Hey All,

I am going up to visit a buddy in Sacremento in a few weeks. I will be up there for four days and plan to fish every one of them.

I think we will fish the Delta, Berryessa, and we might make the trip to Clear Lake for a day.

My question is this: what sort of tackle (rods, line and baits) should I bring? I have limited space for lures, etc., because I will be flying up, but I plan to ship my rods ahead of me so I have a little bit more flexibility in that department.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

--John

--John

John
I don't fish 'Berry, but if you're going to fish the Delta and/or Clear lake this time of year you need to make sure you bring whatever combo you use to throw frogs. (Sumo, Snag Proof, Bobby Barrack type frogs)...If you were limited to one type of set-up, no question that would be it. Frogs on and next to mats... are absolutely deadly for size and numbers at both fisheries. The hotter the weather, the better. The frog bite tends to be best in the morning at Clear Lake, but it can...depending on tides...last all day on the Delta. The higher the sun, the deeper into the mats you need to throw. Early on think edges...later on in the day, think pockets.My second choice would be either a flipping stick or a dropshot rig. Take your pick depending on your skill set. They both can be very effective this time of year on both of those bodies of water. Get next to the tules on the Delta and over deep structure...as in rock piles..at Clear Lake. When I say "deep", keep in mind the average depth of CL is about 20 feet.
I hope I got this message out in time to help you. Whack 'em!

Hey,

Thanks so much for the response. You got me in plenty of time as I don't leave until the 5th (I am just really excited--like waiting for Christmas).

I plan on bringing up 5-7 rods. Flipping (w/20lb FL), H (w/14lb FL), MH (w/12lb FL), M (w/10lb FL), ML (w/6lb-8lb FL), and a MH crank bait rod (w/14lb Mono). I was toying with just bringing an extra reel with some 50lb braid to throw on my flipping stick for froggin'. I have a Kistler 7' H action rod or a St Croix Legend Tournement 7'3 (maybe 7'4?) XH rod that I can bring just for the Frog.

Should I try to do double duty with the Flippin stick or bring a frog-specific rod? Any suggestions on which one?

Again, I really appreciate any suggestions and thanks again for the response.

Be well,

--John

John,

You have some good advice already. I would consider going a little heavier on your tackle for the locations mentioned. Delta/Clear lake it can be nice to have two 20lb setups, especially if the flip bite is good.

I would make sure you bring a decent selection of rattle traps. You simply can't go wrong at the three places you mentioned with a rattle trap. LV500 is a good one to start with.

Senko should also be high on the list. Senkos simply catch a lot of fish at the Delta and Clear Lake. Doesn't matter what time of year. Green pumpkin, watermelon/red, black/blue or a shad pattern are all good. There's times at the delta where you just get too many bites on senkos to pass it up.

You might also consider a swimbait rod with some waking baits like Slammer for all the locaitons and some sinking baits like hudd (for Berryessa).

Thanks Rob and BassDaddy,

I can't tell you guys how much I appreciate the help. I'm really looking forward to throwing the heavy stuff. Dropshotin' 4" blue crawler worms is always fun, but one tires of mush bites.

Hopefully I get some good ones so I'm not too embarrased to post pictures.

Wish me luck, and luck to you guys too.

Thanks,

--John

John
I'm going to echo SB's advice regarding consideration of bigger sticks and heavier line. I only suggested the drop shot rig because I had no idea of your skill level and drop-shotting at CL is about a close to a lock as you're going to find when it comes to catching a bunch of fish (as long as the wind isn't blowing your boat off the lake)
As far as a frog rod, this year I started using one of my Okuma 7-11/heavy swim baits rods and it's working as well as any rod I have ever used for that kind of presentation.
Enjoy your trip.