Contra Loma Reservoir Fishing Report

Water temps were near their annual peak until the cooldown over the last couple of days. But it's still warm... hovering in the high 70s to low 80s. EBParks dropped two 500 lb catfish stocks in August, nothing in the last few weeks. Catfish action is decent on chicken livers and garlic prawns. The better bite has been for smaller bass at first light and late evening. Smaller swimbaits are getting fish, but dropshots and Senkos have been most consistent.

The bluegill/redear bite is very good on mealworms and redworms all around the shore. Even a few fly anglers are targeting them. Mostly small fish, but the occasional hand-sized slab. A couple crappie are being caught as well on jigs.

There's a lot of good action coming out of Contra Loma right now. EBParks continues to stock Lassen rainbows just about every other week (at least). And with water temps sitting in the mid-60s, bass have moved shallow to spawn.

Plenty of bedded bass are around the lake, but the issue is limited shoreline access due to the growing overabundance of weeds. Still, some nice 3-5 pound fish are being caught, primarily on weedless soft plastic worms and creature baits. A few fish are still in prespawn, and feeding in more open water where Flukes or underspins are working well.

Trout are slowly moving into deeper zones with climbing water temps, but the bite is still good. Mini jigs have been working very well in the morning hours, while floated night crawlers and Powerbait are getting fish midday.

Water temps should drop a bit this week with forecasted colder nights, so look for trout to move into shallower zones all day.

Bass action has been decent at Contra Loma, and most of the action is happening tight to cover. Fish are hugging rocks and weedy edges, with the better quality bites coming from deeper structure. Once again, the tighter to the structure, the better. Early morning topwater is happening, but it can be hit or miss. Most of the work is getting done on slow, weedless soft plastics in natural or dark colors.

Catfish action is good right now, with cut bait, liver, and night crawlers all pulling fish. Crappie action is sporadic, but a few anglers are picking them off with jigs or worms next to submerged brush.

There are patches of surface moss, and an active algae advisory is in play. Construction is impacting some shoreline access and trail routes, especially on the west side.