Water Conditions: New Melones Lake is currently holding 594,871 acre-feet of water. The lake level dropped two feet this past week. It is currently at 877 ft. above sea level and 208 ft. from full. 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 76-81 degrees. There is a two lane concrete ramp with a courtesy dock in place.

We will be receiving a large shipment of minnows on Tuesday July 25th.

Dillon Lewellen and his father Bill went out fishing with Guide Gary Burns. They caught some very impressive trout and kokanee.

Trout: Fair. The trout bite has been slow during the heat of the day and pretty good throughout the night when temperatures are much cooler. As the lake levels drop the fish will hold in deep water in the main lake and over the river channel. The shad can also be located in the same areas and the trout will feed on them. Trolling anglers brought in a handful of 2 and 3-pound trout. Try fishing in 60-80' of water to catch trout and kokanee. Most anglers are using a kokanee rig to attract both trout and kokanee. If you want to specifically target trout, try using a liplees crankbait or a large shad patterned spoon. When fishing in deep water it is very helpful to use a setup that will produce sound and vibration. Night anglers continue to catch some chunky trout while fishing under a submersible light. The light will attract plankton, which attracts small baitfish and then the larger predator fish will soon follow. Most anglers will use live minnows, nightcrawlers and Power Bait to catch them. Look for deep water and channel swings to locate schools of trout. Bank anglers will have better luck fishing some of the lakes and rivers in the high country.

Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week goes to Judy Rodgers and Sherry Zacharia. They caught some really nice kokanee and trout while trolling in the main lake with Apex and Murphy's Bugs. Their biggest trout weighed in at 3-pounds, 11-ounces.

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.

A very solid limit of kokanee for Mario Lopez and his friend.

Kokanee: Good. New Melones is kicking out some of the largest kokanee in the state. The average kokanee is over 16" and we have seen some 18" fish. These fish are chunks and we have been consistently weighing fish over 2-pounds. The lake record is 2.8-pounds and was caught by Ray Koch of Escalon in 2007. This record might be broken this year if the fish continue to grow as they usually will. The kokanee are starting to school up a bit more and anglers are trolling in 65 to 85' of water to catch them. The dam, spillway and Rose Island are all good areas to target the kokanee and trout. When fishing in deep water it is best to use a setup that will create sound, vibration and disperse water. A large Rocky Mountain Tackle slingblade with a slight bend in it will swing your lure side-to-side and draw strikes. A short leader is also recommended. Vances Tackle dodger is another good choice and will disperse plenty of water and attract fish. Some larger lures have been working well, including full size bladed hoochies, wiggle hoochies and Apex. Pink, blue and purple have been the colors of choice. Scent is also very important and should be applied throughout the day. An Oregon Tackle Scent Chamber tied inline is a good way to ensure your presentation is constantly producing scent. Stop by the store to pick up some dyed and scented corn to add to each hook.

Ken Hopper of Sonora hauled in some big ones. He reported trolling a pink hoochie and a gold Vance's Dodger near the dam to find his luck.

Don Myshrall of Mokeulmne Hill found a couple chunky New Melones kokanee. With one of them weighing over 2-pounds.

Chris Devincenzi and his 8-year old son Angelo had a blast trolling for these extremely chunk kokanee and a couple of nice trout. They caught all their fish trolling Apex near the dam.

Marvin Johnson with some good sized kokanee and one rainbow trout that weighed close to 3-pounds.

Bob James put a couple of trout in the boat. His biggest weighed 3-pounds, 1-ounce.

Bass: Fair. The water level continues to drop making the bass bite a little tougher. Most of the fish have pulled off the shoreline and are holding on deep water structure. During the summer heat it is best to fish early in the morning or late in the evening. The fish will want deep water access and move shallow periodically to feed. The topwater bite has been slow, but there is always a chance at a few blowups. If the fish are not aggressively feeding on the surface, it is best to slow down and fish a bottom bouncing presentation. Try using a Texas rig or a Carolina rig with a crawdad patterned soft plastic. Both rigs are weedless and can be fish through brush and rock. Brush Hogs, Beavers and the new R2S Mad Yabbie are all good choices. Many fish are targeting shad and a shad patterned dropshot worm will produce many bites. If the fish are proving to be hard to locate, try fishing fast until a productive area is locate. Spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and small crankbaits can be used to cover water.

Josh Parris of San Andreas landed a massive 13.01-pound largemouth. He reported catching this beast on a crankbait that he was tossing on a Falcon Rod.

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 bite is picking up and many anglers are catching 6 to 10-pound fish. The cats will feed all day, but the best bite time is mornings, evenings and during the night. Try using frozen shad, anchovy or mackerel to coax them into biting. The catfish in New Melones will feed on shad and small sunfish just like a bass would. It is best to have a two pole stamp and give the fish multiple offerings. Try fishing a large chunk of frozen fish on one rod and fishing a single crawler/mallow combo on the other. Each year some of the largest fish are caught on small offerings.

Glory Hole Sports Big Fish of the Week goes to The Mellinger Birthday Crew. They caught four nice catfish while bank fishing with chicken liver, their biggest weighed 11-pounds, 1-ounce.

Ericka and Easton Watkins went out and caught a couple really nice catfish. They reported using hot dogs for bait.

Crappie: Good. The crappie are biting and can be caught during the day or at night under a submersible light. The crappie are holding in main lake pockets, coves and creek channels. Try using live minnows fished under a slip-float to catch them.