Hemphill and his fishing partner caught and released 28 largemouths while fishing for 6-1/2 hours, from 6:30 p.m. to 12:30 p.m., on Thursday, June 4. "The fish ranged from 1-3/4 pounds to 4 pounds, 2 ounces, with the average fish going 3 pounds," said Hemphill. "Our top five fish weighed 19 pounds, 10 ounces."

"We landed 17 fish two hours before dark and the rest of the fish after dark," said Hemphill. "We fished anywhere from 2 to 20 feet deep from the Narrows south."

The piscatorial duo caught their fish while using Brush Hogs, black and blue D & M Piranha Swim Jigs and plastic worms. The water temperature was 69 to 71 degrees.

Don Davis of San Rafael caught an 18 pound salmon on Thursday, June 4 while fishing the lower Klamath with Dave Castellanos of Cast Guide Service. Joey Pritchard nailed a 25 pound fish five days before.

"It's still early in the run, so you're taking your chances every time you go out," he stated. "We're fishing spinners below the mouth of Blue Creek."

The salmon flies are starting to come out on the upper Klamath River from below the Iron Gate Fish Hatchery to Interstate 5, so fly fishermen are getting ready for some of the hottest rainbow trout fishing of the year.

"They salmon flies are not been flying yet, but will start as soon as our weather gets warmer," reported Al Kutzkey, fishing guide. "I fished the past few days and did ok. I could not get the fish on the surface, but wet flies were working. We tried just about everything, but drifting the salmon flies themselves was the best."

Kutzkey and clients landed about 15 quality trout on his latest drift boat adventure, with the biggest going 18 inches.

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The Lower Umpqua River is kicking out good numbers of king salmon up and beyond the 40 pound mark, with the average fish running in the upper teens to lower 20 pound range, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

While it is the spring kings that hold the spotlight, smallmouth bass and shad fishing are coming on strong with rising water temperatures. Anglers are not getting the huge numbers of smallies and shad they will be getting when spring gives way to summer, but they are still enjoying plenty of action at this time.

On the North Umpqua, summer steelhead counts across Winchester Dam are 136 and more than 3,500 chinook thru May 21. Boat fishing activity has increased in the section below the dam along with chinook harvest numbers. Fishing in the Rock Creek area for chinook is good. The fish are actively moving now with the increased flows and warmer water.

Remember that only adipose fin-clipped steelhead can be harvested on the North Umpqua. The North is open to catch and release trout fishing from the mouth upstream to Soda Springs Dam.

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"I'm out on the lake now and we are spanking the fish in Dry Creek ," exclaimed Gary Miralles of the Shasta Tackle Company. "So far we've landed a mixed bag of rainbows and king salmon to 22 inches. We've been hooking fish on Cripplures, Hum Dingers and Wiggle Hoochies. Other than in Dry Creek, the best trout fishing has been taking place in Digger Bay, in front of the dam, in Bridge Bay and in the Pit River Arm."

Bill Divens of the Salmon King Lodge has also been enjoying great action while trolling Shasta's main body.

"We've been getting a lot of kings up into the 20 inch range," related Divens. "We've been getting our fish while trolling rigged anchovies behind 1/0 Sep's dodgers in the fruit salad color. We haven't been catching many trout, but I think that is primarily due to the fact that we aren't pulling any lures and our anchovies are too big to interest the trout."

According to Ron Ng of Phil's Propellers, bass fishing is great at Shasta for big numbers of 1 to 1.75 pound fish.

"Guys are catching bass on Senkos, 4 and 6 inch plastic worms and tubes. Brown, blue and green colors have been working the best. If you want a shot at a larger fish, top water baits, large worms and dark colored spinnerbaits are the best options. At this point the bass are spread all around the lake. The bulk of the fish are concentrated from the bank to 20 feet deep," said Ng.

Shasta is currently 54 feet from maximum pool.

Mike Elster of Mike Elster's Guide Service has been experiencing mixed results while fishing at Whiskeytown Reservoir.

"Some days we are getting easy limits of kokanee and other days we struggle to get a couple fish. Wiggle Hoochies behind UV Sling Blades have been getting fish up to 14 inches while trolling in 45 to 80 feet of water," said Elster.

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"We were back to the dock today by noon with limits of rockfish for 10 anglers," reported Brian Cutting, captain of the Chubasco at Randy's Fishing Trips on Monday June 8. "The anglers caught limits of yellowtail, olive, blue and vermilion rockfish while fishing shrimp flies and bars off Cypress Point. The fish averaged 1-1/2 to 2 pounds each."

A trip aboard the Chubasco to Big Sur on Sunday yielded limits of yellowtail, olive, blue and vermilion rockfish averaging 3 to 4 pounds each. "The best lure was a 10 oz. white Kings Tackle bar," said Cutting. "We hooked the fish in 180 to 200 feet of water."

On the previous day, the 15 anglers aboard the boat bagged full limits of rockfish averaging 3 to 4 pounds off Point Sur.

"Anglers are catching limits of rockfish every day," said Todd Arcoleo of Chris Fishing Trips. "The anglers fishing aboard the Checkmate today bagged limits of vermilion, yellowtail and olive rockfish while fishing shrimp flies and bars off Cypress Point."

On the weekend of June 6 to 7, the Star of Monterey, Checkmate and Caroline all reported in with limits of rockfish, along with several lingcod, on trips to Point Sur. "The average sack weighed 40 to 45 pounds," said Arcoleo.

Santa Cruz private and charter boat anglers are also nailing limits of rockfish. The 23 fishermen aboard the Velocity on June 7 fished for bottomfish off Davenport in 100 feet of water. They caught limits of assorted brown, black and red rockfish and one 12 pound lingcod.

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Baum Lake and the Cassel Area of Hat Creek are producing solid fishing for 8 to 14 inch rainbows and an occasional brown. A Kelseyville angler demonstrated his angling prowess by nailing a 3-1/2 pound German brown on a recent trip, noted Vaughn.

The top fly patterns are callibaetis, pale morning dun and caddis. Lure fishers are doing best on Panther Martins with silver blades and yellow bodies, while bait anglers are tossing out nightcrawlers, Power Bait and mealworms.

Anglers fishing an array of flies and spinners are nailing brook trout to 3 pounds in Burney Creek in the State Park. The stretch of creek from Burney Falls to Lake Britton is restricted to artificial lures, barbless hooks only. Anglers may keep two fish under 14 inches.

Another good spot for brook trout is Upper Hat Creek, where the DFG recently stocked a bunch of big brookies. Flies, spinners and bait are all working. Lower Hat Creek has been producing 10 to 18 inch rainbows when the salmon flies are hatching.

"Crappie and smallmouth fishing is good on Lake Britton," said Vaughn. "Anglers are nailing quality crappie measuring 9 to 10 inches long while using small jigs. Boaters are also nailing smallmouths in the 12 to 15 inch range on plastic worms and top water lures."

The Fall River is producing "really good" dry fly action for 10 to 17 inch rainbows, Vaughn stated. Anglers are fishing caddis and callibaetis patterns.

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Bank anglers are experiencing the top action at Turkey Point and Crystal Point while soaking inflated nightcrawlers or nightcrawler/marshmallow combinations. The fish are healthy rainbows ranging from 14 to 21 inches long, according to Terry Stancil at Wiggin's Trading Post.

"Trollers are hooking trout while using copper/redhead Dick Nites, yellow, red and green Roostertails and Luhr Jensen spinners," said Stancil.

Limits of trout are also the rule at Lake Davis, where fishing has turned red hot over the last week, as the surface water temperature has risen to 64 degrees.

"Fly fishing leads the way, as the damsel hatch has started in limited areas of the lake," said Jerry Dollard at Dollard's Sierra Market in Portola. "Even where there is no damsel activity, fishing can be good. Try NW Mosquito, Freeman, Cow and Jenkins for good results."

Mitch Matsumoto gave the best report of the weekend while fly fishing the Cow Creek area. He caught and released 60 fish from 7 am to 12:30 pm casting and stripping a Sheep Creek Special on an intermediate sinking line from his kayak. 20 fish ranged from 17 to 22 inches while the rest averaged 12 to 15 inches.

Trolling is also producing good results, with Dillard's Guided Fishing catching and releasing 40 to 50 fish a day on the weekend. The anglers trolled with Wee Dick Nites, Needlefish in Red Dot Frog #1, Fire Tiger #1 and Metallic Perch #1 in about 25 feet of water to a depth of about 6 to 8 feet.

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"The most productive area is from Watt Avenue to Sunrise," said Bob Sparre of Rocky River Guide Service "We're averaging 30 fish per trip while using 1/16 ounce white jig heads with champagne tails. Last night we started seeing a lot more females to 4 pounds, along with the smaller males."

Striped bass are also showing in better numbers as they follow the shad into the river. "Stripers chased our hooked shad during the past two evenings, but I haven't tried fishing for the bass," noted Sparre.

"The shad fishing is slow at the mouth of the American," stated Dennis Phanner at Sacramento Pro Tackle, "but it is good on the stretch from Watt Avenue to Sunrise. Shore anglers and waders are experiencing the best success using grubs in pink and chartreuse."

The Bureau of Reclamation reduced releases below Nimbus Dam from 3,500 cfs. on June 5 to 2,500 cfs on June 6.

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"The fishing for both stripers and sturgeon was a lot slower last week," reported Jason Shepard at Rio Vista Bait. "There was only one striper brought to our shop last week. I think a lot of the stripers have moved down toward the bay."

"Sturgeon fishing has also slowed down quite a bit in our area. If you want to fish for sturgeon Montezuma Slough and Suisun Bay have been the best areas," added Shepard.

Audie at Hap's Bait described the fishing in the Rio Vista area as "good when the wind stops blowing".

"There are still catchable numbers of stripers around," said Audie. "Most of them are being caught by guys fishing with baits like pile worms, grass shrimp, anchovies, sardines and shad. I haven't received any good trolling reports for a few days.

"There have been a few sturgeon reported up in Cache Slough, but that bite is fairly slow. The wind and weather have been crazy out here in the Delta. The pressure has been going up and down and I know that it's effecting the fishing," added Audie.

For a complete Delta Report, click here.

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"Anglers are nailing limits of kokanee in the 13 to 16 inch c ass every day," said Matt Summers at Glory Hole Sports. "The fish are hitting hoochies, spinners and an array of lures from 30 to 65 feet, depending on the time of day. The top area is from the dam to the spillway and around Rose Island."

On June 6, Robert Muhlbier and Tom Gunter of Sonora bagged 9 kokanee and one 4 lb. ¾ oz. rainbow while trolling. Seven-year old Luke Soula of Yuba City also nailed a limit of kokanee near Rose Island while trolling hoochies at 40 to 50 feet.

"Black bass fishing is very good, with anglers reporting up to 30 fish per day," said Summers. "The fish average 2 to 3 pounds, with no big ones taken lately. Anglers are using top water lures, buzzbaits, Senkos, jigs, spinnerbaits, Brush Hogs and 6-inch worms on Carolina rigs."

"We're not seeing the big catfish yet," noted Summers. "The biggest fish caught to date was an 8-1/2 pounder. However, you can expect to see more large catfish with the warmer weather."

The reservoir is 160 feet from maximum pool and the surface water temperature has ranged from 72 to 76 degrees.

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Fishing continues to be good for a mixture of recently planted rainbows, along with holdover brook, brown and rainbow trout in the 12 to 18 inch range. "Anglers fishing the lake yesterday evening nailed some nice rainbows and browns while using nightcrawlers and Rapalas," said Voss.

"The lake level is coming up rapidly," noted Voss. "It's only 7 feet from full now and is expected to rise another 3 or 4 feet."

Silver Lake is yielding solid rainbow and brown fishing for anglers trolling or still fishing nightcrawlers from kayaks and other boats, reported Dave Kirby at Woodfords Station. Red Lake is kicking out a mixture of brook and cutthroat trout for bank anglers and boats using nightcrawlers, Power Bait and lures. "Anglers aren't nailing full limits – they're averaging about 3 to 4 fish per rod," said Kirby.

"The DFG last week stocked 700 brood stock Lahontan cutthroat trout, including beautiful fish in the 4 to 5 pound range, in Indian Creek Reservoir, Red Lake and the West Fork of the Carson River," said Kirby.

Alpine County also planted 300 pounds of rainbow trout for the local Kids Derby on Saturday, June 6, along with 300 pounds in the West Fork Carson and another 300 pounds in the East Fork Carson.

"The West Fork is about normal for this time of year and is running clear, while the East Fork is a little murky because of the thunderstorms moving through," said Kirby. "The rivers are producing trout to 6-1/2 pounds for fishermen using nightcrawlers, spinners and flies."

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"I'm sorry to report that the fishing here is still horrible," reported Gary Moffet at Ernie's Sporting Goods. "The thunder storms and pressure changes we've experienced have put the fish off the bite."

"Overall I'd say your best bet for catching trout at any of our local lakes is to soak night crawlers. I think all of our lakes are equally slow right now, but if I had to pick a place as being the best I guess I'd choose Silver or Grant Lake. Those lakes are getting some inflow and that often makes the trout bite," added Moffet.

"Bridgeport Reservoir is fishing well from boats and tubes, but it's a little iffy from the shore," disclosed Jim Reid at Ken's Sporting Goods. "The boat guys are fishing Power Bait, crawlers and Gulp! Eggs, either out from the marina to Rainbow Point, or even down near the bathtub."

The tubers have been doing the best with midging rigs, dropping a mini leech with a zebra or callibaetis dropper below an indicator. The lake has risen over 2 feet this past 2 weeks so it's level is looking good.

"The East Walker is flowing at around 190 cfs and is still fishing great. There's lots of midge action, caddis action, some streamer action and some dry fly action as well. There's many, many 10 to 15 inch fish being caught, and pretty good numbers of 16 to 20's, with a few every day over 20. The temps are good so I'd expect the river to be fishing well for a while," said Reid.

"The Virginia Lakes are still fishing really well, despite the cruddy weather. They've had some snow flurries up there this past week, but it hasn't slowed the action down. You can pretty much use anything up there to catch fish, just put on your long-handles and tough it out," quipped Reid.

According to Dan Farris at Brock's Sporting Goods, the Lower Owens is flowing at 175 cfs and is fishing very well. Nymphs have been the most effective offering, but woolly buggers and other streamers are taking fish too. There hasn't been much dry fly activity with the cooler stormy weather, but as soon as the weather warms back up the caddis hatches are expected to resume.

"In the Owens River Gorge, the temperatures are just right. Most any fly will do the trick here just keep it 16 and smaller. I typically use a size 16 yellow or orange stimulator with a flashback bead head pheasant tail or a tiger midge as a dropper. No need to get down there early. Mid morning to mid afternoon is fine," tipped Farris.

"The fishing at Crowley Lake has been spotty at best. This time of year the trout are spread out due to the lack of the weed beds. You will have to move a lot until you find the fish. The fish are in 10 to 13 feet of water," added Farris.

For Tom Loe's Sierra Report, click here.

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"Fishing is very good for boaters these days," reported Carla Molino of the Pyramid Lake Store. "The best action has been taking place on the other side of the lake at Red Bay, Anderson Bay, and Fox Bay. Trollers are pulling Flatfish, Apex Lures and spoons. Anglers that have the best results are trolling underwater drop offs. The largest fish we've seen have weighed between 7 and 8 pounds."

"Some fly anglers are still reporting 20 to 30 fish days in some areas. With the water temperature going up, I suspect that the fly anglers are having their best fishing in the early morning and late evening hours," added Molino.

As the lake temperature continues to climb, fly fishing will become less and less productive as the trout move into deep water. Trollers, on the other hand, should continue to enjoy top-notch fishing right up until the closure.

The staff at Crosby Lodge disclosed that fly fishing at the lake was "still very good" but added that boaters were catching fish too.

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Captain James Smith of California Dawn Sportfishing has been putting his anglers on good to very good action while fishing various areas of the south, central and upper bay. On June 3 Smith's anglers boated 18 halibut to 15 pounds and added 24 stripers to 12 pounds while working the Berkeley Flats and parts of the north bay.

On his next trip on June 5 Smith's clients pulled in 42 halibut to 13 pounds and 19 stripers to 15 pounds while working the central section of the bay.

Captain Bob Wright has been running the Happy Hooker while Captain Jim Smith is vacationing with a fishing rod in his hand in Alaska. Wright has been achieving good results while drifting live bait in various areas. According to Wright, the water is clearing and good fishing is expected during the upcoming week.

Captains Joe and Joey Gallia of New Easy Rider Sportfishing have been targeting halibut and stripers with a high level of success. According to Joe, anglers aboard the New Easy Rider had been hooking solid numbers of halibut while trolling with dead bait. Now that live bait is available, their success is continuing while drifting various areas of the bay with live anchovies.

"The fishing is very good," reported John Perrodin of the Emeryville Sportfishing Center. "The halibut and striper fishing has been great over the past week, now that we have live bait."

"On Saturday June 6, we sent out 116 anglers and they scored 104 halibut to 21 pounds and 42 stripers to 20 pounds. On Friday we only had 43 anglers, but they busted 47 halibut to 19 pounds and 36 stripers to 17 pounds. The best action seems to be taking place near Angel Island," said Perrodin.