Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding 1,030,405 acre-feet of water. The lake level rose very little this week and is currently at 947 ft. above sea level and 139 ft. from full. The water is fairly clear in some areas and slightly stained in others. The water temperature will be cooling a bit each week until the lake turns over. The lake has cooled some and is 60-66 degrees depending on what part of the lake you are fishing. The docks have been moved on Glory Hole Point. This makes for an easy launch and very short walk to and from the parking lot.

Pictured Above: Jesse Vindiola Jr. caught a couple nice ones while bank fishing of off Glory Hole Point.

Trout: Good. The trout are biting and most anglers are catching some nice fish on each outing. There are more fish showing up near the surface making them easier to catch for both trolling anglers and bank anglers. The trout are targeting balls of very small shad. The trout will push the bait from deep to shallow water. Try finding shallow water areas with deep water access. Trolling anglers should try fishing from 30' to the surface. It is a good idea to troll at different depths until find a concentration of fish. Try top lining small shad patterned baits. A Rapala Jointed Shad Rap or Floating Minnow would be a perfect match to best resemble the bait fish. Also, try fishing a tandem spoon rig from 10-30' on a downrigger or with a diving plane. Needlefish, Excel, and Speedy Shiner spoons are good choices. Another good way to catch a few fish is with a trolling fly. These baits can be fished by themselves, behind a dodger, or in front of a crawler. Mix and match your presentations to catch more fish.

Glory Hole Sports Big Fish Week goes to Charlene Winkler of San Andreas. She landed a beautiful 3-pound, 11-ounce rainbow while trolling near the spillway. She reported she was using a Rapala fished in 25' of water when the fish hit.

Bank anglers have been catching more and more fish each week. Most anglers are targeting fish that are feeding near the bottom. Try using a sliding sinker with an 18-24" leader and a light wire hook. With this set up you will be able to use Power Bait Dough, Power Eggs, marsh mallows, crawlers, or a combination. The key is to use a light wire hook, and before you make a cast, check to see if your bait is floating. There are also quite a few fish feeding and cruising near the surface. The best way to target these fish is with a bubble/crawler, or a bubble/fly rig. Also, casting and retrieving and Kastmaster, is a great way to cover water and find feeding fish.

Matt Vanoli and his father Richard Vanoli caught some nice rainbows while trolling Needlefish near Rose Island.

Jerry C. fished a couple days on Melones using flies. He caught five trout from 17" to 23" and a few bass as well. He also reported catching the larger fish under cloud cover.

Rudy Rodriguez of Chular caught a chunky 3-pound, 6-ounce brown trout while trolling a crawler near the dam. We do encourage catch and release of brown trout as the Department of Fish and Game will no longer be planting them.

Kokanee: Done for the season. The kokanee are upriver doing their annual spawn and die. On Thursday November 14th while fishing for Trout Jim Robinson, Ray Kasso, and Don Kasso caught four kokanee salmon while fishing at the dam and spillway. All the fish where caught deep (80 to over 100 feet) and all caught on Needlefish. The fish were very small maybe 6" to 9". The fish were extremely bright and fresh looking and they released them all. These fish will grow throughout the winter and be nice keepers next year.

Bass: Slow. The lake is in transition from summer to fall. The fish seem to be spread out from deep to shallow water anywhere from 5-70' of water. It is very important to use your electronics to locate fish and bait. Most anglers are catching a few while finesse fishing with small baits and light line. Try using a drop shot rig near the main lake. Small shad patterned soft plastics and 4" hand poured worms are producing some fish. Also, the shad are starting to school up in the major creek arms. If you find the bait the fish will be near by. Try using a spoon fished vertically through the balls of bait. Usually if you catch a fish or two it will trigger the school and create a feeding frenzy. The bite should pick up once we get some weather. If you do keep a bass, please keep the small 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: Fair. The catfish are still in fairly shallow water and feeding heavily. At this time of the year we generally see some really large cats being caught, especially if we get a little rain. They will move into feeder creeks and feed on whatever washes into the lake. Try using a variety of different baits until the fish tell you what they want to feed on. Night crawlers, liver, shad, and anchovies seem to produce the majority of fish. It is very important to use a sliding sinker or no weight at all. The fish will drop the bait if they feel any weight. It is a good idea to leave your bail open while waiting for them to bite. Let the fish run with the bait for a few seconds then set the hook. For bigger cats try using a whole mackerel or sardine fished on a double hook rig. Many catfish will roam flats, points, and humps to feed. When choosing a location to fish focus on flat dirt/rock areas near deep water.

Mark Sharpe of Benicia caught a few nice rainbows along with a couple bluegill. He caught them on a Power Bait crawler combo while fishing near Glory Hole Point.

Crappie/Bluegill: Very slow. The crappie will chase shad much like the bass and trout do at this time of the year. Try using small Kastmasters and Beatle Spins to target them. The crappie will hold tight to wood and standing timber. The lake is low and the main channel has plenty of exposed trees to fish.