Cal Delta Midday Update Day 1

Cold front hinders kicker-sized bites

Catching fish on the Cal Delta today didn’t seem to be the issue for the Costa FLW Series anglers. Instead, it was finding fish over the 2-pound mark.

The day started with a decent breeze and sunny skies. The conditions were perfect for sight-fishing, but only a handful of anglers seemed to be camped on bedding bass.

It appeared as though the majority of anglers were targeting postspawn bass. Early morning in the calmer weather, pitching and flipping the Delta’s vegetation seemed to be the ticket. Around 9 a.m., a southwesterly wind picked up and had anglers reaching for new rods. Moving lures like vibrating jigs, spinnerbaits and crankbaits thrown around vegetation were popular choices once the wind really got to howling.

Being that there are miles and miles of water to cover, anglers spent a lot of time covering water. Conventional wisdom would indicate that the bite was off and anglers were scrambling about. However, according to practice reports only a few fish could be caught in one area, so covering water would be key. Don’t count on the bite having turned off just yet.

Many of pros our on-the-water crew found reported that they were catching fish, but failed in getting a big bite. Whether they hadn’t found a kicker bite or lost it due to short strikes, quality bites were few and far between.

Roy Hawk was one angler spotted early with a bigger bass. Hawk had a limit pushing double digits shortly after 7 a.m., anchored by a 4 1/2-pounder. Look for him to cull up throughout the day.

Those who reported limits before noon averaged 10 pounds – with 12 being the largest. There is still a lot of time, including the low tide period, for them to catch a kicker.

See how day one shakes out by watching the live weigh-in starting at 2 p.m. PT.