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TIP #21...The Net. The often neglected sturgeon net is a critical part of a sturgeon fisherman's tackle. The netting ages over time and becomes weak. A popular sturgeon video shows two very experienced fishermen nearly lose a sturgeon when their old net failed and the big sturgeon fell through it. At the moment of truth, the net failed because the netting was old and weak. Check your net regularly for breaks and weakness. New netting every couple of years is well worth the investment. Dale Gillespie
TIP #22...Hold that rod! When the mighty sturgeon lightly nibbles your offering, your window of opportunity is very small. If you have to reach for your rod in response to that nibble, you may miss your opportunity. Keep the rod in hand as much as possible, have the reel in freespool and the clicker on. When the reel gives up a small amount of line - click, click, click - that may be a huge sturgeon sucking up your bait. That means it's time to thumb the spool tightly and set the hook -- hard! I believe the sturgeon often simply crushes the bait, then spits it. That can be a very brief moment, and it may be your only opportunity to set the hook. Dale Gillespie
TIP #23...Ensure your rig is on the bottom, and check it occasionally to make sure it stays there. Sounds pretty basic, but while sturgeon fishing, often the current speed will increase, and the amount of weight required to stay on the bottom will increase, especially in deeper water. I believe in fishing with the minimal amount of weight necessary to stay on the bottom. To check, lift up your rod while fishing, a foot or two, and drop it back down. You should feel the soft "thud" as it hits the bottom again. If it doesn't, let out more line to see if it does hit the bottom. If not, you may need more weight. I cannot tell you how many times I have watched people sturgeon fish, with their rig not on the bottom. In shallower water this becomes less of an issue, as less weight is required. As grass accumulates on your line, this also may affect whether or not you are on the bottom. Mitch Harper
TIP #24...Don't try to overpower a keeper sturgeon. It just won't happen. Play the fish to exhaustion, let him run when he's so inclined, and don't allow him rest when he's inclined to rest. Have enough drag on your reel to make him earn every yard of line he takes, and when reeling in, don't force the issue. Some sturgeon seem to have more endurance than others, a very few wage very long fights. When a sturgeon tires, he comes to the boat rather easily. When he's belly up or simply not trying to move any longer, you've won the fight. That's when it's time to net him. Dale Gillespie
TIP #25...Catch and release. I usually do not weigh them. The few I have did not respond as quickly when returned to the water. I have a spring scale that I hang from my hard-top that handles fish to about 65 inches. The process appears to tire them out more so I lean toward a short fight, quick net job, quick hook out and a photo. Always have the cameras ready so you are not fumbling around for it with the fish on the deck. Keep the fish in the net until ready for the pic. If the fish goes wild, gently lift up on the net to support its body weight and it will calm down. When you are ready for the pic, do not put your hands in the gill plates. Grab the tail with one hand and slide the other under the belly. Gently lift the fish and take the photo. Rapidly return the fish to the water. Dave Textor
When Dave wrote this tip on 7-24,2000, he already had caught and released 27 keeper sturgeon so far that year. [Editor]
TIP #26...Watch for the bite. Watch the rod. Here is an arguable point. I am an avid believer, no matter what, keep your eyes on the rod! I do, however, put my clicker on with the reel on free spool, and set the drag to accommodate the current. Just enough so the current won’t pull the line from the reel. I am as vulnerable as anyone else, and I like to grab a drink, hit the head or make a sandwich. It always seems that the moment I take my eyes off the rod, the monster hits. Also, at certain times of the year, usually later in the season, the sturgeon bite is very light, and the only way to get the monster, is to watch your rod’s end. The only thing I ever expect from a sturgeon is a slow, steady, tug on the rod – say about a tug on the end of the rod every second for about 3 or 4 seconds. Sometimes they hit like a striper or a catfish and just yank the heck out of it. What I like to do when I see a pump -- I watch it for a few pumps, I slowly pick up the rod, all the while not tugging on the line so as to not scare off the monster. I put the rod’s end down, thumb on the reel, set the bale, and after about 3 pumps, I set the hook as hard as my muscles will allow. I then hold the rod tip up, to see if I hooked him. If I did, I pull up while reeling down, making sure that the line is taught, and this is a must. Then I set the hook again. You have to make sure that your drag is not too tight, and you must, never, never let the line go slack, as the diamonds will cut the line. By J.B.
TIP #27...Finding sturgeon holes. When you spot a fisherman who you know is good at catching sturgeon, and he's at anchor baitfishing, mark his location on your chart or in your mind. He's probably over a productive hole or trench. Maybe he's over a clam bed. Those are places that attract sturgeon. If you reel in a clam attached to your hook, and that happens often on the Delta, you may be over a clam bed. When fishing for sturgeon, that's a good place to be. Dale
TIP #28...Fishing line is a sometimes controversial issue among fishermen. I favor an 80# super braid. It's very small, the diameter of 17# mono, and it doesn't stretch. The small diameter is to the fisherman's advantage in moving water. And the hammer-like set the fisherman makes to hook a sturgeon doesn't lose its punch to line stretch at the fish's end. The hookset is critical in sturgeon fishing. Dale
TIP #29...Tides. During that fast outgoing tide, stay shallow -- less than 15 feet, you can get good action in real shallow water like 10 feet or less. Go deep at the very end of the tide. The bite will be late...like after 3 p.m. or if you like the incoming right at the top. As the tides get bigger, the window gets smaller between tides. As always , crabs will have the final say. Sometimes a move of 50 yards is all you need to get away. If you don't want to pull your anchor. Pull up 15 minutes. Don't put anything out. More than once, I've had them move on in search of other food. Bags
TIP #30...Tides. If you check out the posts you will see most fish are caught just before the tide is breaking down. Or just as the tide starts to run again. That "top of the tide" time is great! It's rare (but really neat ) to have the fish bite all the way through a tide. Each spot has its own moments. Some are good on incoming currents. Some on the outgoing. Out on the bays and in the straits, we like to fish shallow water (3 to 15 feet) when the currents are really fast. And we go deep (over 25 feet) when things slow down, or when you have a "small" tide. (less than 3 foot difference between high and low) And wind...oh how we love that nice westerly blast each summer. You'll do your best fishin' when you pick a tide (current) that goes in the same direction as the wind. Put in your fishing time, try to get that "magic window" in. Fish that tide all the way to the end...and a bit more into the next. Even though I have to fish all the tides, I kinda like the incoming ones best -- I've caught all the giants , however, on the big out going tides. Bags
TIP #31...Scouting. The best advice I can give (without giving away my secret spots) is spend your time scouting. Get on the water at least an hour before you want to be fishing. Look for signs of fish and anchor down current from them. Yesterday, I found some fish right at the end of the outgo. They went past me without any bites. I waited for the current to turn and they came right back. Got a shaker and a keeper. Hope that helps. Pete Davidson (Taken from our forum posts.)
TIP #32...Hold The Rod. One thing that my wife and I do when sturgeon fishing is hold our pole and be prepared to set the hook on any tug when the fish are actively feeding. Many folks set their poles in holders and sit and wait for bites. Quite often the bite is so subtle that it goes undetected. During slack tide one should always try to hold their pole, as when your boat is swinging, your sinker bounces around and you cannot tell if fish are biting. I have caught many nice fish during slack tide by this method. John Trujillo (From Forums Posts)
TIP #33...Patience! Nobody ever caught a sturgeon while cruising from one fishing hole to another. I believe that it is most productive to stay put over a spot for the day or at least through the turn of the tide. Anchor at a spot that you know produces sturgeon and invest some real time there. A major ingredient in successful sturgeon fishing is keeping the hook wet. You lose that fishing time while running from spot to spot all day long.Dale FishWisher Gillespie.
TIP #34...Current. When fishing in the tide your bait tends to ride up in in the current. The larger the bait the more it will rise. Sturgeon feed on the bottom only! You should always use enough weight to stay on the bottom and a trick that I use is a 1 ounce bullet weight on the leader to hold the bait down. The length of your leader can also play a big part in bait coming off the bottom. Use a leader that is only 18 inches long. That's the shortest you can use by law. Before you all start yelling about them rolling in your line, I haven't lost one to that,yet. The method I have described does work very well! As I have several keepers under my belt this season already. I learned this from my grandfather who has been spooled by more than he can remember. Good luck to you all, Mr Sturgie (from our forums)
TIP #35...Stubborn sturgeon. When fighting a big sturgeon, sometimes you will find that the fish will just go to the bottom and lay there and there seems there is nothing you can do to make it budge. Often if you move the boat to enable you to take up more slack in the line, the sturgie will end up beneath your boat, on the bottom. Try pulling the line taut and then strumming the line as if playing a bass fiddle. Often this will irritate the big fish and cause it to move. Be ready to quit playing the fiddle and to start fighting the fish. -- This tip is paraphrased and appeared on our forums at one time, source unknown.
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