I like seeing all the great reports. I'll be out tmrw (Sunday) for our first redfish trip this year. I'll be trolling in the Black Sea Hunt CC so if your out say hello.

I may see you there - I'll be in a grey Wilderness Systems kayak, orange paddle and swinging a fly rod. If SHE comes, she'll be in an orange yak. Good luck!

Got a small striper and 28 inch red on the downriggers. Otherwise it was pretty slow but tons of boats. We
got boarded by fish and game for the first time out there but they did their checks and went on their way. Anyone else have any luck?

Glad to hear the reports of the Game Wardens working the lake recently!
That lake needed some enforcement badly and I'll bet they carry a case of extra ticket books in their car.

The past 3 times I have been on Calaveras I have been visited by the Game Warden. They just did a quick safety check and went on their way. Glad they are out and about though.

One of the last times I was out there I was fishing next to a guy and his kid. We were catching reds on live shad and they couldn't catch one to save their life. I wanted the kid to catch one, so I told the dad to toss his line over. I rigged it and baited it with our tackle and bait and wouldn't you know it kid caught a 19 inch red. I told him it was undersize and he said its ok its the kids fish and put it on the stringer. Got checked by a warden a while later and gave them the description. Later saw them back at the ramp don't know if they got checked or not.

Nice touch on helping get the kid s fish, too bad dad set the wrong example. I've never been hassles by Leo in fresh or saltwater and suspect most law abiding folks dont either. We are strictly catch and release and my wife and son are hooked on finding the reds. Now I just gotta get better at getting the fish to eat.

The Game Warden should have been at the boat ramp on Sunday about 1:30 - 2:00. It was a madhouse. There must have been 8-10 boats all trying to get off the lake at the same time. There was a line of boats waiting to launch and then a line about 10 deep trying to get into the park at the gate house. There was a guy in what must have been a new to him pontoon. He ran into almost every boat out there trying to get to the dock to pick up a passenger. We were only on the lake for about 4 hours and got 6 nice cats and two reds. If we didn't have somewhere else to be it would have been fun to just sit out in the open water and watch the circus at the ramp.

That is one of the main reasons I started fishing from a kayak. I don't have to put up with all the drama on the ramp.
There is still some people who launch their big boats on the kayak launch at the dam. It's gravel and they have to back down into the water with the back wheels of their vehicle in the water. I guess they go there because it's pretty wide and they feel they can back up easier. Signs clearly say Kayaks and PW's only.
Being in a kayak you don't get a free pass from the crazies by no means. I've been nearly run over sitting anchored just a few yards from the dam on a couple of occassions, and there are those people who come in making huge wakes and then pull up within casting distance of where I'm anchored and think nothing of it.
It's agravating but I've been fishing the lake since nearly the time it first opened back in the late sixties and nothing has changed in all those years and maybe even gotten worse.
If the fishing wasn't that good I'd never fish out there!

I happened to be heading back at that time and it was packed. After a spot opened I ran up to grab my truck and had to wait for two older gents who pulled their aluminum boat right up the ramp and wouldn't move it for about 15 minutes. I'm not sure the ranger is concerned with boat ramp etiquette!!!

I've been killing it at calaveras. Over hunps for both hybrids and reds. And at the wall. wall is slow but with a south wind and a balloon you can catch all the reds you want. (3) but catch and release as many as you want. Caught 7 reds and 6 hybrids and 2 cats today.

nice pics and reports.

I was there Sunday on the bank next to the 2nd boat ramp. It was a beautiful day. But, man that place was packed. both parking lots were full. alot of boats and bank fishermen. The game wardens put in around 11ish. i was glad to see them. they didn't bother us bank fishermen. they drove past us and headed straight for all the boaters.

I took the wife and 9 yr old grandson. My wife and I were skunked, but the grandson caught his first red. It was a rat red but a redfish nonetheless. He was excited. we were happy. all in all a great day with the grandson on the water fishing.

I'm fairly new to calaveras and not sure what the humps are but it I assume they are underwater structure. I'll look on the garmin next time I'm out. I've trolled everything but had the most success on spoons. The vast majority of our reds come casting rattletraps closer to shore when I find them on the ff.

I have skipped the Calaveras circus for a few weeks and been fishing Lake Wood and the Guadalupe. I stopped at Calaveras to get my annual pass and spoke with one of the game wardens last week. I told him that I have not kept any fish out of Calaveras in some time and he told me that was a smart move. Dude says that the bigger the fish the longer it has been in the water and the bigger the mercury contamination. His personal opinion was he did not recommend feeding the fish to children or expecting mothers. I don't know what that was based on.
I live near Calaveras and have been told that the Coal fired plant will be shutdown and only the gas fired plants will run, unless they cant keep up this summer.
Check this out
http://www.mysanantonio.com/living_green_sa/article/Mercury-emissions-down-at-CPS-plant-980094.php

I've never eaten big fish from Calaveras and I think I tasted a redfish years ago and haven't eaten one since. They just aren't the same (natural) as those from salt water.