Highlights from Martinez, February 17

Twenty-seven boats with 54 anglers entered the Martinez Tmx. Twenty-four boats brought in weigh-worthy bass. Three skunked, but 15 brought in limits, for a total of 98 bass that were released alive.

Best of all, nobody DQ’d and only one boat reported Spotlocking on a mudbar, midriver down by the damn. Unfortunately, nobody was around to video the escape. It was awesome! Most likely, Rusty Swan is still washing mud off the carpet, out of the bilge and off the motor and hull.

Most guys said the prefishing sucked. Bedding fish weren’t as common as hoped; they rarely are. Some nice ones were considering bedding or courting, but weren’t committed. The best action was in backwaters and around the docks in Fisher’s Landing Cove.

Conditions weren’t bad. The weather was fair to good until mid-morning on Tmx Day. Then the wind moved in, but it wasn’t as strong as predicted. The river was in good shape; the Water Gods were moving water. But the water was cooler than desired. Most temps reported were in the mid to upper 50s.

Although some guys reported reaction-bait fish in Bass Bites, most of the bass (especially the big ones) responded to slow fishing. Charlie Macintosh and Loren Moore brought home the bacon with 5-inch paddletails fished up against the grass. One of their bass, a 5.18-lber earned them the 5-lb Pot. Other Big Bass were brought in by Steve Grier and Tom Atherton (4.93 lb), Doyle Wofford (4.37 lb) and Rusty Swan and Terry Johnson (3.95 lb). Floyd’s winning Goonfish was a 2.47-lb catfish.

The dockside weigh-in worked well. It made for a short walk back to release fish. The Weigh-In Crew was again fantastic. They worked quietly, quickly, efficiently and effectively. But kudos to the other anglers, too, for using MWBA Fish Bags and for distancing themselves so the Crew could work without being disturbed. And kudos to Floyd’s wife for legibly printing White Board entries!

For catch and payout details, hit the Page with links to Bass Bites and Results.

The Bottom Line: It was another great day to be on the water, because of the scenery and the company (almost) as much as the fishing. If you still haven’t fished on the Colorado with MWBA, you have another shot in April — where 5-fish limits on the Parker Strip of more than 15 lb were common last year.

Author: Terry B. Johnson