Sacto american shad ( Non Yak)

Scouted the freeport area off I5 and it looks promising.   A number of anglers catching their share of shads.  main run should be up soon.  I cleaned and smoked them.  lots of bones but tasty.

I had a friend who used to catch shad in the Columbia and can them. Very tasty!  The roe was actually the best part (not canned <g>).

Ben

Congrats on the shad Allen. What did you used to catch the fish?

Jedmo

The lures are called shad darts.  Leaded hook painted red or chartreuse.  lures are available at the baitshop on the freeport rd.  Light gear is used.  cast and retrieve.  7' trout pole with 8lbs test.  fun to catch.  I'm thinking of bringing the yak on the next trip but I need company since you have to go down an embankment to reach the river. 
Let's go tuesday if you're off Jed.

One of the fish was a female, Ben.  floured the roe and deepfried it.  I would say it was good.

Just in case you have any Fridays off and you want to go fishing, let me know.
I am open for anything. I do need a striper for the AOTY though.

Jedmo

Right on! how long does the run last and could you give more details on how to get there from San Jose.

I hear that the action could go on non stop for hours at a time and like to experience that! Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for sharing the photo shot!

Alex  

You guys might want to try Verona where the Feather River meets the Sac this time of the year. Good camping and a launch ramp. Ive seen reports on the fishsniffer website some are hooking up. Used to tie my own flies and lead head jigs. Had a ball fishing for shad.

I used to go to Princeton (several miles above Colusa on Hwy 45) to fish for shad on the Sacramento River. There is a trailer park there, with a dirt trail in the back that leads to the river (gotta have 4WD on wet days). End of May was usually a good time to use 6 pound test with Teeny Rounder grubs (red leadhead jig with chartreuse plastic. Would cast upstream and, as the line swung around to tighten up downstream, the shad would often hit. Lots of fun. It was possible to kayak from that spot, but the river was much lower and slower last time I went.

Another place was the shoreline off Rd 54, several miles north of the junction of Hwy 162 and Hwy 45.

I would think the water flow is down again, due to the lack of rain. Of course, occasionally they open the sluices at the dam to increase the water flow for various reasons.

It's not a short drive from the Bay Area, but sometimes just hitting' the road is good for relaxing and gettin' away from it all.

Howard

Alex,
Freeport is my tried and true spot for shad early in may.  I heard discovery park off I5 late in may is where everyone go.
Take 80 to sacto-50 to lake tahoe, get on 5 south to LA.  take freeport exit and turn left.  right on freeport.  park just right after the bridge...you'll see a bunch of cars parked there. Kayak is ok but you need two people to bring it down the river.  more catch if you're on the river with the other boats.
allan

hey, Hightide-

this is the report i have been waiting for.    Shad fishing has to be one of my favorite for California.    When its hot, nothing can be better than catching shad after shad until your arms ache.   I throw shad flies for them.   

Last year i caught a bunch at Verona from my kayak drifting and bouncing my anchor along.  Everything was great until my anchor snagged on something and nearly dumped me out of my kayak, as the river gushed over the pinned down side of my kayak.    I am going to think twice before trying to anchor in fast water again.

It would be fun to get a group together to fish shad from our yaks. 

Hojoman -  thanks for the other suggested spots.   Now that Rd 48 is closed to the public, finding a good spot is half the challenge.

Lawrence

hightide,

Thanks for the details. I'm going to look into it and see if i could get over there before it all ends .

Let me know the next time you plan to go and I'll see if i could join You.

thanks

Alex 

One of the fish was a female, Ben.  floured the roe and deepfried it.  I would say it was good.

I would never have thought of deep frying them. I'll bet it was good.

I just poached them, and spread the roe on bread -- it's my Danish lineage, everything ends up on a piece of bread  -- but very good.

Thanks for the report.

They are great smoked too.

Was it crowded at Freeport?

Not that crowded yet, but it looks like it's going to be in the coming days.  there were at least 8 boats in the water and maybe 20 shore anglers.  and that's on a Monday