Mike Gomez of Berserk Baits said, “The fish are there, but you have to figure out the summer pattern to see where they are located. Overall, the action has slowed, but experienced fishermen are figuring out the pattern and putting together decent weights. There is a topwater bite at both Don Pedro and McClure, with the River2Sea Rover or with wake baits, and after the surface bite dies, you can drop to the bottom with jigs such as the Purple Hornet or brown/purple along with plastics on the drop-shot. The fish can be found as deep as 50 feet by mid-day. Using light line is the key to getting deep with a light weight on a shakey head or drop-shot.”
Recreational boating is heavy after 10 a.m., especially on the weekends at both lakes, and fishermen are either getting in early and leaving early or launching in the late afternoon to fish into the evening hours.
The Detweiler Fire off of Highway 49 has been primarily contained, and the smoke from the fire dissipated over a week ago.
The trout bite at Don Pedro remains solid with shad-patterned spoons as deep as 60 feet with the rainbows dropping in the water column with the heat. Fishermen will have to search around for the bait in order to locate the rainbows, and an occasional king salmon is possible under the bait schools. Kokanee remain absent for the most part.
At Don Pedro, anglers can access current weather conditions at https://map.bloomsky.com/weather-stations/gqBxp6apnJSmrqen with a live webcam at https://video.nest.com/live/tE7MzhI0BG .
Both lakes are nearly full, but water releases have continued with Don Pedro dropping to 98 percent and McClure at 94 percent.