New Melones Lake Fishing Report

The kokanee bite at Melones is still firing, with quick limits coming primarily from the main lake. Similar to our last report, 40 to 70 feet is where they're at, but when boat traffic picks up, they are sliding deeper and stacking along the channel edges. Bladed setups pulled behind gold dodgers are the go-to right now.

Bass action is picking up across the lake with a good topwater window early. Crankbaits, jigs, and drop-shot plastics are all in play, but white and chartreuse chatterbaits have been extremely hot lately for quality fish in the 3-4 pound range. The Angels Creek zone has been very productive.

The kokanee bite at New Melones is about as good as it gets right now. Fish have pulled off the flats and are stacking along the edges of the main river channel in 40 to 70 feet. Most are topping out around 17-18 inches, and limits are coming quick... sometimes within a couple hours of lines in. Pink and gold dodgers paired with light pink or purple hoochies are doing the heavy lifting, especially when trolled with short leaders to give the rigs more erratic action. Speeds right around 1.5 mph are working, with hookups often coming on turns. Mornings remain the best window. A few rainbows are still mixing in, but this is all about kokanee right now. Bass action’s decent for those chasing it... mostly smaller post-spawn fish eating jerkbaits and drop-shots in 10-20 feet of water.

The warming weather is starting to fire up the kokanee and rainbow trout as they chase big shad schools around the lake. Trollers are working 40–60 feet of water and hitting rainbow limits, with a few kokanee mixed in. Apexes, hoochies, and flutter bugs in orange or pink are all producing.

The bass bite has been picking up as both largemouth and spots push into the backs of coves to stage for the spawn. If you can find water in the high 50s to low 60s, you’ll find aggressive fish. Senkos and dropshots are reportedly getting hit hard.