Cal Delta Midday Update – Day 1

Tough conditions plague field on Cal Delta

The California Delta has behaved pretty much as expected for day one of the Costa FLW Series Western Division finale: pockets of glimmer, amid an overall tough fishery. Clear water and lots of sunshine are making shallow bass tough to approach, while recent herbicide treatments have greatly diminished the shallow grass, which typically plays a more prominent role in Delta fishing.

At takeoff, we followed Joe Uribe Jr., who currently leads the division’s Strike King Angler of the Year standings. He started in a small backwater area where he worked finesse baits around grass and hyacinth edges. Uribe caught three keepers in the first 30 minutes and then started rotating through his spots.

While in the area, we also saw Mike Birch, who caught his first keeper on a reaction bait along an isolated grass line about an hour into the day. He and Uribe both noted that they needed the outgoing tide to gain some steam so their big fish would bite.

Anglers were fishing all the predictable scenarios: punching hyacinth mats, drop-shotting tules and submerged grass, cranking and fishing topwaters and buzzbaits along riprap, and throwing wacky-rigged soft stick baits. Many reported struggling to catch keepers, and most with limits had tallied relatively low weights.

Jay Williams had a couple of good fish by mid-morning, but he reported the bass were “biting funny” – more or less just mouthing the baits with minimal commitment. Cody Murray, who nabbed a 10-pound limit after wasting time with an early flurry of striped bass, echoed this thought and said he was looking for unpressured fish.

When we found Delta stick Ken Mah around 11:15, he had a limit of about 16 pounds in the livewell. We watched him punch up another keeper that culled him up a few ounces. A good start, but Mah says he’s looking for a bigger improvement.

“Having a good limit frees me up to do other things,” he says. “Now, I’m looking for the home run.”

Elsewhere, Brian Trusso got off to a good start with three in the 4-pound range early. Jarred Jenkins had about 17 pounds by mid-morning. His sack was anchored by a 7-pounder.

Conditions are supposed to remain stable today, but a cold front is on the way, and day two will probably see a 12- to 14-degree temperature drop, along with a significant midday wind increase. Anglers who weigh good bags today will position themselves well to weather the coming meteorological impacts.