Lake Chabot's Fishing Conditions
Week of September 16, 2012

With summer coming to an end very soon, the weather has been pretty consistent in the high 70's to low 80's with cat fishing remaining steady. Catfish have been caught over by the island, the dam, Half Moon Bay and over in Bass Cove. The water clarity has been great over the past couple of months with about 6 foot visibility. However, the wind has been a problem later in the afternoon on a daily basis. We are done losing water due to the construction on the west shore trail here at the marina, and the trail will soon be closed completely for the construction to take place on repaving and reconstructing the ADA pathway. Regardless of the low water level and the construction, we are still renting out boats. The project is set to be completed by October 15, 2012. Sorry for any inconvenience that this may cause.

Since the beginning of summer, we have planted a little over 5,000lbs of catfish, but we just planted 1000lbs of trout within the past two weeks! When you bring in your big fish, we will take your picture and give you a "Lake Chabot Whopper Club" button. If you catch a whopper over 8 lbs (trout), 10 lbs (catfish) or 5 lbs (bass), you will also receive a Lake Chabot Whopper mug. For beginning anglers, if you have any questions on what to use, please come down to the Marina and one of our friendly staff will be more than happy to help you get set up on your fishing adventure. Boating has been quite popular in the past few months; if you're looking to rent out a boat, the best time to come out is in the morning or early afternoon to avoid crowds, especially on the weekends. As mentioned before, the wind picking up in the late afternoon has caused us to give out warnings or not send out kayaks, row boats, or electric boats because of safety hazards.

We have converted back to our regular fall hours! On Mon - Thurs we will be closing at 5pm and stopping boat rentals at 4:00pm.
Fri - Sun we will be closing at 6:00pm and stopping boat rentals at 5:00pm.
Make sure to get here early and beat the crowds!

TROUT
Catfish season is almost over! Even though catfish are still biting relatively well, there is no excuse to not start trout fishing! We have already had our second trout plant of the season! If fishing for trout, it's best to go to the clearest parts of the lake which are the dam and Half Moon Bay area. If you are planning to troll, the water is still pretty warm, so you may want to experiment with different sized weights and drop them lower than you usually would. Trout fishing will not pick up until the water temperature cools down. Usually some of the best lures (check the picture out) to troll with would be, Firetiger Rapalas, Kastmasters, and Mirashads. When they do start to bite more frequently, chartreuse and rainbow Powerbait will be your best friend! When trolling for trout, be careful with the anglers fishing on the shoreline.

BASS
Bass fishing has been slowing down as we enter into trout season. Bass are currently in post-spawn mode, so they are near the shoreline, about 10-15 feet deep. If you are fishing for bass, they are hitting mostly in the early mornings and evenings on plastics, jigs and hula grubs. Near the island or the tulles by Raccoon Point are always a good spot to fish for bass. Most of the anglers are throwing Senkos, drop shots and Brush hogs to get the fish to come out from their deep, off-shoreline structure. Livewells can be provided upon request thanks to Walton's Pond. Please practice catch and release for bass, as they are not stocked in the lake and their population depends on you!

CATFISH
Summer is almost over and catfish are slowing down. The water temperature was warm and consistent all summer long, but it is starting to cool off a bit. We planted a little over 5,000 lbs of catfish into Lake Chabot this season, and we have now moved on to our regular trout plants. Typically around this time, catfish are going to be located by Raccoon point, but they have also been around the Half Moon Bay area, behind the island, and Coot's Landing. Anglers are using mackerel, anchovies and chicken liver for bait, as well as night crawlers for live bait. We are done planting catfish for the year, so grab your stinkiest bait and come on out before all the catfish swim back down to the bottom of the lake! For beginners, if you have any questions on what to use please come down to the Marina and one of our friendly staff will be more than happy to help get you set up for your fishing adventure!

WHOPPERS
No whopper were reported this past week.

HOURS OF OPERATION
Monday -- Thursday: Boat rentals are from 6:00am - 4:00pm. Boats are due in by 5:00pm.
Friday -- Sunday: Boat rentals are from 6:00am - 5:00pm. Boats are due in by 6:00pm.
Hours subject to change based on weather conditions and light levels.