Saturday Folsom Fish 'n Chill

Linda and I will be launching at Salmon Falls around 9.  We will be bringing picnic/bbq lunch stuff.

I'll be there 

I would like to go but I'm wondering about the launch situation there.

Think I could get a small trailer into at least the parking lot? I could transfer the rig off the trailer and then onto the wheel cart and perhaps shore launch it.

Haven't been there before. Sound doable for an Adventure Island? Or just rigged up as an Adventure kayak?

Mostly trout up that arm?

Karl

Hey Adam, gotta work on Sat.
Sun. I'm looking to fish somewhere...
Good luck out there, used to ride that MTB trail on the other side a lot, way back when.

I would like to go but I'm wondering about the launch situation there.

Think I could get a small trailer into at least the parking lot? I could transfer the rig off the trailer and then onto the wheel cart and perhaps shore launch it.

Haven't been there before. Sound doable for an Adventure Island? Or just rigged up as an Adventure kayak?

Mostly trout up that arm?

Karl

Karl you will have no problem getting a small trailer into the parking lot, there is a small lot next to the bridge or you can use the big parking lot before the bridge if you are coming from the Folsom side.  I can drive my RV with a 18' trailer around in the big parking lot.

Sun. I'm looking to fish somewhere...

Maybe the Port for some stripers?

Thanks for the info Scott.

Hardly ever fish Folsom and when I do it's out of the Granite Bay launch.

I showed up around 1 pm after rigging up a makeshift "downrigger" on my boat. Went with one outrigger/tramp set up. I ended up in the big parking lot downstream from the bridge. Talked to the ranger lady there. She knew her fish. Nice place and I was surprised at how "empty" the lot was. Couldn't use my trailer for launching but it worked out fine. Just put it on the wheel cart and negotiated a rather steep drop down a blocked off concrete ramp. Boat was definitely heavy with a couple of downrigger balls and gear onboard.

No fish to report but I did have one huge hit on a Sepps dodger/Gulp nightcrawler set up at about 32 feet in 40 feet of water near the rocky slope on the other side of the bank. I think the quick release was set too tight.  Surprised the fish didn't hook itself.

Anyway, the cove near the launch off the main flow was full of big carp jumping while the main cold water troll zone was full of PBs seemingly looking for a place to go. Difficult to troll in that 35 to 40 foot range since my "downrigger" consisted of a fixed 35 foot length of 40 lb test w/a 3 or 4 pound ball that I attached to the outrigger bar. Worked fine except I couldn't adjust the depth as I went along. Had to move the boat back and forth to maintain depth control without snagging bottom. Wanted to run a cheater release farther up the line and go with two rods/depths but the complicating factor was just too much.

The best "action" was upstream of the bridge watching all the jet skis/tow trains of river rafters coming down from the rapids. The current got swifter as I went upstream until eventually I reached the beginning of the rapids. Little creepy up there with deep water boils lifting my boat and making control difficult. Upstream trolling was difficult because the water was full of suspended "rock seaweed" and floating wood. Saw a couple of nice trout jumping though. A fly rod might have worked, but there were beautiful, semi-topless, river rafting women adjusting their gear on the banks and I wouldn't want to snag a bikini top...

Interesting place. Never did see any other fishing type kayakers. Don't know if Rockfish or Auburn Trout Dude were there are not.  Might have been a zig zag thing with me being upstream while they were down towards the main lake. Sorry I missed you guys if you were there. Hope you didn't wait at the launch.

Oh, and that "empty" large parking lot filled up rapidly when those strings of blue inflatables full of rafters came in regularly with bus and coach transfer parking at a premium.