Quick, Late, Lake Mendo Report

I camped with some of my closest friends up at Lake Mendo over Labor Day week-end. I honestly wasn't too jazzed about the trip, but it ended up being pretty mellow and a great time. Not the madness I expected.

Anyway, Billy and I fished Saturday morning. We slow trolled agents from the North ramp, down and around Vinegar Point, paddled due east, hit up that side of the lake, then made our way over by the boat-in campground, and finally back along the East shoreline and up the river a hundred yards or so.....for nothing.

We marked TONS of fish. Some of them pretty big, but not much biting. Billy missed two SM like hits and I had one halibut take down. Huh? Yup, check out the pic below. Not sure what can bite a minnow in half like that. Maybe a turtle?

Other pics are screen shots from Vinegar Point and near the boat-in campground...but there were clouds of bait with fish in pursuit all over the lake.

thanks for the report dustin. do you think there is any hope for the mendo stripers this fall ?

Not sure. I'm definitely no expert. Sean might have a better idea.

I do remember hearing that there are certain times of the year when the stripers (and pretty much everything else) gorge themselves on shad and aren't interested in minnows. Maybe that's now?

We saw Nate (Bungle) out there also, working the afternoon shift. Not sure how he did.

Nice trying and good report.

Just asking as I have no idea, but if the bait you have isn't working because it is wrong, what about leavig it up to the their imagination and casting a Hairaiser jig or spoon (trad gear) or a Clouser Minnow (flyrod)? Ever try? Just curious. If I run into a school that thick at the Forebay, I always hookup with a fly on a fly rod--one of them is bound to jump on it in the midst of the competition.

Juan has had some good luck with artificials. Me? I'm too lazy. 

Me? I'm too lazy.

Rock Hopper: "let the fingerlings do the walking" 

We saw Nate (Bungle) out there also, working the afternoon shift. Not sure how he did.

Nada for me, too.  I got around the corner and saw all the bait you were telling me about though.  Crazy.

Man that minnow wouldn't agree about nothing biting Thanks for pics and report...I know a few months ago, a buddy was tossing plastic rainbow 8-10" and tagging um in the channel non yak...I've talked to some locals that fish large castmasters fluffed up with some flashabo and feathers, they fish the edges of the boils...down deep...

were u seeing fish bust the surface?

were u seeing fish bust the surface?

A few baitfish ripples, but no striper boils.

were u seeing fish bust the surface?

A few baitfish ripples, but no striper boils.

Man when the boil goes off around u it's a heartpumper... I remember in the mid 80's in a PB they bust loose all around us we were on the south side by the tower, fish are hitting the boat, shad are jumping into the boat...double hookup...What a freaking rush...easy making bait!!!

Next time....thx...

Yeah, I personally wish I had never seen a boil there, 'cause now there's times when I can't tear myself away because it looks and feels like the lake is about to explode at any second.

Or I just know that as soon as I'm off the water it'll happen...lol.

Man, those FF pics are incredible. 

SUPER sad that BAM won't be taking place this year.  I understand why it wasn't schedule and don't disagree, but man am I going to miss it.

Michael

Mendo is full of carp, there is a good chance thats is what you are seeing on your fishfinder.  In a couple of week the stripers will be up and boiling till late Oct.
Ahh the old days, I moved to ukiah is 92 and the striper boils where huge and all over the lake in the spring and fall. It was nothing to catch 20 or more stripers in a day. They would push the shad right into the launching ramp on the south end and then come ripping though the shad a few feet from shore, the shad where so thick that you could wade through them pulling a net and fill up the net....Oh well everthing changes and carp fishing is a blast.

That minnow looks like the lock ness monster of mendocino organico took a chunk out of it... BTW, why isn't BAM happening this year?

yeah, why isnt bam happening ?