LAKE CONDITIONS

Lake Camanche's current elevation is 198.72 feet above sea level, a drop of 1.16 feet this week. There is currently no water flowing into Lake Camanche, and water is flowing out of Lake Camanche at 390c.f.s. The surface water temperature at the marina is 75 degrees.

ATTENTION ALL BOATERS

Due to the growing presence of the invasive Zebra and Quagga mussel in California, we will be conducting mandatory boater interviews and, in some cases, vessel inspections prior to entry. In order to speed up this process, we ask that your vessel's water reservoirs (live wells and bilges) be dry and that the boat hull be clean. We do not anticipate that these procedures will take more than five minutes per vessel but we do strongly encourage you to arrive early to make sure you get on the water as early as possible. Please note: EBMUD has advised Lake Camanche that vessels from Santa Clara and San Benito Counties, Southern California, and outside of California will not be allowed on Lake Camanche.

TROUT

Get ready for our Annual Charity Trout Derby. This year it runs from April 25-May 25, and is being sponsored by Yum's Troutkrilla trout bait. One $5.00 entry ticket qualifies you at each of these 5 lakes: Lake Camanche, Lake Chabot, San Pablo Reservoir, Los Vaqueros Reservoir, and Diamond Valley Lake. All proceeds go to the Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America. Prizes include trips, tackle, cash, tickets to sporting events and much more! Tickets will be available at both marina stores, and both entry gates.

The three biggest fish caught at Lake Camanche for the Trout Derby so far are as follows. 1st place at 7.78 pounds was caught by Michael Niemi, from Modesto. He caught his fish on May 17, while trolling at the dam with an Apex lure. 2nd place, at 5.08 pounds was also caught by Michael Niemi, from Modesto. He caught this fish on May 10, trolling by the dam with an Apex lure. 3rd place, at 4.48 pounds was caught by Gary Summers, from Stockton. He caught his fish on April 27, in the South Shore Pond, while fishing with Power Bait.

Lake Camanche's surface water temperature is now at 75 degrees, so trout anglers are finding that the trout are down 30-40 feet deep now. Outdoor sports writer Ron Wilson, from Modesto, had clients Quen Young and Martin Chin out during the week and caught a 15 fish limit of trout with 3 fish over 6 pounds. All the fish were caught from 2:30-6:30 in the afternoon, with the big fish coming on Ex-Cel lures in Lady Bug color, and many of the other fish on Ex-Cel lures in blue/gold. Big fish were holding at 35 feet, and smaller fish from 25-30 feet. They were fishing near the dam.

Camanche regulars Jim Rudolph and Truman Moss continue to catch limits of trout near the dam, and Sunday morning they took friends Gerard Johnson and Tim Bandy with them for an early morning outing. They were back in at 10 a.m. with 12 trout, including one at 4.75 pounds, and another at 4.10 pounds. They like to fish near the dam, in about 35 feet of water, with Power Bait.

Oscar Lizotte, from Folsom, caught several nice trout this week, including a fine 6 pounder that he caught while trolling in the Narrows. He was trolling about 35 feet deep with a big Rapala lure in brown trout pattern when he caught his big trout.

BASS

We would like to thank the Eldorado Bass Club for holding their team event here at Lake Camanche last weekend. All of their boats that went out came in with 5 fish limits, and we congratulate the team of John East and Gary Harter for their winning weight of 10.88 pounds. We also congratulate Dave Mercado for his big fish at 4.6 pounds which he caught on a swim bait. Team members reported that plastic lizards in pumpkin color, Senko worms rigged wacky, jigs in crawdad color, and Brush Hogs in pumpkin or red flake were all working well.

Ron Wilson, Quen Young, and Martin Chin also caught a number of nice bass this week in addition to the great trout fishing they had. They caught many bass in the 2-3 pound range, near Little Hat Island, in 8-10 feet of water. The big bass was caught by Martin Chin and weighed more than 8 pounds. All the bass came on 6 inch Keeper 1010 worms (salt & pepper color.)

CATFISH

Camper's report good catfishing in Camanche Arm (South Shore marina cove) on chicken liver, mackerel, or nightcrawlers. At North Shore the same baits work well in Camper's Cove, Rabbit Creek, and the Causeway area. Rocky areas are good, early or late in the day is better, and nighttime is best.

We encourage all anglers to report their stories, comments, or concerns to either North Shore Store, South Shore Store, or to us by email at eporray@camancherecreation.com. Thanks again for choosing Lake Camanche for your recreation destination.