Paul Clouse and Al Hurwitz had a very tough day trolling Lake Del Valle on 10/31/24. We were trying to target Smallmouth Bass. Unfortunately, there were no fish caught and no bites! A very rare occurrence for us. The bad outing was regrettably echoed by other experienced old-time fishermen who were also out on the water. We trolled a wide variety of lures, including an umbrella rig, Rapala DT hard baits, Mepps feathered spinners, and RoxStar and Joe’s Flies feathered spinners. All to no avail. We trolled every section of the lake at a depth of about 20 feet in 30-50 foot water columns, applying scent to the lures.

We think the extremely slow bite was due to the recent rapid draw down of the water level, now 20 feet below its peak height. Furthermore, there has been a three degree or so water temperature drop to 63.5-63.8 degrees in the past week. Finally, an approaching low pressure system is expected.

While folks who fish often have a myriad of excuses as to why they aren’t catching, we think these above reasons form a legitimate basis for the very poor bite.

I’m told there were 2000 pounds of Rainbow Trout planted in the lake earlier this week. If the  planting program continues and the rains bring higher stable water levels, we expect trolling or bait fishing for Trout will be good in the months ahead.

As always, we thank the extremely courteous Lake Del Valle staff at both the office and on the dock for helping us get on and off the water.

All the best,
Paul Clouse, Lafayette 
Dr. Al Hurwitz,  Saratoga