Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding 648,792 acre-feet of water. The lake level dropped just a few inches this past week. It is currently at 886 ft. above sea level and 199 ft. from full. There is still some snow to melt in the high country, hopefully the runoff will continue to fill the lake and offset releases. The water clarity is clear in most of the lake with a slight stain in some areas. The water temperature is gradually rising, with the average being 74-80 degrees.

Trout: Fair. The trout that are being caught are very healthy and gorging themselves on shad. The shad have moved out to deep/cool water and the trout are right there with them. Look for intersection where the creek channels meet the main lake and existing river channel. These areas provide cool water for the fish and they will use them as routes to feed.

Jody Smith caught to hefty rainbows while trolling with crawlers near the dam.

Trolling anglers have been catching some nice trout while trolling for kokanee. The trout will bite brightly painted spinners out of aggression and curiosity. To specifically target trout try using a shad patterned Rapala and trolling from 20-45'.

Dave and Brian are back at it, catching limits of hefty trout while fishing under a light at night. They caught these chunks using nightcrawlers near the dam.

Night fishing anglers are starting to catch some of these chunky trout while fishing under a submersible light at night. Try anchoring in 40-80' of water and dropping your light down to approximately 20'. The light will attract plankton, which will attract small fish and then larger fish. It may take a while for this cycle to occur. Not only trout can be caught under a light. Many anglers will catch crappie, bass and catfish as well. Live minnows, night crawlers, Gulp Minnows and spoons are all good choices. Bank anglers will have better luck heading to the high country to target trout.

Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week goes to Benn Camicia of San Jose. He caught a nice 2-pound, 9-ounce rainbow and a kokanee that was over 16". He reported using leadcore line and a Needlefish to catch both of these fish.

We do encourage catch and release for the brown trout as The Department of Fish and Game will no longer be planting them. Carefully measure, weigh and photograph trophy fish and send us pictures and information.

Mike Jones of Stockton caught a really nice kokanee that was 17" long and weighed just shy of 2-pounds. He used a pink hoochie near the spillway to get this fish to bite.

Kokanee: Good. Catching quantity has been a grind and most anglers aren't catching limits of fish. However, the fish being caught are quality fish and anglers will have a chance at catching 15-17" fish. The kokanee are scattered throughout the main lake and most of these chunks are being caught at the dam, spillway and in front of Rose Island. We have had a few reports of fish being caught around Carson Creek. Try fishing in 25-40' of water and trolling at 1.4-1.8mph. Many presentations have been working. The large Slinblades with a slight bend will create commotion and draw fish for a distance. Try trailing them with a Bladed Super Squid or a spinner. Some days the fish will favor a finesse presentation. Small teardrop blades and micro hoochies will coax bites from finicky fish. For lure colors pink, blue and purple have been productive. For blades and dodgers, gold, watermelon, blue and pink have been good choices. Kokanee will bite out of aggression, it is very important to offer them a presentation that has an enticing action. Adjust the bend in your blade to get a wide side-to-side swing. Check your rig alongside the boat to make sure it has a desirable action. Add scent and dyed and scented corn to each hook.

Warren Worthington spent a day trolling for kokanee. He reported the fish being scattered throughout the main lake. He caught one really fat kokanee.

Bass: Fair. The bite has slowed up quite a bit now that the fish are done spawning and relating to shallow water. However, there are some nice post-spawn fish being caught and released. These fish are aggressively feeding in attempt to recover from the spawn. This past week the topwater bite tapered off and most of the fish are being caught on subsurface reaction baits and soft plastics. Crankbaits, ripbaits and spinnerbaits will draw strikes from fish that are feeding in depths ranging from 5-25'. The bass will target bluegill and sunfish at this time of the year. Keep this in mind when choosing baits and colors. For soft plastics try fishing a weightless Senko near the standing timber. The slow fall of the bait will attract fish that are not feeding heavily. Also, try shaking a Texas rig though and around some of the heavy cover. The fish will be holding in these thick areas and waiting to ambush their prey. There has been a pretty good jig bite and some of the better quality fish have been coming on football head jigs. California Reservoir Lures makes a variety of jigs that work extremely well on New Melones and other Mother Lode lakes. We have some new colors that are going to catch some donkeys. PLEASE PRACTICE CATCH AND RELEASE. Take photos and carefully release the fish back into to the lake to maintain a healthy fish population for generations to come.

Catfish: Good. The catfish are biting and we have been seeing some quality 6 to 10-pound fish. Most anglers are finding luck fishing with frozen fish. Sardines and anchovies work well and will attract fish. It is not a bad idea to add scent to your frozen bait. Catfish will feed on main lake points and along flat dirt banks. Slow dragging bait works well when fishing in areas void of brush. Some big catfish can be caught near the dam and toward the South end of the lake.

Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week goes to Don Hise who brought in three nice cats, the biggest weighing 8-pounds, 5-ounces.

Crappie: Okay. The crappie bite at night has been hit-and-miss. The crappie will be in an area one day and you can load the boat, a few days later they seem to disappear. Try making multiple stops per trip until you locate them. Coves and pockets in major creek arms are good places to find crappie. Also look for isolated wood and large standing timber. Try using mini jigs, live minnows and small plastic minnows to coax them into biting.