Suisun Bay and the West Delta, where the fresh water of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and saltwater mix, is one of the richest marine environments in the state. The trapping of nutrients in the "null zone" where the salt and fresh water mix sustains a food chain of phyto and zooplankton that shrimp, clams and numerous bait fish feed upon. Striped bass, white sturgeon, white catfish, starry flounder, steelhead and other species feed heavily upon the bait fish and other forage in this great fishing area.

I hadn't been striped bass fishing this year in Suisun Bay, so the offer to go fishing was irresistible. "I'll be there tomorrow," I said. "I'm ready."

Unfortunately, only two anglers other than myself showed up at the dock the next morning. After waiting until 7:30 a.m. for the rest of the people to show up - who didn't even have the decency to call and cancel the trip - Smith started the motor and we left the harbor.

It was a beautiful, sunny, calm day for December, with the forecasted temperatures in the lower sixties. We were just leaving the harbor when I realized I didn't have my fishing license on my shirt - it was back in the car!

So Smith graciously drove the boat back to the dock at the Martinez Marina and I put the license on and we got to fishing. "That's all I need after writing many articles critical of the DFG - to get cited for not wearing my license," I told Smith.

Smith anchored up the boat and said it might be a while until we got bites, since the incoming tide wasn't for another few hours. However, the bite started on the beginning of the outgoing tide. We got our first bite in the first hour. Ed Borden of Lafayette had a bite on his cut bullhead, let the fish take off with the bait and set the hook. Unfortunately, the fish came quickly off from the hook.

Captain Smith was the next to hook up, catching a beautiful, clean and shiny 7 pound striper. "All of the fish are bright and clean like this after leaving the bay and moving toward the Delta," he stated.

Deckhand Al Lofton was the next to hook up with another quality striper about 9 pounds. Ron Robertson of Sacramento caught the next fish, an 8 pounder, followed by an 18 pound beauty.

I finally got my bite and hooked and landed a 9 pound striper. About 30 minutes later, I caught another fish exactly the same size.

After we took photos of each fish, Smith and Lofton quickly bled the stripers. "It's better to bleed the fish right away when we can, since the meat will taste better when you cook it," Smith stated.

As the tide built momentum, the bite tapered off and Smith switched to a location closer to the Mothball Fleet. During the afternoon, when we expected the bite to really turn on like it had on Sunday, we only landed one striped bass. However, the fish that Al Lofton caught was a 20 pounder, the largest fish of the day.

I switched to sturgeon fishing with eel and shrimp, since I had already landed my limit of stripers. I got a pump during slack tide and set the hook. "You got a sturgeon," said Smith.

However, the "sturgeon" soon turned out to be a despised skate, after providing an exciting but brief battle. "You know we haven't got much rain when you start catching skates in Suisun Bay," stated Smith. "Normally, the water would be muddy and fresh after a series of rains this time of year."

The saltiness of the water was also demonstrated by a big, fat kingfish that Robertson brought in.

We had some more bites, including some that looked promising, but we didn't put any more fish in the box. Our count for the day was 7 bass to 20 pounds for three passengers, the deckhand and the captain. We experienced quality striper fishing for this time of year while enjoying beautiful, fall-like weather on Suisun Bay. As an added bonus, the fishing pressure was very light, with only a few boats around us.

The fishing was great also during the following week. For example, the Baywatch returned by 10 a.m. with 8 limits of stripers, while the Happy Hooker came back with 18 limits of stripers on Friday, December 14.

The big winter rains we are now seeing are expected to push the skates and kingfish out of Suisun Bay into San Pablo and San Francisco bays and to put the sturgeon on the bite. In past years, I have experienced some of my best sturgeon action ever in the late fall and early winter while fishing in Suisun Bay with Captains James and Jim Smith, Chuck Powell of Antioch and Barry Canevaro of The Fish Hookers Sportfishing. Hopefully, this season should be a good one for sturgeon.

Among the productive sturgeon spots to try in Suisun Bay include the Mothball Fleet, Garnet Point, Middle Grounds, Roe Island, Ryer Island, Suisun Cut, the Firing Line and the Pittsburg area. Eel has become the most popular bait in the bay for sturgeon over the past several years, but grass, mud and ghost shrimp and pileworms are great baits also.

For more information about fishing aboard the Baywatch and Happy Hooker, call (510) 223-5388. Other captains available for sturgeon and striped bass trips on Suisun Bay include Barry and Diana Canevaro, The Fish Hookers Sportfishing, fishhookers.com, (916) 777-6498; Mark Delnero, Fin Addict Sportfishing, finaddictsportfishing.com, (209) 367-HOOK; Captain Gordon Hough, the Morning Star, 1-800-464-1431; Captain Norm Chapin, Hook Em Up Sport Fishing, (408) 666-9942; Captain John Badger, Barbarian Sportfishing, (707) 469-7585; and 4-Play Sportfishing, (707) 642-0310