This week was a first for me. I’ve purchased hundreds of items online from private sellers with very few issues. Most of those issues, were of items not being in as good of shape as described in the advertisement, but that’s another story. Recently I purchased some lure blanks from someone who was selling them at a reduced price. There were some red flags, since that individual seemed to be very pushy at times and cut his asking price in half. He was also using a family member’s account, instead of his own. It wasn’t a large amount of money, so I took a chance, and basically got scammed. I received 20 percent of what was agreed upon, and when I asked for a refund, I was blocked. After finding my way around being blocked, and with the help from other members on the site, I was able to get in contact with the seller and heard every excuse imaginable. As much as he wanted to give me a refund, he didn’t have it. There were also at least 10 others that were also demanding their money back. As a last resort, I called my bank a second time and they agreed to refund me for the amount that was stolen from me. I learned a valuable lesson from this experience. Unfortunately, I can’t trust anyone anymore when there is a money transaction involved. Especially someone that I have very little experience dealing with. For as long as I can remember, in the fishing community there’s always been a code of ethics, we don’t steal from one another. I always knew someone would eventually break that code. It’s unfortunate, but I’m glad I was able to get my money back, and I’m pretty sure that individual will never sell online again.

Delta Report:

I was able to get out last weekend and the Delta is fishing slightly on the tougher side for a lot of anglers, including myself. Now that we have temperatures in the low 90’s on some days, there are even more people out on the water looking to get out of the house and stay cool. As a result, my visit to the launch ramp took about 10 minutes longer than usual and about 20 minutes longer to get my boat back on its trailer. Not as bad as I was expecting but be prepared for long lines. I stayed predominately around the Stockton areas where the water was stained and averaged 68 degrees in most places. I did catch one on a crankbait before I spotted several fish on their spawning beds. I spent the rest of the day bed fishing catching a limit of bass off of their spawning bed with a jig. What was nice is that as soon as I released the fish within minutes they went right back to where I caught them to continue protecting their young. Striped bass fishing is still good for anglers fishing the west and north Delta while trolling or using cut/live bait.

Lake Amador:

Being one of the only lakes open, Lake Amador has been under a lot of pressure to close. The lake remains open and just received another planting of 1000 pounds of trout. Anglers are doing well while trolling as deep as 20 feet deep for them or while fishing off the bank with their favorite trout bait. I’ve always preferred yellow Power Bait. There are also some giant catfish being caught by anglers fishing at night. Supposedly the catfish are also spawning making the lake’s biggest catfish susceptible to being caught. Bass fishing is steady for anglers fishing shallow as there are many fish to be found in the shallows up on their spawning beds. The lake currently has surface temperatures that are in the low 70’s.

Open Delta Launch Ramps:

B and W Resort on the Mokelumne River, the store is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Hogback on Steamboat Slough, Suisun City, Benicia 9th Street, Arrowhead, Sugar Barge on Bethel Island, Pittsburg Marina, Holland Riverside Marina, Paradise Point, Turner Cut, Eddo’s Marina, Sherman Island, and Tracy Oasis.

Tip of the Week:

Spring is the time of year when the bites can be hard to feel. A lot of times while dragging a bait across a spawning bed the fish will just pick up the bait and move it off the bed. Because of that, it’s very important to pay attention to your line. Know when your line has contacted the bottom and keep a close eye on it for any unusual movement.