February 2, 2001 Those of you who are regular readers of this report are probably getting tired of reading basically the same thing every week but that's the winter pattern here. Live jumbo minnows are producing good catches while artificials are producing very few fish due to the cold water temperatures ( 39 - 43° ). Bob Higgins of Limit Out Bait & Tackle in Clearlake Oaks (707-998-1006) says most anglers using minnows are catching upwards of 12 fish per trip fishing rocky areas in 10 to 20 feet. They are running 3 or 4 pounds with quite a few 5's and 6's including one monster weighing 11 pounds. The lure fishermen are doing best with pig-n-jigs fished real slow and deep diving crankbaits also fished very slowly. Most lure tossers are lucky to catch 2 fish for a day's effort. Al Freitas of Don's Bait & Tackle in Clearlake says live jumbo minnows are the way to go. One of his regulars using minnows caught 20 bass ranging from 4 to 6 pounds in 12 to 15 feet of water fishing in the Narrows. Some anglers are doing well fishing in 6 to 8 feet of water in the Jago Bay area with minnows. Good Fishin.....Catfish Ed The lake level is at 1.65 feet on the rumsey gauge. Attention serious bass fishermen! For detailed "Clear Lake Bass Fishing Reports" Click Here (ncbf.com)   February 9, 2001 Well here we go again with the same basic report you have been reading for several weeks. The only changes are a few more fish being taken with artificials and some fish being caught a little shallower. Al Freitas of Don's Bait & Tackle in Clearlake (707-995-9668) reports most anglers using jumbo minnows are still doing well. A lot of good fish are being taken in 10 to 20 feet of water but quite a few are being caught in 5 to 10 feet as well. Senkos and Hula Grubs are starting to take a few fish around the Narrows and near Konocti Harbor in 5 to 10 feet of water. Bob Higgins of Limit Out Bait & Tackle in Clearlake Oaks (707-998-1006) says the live minnow guys are catching anywhere from 5 to over 30 fish depending on how long they fish and how many minnows they bring with them. One lucky angler caught 5 bass that totaled a little over 40 pounds with jumbo minnows fishing in 25 to 30 feet of water, all 5 were about 8 pounds apiece. Most of the minnow fishermen in Bob's area are catching their fish in 15 to 30 feet around rocks and deep water docks. Terry Knight, Outdoor Columnist for the Lake County Record Bee reports tough fishing in the north end of the lake. He says most anglers are lucky to catch 2 or 3 fish for their efforts. They are catching most of the fish on pig-n-jigs and plastic worms. Good Fishin.....Catfish Ed The lake level is stable at 1.63 feet on the rumsey gauge.   February 16, 2001 I kept the first paragraph from last weeks report in this one since there is no reason to change it: "Well here we go again with the same basic report you have been reading for several weeks. The only changes are a few more fish being taken with artificials and some fish being caught a little shallower." Al Freitas of Don's Bait & Tackle in Clearlake (707-995-9668) says bassers using live jumbo minnows are still doing very well. A local angler has been catching large numbers of 7 to 9 pound bass fishing in deeper breaks in the 15 foot range. A lot of others are doing well fishing the first break at around 6 feet. A basser from Idaho was fishing with an Excalibur crankbait alongside his 2 buddies who were using minnows and was able to hold his own by catching 8 bass from 3 to 7½ pounds with the crankbait, they were fishing in the south end of the lake on a break of about 6 feet. Bass Guide Larry Hemphill of Yuba City and his client had a great Valentines Day Wednesday when they caught 6 fish for a total weight of 36 pounds 13 ounces in the south end of the lake by slowly working pig-n-jigs and crankbaits on rocky ledges in 10 to 18 feet of water. Terry Knight, outdoor columnist for the Lake County Record Bee reports a few bass being taken in the north end of the lake with pig-n-jigs and plastic worms on breaks in 4 to 6 feet. Good Fishin.....Catfish Ed The lake level has risen to 1.95 feet on the rumsey gauge. Attention serious bass fishermen! For detailed "Clear Lake Bass Fishing Reports" Click Here (ncbf.com)   February 23, 2001 The warm rain we had earlier this week has brought the water temperature up to the high 40's and even the low 50's in some areas and is causing the bass to move to shallower water. Al Freitas of Don's Bait & Tackle in Clearlake (707-995-9668) reports fairly good action with artificials and of course excellent results with live jumbo minnows. The top lures have been pig-n-jigs, crankbaits, spinnerbaits and plastic worms in that order. Most fish are being taken working the lure slowly and bouncing off the bottom and in less than 10 feet of water. The good news for shorebound anglers is there were over 15 bass taken off the Redbud Pier in Clearlake last weekend. Most were caught in 2 to 5 feet of water with large nightcrawlers and some with live jumbo minnows. Good Fishin.....Catfish Ed The lake level has risen to 2.98 feet on the rumsey gauge. Attention serious bass fishermen! For detailed "Clear Lake Bass Fishing Reports" Click Here (ncbf.com)   Back to 2001 Bass Reports