There is still a few more days left for legal salmon fishing in the Sacramento River in 2015, December 16th being the last day. I have pretty much called it quits the past Monday, December 7th. I feel extremely blessed to have landed three from the banks for starting the season so late. I'll be more prepared next season :-)
I have met some fabulous new fishermen while salmon fishing. I really admire the RainbowTroutMan. For starters, we fished pretty much the same waters in the Sierras. We exchanged lots of memorable fishing stories. Second, the man is 76 years old and a Vietnam Vet! The way that I see him fish out there every time and the joy that he exhibits while fishing is something very special to behold. If I am blessed, we shall cross paths again in the near future.
Now, on to the fishing summary for the year. We did not catch any sturgeon this year. The golden trout is still only in my dreams. However, we caught all the other fish that we targeted. This year I decided to feature my second eldest daughter (Ms. Mystic) in the middle because she caught the first trophy worthy trout during our annual camping trip (ACT 2015). This is no accident or beginner's luck. She also caught the first trophy worthy trout the previous year, ACT 2014.
The picture to the left of RainbowTroutMan, is the fisherman (73 years old) landing his only salmon of the season, a 20 pounder. I netted it up for him and the hook fell off while the fish was in my net! I ran into him a few weeks later in the fishing section at Walmart, Elk Grove. Of course our wives were at different sections of the store. We all met up before the shopping was done and I just had to reminisce about how I netted the fish for him :-)
Until next time, have a Blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year!
I fished this morning from 7 AM until Noon without a bite. Around 9 AM, I was joined by KingFisherman and RainbowTroutMan. The salmon escaped us today. Here's the spreadsheet I put together for your enjoyment:
In summary: Since late October, I have put in 19 attempts at catching a salmon from the banks; traveled more than 1,100 miles in 19 hours; fished for 36 hours; and caught 3 salmon. I averaged around 60 casts per hour; therefore, I have cast 2,160 times!
The thing about fishermen is that they all can get up super early, especially when it's the salmon run! When I got the fishing hole this morning at 7:30 AM, there were already three fishermen there. It's a good thing there was one more available spot for me to fish. It's an added bonus when I know all the fishermen there.
"Hey JU, you better hurry up because all three of us just got bites in succession!" Said the RainbowTroutMan.
Using my same setup that landed the 5 and 10 pounder, I used the same technique of casting, waiting for the lure to hit bottom, snap the line, then slowly retrieve. I kept this up for 30 minutes when it happened! Again, a slight tug. Bam. Set the hook! The fight was on!
Friday the 13th I wrote about a fisherman that I ran into at the Sac. River that taught me how to use the Flying C. Like a good student that I am, I tweaked my setup to match up with his. Since then, I went from zero salmon in 12 tries to two salmon in 4 tries. Not bad.
I ran into him again on the river and now he's up to 24 salmon for the season. Also, he corrected me that his biggest salmon this season was caught on November 12th weighing a whopping 36 pounds.
Without further ado, my teacher from the banks: The Salmon Hunter!
I got to the fishing hole at around 7:30 AM this morning. Kingfisherman and RainbowTroutman were already there.
"I just missed one," said Kingfisherman. "After a few minutes of fighting, the fish got off. It looked to be a six pounder."
I moved to the left and started practicing my cast with a casting reel. This is a big accomplishment for me. This pole has the same setup as the spinning reel pole. After about ten minutes of casting, I switched to the pole that caught the salmon on Monday. By the way, brother "Pro," this is the same pole that I landed the first salmon from the American River with you from the Fish Seeker.
Anyway, about another ten minutes of casting and I felt a slight tug. Bam! I set the hook and it was, "Fish on!" After a few minutes of fighting, I was able to beach her. It turned out, she got all three of the prongs from the treble hook in her mouth. She was not going anywhere except to our oven for dinner tonight.
Thanks be to God. It only took me two trips or 120 miles for this salmon :-)
This lure has caught two salmon
No. 2 for the season
Still swimming around after half an hour on the stringer!
This morning was my 13th time out to the Sac River trying to land a salmon using the Flying C. In my last blog posting, I shared with you how I got the low-down scoop on how to get one.
I got to the fishing hole around 8 AM and there was already one fish on the stringer from the RainbowTroutMan. It looked to be around 20 pounds. Also, KingFisherman was there (the guy that gave me the salmon from Tuesday, Nov. 3rd).
Introducing: RainbowTroutMan!
Now, I'm thinking, "Did I miss my opportunity again?" But being the forever opportunistic fisherman that I am, I believe every cast is a potential. So I used the setup that I learned on Friday and started casting. It was cold and windy this morning. The water was choppy too!
Around 8:50 AM, after many casts, I felt a tug and immediately set the hook! I felt the hook set into some meat and it was: "Fish on, baby!"
She fought hard for a small salmon and I was very pleasantly surprised and blessed. I drove 760 miles, and spent more than 14 hours for this salmon :-)
For the past three weeks, I have fished for salmon in the Sacramento River for an hour or so from the banks using Flying C. Today is my twelfth trip! Unfortunately, I have not hooked a salmon yet. I managed to hook a 5-inch bass :-(
Since the season is winding down, I am sharing what I have learned from talking with successful fishermen:
Ultimately, you need to be there while the salmon are swimming through. This could mean anytime during the day. The guys with the most success spent 6 to 8 hours per day fishing! Wow, that's hard work.
Cast your Flying C out as far as you can and wait until it hits the bottom. Typically, it is between 8 and 14 seconds at the location that I have been fishing. I have recognized how the line slacks off when the lure hits the bottom. Finally, until today, I realized what it feels like when the blade of the lure is spinning. When the lure hits the bottom, I snap my fishing pole to get a tight line and feel the blade spinning before retrieving. I have learned to retrieve as slow as possible as long as the blade is spinning. However, when it is near the banks, you must reel in quickly or risk loosing your lure due to snag. It can be an expensive lesson since each lure costs around $7.00 each, unless you get it on sale. I believe I have contributed three spinners to the river thus far.
Finally, every fisherman has his favorite Flying C. I do not believe the color matters very much. I have seen salmon caught with all different types of Flying Cs. However, all the ones that were used have 7/8 oz weight, so the size does matter.
This morning, I met a fisherman that has landed 23 salmon this season from the banks. The one he caught this morning, half an hour before I met him, is around 15 pounds. He said the one he caught yesterday weighed in at 34 pounds!!! He showed me a picture of it, and it is huge!
Here's the lure that he was using that has landed 11 salmon!
I went fishing in the Sacramento River this morning. I got there at 7:30 AM and already there was a salmon on a stringer! The fisherman at the location said he caught it with his first cast! To my left was a fisherman that I have never met. He said that this is his sixth time at this location and he has not caught one yet. I told him I am in the same boat because this is my fifth time and I have not caught one either.
Around 8:00 AM, it was "Fish on!" for the fisherman to my left. I dropped my pole to go help him net it up and he said, "This fish is yours when you net it up."
Wow. I think I just made another fishing buddy! Sure enough, he landed a beautiful 28-inch hen. He just wanted the roe and gave me the fish. I went home at 8:30 AM.
Praise God for His generosity through my fishing brother.
On Thursday, October 22nd, I went jigging for salmon in the Sacramento River again with my dad and brother. I prayed for three things: 1. that we as a team would catch a fish, 2. that we would get a salmon, and 3. that we would have a safe and blessed fishing trip.
My Father is very loving and humorous. I got my first prayer answered shortly after jigging. Here's the fish that I caught.
Fish barely bigger than my lure!?!??
My dad was laughing at my expense. He dubbed my fish: "The unlucky fish!" All day long, he reminded me of how my first fish was the sign of the rest of the day. Every time he ribbed me, he was laughing. So I called on my Father to send us a salmon.
Early in the morning, we helped these three fishermen out because their boat wouldn't start. The battery was drained. They were about to go home for the day. Fortunately, my brother had just purchased a brand new backup battery the night before. We loaned them the battery and took off. Their boat is the one on the left.
Boat to the left landed 5 salmon!
At the end of the day, we met up with the boat that we loaned the battery to. They caught five salmon!!! They gave us a beautiful silver bullet hen. There's the answer to my prayer for a salmon :-)
Finally, we called it quits around 1:30 PM having only "catch and release" of the tiny fish from the early morning. Every time I am out fishing with my 87 year old dad and my brother the "Captain," I truly thank my Heavenly Father for the blessing! The weather was fantastic. My dad was having a great time at telling me of how my "unlucky fish" ruined our day :-) What a blessed day!
So I've traveled another 1,500 miles to drop off one daughter at school in the Dakotas and send off another to Rome for a study abroad program.
I'm now back home teaching a high school senior, a sophomore, a fifth grader, and a first grader! I'm blessed to be breathing!
I managed two fishing outings with dad and big bro. Last week, we went fishing for striped bass and instead caught a large mouth. And yesterday, we went trolling for salmon in the Sac. River and caught TWO large mouth on salmon plugs!!! May be we should join a Bass Fishing Tournament?!?!
I had an opportunity to visit the Bass Pro Shop in Rocklin. You know I was a kid in a candy store.
Since I'm writing this during lunch time and it's almost over, I gotta go.... Enjoy the pictures and video.
Fun Anniversary Trip, or FAT, follows the Annual Camping Trip, or ACT.
Last year MM and I celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary by visiting the Virginia Lakes without the Miracle Squad. The location was beautiful and we wanted to share this blessing with others. Thus, this year, we revisited the area with the kids, the Cracker, and da Wiz.
The goal for this year was to catch a Golden Trout!
Monday - July 27th
It was a long drive from SacTown to the campsite. We leisurely took breaks along the way. We drove through Hwy 88, up to Hwy 395, and arrived at our destination around 5 PM, just in time for dinner.
View from campsite.
Unloading and setting up.
Before she goes in the water.
Kids on the 5-foot boulder in the middle of our campsite.
Getting ready for dinner.
With assist from Ms. Mystic.
After dinner, we strolled around the lake to see if we could catch breakfast for the next day. A few casts with the Z, and lo and behold, we got a volunteer :-)
We camped by Trumbull Lake - 9,688 feet elevation.
Volunteer for breakfast
We gonna need more volunteers.
We ain't in SacTown anymore. It's starting to get cold.
Lines tangled?!? Fisherman's worst nightmare :-)
No Golden Trout in Trumbull Lake @ 9,688 feet in elevation :-(
Tuesday - July 28th
By 6:30 AM, da Wiz and I got a couple more fish for breakfast.
Visitor, nicknamed "Pucci," came for breakfast. Sorry, no food for wild animals.
Did I say it was cold at night and in the early morning?
From left to right, Master Fisherman, Cracker and Monk.
I'm fine as long as we don't hike :-)
We took our sweet time at breakfast and decided to hike up to higher country around noon. But first, we stopped by Big Virginia Lake to have a picnic (~0.1 mile into our hike). At this location, little j complained of the strenuous task of... walking?!? So we decided that MM and little j would remain at camp while the rest of us would hike 1.5 miles to Moat Lake.
I like picnics.
I'm tired of walking, mommy.
Come on, let's go get Golden Trout!
We walked a two hundred feet increase in elevation in 0.2 mile to get to Blue Lake (El. 9,886 ft.). At this point, we veered left and passed the Miners Cabin. We continued on for 1 mile and arrived at Cooney Lake (El. 10,246 ft.). It was around 1:30 PM when we wet the lines. A few casts and we saw little 3- to 4-inch trout chasing our lures in. We decided this would not be a good time to fish and headed back down the mountain.
Ready to hike!
Blue Lake (El. 9,886 ft.)
Arrived at Cooney Lake (El. 10,246 ft.)
We learned along the way that we took the wrong turn and would not be able to reach Moat Lake. We were informed by a Good Samaritan to go back the way we came, past the Miners Cabin, and look for a trail veering left to Moat Lake. She warned us that the trail was faint and would be hard to find. We were told that the trail would be very steep in some locations going from 9,800 feet to 10,600 feet within a mile. At the report, Master Fisherman and Monk opted not to continue on with the hike and went back to camp.
So the remaining gamers were da Wiz, Ms. Mystic, Ms. MC, and I. So back we went; past the Miners Cabin we went. Around 2 PM we veered off to what we thought was a trail. We climbed a steep slope to get to a clearing where we could see Blue Lake down below. We were very excited. Then we realized there was no trail! The group decided that I, JU, should climb over the peak to see if there was such a thing as Moat Lake full of Golden Trout! Da Wiz thought that maybe Moat Lake dried out due to the drought. Thus, for the following half an hour, I climbed what seemed to be an impossible climb. The peak was only 11,100 feet, but at some locations, I had to do vertical rock climbing to prop myself up. Finally, at 3:10 PM, when the peak was within reach, I received a revelation: "You are searching for a trail for your group to climb. They will not be able to take this path!" Thus, I reported back to the group that we would have to try again another time because I could not find the trail. It was a very disheartening report :-(
That was a difficult climb.
I'm ready.
I think we made it: "The lake dried up."
I can't see daddy anymore.
No Golden Trout for the day.
Wednesday - July 29th
While the Golden Trout proved to be difficult, we had no problem with Rainbow Trout because, once again, we caught enough by breakfast time.
Fresh trout.
Another visitor at breakfast time.
Where did Bambi go?
Trolling around.
After breakfast we attempted to find Moat Lake again. This time, however, only da Wiz, Ms. Mystic, and I would pave the way, while the rest of the group would stay at camp. We did find the trail head that leads to Moat Lake. It was faint and hard to see; but once we found it, there were a lot of markers to keep us on track. Some parts of the hike were at 25% to 30% slope and were difficult to climb. It took us one hour just to hike 1.5 miles to the lake. What a great blessing to be there. The lake was beautiful.
Second time around.
I guess the lake is not dried up after all.
Moat Lake (El. 10,573 ft.)
Where is JU? Can you find him?
We arrived at 1 PM, not the best time to fish, but we had to try. I hiked and fished the entire lake in 2 hours! I saw a lot of 14-inchers swimming around. I managed 3 hookups with the Z! One fell off the hook just inches away from shore :-( Thus, I couldn't tell if these were Brookies or Goldens that I hooked up. I was just so dumbfounded that these natives would hit the Z in broad daylight! What a tremendous blessing! Needless to say, no Goldies for us again. Until next time, if God's willing....
The trek back down to camp was easy. We got back in 45 minutes and took off for Bishop and treated ourselves to a delicious dinner at Denny's:-)
What's up with Denny's?
Thank YOU, Lord Jesus, for a blessed 26th year wedding anniversary. We thank YOU for family and friends that you continue to bless us with along the way....
Thursday - July 30th
This was a touring day. After our usual morning fishing trip and breakfast, we visited the Mono Lake Education Center and the Mammoth Lakes Basin area.
With the best man at our side for all those years.
Caught a trout by the tail.
Looking up from Lower Twin Lake.
Picnic at Lake Mary.
Lake George through the trees.
Lake George by the shore.
Lake George.
Lake Mamie.
Looking down from the top of Twin Falls.
Top of Twin Falls.
A sad look at Horseshoe Lake, down by more than 30 feet? It was full last year.
Busted. Actually, the entire Mammoth Lakes area has cell reception.
Can we go back to camp yet?
Upper Twin Lake. Nailed more rainbows with the Z at this lake :-)
We got back to camp around 8 PM, just enough time for a romantic boat ride around the lake. MM had a couple of take downs, but none boated. It was fun just paddling around....
Serious fishermen.
None boated, but it was fun.
Let's burn all the wood tonight!
Gotta a fishing pole for me?
Can't see you with all the camo.
Friday - July 31st
On the way back home, we managed to stop by the Walker River and the Carson River for a few casts. There were "too many rocks!"
I see you.
Dancing at the Walker.
A park in the wilderness.
Too many rocks and not enough water.
Way too many rocks!
Oh, by the way, although we did not catch a Golden trout this time, we were blessed with a native 11-inch Brookie from Trumbull Lake on Thursday night :-)
