What kind of success are people having fishing for Sturgeon in the Lower Salmon Falls Reservoir? Sturgeon fishing is one thing I have yet to try. I know its all catch and release, can't take them from the water, and barbless hooks. What bait seems to work best? How big of a sturgeon could one expect to catch there? Are they becoming educated against being caught on certain techniques and baits?
If you would like to keep things on the down low, feel free to PM me please.
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I would concentrate on the water below the dam. Use whole trout, or chunks of trout, and chunks of crappie or perch. They get to 9 feet in that area, but average around 6. Bring the big sticks and huge reels with lots of line. 8/0 or 9/0 Gamakatsu octopus hooks (barbless) and run your sinker on a slider. THat way when it hangs up, it doesn't create a death trap for the next fish that comes along. Here is my basic rig...
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You might do better if you drive a bit farther west and hit the river below Bliss Dam, or down by King Hill. Even better yet, guys are doing pretty well below C.J. Strike.
I'd say wait a few weeks before you try the Hagerman area.
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Thanks for your help!
I don't have the appropriate rod and reel combo for sturgeon yet. If a reel holds a few hundred yards of 50 lb. test is that enough? Or do I need to spool up with an even stronger line and more yards? I can't afford one of those big Penn saltwater reels at the moment, so I need to know what's a good option that isn't going to cost too much. I'd also consider buying a used combo from somebody if they wanted to sell it.
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Hi there,
I caught one last year below CJ Strike on a 7 foot medium heavy ugly stick tiger with an abu garcia ambas
eur 7000 reel with 60 lb test and it worked pretty good, but compared with what everybody else was using that was pretty small. (most people were using rods at least 10 or 12 feet long) From what I saw you don't really need hundreds of yards of line, you just need something strong enough to put the screws to them.
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Of the 47 fish we boated last year, I had 9 or 10 take over 100 yards of line, and I was chasing them in a boat. My suggestion if you are banking it is 300 yards minimum of 50 to 80 pound test monofilament (Braid is very hard on the fish). Look at the Penn 330 GTi reel, and ugly stick 12 foot casting (heavy).
You are killing the fish if you use too light of an outfit, because it takes too long to get them banked and unhooked. If it takes more than 30 to 45 minutes, you need a heavier outfit. These fish have many issues reproducing enough to keep their numbers up. With populations basically slightly on the decline, if we don't take care of them, we will not be able to fish for them.
By the way, I use mono lines, 80 pound dacron leaders, and 20 pound droppers to the sinker.
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I agree with your assessment of the negative effects of using too light of tackle. It seems like you definetely want to minimize the stress on the fish and bring them in as quickly as possible. With that said, I wonder why braid would be a bad choice. Since it has a lower diameter and a higher # test rating, wouldn't that be a better choice than mono? Is it harder on the fish just because it doesn't stretch?
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Braid maims, and kills fish by cutting them. It is rough and it is thin diameter, and sturgeon have no scales to protect them. I have caught fish that had spiral scars from rolling up in braid when hooked. I love the stuff, but not for sturgeon. Stick with the heaviest mono you can use. Fish tight drags, and hold on tight!
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Ok that makes sense. Now that I think about it I saw some guys on a tv show using a braided line but with several feet of mono as a leader. That's probably what I'll too.
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Below the dam is a very productive area. That is where i fished mostly when i lived up there. Morts and smelt were our favorite baits. We have caught some very nice trout with the sturg set-ups there too.[cool]
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Good info Lunkerhunter! Looks like I'll have to pick up some smelt.
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They sell it in glass jars and call it sturgeon candy. About $6 per bottle i think.
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We got an 8 footer and a 7 footer this last weekend on a trout fillet and a perch fillet. We were fishing below Strike Dam.
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How was the ugly stick tiger rod to fish with? Do they have a soft tip? I have thought about getting the heavy one.
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I guess it depends on what you want to use it for. The tip is not very sensitive, but you can still detect bights. I love my tiger and I've caught some cool fish with it, but I just bought another rod (12 foot ugly stick, big penn reel etc) specifically for bank fishing for sturgeon, and it works much better for casting and detecting strikes.
But I have used the tiger in Oregon on the ocean for ling cod and rock fish etc and it was perfect for that. So I would say it depends on what you want it for. It would be good for sturgeon fishing from a boat, but it's not the best from the shore.
Again, I love the rod just not for bank fishing sturgeon. Hope this helps
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I was thinking about sturgeon bank fishing. A 9 foot fish on a 12 foot rod is alot of leverage. I have a Ugly Stick and 2 Bass Pro Shop rods that I really like. The one BPS rod is almost too stiff. I also have penn reels. I watched a couple of guys that had what looked to be 8 foot custom rods that were soft at the tip but had alot of backbone to them. I have a similar rod but it is too light for sturgeon. I am going over to CJ the first part of May.
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