Happy New Year!
New Melones Lake Fishing Report

Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding 1,604,176 acre-feet of water. The lake level rose one foot this week, and is currently at 1014 ft. above sea level and 74 ft. from full. Water temperature has cooled and is 52-55 degrees. The lake is clear, to slightly stained. The lake has turned over.

Trout: Good. Department of Fish and Game is now planting rainbow trout weekly at New Melones. With the lake turned over, trout are schooled up in hunting "wolf-packs," chasing shad right up into the shallows, so that is where the action is. Bank anglers and those who cast lures or bait into the shore from their boat will have the best luck for rainbows. Trolling anglers should head upriver, or into the mouths of major coves and creek arms. Try fishing near the surface with large shad patterned plugs. Top-lining shad patterned plugs such as Rapalas, Speed Traps, and Rattle Traps, or spoons such as Needlefish (003 size), Excels, Kastmasters, and Speedy Shiners are your best bet for trolling. In rainy or overcast weather, try a firetiger pattern.

Photos:
Above Photo: First-time angler 7-year-old George and dad Darin Price trolled crawlers 30' deep by the dam, and caught two limits of 'bows.

We have had some customers share photos of beautiful fish they caught and released this week.
Photo #1: 8-year old Julian O'Donoghue and his dad trolled Rapalas 10' deep upriver and caught 4 nice 'bows which they kept for supper Photo #1. They also caught and released two brown trout Photo #2, to preserve the browns in Melones, since the DFG will no longer be planting them. Good sportsmen!

Bank fishing and still-fishing from a boat has produced the most fish. There has been a lot of surface activity in the calm wind protected coves. A great way to catch these fish that are feeding on the surface is with a bubble and a fly, or a bubble and a crawler. Fill the bubble half full of water, tie on a swivel, a three foot leader, and a bugger, wet fly or a crawler. For bait fishing, try using garlic scented Power Bait (rainbow or chartreuse), or put on a Gulp Egg or a marshmallow/nightcrawler. A lot of the holdover trout have been feeding on shad. A great way to catch these larger holdover fish is by using shad patterned lure. Try fishing down the shore line and making repeated cast with a Kastmaster. Then switch to a Countdown Rapala and fish your way back. Sometimes while doing this there will be certain area where you catch a few or get a few bites. There is most likely a school of fish and once they stop biting your lure, you can slow down a use bait to catch a few more. To get a few more bites add some scent to your set-up. Garlic, shad, anise, and garlic crawler are good flavors of Pro Cure gel.

Photo #3: Winner of the Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week Contest goes to Jack Winter or Lodi. He caught a 3-pound, 12 ounce 'bow (along with 4 other nice fish) while throwing a lure/silver Kastmaster near Glory Hole Point.

Photo #4: 5-year-old Renner Young caught big rainbow while bank-fishing near Tuttletown, on a crawler/mallow combo.

Photo #5: Jason Tracey fished Melones for the first time this week, and couldn't believe the size of the fish. Walking the bank in the Glory Hole Area and throwing a silver/blue Kastmaster, he caught and released 8 beautiful fish, 5 of which appeared to be close to 5 pounds. He also released all of his fish, to catch again another day. Good job!

Kokanee: Done for the season.

Bass: Fair for anglers who locate fish. Focus on primary and secondary points leading to and from the back of the major creek arms. Try using baits that cover water, and resemble shad. Spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and lip-less cranks, should do the trick. There is also a good drop-shot bite. Roboworm Alive Shad, Gulp Minnows, and Zoom Tiny Flukes are all fish catchers on Melones. Also, crawdads are a more consistent and predictable food source. Try using a heavy 1/2 oz. or 3/4 oz. football head jig with a trailer around wood and rock on main lake points and secondary points. California Reservoir Lures' jigs are designed for Mother Lode lakes. To cover more water use a heavy 1/2 oz. or 3/4 oz. football head jig. The heavier jig sinks faster and you can keep contact with the bottom while moving the bait fairly quickly. The swim bait bite is getting better. Try using smaller swim baits to catch spots and nice largemouth. If you want to catch a huge fish throw an 8" rainbow trout swim bait. Remember to practice catch and release! If you do keep a bass, please keep the spotted bass and release the big female (largemouth) black bass. Glory Hole Sports can teach you the difference, so you can practice good conservation of the species.

Catfish: Should still be good. Melones catfish tend to be fish-eaters rather than bottom foragers, so use live minnows, frozen shad, mackerel, or anchovies for best success. Move/drag your bait slowly across the bottom to cover more water and target fish that are aggressively feeding. Generally cats will feed in shallow flats or areas with large chunk rock near deep water.

Crappie: Slow. There are fish in 15-40 foot of water, in the backs of creek channels near submerged timber. Live minnows or red worms fished under a slip-float, with a bobber stop is a good way to target these fish.