Gmoney
10-29-2007, 03:55 PM
power trip to mt shasta this last weekend for my father in law's surprise 70th bday...too fun :lol:
hard trip....rolled into town late Friday and crashed out with visions of monster trout lined up waiting to peel my line. got up late and actually and got to the dam about 8:30 with a outside temp of about 40 degrees....perfect!
then it hit me....
what happened.....
there is no water in the lake....well lets say it is LOW. locals said it has been lower but they dont remember when.
i just stood and looked for the longest time without even thinking about getting my gear out of the car. once i got over the initial shock....i decided to put the rental boat plans on hold and just mess around my normal areas.
started at the damn area for the first 2 hours with lines in the water by 9:15
i normally set up as close to the end of the fence as possible....throw one line into the deep water then throw lures at the bass in the shallows. today i opted for the same plan....just a litte lower down the ine. I through different types of powerbait/egg/worm combos with no love.
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/1fence.JPG
here is a shot of the dam water level
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/1dam.JPG
then i decided to move around the bend just a bit....this is where i have my best love from bass. i have done very well using the ledges and tree stumps to my advantage....not today
here is from my normal starting spot
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2normal.JPG
here are my two favorite stumps....no fishies hiding here today....where the hell are all lures, hooks and plastics that i have donated to these rocks and stumps?? :lol:
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2first.JPG
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2stump.JPG
here is a look at at areas i have never been due to access....too bad there weren't enough hours available to explore this time.
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2spot.JPG
i spotted a large bass...looked like a smallie about 4 lbs but it was hard to tell. we battled for over an hour before he quit following my worms, grubs, and lures....we didnt play well together
i started packing up around 1:00....including the camera....and as i got ready to pull in the last pole the bobber goes flying as i see the trout come flying out of the water...its a nice one. I set the hook and he was off and running pulling 2lb p-line all over the place...what a blast. the rocks were wobbly and footing was tough. i got him into the shore and up on the first rock then decided to let him sit next to the rock for a second while i grab the net and camera....as soon as i turned he jumped up and onto the rock flopped a time or two the the line snapped. he was stunned but far enough out in the water i couldnt get him back....then he swam away. what a pretty fish with a full tail. tons of fight and probably going about 1.5 lbs or maybe even 2 lbs ....I'll never know.
even with the crazy water levels and the lack of activity from the fish....i love this place.
here is my total view from this weekend
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/4pretty.JPG
on another note....we had to start the trip home late sunday. I thought Siskiou was low....crap....then I saw Lake Shasta....wow. i didnt get any pix as we were driving by but it was even worse than Siskiou.
had a great time and cant wait to get back up there over the next 4th of july
hope everyone has a great week
laters
G$
hard trip....rolled into town late Friday and crashed out with visions of monster trout lined up waiting to peel my line. got up late and actually and got to the dam about 8:30 with a outside temp of about 40 degrees....perfect!
then it hit me....
what happened.....
there is no water in the lake....well lets say it is LOW. locals said it has been lower but they dont remember when.
i just stood and looked for the longest time without even thinking about getting my gear out of the car. once i got over the initial shock....i decided to put the rental boat plans on hold and just mess around my normal areas.
started at the damn area for the first 2 hours with lines in the water by 9:15
i normally set up as close to the end of the fence as possible....throw one line into the deep water then throw lures at the bass in the shallows. today i opted for the same plan....just a litte lower down the ine. I through different types of powerbait/egg/worm combos with no love.
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/1fence.JPG
here is a shot of the dam water level
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/1dam.JPG
then i decided to move around the bend just a bit....this is where i have my best love from bass. i have done very well using the ledges and tree stumps to my advantage....not today
here is from my normal starting spot
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2normal.JPG
here are my two favorite stumps....no fishies hiding here today....where the hell are all lures, hooks and plastics that i have donated to these rocks and stumps?? :lol:
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2first.JPG
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2stump.JPG
here is a look at at areas i have never been due to access....too bad there weren't enough hours available to explore this time.
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/2spot.JPG
i spotted a large bass...looked like a smallie about 4 lbs but it was hard to tell. we battled for over an hour before he quit following my worms, grubs, and lures....we didnt play well together
i started packing up around 1:00....including the camera....and as i got ready to pull in the last pole the bobber goes flying as i see the trout come flying out of the water...its a nice one. I set the hook and he was off and running pulling 2lb p-line all over the place...what a blast. the rocks were wobbly and footing was tough. i got him into the shore and up on the first rock then decided to let him sit next to the rock for a second while i grab the net and camera....as soon as i turned he jumped up and onto the rock flopped a time or two the the line snapped. he was stunned but far enough out in the water i couldnt get him back....then he swam away. what a pretty fish with a full tail. tons of fight and probably going about 1.5 lbs or maybe even 2 lbs ....I'll never know.
even with the crazy water levels and the lack of activity from the fish....i love this place.
here is my total view from this weekend
http://fishinghotpage.com/users/tmp3/4pretty.JPG
on another note....we had to start the trip home late sunday. I thought Siskiou was low....crap....then I saw Lake Shasta....wow. i didnt get any pix as we were driving by but it was even worse than Siskiou.
had a great time and cant wait to get back up there over the next 4th of july
hope everyone has a great week
laters
G$