laying low in siskiou 10/27/07

[Gmoney]

power trip to mt shasta this last weekend for my father in law's surprise 70th bday...too fun :lol:
hard trip....rolled into town late Friday and crashed out with visions of monster trout lined up waiting to peel my line. got up late and actually and got to the dam about 8:30 with a outside temp of about 40 degrees....perfect!

then it hit me....
what happened.....

there is no water in the lake....well lets say it is LOW. locals said it has been lower but they dont remember when.

i just stood and looked for the longest time without even thinking about getting my gear out of the car. once i got over the initial shock....i decided to put the rental boat plans on hold and just mess around my normal areas.
started at the damn area for the first 2 hours with lines in the water by 9:15

i normally set up as close to the end of the fence as possible....throw one line into the deep water then throw lures at the bass in the shallows. today i opted for the same plan....just a litte lower down the ine. I through different types of powerbait/egg/worm combos with no love.


here is a shot of the dam water level



then i decided to move around the bend just a bit....this is where i have my best love from bass. i have done very well using the ledges and tree stumps to my advantage....not today

here is from my normal starting spot


here are my two favorite stumps....no fishies hiding here today....where the hell are all lures, hooks and plastics that i have donated to these rocks and stumps?? :lol:



here is a look at at areas i have never been due to access....too bad there weren't enough hours available to explore this time.


i spotted a large bass...looked like a smallie about 4 lbs but it was hard to tell. we battled for over an hour before he quit following my worms, grubs, and lures....we didnt play well together

i started packing up around 1:00....including the camera....and as i got ready to pull in the last pole the bobber goes flying as i see the trout come flying out of the water...its a nice one. I set the hook and he was off and running pulling 2lb p-line all over the place...what a blast. the rocks were wobbly and footing was tough. i got him into the shore and up on the first rock then decided to let him sit next to the rock for a second while i grab the net and camera....as soon as i turned he jumped up and onto the rock flopped a time or two the the line snapped. he was stunned but far enough out in the water i couldnt get him back....then he swam away. what a pretty fish with a full tail. tons of fight and probably going about 1.5 lbs or maybe even 2 lbs ....I'll never know.

even with the crazy water levels and the lack of activity from the fish....i love this place.
here is my total view from this weekend


on another note....we had to start the trip home late sunday. I thought Siskiou was low....crap....the n I saw Lake Shasta....wow. i didnt get any pix as we were driving by but it was even worse than Siskiou.

had a great time and cant wait to get back up there over the next 4th of july

hope everyone has a great week
laters
G$

[IncredibleHuck]

Sweet pictures! It sounds like a great lake to fish. I've fished Shasta before and when I fished it, it was full. However when I was a kid, we drove over Shasta and the water was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down. That was back in 88 when there was a big drought.

[Gmoney]

yeah...im guessing 10 - 12 feet down at siskiyou

i found this for Lake Shasta:

Measured on: October 28, 2007
(This is not today's date.)

Shasta Lake water level: 945.37 feet
(Elevation above sea level - Full lake is 1067 feet)

Distance from dam crest: 121.63 feet
(Drawdown)

[Troutman65]

G$, Great report. To bad about that trout getting away. :( That happends. Great pics.

Thanks for the report bro.

TM65

[Fisher-of-Men]

Thank you for the report! I enjoyed reading it! :wink: We all have those days when we have difficulty landing the fish; but it sounded like it got your adrenalin going for a few minutes anyways.

Better luck next time. :wink:

Fisher-of-Men

[Wingnut]

Looks so awesome G$, great report & pics man! :mrgreen:

[Gmoney]

thanks for the replies
no worries on the slow day for me.....i just love being out there
im actually glad the trout got away because while i was reeling it in i told some guy watching/begging he could have it for lunch.
after i packed up the duuuuude turned out to be a major *** who doesnt deserve to eat any fish i catch. duuude berated me all the way to the car for having three different poles and a full tackle box.....he says "what kind of fisherman are you that you need three different poles???" i said "one that doesnt beg for fish" :lol:

thanks again
Im always looking forward to the next fishing session no matter where it is or what is caught

G$

PS- naturally i never had more than 2 rods in use at any time