New Bullards Bar Reservoir
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New Bullards Bar Reservoir Fishing Reports
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Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Texas Rigs (Worming)
Structure
Points
Water Temperature
46°
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Trolling 20'+
Structure
Baitfish
Water Temperature
46°
Finally! After 3 weekends in a row that got wiped out by heavy rain storms we've had in the area, the sun came out and we went fishing! Went to New Bullard's Bar Reservoir in search of some of it's massive Spotted Bass. And although we never hooked into one of those, check out the "Pink" bass that grabbed a spoon at about 70 feet deep. Anyone out there ever seen anything like this? The photo has not been altered (or I would have gotten rid of the grumpy look on my son's face) and it truly was a bright pink color.
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Drop Shot
Structure
Points
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
48°
Beautiful day out on my favorite lake. It was a little tougher to pull them in than I thought it would be. But Bullards doesn't disappoint. I had some pretty good success with a drop shot. The 6th Sense Glitch is amazing in the water. I was focusing off shore from points in about 20-30 feet of water. I think I could have caught more if I had moved closer to shore....but I'm still hunting some of those elusive monster spotties and I'm told you need stay in a little deeper water this time of year to hook into one of those.
Norcalyakin
Bronze Ambassador
2/4/23
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Soft Swimbaits (Sm/Md)
Structure
Boulders
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
48°
Find rock piles with your side scan and set up as far away from them as possible but still be able to cast past them. Cast past them and let your bait hit the bottom, slowly reel in the bait while maintaining contact with the bottom.
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Drop Shot
Structure
Points
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
55°
Anyone who has read one of my Bullards Bar reports knows I'm in constant search for the elusive monster spotties that are in this lake. Thank goodness we get to catch tons of their smaller cousins while we're out huntin' the big boys... Today, it was a drop shot in about 20 feet of water that was working. It seemed like the most productive spots were on the upwind side of points. I love those VMC Drop Shot hooks. Makes the rig so easy. And the Strike King Baby Z's are amazing.
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Carolina Rigs
Structure
Points
Forage
Shad
Water Temperature
47°
Had a tournament at bullards today, super tough bite, i managed to place 8th in california bass nation kayak and 10th in wild west kayak. I was working long tapering points up hill with a Carolina rig, every time i felt the rig go over a good size rock i would pause my retrive for 5 seconds.
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Soft Swimbaits (Lg)
Structure
Points
Water Temperature
43°
This is more of an equipment report than a fishing report. I've been hunting those giant spotties in Bullard's Bar for two years now with plenty of success catching 3lbs and under...but nothing big. So I picked up some large glide and swim baits to change up my game....and then realized I needed a new rod to throw them. So although my quest for a giant spotty in Bullards continues, I can't say enough about the new Evergreen Combat Stick that Nick recommended. I threw those huge baits until my arms nearly fell off and that rod was amazing. Can't wait to hook into a giant with that thing...and shout out to Strike King Game Hawgs for wiping off the skunk. (love the blue craw pattern) Cuz with an hour of daylight to go, I hit the shoreline and landed a few babies before leaving.... And remember, if you're in Northern Cali and want to swap war stories, join the subreddit r/NorCalBassFishing. Tight lines!
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Crankbaits 13'+
Structure
Points
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
52°
True Story: I was selected to test out Shimano's new Flouro, which I received last week. So I loaded up a couple reels and headed out to my favorite lake to give it a try. First cast with the new line and I hooked up. (sorry for the lame photo, but that was the catch) It was probably 100+ more casts before I got fish #2....but what a start! This was a forced crank bait and swim bait day for me, as I try to learn how to fish hard plastics and stop falling back to my comfort zone of finesse fishing. So if I'm catching fish on a 6th Sense crank bait...it's definitely a "Hotbait". And the Shimano line was really nice. I was actually using 10lb test and it really casts well. It was the first time out with it, so I'll reserve comments on durability until I've been out with it 10 or more times. But for the day, it did great. It has really good feel, and it didn't nick up at all during the day. And I spent all day driving that crankbait right down to a rocky bottom. If you're using Flouro, I would definitely recommend giving it a try. I'll continue to comment as I get out there with it more in the coming weeks.
Species
Spotted BassSeason
Winter
Technique
Drop Shot
Structure
Points
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
58°
Finally got my car out of the shop...again. That meant an immediate run up to my favorite lake to go big Spottie hunting. I really focused on using a drop shot in 30-45 feet of water off submerged points. The elusive monster Spottie is still lurking out there. Best one of the day for me was a 3 pounder. I really had to slow everything down. With the water and air temps dropping quickly, their bites were very subtle. Sorry, no pics this time around. I left my phone in the car.
