Ted Cribari and Al Hurwitz trolled Lake Del Valle long and hard on 6/13/24, looking mainly for Smallmouth Bass. Regrettably, fishing was very slow, with our only two catches: a very small Smallmouth, and a very nice two-pound Lightning Rainbow Trout. Both fish were released (we kept the Trout in the water for the release to ensure the fish’s viability). The Trout was caught along our favorite stretch of western shoreline opposite an area north of Swallow Bay. We caught the Trout on a 1/4 oz feathered spinner fly (scent applied), trolled 20 feet below the surface in a water column of 30 feet. A beautiful fish as you can see from the attached photo!

 

We also tried trolling a variety of subsurface jointed hard baits (Rapala Jointed Husky Jerks and Rapala Jointed Flicker Shads, but to no avail. Not sure why the bite was so slow, given the excellent water clarity, water temperature, and weather conditions. We’ll be back to give the Smallies another chance!

 

All the best,
Ted Cribari, Los Gatos
Dr. Al  Hurwitz, Saratoga