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SHASTA LAKE KINGS & RAINBOWS...
Trollers are enjoying superb action while targeting trout and king salmon at Lake Shasta. Bass anglers are doing equally as well while employing soft plastics and other lures.
"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.
Great Places to Fish
This area offers a wide variety of fishing. Among the more popular fishing spots are the McCloud River and the upper Sacramento River. These two rivers feature native trout and are favorites of fly fishermen. Shasta and Claire Engle lakes are man-made, large, and populated by largemouth and smallmouth bass, trout, and the usual assortment of sunfish and cats. These lakes are great for camping. Boat traffic can be a little heavy during peak season. Whiskeytown Lake has the coldest lake water in the area and the smallmouth and trout fishing can be excellent.
There are alpine lakes, many almost unfished because they are in wilderness areas. Some, however, are only a short walk from the trailhead. You can find brook, cutthroat, and rainbows in these lakes. Fish and Game has had a program for about 10 years stocking some lakes in the Trinity, Russian, and Marble Mountain Wilderness areas with golden trout. These alpine fish are on the small side but there are a lot of them.
Kangaroo Lake near Callahan has a handicapped campground and concrete sidewalks on one side of the lake for wheelchair fishing. There are some 4 pound rainbows to be caught there. The upper Klamath River around Yreka boasts fantastic trout fishing in late spring and summer months. The fall run of salmon can provide nonstop action for fish in the 10 to 12 pound class. There is also a healthy steelhead run. Because the fish are smaller than other rivers in the area, the run doesn't get as much attention or fishing pressure as other Northern California rivers.
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