(Stockton) The San Joaquin River was once a hotbed for sturgeon fishermen with legendary Delta fishermen such as Jolly Jay Sorensen anchoring off of the pipes at Twitchell Island, the Patio, or the deep hole near Steamboat Marina and finding solid action, but sturgeon fishermen are now avoiding the San Joaquin.
Alan Fong of the Fishermen’s Warehouse in Sacramento found excellent bass action in the East Delta with fish to 7 pounds. He said, “You have to find clear water, and the Delta from Mildred out is clear, and we scored with Lucky Craft Pointer 100 ripbaits on a slow presentation. You have to pause the bait for 10 seconds if you want to get bit as the fish will hit the still bait
Dan Mathisen of Dan’s Delta Outdoors in Oakley said, “In Discovery Bay, a 32-pound largemouth bass limit was taken recently during the American Bass tournament by Zach Thompson and John Billheimer with the larger fish taken on swimbaits or Alabama rigs in the clearer water. The water temperatures have warmed up into the 50’s, and the bite is getting started with most largemouth fishermen sticking with either jigs or spinnerbaits slow-rolled along ledges near flats. Others looking to bet the clear water conditions are drop-shotting 6 or 7-inch worms.”
Randy Pringle, the Fishing Instructor, advised searching for clear water and working slow with plastics or ripbaits. He said, “The water is warming up after these warm days the past two weeks, and the tree frogs are already out so we may be onto an early spring.“
