Bass Angler tops Amador Trout Tournament with 14-pound catch
IONE – Anthony Bettencourt of Vacaville had given up trout fishing for the morning around 9:30 a.m. when he decided to start fishing for black bass from his kayak at Lake Amador on April 23 during the NorCal Trout Angler’s Challenge (NTAC) event.
His switch in fishing tactics resulted in him catching a 14.42 lb. cuttbow, winning first place in the event and setting the record for the largest trout to come out of any lake in northern California in the 10 years since the NTAC started.
"There were not a lot of fish caught at this event, but we did see the biggest fish in the history of this series come to the scales,” observed Vince Harris, president of Angler's Press Outdoors, the organization that created the NorCal Trout Angler's Challenge series. “We look forward to our next event at Lake Pardee on May 6.”
Bettencourt saw the big trout swimming near the surface. So he threw out the Mega Bass jerkbait that he was catching largemouths with to entice the fish. On his fourth cast towards the fish, the trout finally decided to grab the lure.
“The trout swiped at the lure just like a big river salmon would,” he noted. “After a hard two minute battle, I put the trout in the net. It’s the biggest trout that I’ve ever caught.”
Bettencourt was using a 6’10” Shimano Expride rod with a Daiwa Tatula baitcasting reel, spooled with Sunline FC 10 lb. test fluorocarbon line, when he hooked the giant trout.
This was the second trout tournament that he had ever fished. After fishing with no success at the NTAC event at Collins lake two weeks before, he decided to give it another try at Amador.
Not only did he hook and land the winning trout, but he also caught and released 10 bass up to 4 pounds while tossing out jerkbaits during his trip while fishing the east side of the lake. He didn’t hook any other trout during the event.
A total of 120 participants, including 95 adults and 15 youth, fished during the event.
T.J. Wood placed second in the adult division by catching a 4.81 lb. cutbow. He was trolling with an orange grub about 5 feet down at 1.9 mph.
The third through tenth place winners were: (3) Steve Fitzgerald, 4.6; (4) Steven Sewell, 4.54; (5) Shawn Lominario, 4.34; (6) Jeremy Phillipson, 4.33; (7) Brian Potter, 4.16; (8) Dirk Enzweiler, 3.93; (9) Sid Cates, 3.79; and (10) Ed Elefante, 3.68.
Hunter Laurens of Riverbank won first place in the youth division of the event by catching a 4.26 lb. rainbow. He was trolling a Speedy Shiner with his dad, Joey, and mom, Laura, when hooked the big fish at 30 feet in the main body.
David Cowen won the “smallest trout” award of the day by catching a 0.71 lb. trout, winning a Daiwa fishing rod. Information: www.anglerspress.com.
Since the NTAC event, the Lake Amador Resort has continued to stock big trout from its on-site hatchery into the reservoir.
“We released 1000 pounds of cuts and blues today,” said Lee Lockhart at the Lake Amador Resort on April 27. “Most were in the 2-4 lb. range, but there were a good amount of blues in there and even a couple Amador golds. We released them all by the blue dock at the mouth of the launch cove.”
“The water clarity is absolutely amazing and it seems you can see the bottom from way out off shore in 15+’ of water. Most everyone is saying the trout are running in the 15-30’ range with the warmer surface temperature and they are all stacked up at the same depth,” he advised.
The lake is in great shape, due to the big storms that moved through the region this year. The lake is full, with a surface temperature of 72 degrees. Informatio: 209-274-4739, www.lakeamador.com.
San Joaquin River/Sacramento River Stripers: Delta striper action has been “really good, but the stripers are spawning now and starting to leave the area,” reported Mark Wilson, striper trolling expert.
On Friday, April 28, Wilson, Barry Johnson and Larry Nelson caught 21 stripers to 8 pounds while trolling both the Joaquin River from the mouth of the Mokelumne River and Sacramento River off the West Bank.
They hooked 14 keepers and seven shakers, keeping 6 fish to 8 pounds, while trolling with deep-diving Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow lures. “We caught some fish in the morning, then moved around until we found another nice school of fish,” he noted.
On the previous day, Wilson and Craig and Mike DeNatly caught 55 fish, including 32 shakers and 24 keepers, keeping six stripers. Their largest fish, which they released, weighed 13 pounds. They fished the same locations as on Friday with Yo-Zuri lures.
San Francisco Bay Halibut Fishing continues to be excellent in San Francisco Bay – and live bait is now available for anglers out of Fisherman’s Wharf.
For example, on Friday, April 28, 11 anglers landed 11 limits (33) of halibut to 27 pounds while fishing on the Lovely Martha out of Fisherman’s Wharf. On the previous day, the 11 anglers pulled in limits of halibut (33) and 6 striped bass, according to Captain Mike Rescino. Information: 650) 619-6629.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Bass Angler tops Amador Trout Tournament with 14-pound catch
