­ This past week, I took my wife and son to Lake Tulloch for a two-day stay at their hotel.

Expecting the crowds to be gone by Monday, we arrived at the lake Sunday afternoon. The hotel wasn’t the newest but provided us with an amazing view which overlooked the lake.

What was pretty clear to me during my stay was that the resort was definitely a party place and not exactly the sort of place to go if you’re looking for a quiet getaway. Upon checking in I asked the person at the counter what time the music is turned off, and when it usually quiets down.

“It all depends,” she responded.  

Arriving there around lunchtime we decided to have a bite at their restaurant. The person behind the counter immediately greeted me by saying “What’s up dude?”

I’ve visited a lot of restaurants in my lifetime and that was not a restaurant. My son, who just turned 7, was oblivious to all the noise and gallivanting around that was taking place, while my wife and I were finding it hard to relax.

It seemed like at any moment someone was either going to get hurt, or a fight was going to break out. The fishing, on the other hand, was exceptional, but finding any calm water to fish was nearly impossible, even on Monday.

Lake Tulloch has since become strictly an offseason destination, as my wife and I both agreed that without the crowds, things are surely to be a lot more pleasant.
 
With the recent drop in temperatures, the top-water bite has slowed down a lot for bass anglers. Bass are still being found underneath the mats but not as much as in recent years. The crankbait and spinnerbait bite has been steady with a number of nice fish being caught by those tossing chatter baits.

Jigs are still working for anglers fishing the edge of weed lines in black/blue, or black/red. Small schools of striped bass are still being found throughout the Delta feeding on schools of small shad.

Catfish and bluegill continue to provide anglers with action around boat docks and shady banks.  

Not much has changed at New Melones lately, the Kokanee bite remains good for anglers who troll as deep as 100 feet during the daytime and night fishermen are having some luck fishing for trout under lights.

Bluegills continue to be fairly easy to catch for many and catfishing continues to be good at night. Anglers fishing for bass are catching a lot of smaller fish while keying in on the schools of fish found throughout the lake.

Right now the biggest bass are being caught really early in the day or at night.

Kokanee and trout have been hard to come by lately, many anglers instead have chosen to try their luck fishing nearby New Melones.

Your best bet right now is to fish early or late in the day once all the boat traffic dies down. Fishing for bass is great for those using crickets.

The key to catching the bigger fish is fishing the cricket a little deeper, between 10 and 20 foot deep. Try staying around the docks or main lake points for more consistent bites.

Fishing continues to be slow during the day for anglers fishing for bass and trout. Bluegills have been biting during the day on small worms in the backs of coves and around the dam area.

At night some trout are being caught near the dam while fishing under a submersible light. Bass fishing is a little different than years past as the bass are pushing schools of bait up against the bank instead of up on the surface.

Look for schooling activity in the back of coves and if fishing during the night it’s important to cast right to the bank.  

Yesterday’s hot bait or technique can still be as effective as it may have been many years ago. As anglers are scrambling to keep up with the newest products don’t forget about the baits that have made their way into the back of your tackle box.

Next time you’re out, try going old school. If anything else you may be surprised.

To contact Jarod Ballardo, e-mail jgbbass@yahoo.com.