2013 Outdoors Archive Stories

Representatives of fishing groups united with family farmers, environmentalists and elected officials on May 16 to oppose the Final Delta Plan adopted by the Delta Stewardship Council because of the big threat the plan poses to Central Valley Chinook salmon and Delta fish populations.</p><p>In spite of overwhelming opposition to the

You know a charter boat skipper is dedicated to the cause of getting the passengers salmon when he travels all of the way from the Farallon Islands to the San Mateo Coast in the course of a trip. That's exactly what happened during the Fish Sniffer School of Fishing Trip with Captain Joey Gallia of the New Easy Rider out of Berkeley Mari

When the fishing gets tough because of heavy fishing pressure or poor water conditions, the experienced, skilled guides prevail. That was the case on a recent trip that I made with Scott Feist of Feisty Fish Guide Service where we caught early limits of stripers, in spite of a crazy crowd of boats on the Sacramento River. Feist had been

Striped bass spawn on the Sacramento River every spring, but the area where they spawn depends largely on the flows. The higher the flows, the further the fish will spawn in the system. During high water years, the fish will spawn as far as Princeton and Chico. However, during lower water years, the bulk of the spawning takes place lower

Since 1997, Thomas Nakazawa, president of the Central Coast Salmon Anglers, has invited me to fish out of Randy's Fishing Trips in Monterey every salmon opener, with the exception of the two closure years of 2008 and 2009. I have gone fishing with the club at least half of the openers. The fishing has varied from wide-open to very tough,

As I walked along the shoreline in the Long Ravine area of Rollins Lake on March 27, I saw one angler, Chris of Auburn, hook, battle and land a scrappy rainbow trout about 14 inches long. He added that fish to his stringer of three fish he had caught earlier in the cove next to Rollins Lake Road. "What are you using?" I asked.

Anglers fishing in the Sand Crab Classic Perch Tournament held out of Santa Cruz every year have had to endure a variety of conditions, ranging from a big winter storm during the inaugural event in 2005 to the big tidal surges resulting from a Tsunami in 2011. This year participants enjoyed sunny conditions, with a light breeze, while fi

Jenkinson Reservoir, located near Pollock Pines in the Sierra Nevada east of Highway 50, is unique in being the only major reservoir located in the Cosumnes River watershed. The reservoir is also one of the few lakes in the state where a bank angler has a reasonable chance of catching a mackinaw trout from shore, along with rainbow and b

Federal fishery biologists predict that both Sacramento River and Klamath River fall Chinook salmon should be abundant in ocean and river fisheries this year. However, anglers can expect to see some days off from the water on the ocean south of Point Arena to protect endangered winter run Chinook. Federal and state fishery scient

Boosted by heavy trout plants and great weather, anglers fishing at Lake Pardee on the opening weekend, Feb. 14-16, found some of the best trout action in recent memory at the popular Mother Lode reservoir. "It was the best opener we've ever seen," said Richard Cooper, who with his wife, Kerri, became owners of the lake concessionaire, P

The Golden Gate Salmon Association, responding to a Brown administration announcement that water supplies from South Delta pumping facilities were cut significantly to protect Delta smelt, reminded the public and government officials that pumping restrictions are just as much about salmon as they are about Delta smelt. "As salmon go, so

Steelhead are a very unpredictable fish to target. A day on the river with wide-open action will be followed with one with not a single bite. As Phil Desautels of Phil's Smiling Salmon Guide Service, who guides for steelhead on the Smith, Chetco, Klamath and other rivers, says, "One day you are a hero, the next day you go home scratching

Lake Camanche, nestled in the rolling Mother Lode foothills northeast of Lodi on the Mokelumne River, was renowned for years as a quality bass fishery with plentiful underwater structure. Since regular rainbow trout plants began in 1989, the East Bay Municipal Utility District water supply reservoir has also become known throughout the n

Every so often when fishing I get a strange feeling that a fish is going to bite — and I announce my prediction right before a fish grabs the bait or lure. However, I have never seen a fish "called" by myself or another angler twice on the same day — until Jan. 1, 2013. Rodney Fagundes, Kenny Pamanian, Scotty Gomar, and I wer

The numbers of six Delta fish species documented in the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's fall midwater trawl survey plummeted again in 2012, after a temporary increase among Delta smelt and other species in 2011. This record-low was predicted by Thomas Cannon, a well-respected fishery biologist who testified on behalf of the

On Dec. 31, the Department of Fish and Game announced that new sturgeon fishing regulations would go into effect in California on Jan. 1. Before you go sturgeon fishing in the Bay-Delta Estuary or Sacramento River this year, make sure that you carefully review the regulations and purchase your sturgeon report card. This official