Spotted bass showing at Lake Oroville | North State Fishing Report

LAKE OROVILLE: Numbers of spotted bass have been the story as the fish are moving into the shallows. The water is still too cold for spawning at 52 degrees, and more warm weather is needed. Spotted bass are found on plastics on the Bass Union weedless darter head or drop-shot along with small Keitech swimbaits on underspins as the fish are focusing on the lake’s pond smelt. King salmon are a possibility, but many trollers are holding off this year to allow the 16- to 18-inch kings to grow to over 20 inches. The lake rose four feet to 866.64 feet in elevation and 86 percent with heavy water releases down the Feather River.

LAKE SHASTA: Guide Scott Caldwell reported that during the past few days Lake Shasta has provided some fantastic Brown and Rainbow Trout fishing. Trolling the surface down to 35 feet with bait, flies, plugs, and spoons, has provided steady action on browns and bows in the 1 to 7-pound class, with 1 to 3 pounders providing the bulk of the action. Jeff Goodwin also reported some great springtime conditions and a solid bite. Lake temps in the low 50’s have really helped to get some of the bigger browns and rainbows biting a bit more consistently. He’s been catching multi pound rainbows and browns every day and averaging 12+ keepers on most days with noticeably larger fish than seen in past seasons. The abundance of Shad in the lake has helped these fish with a notable growth spurt this winter. Most have been caught trolling spoons in the top 20′ of the lake. The water color has been great all year but with a rising lake, there is more debris. John Boitano, a Pro-staffer at Phil’s Propeller in Redding, fished Shasta on the 21st and reported a solid bass bite with fish in the arms, cuts, and main body. Reaction baits, big swim baits, and finesse baits fished deep have been solid producers. There are fish in the shallows, but they have been moving between the shallows and deep as the weather changes.

TRINITY RIVER, Willow Creek: The lower Trinity is still big and off color and not in fishing shape. Another round of storms are moving through over the weekend and will push flows to 18,000 cfs. Dirty water coming out of the South Fork will likely keep it dirty for some time. Flows Sunday were around 16,200 cfs on the Hoopa gauge and dropping.

AMERICAN RIVER/above Folsom Lake: The flows are high, rising to 3785 cfs at Chili Bar. There is minimal change as the water remains stained, particularly in the Middle Fork due to the burn scar from the Mosquito Fire. Action is limited in the dirty water. The upper river is catch-and-release, artificial, and barbless hooks until the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend in May.

AMERICAN RIVER/Sacramento: flows have dropped from over 6,000 cfs. on March 11th to 4,680 on the 23rd. Before the last storm, there had been an occasional steelhead from the Sailor Bar area taken on beads, roe, and some lures.

FEATHER RIVER: there was an Oroville dam release to 10,000 cfs. on the 23rd. Steelhead reports are spotty from the upper river. Guide Pete Franco reported the start of some limited striper action on the lower river. Guide Garrett Kenyon reported some scattered striper schools below Rio Vista but a lot of pressure. The fish are small but if you get on them they are not picky. Minnows are a solid bet, but trolling has been producing as well.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Keswick Reservoir to Red Bluff: Guide Justin Thompson reported that now is the time to fish the Sacramento River for wild rainbow/steelhead. He is catching lots and lots of fish daily, the peak time is now through June. If you want a short getaway with an action-packed day of catching fish on ultra-light rods this is the place to bring your kids or friends up. It’s a no brainer!! The Fly Shop in Redding reported improving conditions with current flows at 5,000 cfs. but scheduled to drop to 4,000 cfs. by the end of next week. Action has been good and many of the same patterns are still working. The fish are holding together in some of the deeper water so if you find one, you’ll probably find a couple more.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Colusa to Tisdale: Water levels and conditions have finally begun to settle and will be in fishing shape before long. There has been an increasing number of larger resident fish being posted. Please release your larger fish!!! Current water level has dropped from 21,700 cfs. on march 18th to 16,400 cfs. on the 24th.

SACRAMENTO RIVER, Metro area: Uncle Larry at Sacramento Pro Tackle reported improving conditions and the very front edge of the striper season with 22–24-inch fish starting to show on the West Bank across from Discovery Park, and a short bite in the vicinity of Verona. Blood worms, minnows and cut bait are all starting to sell like crazy so there must be something going on. There are still resident fish in the port and some of the newer fish are starting to move in. This is just the very front so don’t expect any numbers yet.

The bi-weekly fishing report, compiled by Western Outdoor News, highlights the best angling opportunities in the north state.