Anne Vitale
06-24-2009, 08:37 PM
Drove up to Rd 48 Monday afternoon to get in what I suspect will be my last visit this season to fish for shad (Pass expires at the end of June). I should have known something was up when I arrived late in the afternoon and only found two locals fishing in all that expanse of access. It only took one cast to find out why. STRIPERS. Far be it from me to turn down a stiper hitting frenzy but there were a zillion of them...all 6-8 inches long. It was impossible to keep them off the little shad darts and that made shad fishing all but impossible. The stripers would hit the fly the minute it hit the water. Dang.
The two locals left about dinner time. They too were frustrated by the little devils... leaving the entire place to me. It was magical. I was in my VW camper rigged to spend the night anyway so with dreams of a last light of day shad bite, I hung in there. I was not disappointed. Other than the bothersome dinks, I did not get a single strike until about 8 pm. That's when the message went out to all the shad in the area to get going. Hen after hen after hen came in until it was dark....and then it shut off as fast as it started. I have no idea how they all get the message to start and stop at the same time but in my experience, it sure seems to happen that way time after time when dealing with Shad.
I was up and back on the river before dawn...again all alone...to try to catch what I anticipated would be a good morning bite. I watched the sun rise and then advance above the cottonwoods across the river. All the time bringing in one diaper striper after the other. No Shad...Nada...nothing. I left early and was back in the Bay Area before lunch. Despite the bothersome baby stripers, that hour and a half of intense shad bite the evening before made my season. I am satiated and ready to surrender my key and look for other shad water options.
The good news is that a major stiper hatch that far up the Sacramento River fore tells a healthy striper fishery in the future. I can live with that.....Anne
The two locals left about dinner time. They too were frustrated by the little devils... leaving the entire place to me. It was magical. I was in my VW camper rigged to spend the night anyway so with dreams of a last light of day shad bite, I hung in there. I was not disappointed. Other than the bothersome dinks, I did not get a single strike until about 8 pm. That's when the message went out to all the shad in the area to get going. Hen after hen after hen came in until it was dark....and then it shut off as fast as it started. I have no idea how they all get the message to start and stop at the same time but in my experience, it sure seems to happen that way time after time when dealing with Shad.
I was up and back on the river before dawn...again all alone...to try to catch what I anticipated would be a good morning bite. I watched the sun rise and then advance above the cottonwoods across the river. All the time bringing in one diaper striper after the other. No Shad...Nada...nothing. I left early and was back in the Bay Area before lunch. Despite the bothersome baby stripers, that hour and a half of intense shad bite the evening before made my season. I am satiated and ready to surrender my key and look for other shad water options.
The good news is that a major stiper hatch that far up the Sacramento River fore tells a healthy striper fishery in the future. I can live with that.....Anne