What's New in the Shop?
First cast:
Thank you for attending our Spring Outdoor Festival last Saturday. It was really awesome to hang out with such a wonderful community of Sweeney's customers. We hope you saved a ton of money, learned from one of our free classes, had a hot dog, and got inspired to schedule your next fishing trip.
Congratulations to our 6 grand prize winners!
Here is Mitchell holding on to his brand new custom Striper Trolling combo.
Live Bait Inventory Update
Live Pile Worm
Medium Minnows
Large Minnows
XL Minnows
Working on getting Grass and Ghost shrimp. Call the shop for details.
Second cast:
Napa Striper Secrets: Trolling Techniques for Consistent Bites
Hold on to your hats, because the Napa River is about to explode with stripers! Sacramento River is already doing really well, but we've been putting our trolling game to the test for the past couple of weeks on the Napa River, and let me tell you, the results have been smokin'. Here's the skinny on how to hook into your own hefty haul of these hard-fighting fish.
Dialing in the Strike Zone
Our last two trips saw consistent hauls of 3-4 keepers each, and we're definitely onto something. Here's what worked for us:
Lure Love: We started with the tried-and-true Wild Things Italian Stallion and Aruku Shad Golden Boy, both pulling their weight equally. But on the most recent trip, the stripers demanded a change-up.
Temperature Tantrum
The key seems to be water temperature. Both trips saw the bite heat up around 10:30-11:00 AM, coinciding with the water warming from a cool 59 degrees to a more comfortable 61 degrees for the stripers. Once we hit those consistent mid-60s, buckle up - it's gonna be a wide-open season!
Finding Your Fish Fix
These stripers are creatures of habit, with their movements dictated by the tides. Here's a breakdown for prime locations throughout the day:
Outgoing: Explore the sloughs, with a keen eye on the mouths. Troll and use your sonar to identify those fishy congregations.
Third cast:
Catch of the month contest. Win a $30 gift card!
Show us your most impressive fishing moment by tagging @sweeneys_sports in your Instagram post or story. The grand prize? A $30 gift card and a feature on our social networks! 🏅.
📸 Cast your entry by sharing your photo and get ready to be a part of our winner's circle on August 30th. 🗓️ Let's make waves together! 🌊
Fishing Reports
Napa River
Lake Berryessa
Lake Berryessa Fishing Report
Trout fishing continues to be red hot. Trolling around Narrows and the Island using Speedy Shiners produces the best results. No flasher is needed. Direct tie the lure onto the swivel and backset 150-200 ft behind the boat. Use 8-10lb line and leaders for better action and to avoid break-offs. The water is still cold enough and these fish are large and feisty.
The successful anglers report fairly fast trolling speeds of 3 to 3.8 mph. Right now both trout and kings are mostly being caught in the top 25 feet of water. Try using Optimizer Junior lures as well. Some folks are reporting great results using both Speedy Shiners and Optimizer Juniors.
It's important to continue trying a variety of colors until you find what the fish are keying in on that day. Here are the 3 mistakes you should avoid and have a better day on the water than I did recently.
As always,
We truly appreciate every time you walk through our doors. Thank you for choosing to spend your hard-earned dollars with us. It's a privilege to be of service.
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