WINE
COUNTRY WINDING
Catch Em’ at Clear Lake
You’ll
notice many vineyards in the hills surrounding Northern California’s
Clear Lake, but the bass action within this pristine fishery can
be absolutely intoxicating. Situated just east of the Mayacamas Mountains
in the Golden State’s fertile Wine Country, Clear Lake stretches
19 miles long and 8 across at its widest point. California’s
largest natural lake, its maximum depth is 60 feet, but the average
is about 28.
Within
approximately 100 miles of shoreline, the lake’s bass grow
fat on abundant crawfish, perch, silverside minnows, threadfin shad
and a large forage fish called “hitch.”
At
1,326 feet above sea level, Clear Lake sits about two hours northwest
of Sacramento. The valley in which the lake resides was formed approximately
three million years ago by geological shifting, with the lake beginning
as a series of oxbows scattered along what is now Cache Creek at
the south end. When the valley deepened and melting snow filled the
chasm, Clear Lake was born.
Essentially
two main bodies joined by narrow straits, Clear Lake’s north
end extends southeast through The Narrows, around the Buckingham
peninsula and into a lower end that splits into eastern and southern
arms. The lake finds bass in its shallow north end relating to grass,
tules and a subsurface plant with white blossoms known as primrose.
The south end fish relate to rocks with scattered tules, ledges and
deep water docks in depths of up to 35 feet.
Cache
Creek, along with Kelsey and Adobe creeks to the northwest and Rodman
Slough (north) offer prime bass spawning habitat. Tules also host
spawners and flipping or pitching Senkos, Sweet Beavers, and other
plastics into gaps in the vegetation is a sure bet for connecting
with a whopper.
Spring
offers the best shot at boating a trophy and Santa Rosa angler Scott
Green said the opportunities range practically the entire lake. “The
good news about Clear Lake is you fish for a big fish everywhere
you go. The best time for numbers of bass is the summer. It’s
common to catch over 100 bass a day from 2-7 pounds on a jig. Target
the south end rock piles and ledges and when you find them it’s
lights out.”
Spring
bass are hardly picky, so anglers find a variety of baits productive.
Among the top choices are jigs, Brush Hogs, chatterbaits and wacky
rigged or unweighted Texas-rigged stick baits. For the slam dunk,
hefty swimbaits like those made by Huddleston, Osprey and Mission
Fish fool many big spring females, especially when you work them
across lines of tules flanking a creek mouth.
Summer
brings great topwater action with Super Spooks, wakebaits and Snag
Proof Frogs in that Tweety color, which replicates the yellow-headed
blackbirds that roost in tules and occasionally end up on the bass
menu. Jigging deeper rock piles is another deadly summer pattern.
Fall sees a downturn in numbers, but an uptick in quality fish. This
is a good time for topwaters, jigs and rattlebaits. Local guides
catch cool season bass on live jumbo minnows fished under floats,
but jigs, wacky rigged worms and spoons will produce on deeper structure.
SITES
TO SEE
Complementing
its stellar fishery, Clear Lake is a bird watcher’s paradise.
The brilliant yellow headed blackbird keeps anglers company among
the tules, while scrub jays and orioles flitter among shoreline trees.
The great blue heron – Lake County’s symbol – patrols
the shoreline shallows while soaring ospreys and bald eagles hunt
for fish to snare. Surrounding forests hold wild turkeys, California
quail, red tail hawks, and Steller’s jays, along with black
bears, mountain lions, bobcats, elk and blacktail deer.
Elevated
views are always nice, but you won’t need an airplane or helicopter
to gander Clear Lake from aloft. Much of the lakeside road rises
high enough to peer over tree lines and houses for memorable views
of bass boats racing across shimmering waters. Soda Bay Road on the
lake’s west side parallels one of the most scenic stretches
of Clear Lake from Konocti Bay near Clear Lake Riviera to Lakeport.
On
the west side of the road, a couple of miles north of Konocti Harbor
Resort, drivers find a suddenly enchanting stretch of towering pines
and boulders the size of minivans in the Black Forest – a good
bet for casual hikes with binoculars and a birding field guide. Make
time also for Clear Lake State Park on the western shore, above Soda
Bay, where deer, bobcats, chipmunks and jack rabbits are commons
sites.
Between
fishing and wildlife viewing, visitors enjoy cultural and historical
elements such as the single room stone jail (1875) and the Historical
School House Museum (1877) at the town of Lower Lake on Clear Lake’s
southeast corner. Lakeport (northwest corner) presents a colorful
downtown district and the Lake County Museum featuring Pomo Indian
weaving exhibits. A Pomo Indian village at the Anderson Marsh State
Historic Park (south end) displays dwellings made of sturdy tules.
Casinos,
hiking and horse trails, sailing and paddleboat cruises, glider plane
rides and tours of an active geothermal power plant (www.geysers.com)
round out the diversions. Wine aficionados find several vineyards
thriving in the area’s rich soil, abundant moisture and comfortable
altitude. (For local details, visit www.lakecounty.com.)
Back
to the fishing, whether you’re working the Delta tides or marveling
at Clear Lake’s stunning mountain scenery, California’s
double shot of premium largemouth bass action offers year-round opportunity
with astounding numbers of quality fish and legitimate trophy bass
in no short supply. Two dissimilar fisheries, a diverse array of
productive tactics and one common objective – largemouth bass
nirvana. It’s the modern day California Gold Rush.
