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Just when the cloud appears to evaporate........It pours By Fast Eddie But before that announcement, John and I decided we would fish the Nor Cal event,,,

Topwater Talk Asking about Lakes more than the Delta.

Damian Thao catches another giant Teener I didn't think I'd run into another giant so soon

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Winter 2026 Hi All, I’d like to begin this issue by congratulating Anglers Marine on their longevity and continued impact on the Western bass community. Their dedication to anglers, tournaments, and the growth of our sport has made them a cornerstone of the region. We are happy to host them on the cover as we step into a new year of fishing. As we go to press, the 2026 season is just about to launch, and tournament anglers across the West are already preparing for another busy schedule. New gear, fresh patterns, and early-season opportunities will shape the months ahead. Whether you compete or simply enjoy time on the water, this season brings plenty to look forward to. January also brings the International Sportsmen’s Exposition back to Cal Expo, a key kickoff event for the year. It’s a great place to learn, connect, and see the latest products in person. The WesternBass title sponsor Fisherman’s Warehouse will be onsite with super show specials and always a shopper’s favorite, the NO SALES TAX deal. Be sure to visit the Westerbass Fish Tank there’s always giant fish to see! Please enjoy this issue with a highlight of some of the new gear for the new year and as always we encourage you to support the sponsors who support you. Their commitment helps keep the WesternBass website, magazine and forums and socials strong and our fishing community growing. Tight Lines, Wayne

Fall 2025 Fall marks the close of another exciting tournament season and brings with it the much-anticipated Tournament of Champions events. It’s hard to believe how fast the year has flown by! This season may have spared us the chaos of recent years—no COVID shutdowns, supply chain nightmares, or extreme water levels—but it brought a new challenge for California anglers: Golden Mussel restrictions and launch closures. These invasive species continue to disrupt fisheries across the state, with recent restrictions at Diamond Valley Lake (DVL) underscoring the ongoing impact. That said, there was a silver lining for Delta and Clear Lake anglers: the introduction of the Golden Mussel Region by Randy Pringle at Best Bass Tournaments (BBT). His forward-thinking solution allowed for localized, single-area launch team opens at venues affected by broader closures. We appreciate the continued innovation and commitment to the sport—thank you, Randy. On a more exciting note, shipments of new gear from ICAST 2025 have already begun arriving! It’s always a thrill to see what’s coming next, and you can check out many of the latest product releases from online at Fisherman’s Warehouse—our WesternBass advertisers are rolling out some serious game-changers. Tight Lines

Summer 2025 Hi All, Topwater, six-hour tournaments in California, and ICAST – it all screams summer and while we are used to an FLW or MLF Western Division tournament circuit stop on the California Delta this time of year, for 2025 it was missing. Fortunately, Mark Lassagne and the BAM Trail stepped in and brought those of us that call the tidal water of the West an event. I would like to congratulate Ish Monroe on his win at the Pro/Am event! Quite an accomplishment! Ish has been one of longtime WesternBass supporters and well as one of the Fisherman’s Warehouse pro staff (a WesternBass title sponsor), so it was great to hear that the Fisherman’s Warehouse exclusive color Missile Baits D Bomb in Rotten Tomato played such a big factor in his win! While summer kicks off and we get ready to head to ICAST, we once again ask that the WesternBass readers support the advertisers that allow us to bring this digital mag as well as the site to you for free! We appreciate them and you! Tight Lines Wayne

Features

Golden muscles found in Friant canal rapidly multiplying

Action Alert Update: AB 497 has been withdrawn! Restore the Delta

Proposed 1.5 million acre-foot offstream reservoir in NorCal More than 100 miles of the canals and pipelines that will be connected

Forums

Forum	Last Post
	Weighting Flukes for even fall rate by MdBasser Sat Mar 7, 2026 4:53 pm
	Weighting Flukes for even fall rate by MdBasser Sat Mar 7, 2026 4:53 pm
	BASS HOLE TEAMS #2 MARCH 8TH by thebassholetackleshop Thu Mar 5, 2026 4:14 pm
	Humminbird 9 , hub , bbt gimbal by Whoopbass Sat Jan 10, 2026 6:34 pm
	Double Digit Alert \| 10.30 Pound Bass by WB Staff Sun Mar 1, 2026 8:16 pm
	Owner Cultiva GetNet Juster Shad Swimbait by JRuck504 Fri Dec 19, 2025 4:36 pm
	David Oien hammers a win at Lake Berryessa with Yak a Bass membership drive event by basstrophy Tue Mar 3, 2026 8:53 am
	Striper fly fishing by Swimbaitspence Wed Jul 2, 2025 6:41 pm

Classifieds & Latest Posts sponsored by Fisherman's Warehouse

Classifieds	Last Post	Last Post
	2013 - Ranger Z520C by Dave K Sat Mar 7, 2026 2:27 pm	Sold by bigfrog Wed Mar 4, 2026 8:15 pm
	Minkota ultrex 36v 52 inch $1500 obo by Lloyd dassonville Sat Mar 7, 2026 2:28 pm	Power Pole blade 10 foot by norcalracer Sun Mar 1, 2026 9:12 am
	Hummingbird Solix 12 G2 $900 by Brianw Sat Mar 7, 2026 3:01 pm	Shimano/Jackall Poison Adrena B 7�0M spinning x2 by Simon Cowart Fri Mar 6, 2026 8:59 pm
	Baitsanity Chimera Shad for Sale. by Fish-styk Sat Mar 7, 2026 3:56 pm	SOLD by Trickafish Thu Feb 26, 2026 7:04 pm
Kayak Classifieds	2015 Hobie Mirage Pro Angler 14 Rigged by West Coast Angler Thu Mar 5, 2026 2:37 pm	WTS - Treble Hook Lot by Simon Cowart Sun Mar 1, 2026 8:08 pm
	Clear Lake vacation rentals by adamcera Mon Sep 29, 2025 2:27 pm	Wanted to buy mid size pickup by Dfowler Wed Oct 15, 2025 7:11 pm

Recent Forum Posts

Weighting Flukes for even fall rate by MdBasser Sat Mar 7, 2026 4:53 pm

Despicable by monte300 Sat Mar 7, 2026 4:07 pm

Baitsanity Chimera Shad for Sale. by Fish-styk Sat Mar 7, 2026 3:56 pm

Talk about a low bar! by monte300 Sat Mar 7, 2026 3:51 pm

Hummingbird Solix 12 G2 $900 by Brianw Sat Mar 7, 2026 3:01 pm

Minkota ultrex 36v 52 inch $1500 obo by Lloyd dassonville Sat Mar 7, 2026 2:28 pm

Industry Press Releases

WORLD BASS ENTERPRISES UNVEILS “THE CHAMPIONS” TOURNAMENT RECORD-SETTING $3 MILLION PURSE

2025 Collegiate Bass Fishing Series In the latest mid-season rankings review for theSchool of the Year presented by Abu Garcia, the ACA highlights teams ranked 6-15.

101 anglers set to compete on 2026 Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series Coming off the heels of a record-breaking 2025 Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series season that awarded 11 century belts, saw four-first time champions (two of which were members of the 2025 rookie class) and garnered over 183 million social media impressions, B.A.S.S. has announced the 101-angler field for an exciting 2026 Elite Series season.

MLF Announces 2026 Forward-Facing Sonar Restrictions Across All Circuits MLF announces new 2026 forward facing sonar restrictions across all circuits aiming to balance technology with traditional skills for more dynamic competition

NPFL 2026 Full Roster Released NPFL confirms its biggest 2026 field yet with 130 anglers but leaves room for select applicants See the full list and how to join

Recent Lake Reports

Don Pedro Lake By WB Staff Don Pedro Fishing Report: Fished Pedro for approximately 6 hours. Launched about 830 am. The water temp varied betweent 50-57 degrees. It was clear. Started looking on long points and found fish in the 45-55 ft range. Threw some minnow baits with no luck. Changed to a 1/4 ounce dropshot with a 4 inch Green Weeney and caught 2 clones 1.78 pounds. Bounced around and tried to duplicate the pattern for about 2 hours and didnt get any bites. Went towards the creek and found some tree in about 50 ft. Tried a 1/4 oz Frenzy Nail with a finesee Trick Worm. Caught a 3.4 largemouth and made another cast to the same tree and caught a 2.7 spot. Continued that pattern which caught 9 fish. Went and tried another Creek and didn't get bit. Total of 11 fish for about right about 11 pounds

California Delta By WB Staff Fishing the Dleta Feb 10 From a Day on the Water with Christian Ostrander A light breeze and a high tide made for a textbook Delta setup. The bite has been lining up perfectly with one specific window: high tide right as it starts to dump out. "That high-outgoing stretch has been the deal lately, and if you time it right, you can stay on fish all day by chasing that tide," he said. "You can follow it inward toward the Delta, push south, then slide west, basically tracking the same high-outgoing bite as it progresses through the system." His approach has been a mix of reaction baits and shallow-water power fishing. Christian and Riley spent the day rotating through spinnerbaits, ChatterBaits, and some worm fishing, with an emphasis on darker colors for early spring - June bug, black and blue. "You know, the kind of stuff that shows up strong when the water is warming but the fish are still in that pre-spawn mindset," he said. On the ChatterBait, he has been keeping it simple with a Spunk Shad trailer. For the spinnerbait, he is running big willow blades and a single-tail grub, bumping it around the tules. His main spinnerbait color has been a white-and-chartreuse pattern, and it has been producing in both cleaner water and slightly dirtier stretches. Water clarity has been mixed, but not blown out. Christian pointed out that it has not been “crazy dirty” this year, and the lack of rain is a big reason why. Even without checking the exact temp on the day, he said it has been hovering right around 53 to 54 degrees, and the fish are acting like it is already spring. He has been catching them extremely shallow, three-feet of water or less, and he believes the biggest fish are already up doing what they do this time of year: feeding hard and positioning to spawn early. "They are not beat up yet, but they are close enough that it could happen any time, especially with the way conditions are going," he said. In just three hours on the water, the quality backed it up. Christian estimated his and Riley's best five fish would have gone around 27-pounds, and he topped the day with a true Delta giant pushing nine and a half pounds. "That big fish came on a worm bite," he said. Christian has been throwing a lot of Trick worms lately, and described the big fish as thick and aggressive, with just enough belly to show it has been eating. "When the tide gets high, those big fish want to feed, and once the water starts moving out, they will absolutely crush anything that gets near them," he added. The day was not just about one fish either. Riley stuck her own six-pounder, also on a worm presentation. "This is an early spring, and an early spring on the Delta usually means a good year," said Christian. "When the Delta goes off in early February, it tends to stay productive all season long." If this trip was any indication, the big ones are already moving, the shallow bite is happening, and the Delta is officially waking up.

From the Blogs

Lake Oroville February 21, 2026 Fishing Report By RB Bass Outdoors Angler Michael Rogers By Vern Westberg II

Here is RB Bass Outdoors angler Michael Rogers with a fishing report from his trip to Lake Oroville on February 21st. He talks about the baits that he was throwing to produce his fish that day. Michael Rogers even talks about how he was fishing the baits he was throwing. Check out the video and […]

The post Lake Oroville February 21, 2026 Fishing Report By RB Bass Outdoors Angler Michael Rogers first appeared on RB Bass Fishing.