May 22, 2021 Fishing Report by Ken Baccetti!

My name is Ken Baccetti. I’m the President of the California Striped Bass Association (CSBA), Isleton-Delta Chapter. As a lifelong fisherman, fishing the California Delta, San Francisco Bay and Ocean waters, I will be your fishing reporter. Now on to the fish report for May 22, 2021 to prepare you for the Memorial Day weekend:

The striper bite in the Delta continues to be very good, but fishing locations change daily due to the windy weather conditions that have persisted off and on for the past few weeks. Captain Jeff Soo Hoo, of Soo Hoo Sportfishing, tells me the stripers can be found on the West Bank of the Sacramento River and on the shoals of the San Joaquin River, but the wind can dictate if you can fish in these locations or not. Captain Jeff further tells me that the wind has caused the water to be very muddy not only on the Sacramento River, but on the San Joaquin River as well. He’s been drifting jumbo minnows mainly on the San Joaquin River near Eddo’s Harbor and on the nearby shoals for limits to near limits of stripers for his clients (see the attached photos). The top and bottom of the tides have been the most productive for him. Meanwhile legendary Delta angler Mark Wilson has been trolling deep diving Yozuri’s on the San Joaquin River from Eddo’s Harbor to the Antioch Bridge. Mark also advises me that the wind dictates his fishing locations. Both Captain Jeff and Mark Wilson confirm that the majority of the fish they’ve caught have already spawned, but they are both still seeing some stripers that haven’t spawned out yet. This tells them that the striper bite will continue for a while longer until the stripers are all spawned out. Once this occurs most stripers begin to migrate towards San Pablo and San Francisco Bays and ocean for the summer months.

Sturgeon fishing continues to be very good according to Captain Zack Medinas of Gatecrasher Fishing Adventures. Wind conditions again dictates where Captain Zack has been fishing. He tells me that if the wind conditions allow, he’s been fishing off of Pittsburg. He continued to tell me that if it’s windy he’s been heading into Montezuma Slough. Both locations have been very productive using salmon roe and eel for bait to entice the sturgeon. He’s been boating multiple slot and some oversize sturgeon for his clients on his trips. See the attached photos taken of some of his recent trips.

Moving on down to San Francisco Bay, all I can say is the halibut bite continues. Captain Don Franklin, of Sole-Man Sportfishing, tells me that the halibut bite for his clients has been very good lately. Captain Don has been boating halibut and a few stripers on the West side of Angel Island, the Berkeley Flats, around Treasure Island and the Alameda Rock Wall (see the attached photos). Wind again will dictate where you’re able to fish in the bay as well. If the wind is blowing, Captain Don advises fishing the East side of Treasure Island, Paradise Cay or the South Bay. Live bait is available at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco at Pier 47. J&P Bait is open Mondays thru Thursdays 6am to 9am, and Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays they’re open 5am to 10am. The prices are $35 for a small scoop and $55 for a large. One fishery that is sometime overlooked is leopard shark fishing. If you’re not wanting to fish for halibut try anchoring in the South bay for leopard sharks. All you’ll need is a leader similar to a sturgeon rig and some squid, midshipman or salmon bellies for bait. It’s a great alternative, again if the wind will allow you to anchor and fish.

Now some salmon news. The salmon sport fishing season above Pigeon Point, and out the Golden Gate, will open on June 26, 2021. Because of low numbers of both Sacramento and Klamath River salmon, the Pacific Fisheries Management Council decided to slash about 40 percent of the regular sport fishing season. Sport fishing in the rivers is scheduled to open on July 16, 2021. After a request from the Golden State Salmon Association (GSSA), hatchery salmon are being trucked and released at sites in and around San Francisco Bay to minimize drought related losses. This follows requests from the GSSA in its meetings with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife urging the State to act. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has also decided to truck roughly 950,000 baby salmon from the Coleman Hatchery near Redding to the West Bay. John McManus, President of the GSSA tells me that this won’t help this year’s restricted season, but the trucking should produce a large number of 20” jacks by next year and allow a fishing season in 2023. This will be especially valuable considering water temperature forecasts now show that water temperatures will likely be lethal for spawning salmon by fall unless the State acts to require added temperature protections.

For those anglers that would prefer to fish a lake, I would recommend Lake Berryessa in nearby Napa County. On Thursday, May 20, 2021 my wife and I fished with Don Paganelli of Paganelli’s Bass Fishing Experience. We launched at Markley Cove Marina and we had a great day on the water with Don. Don recommended casting root beer color tubes and letting them sink to the bottom where bass were protecting their spawning beds. His experience on the lake didn’t disappoint, as within minutes my wife caught her first bass, in fact by days end she caught multiple black bass, a couple of small mouth bass and a spotted bass (see the attached photo). I couldn’t keep up with her, but I did catch multiple bass as well. The lake also has rainbow, brown and brook trout, kokanee salmon, bluegill and other freshwater species.

If you would like more information about the California Striped Bass Association (CSBA), go to our website (www.striper-csba.org). You will be able to access all the information related to the 5 CSBA Chapters. New members only pay $25, that includes a one time $5 initiation fee. After the first year of membership the annual dues are only $20. Your membership helps to strengthen our mission to protect striped bass and our fisheries. Some Chapters will give you a free gift just for joining. The Isleton-Delta Chapter gives all new members a free Chapter decal and hat as a thank you for joining our Chapter. Membership forms are available for each Chapter on the website. Just click on your Chapter of choice and go to the membership page, fill out the application, print it and send your application and payment to the address listed on the application. The website also has Chapters’ newsletters, interesting articles and useful links that will help you plan your next fishing trip.

Until next month, tight lines, good fishing, and have a great Memorial Day weekend….