Introducing The Delta Fishing Handbook   By: Cal Kellogg September 20, 2008 More Articles by Cal

The long awaited Delta Fishing Handbook, a comprehensive guide to bait fishing for stripers and sturgeon is finished. It doesn’t matter if you are new to the delta fishing scene or if you are an experienced delta angler that wants to catch more and larger stripers and sturgeon, The Delta Fishing Handbook this is the book for you!

My first book, The Trout Fishing Handbook has been a run away success and has earned a great deal of positive feedback from trout anglers and guides all over the western United States. My second effort, The Delta Fishing Handbook promises set off a similar shockwave among California anglers that spend their free time plying tule lined delta channels in search of hard charging stripers and high jumping sturgeon.

The Delta Fishing Handbook is approximately 50,000 words in length, encompassing 162 pages. The book is fully illustrated with more than 100 photos. Across those pages you will discover the secrets of consistently locating and catching both striped bass and sturgeon.

A broad range of subjects are covered in The Delta Fishing Handbook including, the history and lifestyle of delta stripers, how to properly rig a boat for fishing delta waters, proper tackle selection for both stripers and sturgeon, how to select, care for and rig a long list of striper and sturgeon baits, how to properly play out strikes and execute once a good size fish is hooked, how tides and weather effect stripers and sturgeon, how to release fish unharmed and care for those that you choose to keep and much much more, including a chapter of taste tempting recipes.

Anglers that embrace the tactics and tips within The Delta Fishing Handbook won’t hit the water hoping to catch fish. Instead, they’ll motor away from the dock with the confidence that comes from consistent success!

Check out these excerpts from the book…

“The age of a striper is recorded in a series of rings that can be observed in their scales with the aid of a microscope. Over the years, through the examination of thousands of scale samples, the Department of Fish and Game has been able to determine the rate at which the average delta striper grows. On their first birthday stripers are usually about 4-1/2 inches long. At age two they are 11 inches. By the end of their third year they average 16 inches, and by age four they are 20 inches. That husky 36-incher you landed was about 12 years old, and if you are ever lucky enough to land a 48-inch, 50-pounder, it will be in excess of 20 years old!”

“When the rod doubled after Dad set the hook I could tell he was into a big fish. At first the bass did little more than shake it’s head and swim back and forth, and for a few moments it actually moved toward the boat before coming to life and bolting for the tules 40 yards off the port side. When it reached the shallows the big bass surfaced, pushing up a washtub-size boil, and then charged back toward the middle of the slough.”

“When fishing bait from a boat, conventional bait-casting rods and reels are the best way to go. A sensitive graphite rod between seven and eight feet long is ideal. The rod should feature a fast action, meaning that it should have a sensitive, flexible tip that quickly gives way to powerful middle and butt sections. The rod must be capable of handling sinkers weighing up to four ounces and should be rated for 12- to 17-pound test monofilament line. Basically it's a fast-action steelhead rod with ample backbone.”

“If your goal is to take bait-fishing tactics to the highest possible level, it is important to view bait fishing as an art, and a large part of the art of bait fishing involves using the proper rigs and components to match the bait, conditions and temperament of the bass.”

“In general the best shad for day in day out use throughout the season is a shad that is about 2.5 inches long. When the water temperature drops into the lower 50’s, it often pays to begin upsizing your baits. Occasionally when you go to the bait shop, you’ll see a really large 4, 5 or 6-inch shad mixed in with the average size ones. I always buy those large baits even if the water is warm. I keep them in the cooler as I fish and hoard them away in my freezer when I get home. When the water temperature drops and its time to start hunting for monsters those big baits can pay hefty dividends.”

“The example I often give as the classic striper spot when I’m giving seminars is a widely known location on the San Joaquin River known as Santa Clara Shoal. It is a short run above the point where Three Mile Slough joins the San Joaquin between Lights 35 and 35A adjacent to the mouth of Fisherman’s Cut. On the Fisherman’s Cut side of the river there is a deep hole. I almost always mark stripers setting in that deep water. Between the lights, the bottom abruptly comes up onto a shallow sand bar in the middle of the river. In places the water is less than six feet deep.”

“Sturgeon are the strongest, hardest fighting fish found in freshwater and they grow large. In addition to being strong, sturgeon also display a ton of stamina and the way they fight is unpredictable. Sometimes a hooked sturgeon will hug the bottom and refuse to budge, while swimming back and forth behind the boat. Other sturgeon will tear off on a sizzling run when hooked and still others will bolt to the surface and go airborne. More often than not, if you hook into a true heavyweight it will do all these things and more. If you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing a massive diamond back catapult out of the water or felt the unbridled power of a sturgeon bolting off on its first run, you’ve really got a lot to look forward to!”

The Delta Fishing Handbook retails for $17.95 if you’d like to get more information about the book or to order your personally autographed copy, give me a call at (530) 320-0368 – Cal Kellogg.