Delta Report

[WinterrunRon]

Monday night I invited flygolf (Mark) to accompany me to chase stripers on the delta Tuesday morning for 1/2 day. We fished the incomming tide from 9:30a to 2:30p.

I didn't have to travel too much to find 'em this time. Only 5 stops I've had success with in the past and we caught multiple fish at all but one. The second stop of the day was responsible for about 20 fish over a 2 hour period as I got lucky and found a nice concentration of larger fish. We worked this stretch until the fish got smaller then moved on. We each landed about 15 fish or so and had two double-hookups.

So we landed about 30 fish, all keeper stripers except two undersized. Half were around 3-4 lbs, the other half 5-6.5 lbs and one at just over 9 lbs earned Mark big fish honors. Chartruese and white fly did the trick for us. My tip for you if you go is to slow down. Most hookups were just inside the lip, and I had several hit it more than once.

All released to fight another day.

Great day, nice weather, lots of fun.

Ron



http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k63/WinterrunRon/Delta%20Stripers/IMG_0472.jpg

[img]http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k63/WinterrunRon/Delta%20Stripers/104_0277.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k63/WinterrunRon/Delta%20Stripers/104_0281-1.jpg

http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k63/WinterrunRon/Delta%20Stripers/IMG_0471.jpg

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

You guys look like your having fun.....great photos.

Hey Ron,

Thanks for the very good and encouraging report :) ! Glad you guys got into em today. I am going to get my kayak out on the delta Friday unless the weather really turns bad. I got my new 9 wt and have it all set up now but plan to bring the 6 wt as well :D .

I will let folks know how it turns out! Best Wishes and Merry Christmas to you and your family!

Bill

[Hairstacker]

Man, 28 keepers, that is encouraging! Great job guys!! 8)

Can you tell me what kind of lines you guys were using and at what depth you were finding the fish?

[flygolf]

Awesome day and an awesome host!! I suggest that if he ever throws out another open invitation jump on it he knows where the stripers are. I think it was mentioned in another post but I'll reiterate it here, lots of pauses and make sure your ready, several fish grabbed on the pause and the line started taking off before I had a chance to set.

[Katz]

Great post. Contrats!

Kraig

[JerryInLodi]

Good goin' Ron. Did you turn on the power for your guest? Ron's boat scoots!

By the way, I've fished a couple of spots on your route since we fished together.

The water was down at 49 one time but I did well last Friday as I posted earlier with a 10, 9 and 8 pound fish.

And you said you were going to go chase steelhead!

[Adam Grace]

Nice fish pictures and report.

[WinterrunRon]

Mike, thanks for your kudos. My fishing is simple as I only use one line 99% of the time, SA Mastery Series Streamer Express, 250 grain for an 8wt rod. The fish were caught in 2-8ft of water and as Mark and David can attest, I don't change flys very often. In fact, David insisted feeling uneasy about my using the same fly for so long.... but I soon went back to my original fly I started with in the morning!

Bill, looking forward to your Friday report. Good luck, I hope you find 'em!

Bill, Kraig, Adam... thanks.

Jerry, your the real trooper, braving the wind and rain with me that day at 55mph+. I scooted to and from my spots but Mark had it easy (weather was like April, water was like glass!). I hope those big fish came from one of my spots we stopped at together! I'd be thrilled if they did. If they didn't, call me for a trip on the No-Nonsense soon and you can show me where the big ones are yourself! Steelheading was on the itinerary but I couldn't pass up the big incomming tide this week. P.S. I'm available all December in case you have a last minute cancellation or get off early during the week. Kids are out the week before Christmas, aren't they? Let's fish... have rod-- will travel! You know how to get a hold of me! 300-4RON (4766) or here. ;-)

Ron

[JerryInLodi]

Ron, my before Christmas schedule is full but I do have some time the week after and there's a minor incoming mid morning till about 4 pm during the first week in '07. I have both weekend and mid week days.

This time my boat, my gas, your lunch! Sorry, I only cruise at about 30mph though! Bunches of room in the front though and I work from the back so the front's all yours.

Oh, and about the three nice fish, not the same spot but visible from the last place we fished last time about a quarter mile away.

[WinterrunRon]

Jerry,

Sounds like you found another good spot!

Lunch it is. Be sure to place your order early, and by the way, 30 mph in January may feel like 55mph in November!

Thanks for the invite and I'll get back to you after I've checked with my entertainment director.

In the meantime... go get 'em!

Ron

Hey Jerry, Ron and all,

I got out Friday on the delta to fish an area that Jerry had said I could access pretty easy from my Kayak. The weather turned out to be really very nice most of the day. Heck the sun even came out for a while :) . I got to explore the area a little and found a place to put my kayak in and paddle a short distance to the area that Jerry had recommended. There is a public launch a little closer to the area that a person could use for $12 bucks.

I ended up catching 2 fish on my new rod so I got to break it in on its first time on the water. Nothing big, both fish were schoolie stripers about 15 inches or so. Stripers sure know how to fight as even with my 9 wt rod they did justice to it. I like the looks of this area. I saw birds working one area really hard but by the time I paddled over there they had stopped. There had to be some bait fish and stripers there. It would probably be good for largemouth in the spring as well.

One thing I discovered is that unlike largemouth fishing it is hard to fish for stripers out of my kayak. The long casts and dealing with all that excess line and being able to strip effectively is a real challenge in my kayak. I actually may change my tactics and use my canoe with my outrigger next time. That way I could stand up and have plenty of room to cast and keep my shooting line from getting hung up. I even have a little 2 hp outboard I could use with this setup.

Unfortunately the day ended on a negative note. When I got back to my truck I found that someone had broken the driver side window on my truck to get into my truck :(. I really didn't have much of anything of value in my truck and haven't found that anything was actually stolen. May have to consider the public launch location for safety in the future. An enjoyable day otherwise.

Thanks Jerry for the recommendation. Looking forward to our fishing trip on the 4th!

Bill

[JerryInLodi]

Sorry Bill, I don't know if B. Kiene would be offended so I won't mention it by name but the large city just south of you is truely the armpit of California (and that's putting it nicely). I forgot to mention to you about parking your car near a settlement otherwise the scum in the area will break in. It's such common knowledge I just forgot.

Glad you got into a couple of fish. Can't you pile your line on the deck of the kayak as you strip in?

[Hairstacker]

Bill, glad to hear you got into a couple and sorry to hear about your truck. I too flyfish out of a kayak of sorts and agree it can be a challenge fishing any kind of sinking head with a running line. I've been using an integrated line off and on and it hasn't been too bad stripping the running line into my lap. A few tangles here and there but nothing major. The biggest challenge for me is having to make adjustments to my boat position while the line is still out there, which is sometimes a recipe for getting hung up on the bottom. No doubt a full floating line is so much easier, which is why I often prefer it even when I know it's not optimal.

Jerry,

Right now I pretty much have to pile my line right in between my legs as I strip. I may try to come up with some kind of floating pad that I could put immediately on the left side of my kayak. That is where it would be easy to strip but of course it just sinks there now. I haven't given up but a floating line is so much easier. I will use the launch next time so I can park near others.

Mike,

I can relate to exactly what you are saying as well. It is a challenge to control boat position, particulary with a little wind. I did get hung up a few times when I struggled with boat position before starting my retrieve. I surely won't give up on my kayak however. I am still learning how to best fish out of it. It is fun to paddle around and fish out of particulary with a floating line.

Bill

[JerryInLodi]

Hey Bill, I forgot! How do you like your new rod and line? And did you use one of the bluegill imitations or some of the flies you were mailed during the fly trade?

Hey Jerry,

I loved my new rod and line :) ! It felt exactly like the outfit I used on your boat although the rod is a somewhat different model. I really like the way that line casts. And, even those 15 inch stripers felt plenty fiesty on the outfit.

Regarding flies, I started out with a fly I got from Jay M that had worked well for me last time you and I fished. That is what I caught both fish on. I didn't put the bluegill pattern on till later and only fished if for a short while. It looked great in the water and I expect it will do well with some more time.

I am having my truck window fixed Monday and hope to get out there again maybe later in the week.

Bill

[lee s.]

Bluegrass B,
Have you tied a floating running line?
.....lee s.

[lee s.]

Should read TRIED.

Hey Lee,

Good to hear from you :) ! No, I have not tried a floating running line which would definitely help. However the fly line system that I am using is a rio striper express with a built in sinking/running line so I would have to change lines entirely to try the floating running line. I like the line for casting as long as I can keep the running line out of the water.

Merry Christmas to you and Terry!

Bill

[lee s.]

Bill,
I think Teeny makes your integrated lines with a floating running line.
LOTS of options out there. :wink:
....lee s.

[WinterrunRon]

Bluegrass,

I have a Teeny 200 line made for a 7wt. Might be a bit light for your 9 wt but your welcomed to try it to see if you like the line before you buy one.

My personal opinion is that a 9wt is too heavy a line to cast from a tube or kayak, but hey, maybe I'm a wimp since I striper fish standing up on the deck of a bass boat with 8wt and less. I casted my friend's 9wt Streamer Express on Sunday and it felt like I was casting a cable!

I'd fish as light as I could get away with and that may be the answer to a more enjoyable afternoon.

I'm not the expert, but it's available to try if you want.

Ron

Hey Ron,

Thanks for your generous offer to loan me a Teeny 200 line to try. As it turns out I do have my own teeny 200 line already that I have used with my 6 wt. I haven't used it out of my kayak but are probably right about it being a lot easier to fish with out of a kayak or tube. I intend to try it on my next trip out there using my kayak. I really like my 9 wt when I am standing but it is a load from a sitting position low to the water.

Sounds like you are continuing to get after those stripers with pretty good success. Hope to get a chance to fish with you sometime in the future.

Best Wishes and have a great Holiday season!

Bill

[Sturmer White]

Hey Bluegrass
Try sitting on the grass and Working on a Belgium cast. It should keep your back cast up.

Hey Sturm,

Boy that sounds like a lot of work but I bet it would help :) . Thanks again for sharing your casting tips with me during our little casting exercise last week.

Bill