Shasta Lake trout bite building!

Doug came all the way from Florida to tug on this Shasta Lake rainbow!
Photo Credit: Capt. Jeff Goodwin

by Jeff Goodwin
5-10-2018
Website

We fished Shasta Lake the last two days and the lake is definitely experiencing the "spring swing".  The surface temps are rising daily and we're seeing some mixed temp water all over the lake.  Big balls of shad are swimming close to shore and the trout are already starting to bulge their bellies with them.  We saw 71 degrees on the McCloud Arm today and thats where we saw some bait balls as well.  The mornings are seeing a few big fish bites (browns) along structure, but its slowing down pretty quick.  We lost 4 big fish the last 2 days trolling Trinidad Tackle Optimizers in the morning and then had to work pretty hard to get into some descent trout action.  We hit a few bigger bows today, but we're fishing full days for sure.  Most fish are biting at 25' still and I've fished all over the lake this week and have found this to be true wherever we drop lines.  The lakes will begin to layer up very soon and we should see a better bite, especially when the shad migrate into the main channels in Shasta.    

Jeff Goodwin is a full time Northern California fishing guide.  He guides year round for salmon, trout, steelhead, Kokanee, and bass on Northern California rivers and lakes. He fishes many bodies of water in the Redding area, but also guides the Sacramento River and Feather River during certain times of the year. Jeff can also be found on the California coast chasing ocean fresh King salmon and steelhead each year. To learn more about the fishing trips Jeff has to offer, please visit Jeff Goodwin's Guide Service.  You can also find him on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or please feel free to call him anytime at (707) 616-1905.