Fishing Report: Sturgeon Trip 1-20-18

We made a last minute decision to target sturgeon a day before our fishing trip.  I’ve been targeting stripers for too long so I figure a change was in store.  So, Nick Xyong, Cha Xyong, Cheng Yang, Yeng Vue and I decided to hit up the Benicia area for sturgeon.  I’m a total green horn when it comes to sturgeon fishing and most of the guys going weren’t all that great either.

The only gear I had for sturgeon was a 10′ surf rod with 65lb braid on it that I use for sting ray and shark fishing.  With my sturgeon tags purchased I was ready for some dino hunting.

First stop was Rio Vista bait and tackle for some bait.  We bought everything since we had no clue what was working that day.  We purchased ghost shrimp, grass shrimp, eel, nightcrawlers and anchovies.  The tackle shop cleaned out our wallets.  Sturgeon fishing ain’t cheap!

We planned on meeting up with Russo Vang and CJ Jenkins later that morning so they could show us around.  Russo’s the expert in the area so his knowledge was invaluable.  As someone who fished the area on a regular basis 2-3 times a week, he knew the area and species well.

According to Russo, sturgeon tend to be shallower in the winter months.  It took us awhile but we found fish, just not the ones we were looking for.  We couldn’t get away from the striper bite it seems.

We were landing schoolies but no sturgeon.  We even landed a six gill on eel.  The stripers kept us busy but we wanted the dinos so we tried elsewhere.  Later that morning we anchored up with them.

It was the slack tide and with not much sturgeon activity, we decided to hit up the bait shop cause we were running low on bait from the missed strikes and stripers.   We decided to part ways and get more bait and explore the area some more.  After getting bait, we headed east to explore.  Still, we couldn’t escape the striper bite.  We tried the shallower and deeper ends but no sturgeon.

It seems the sturgeon have eluded us green horns.  As light faded, we headed back to the launch and ran out of gas about a half mile away.  Luckily CJ and Russo were still in the area and came to the rescue.  It was much  appreciated.

After pulling us in, we wanted to shake the sturgeon skunk and decided to head back out with Russo as our guide.  We gassed up the boat, bought more bait and headed back out.

There was no moon light except for the city lights from shore.  It was dangerous navigating the waterway with shallow sand bars popping up at random and unmarked buoys popping up out of nowhere.

Our first location, we had difficulty anchoring up but soon got it fixed. Using glowsticks to detect the bite, we were ready for round 2.

Our first bite came and like a typical newbie we missed it.  If you’ve fished for sturgeon before, you know how subtle the bite is.  It’s a totally different bite from other species.  Stipers will take your bait and make a run a majority of the time.  Sturgeon will suck it in and spit it out.  You have to set the hook at the moment it has it in it’s mouth.  Timing is crucial.

Finding that moment takes experience and it was something most of us didn’t have.  Another subtle bite came, followed by a hook set and…nothing.  We had a few sturgeon hits that cold evening but nothing to show for.  We had one on but it cut the line shortly after hook set.  Our first sturgeon trip of the year was a bust.

Overall, it was a good learning experience.  Learned alot from Russo about types of baits that worked, typical sturgeon behavior and how to detect the bite.  Sturgeon fishing isn’t the easiest type of fishing but the reward is worth it.  Battling this prehistoric beast is an experience only most can dream of.  I guess we’ll keep dreaming awhile longer.

Now you now.  Go get em!