Best Bites

It is forecasted to be a great weekend to be outside with daytime highs in the 60s and 70s over most of Northern California. Thinking that it should be raining won't do any good so one might as well put on a t-shirt and cast a line. It may be a worthwhile pursuit, especially for stripers in San Pablo Bay, perch along the Marin Coast and inside the San Francisco Bay, sturgeon at the Mothball Fleet and Napa River and bass at Shasta. Bay Area anglers can have a chance at trout at Del Valle and Lake Chabot. Here are this week's Best Bites:

SAN PABLO BAY striped bass: Striper bite is wide open. Lots of catch-and-release opportunity. Most are keepers in the five to six pound class. Pumphouse area is the top spot. Sturgeon anglers average a fish per boat. There have been herring spawns at Paradise and Raccoon Straits so some sturgeon have migrated out of San Pablo Bay into San Francisco Bay. Loch Lomond Marina (415) 456-0321

COASTSIDE, BAY perch: Perch fishing is very good along the Marin County beaches, Stinson Beach, Bodega Bay, Tenmile Beach, Point Reyes all provide quality fishing. Use sand crabs, pile worms or blood worms. Mostly barred perch or red-tail perch are being caught. Inside the Bay there are walleye, pile perch, barred perch and rubber lips. Action is peaking now. Bay Tackle (510) 235-2032


MOTHBALL FLEET sturgeon: Sturgeon are plentiful but most are over-sized fish. Sturgeon are found from the Mothball Fleet to Montezuma Slough. Benicia Bait (707) 745-4921

NAPA RIVER sturgeon: Long stretches of the river are fishing well for sturgeon. Quality fish are being caught with salmon roe, eel and shrimp baits. Sturgeon are spread from south of Cuttings Wharf to Vallejo. Sweeney's Sports (707) 255-5544

LAKE SHASTA bass: Bass bite is strong. There is two feet of visibility and water temps are in the low 50s but warm temps this week should bring a rise to that. Spider grubs or 1/2-ounce jigs in brown with purple trailers are hot lures. Darter heads (3/16 oz) with ox-blood worms are effective. Trout are being caught on bass plugs in five to 15 feet of water. Live minnows work magic on trout. Phil's Propeller 1-800-462-3917

LAKE DEL VALLE trout/bass: Trout, smallmouth and largemouth bass are biting aggressively. Trout are being caught with dough baits and worms but Rapalas cast from shore are getting fish. Gold Kastmasters or gold-bladed spinners are working well. Silver is not producing. Black bass are in the mouths of coves and off rocky points. Fish are 6 to 8 feet deep. Del Valle Marina (925) 449-5201

LAKE CHABOT trout: Trout fishing is rated a 7 on a 1 to 10 scale. Best results lately have come from trollers using Kastmasters, Rapalas or Flicker Shad in Honker Bay and off Raccoon Point. Shore anglers use garlic or chartreuse Power Bait. Indian Cove and along the east shore trail have been productive spots. Big fish of the week was a 9.6 pounder caught by Mark Messier of Hayward who was trolling with a Krocodile lure. Lake Chabot Marina (510) 247-2526