so if any of these wells hit significant hydrocarbons, Karoon shareholders will enjoy a significant kick and vice versa.

Dry holes do wonders for getting a "better understanding" of things like reservoir potential but it is the free flowing gas and oil that is the real goal.

In this case the aim is to expand the existing Poseidon discovery into the sort of resource that could sustain a LNG project.

Similarly, once the right farm-in partners are found, drilling in Brazil’s Santos basin and Peru’s Tumbes Basin shows promise but with no guarantee of success.

Karoon is a speculative buy packed with potential and a reasonably small time frame in which the main questions will be answered.

I HAVE long been a supporter of Beach Energy’s pioneering push into developing shale gas in Australia.

But that support gets more hard to justify when a company has virtually doubled its share price in the last year.

My reason for maintaining a speculative buy call on Beach is two-fold – shale acreage in the Cooper Basin is still incredibly cheap compared to the US equivalent and Beach’s horizontal drilling so far has unearthed impressive amounts of gas.

It will be expensive to get to that gas but the acreage is what counts and on that basis Santos is also a speculative buy.

The more conservative investor who still likes the prospects for energy should stick to Woodside (LNG) and Origin Coal (coal seam gas and electricity and gas distribution) which are both buys.

The Herald Sun accepts no responsibility for stock recommendations. Readers should contact a licensed financial adviser.