It's been so hot inland that people are complaining that the cows are giving evaporated milk. A slight exaggeration perhaps but sports anglers are selective when they wet their lines in the Klamath and Trinity rivers. And both streams are producing fish.

Willow Creek guide Ed Duggan says that now that river flows have subsided below 1,000 cfs in the Fly Fishing Only section, fishing has really picked up for half pounders, trout and German Browns. From the Lewiston Steel bridge down to Douglas City fishing is hot and the river is crowded. There have been several spring Chinook landed over 20 pounds and many more in the 15-20 pound range.

”This goes ditto for Douglas to Junction City. If you plan to fish the area you MUST fish from daylight to 11 a.m. or after 6 p.m. because it's just too hot on the water any time between those hours. Fishing has been good in those areas. I made the Junction City to Lime Point run Saturday and we hit the water late, after 5:30 and took out at 12:00. By the time we go to Lime Point we were melting.

”The good news is that we hooked a total of 6 steelhead and my grandson, Robbie Duggan, was able to bring 3 nice half pounders to the boat. All were wild fish and we released them in good condition. My other guest, Richard Starr of the Trinity Canyon Lodge, hooked the first adult Iron Head but was unable to get it to the boat. We farmed a total of 3 very nice adults due to inexperience. But we had fun for the morning.”

Ed goes on to say that the Del Loma area should be turning into the hot spot as the river comes to the summer flows of 450 cfs. “Let me give you a clue: there are German Browns moving upriver and more chasing the smolt downriver. Guess where they usually meet up? You guessed it. Between Big Bar and Del Loma.

“Down river we have finally gotten low enough water that you can fish. Grays Falls seems to be the hot spot of the lower section. A 23 pounder was taken out this past week. Burnt Ranch Falls is very hard to reach as the trail has been washed out, but the word is that you have to wait for the guys in front of you to catch their limits before you can fish. A couple of other areas that are producing are the mouth of Horse Linto Creek, Red Rock and the Hoopa Gorge.

Ed concludes by noting that the Trinity River flows will be normal by next Sunday.

The Klamath River is providing pretty good fishing from Blue Creek down for steelhead and springers, according to guide Rich Mossholder. There is very little pressure. A small run of salmon up to 18 pounds is taking place at the mouth. Rich suggests spinners.

The mid-Klamath at Weitchpec down to Johnson Riffle has been producing well due to the cooler water from the Trinity River.

Bass to 8 pounds have been taken from Ruth Lake but 5 pounders are not uncommon. The fish are in their post-spawning mode and the water is warming. Crappie and blue gill are also on tap. The trout are down 30 to 40 feet as the lake level is still high.

The Lingcod Derby leader board remains unchanged at Trinidad with Dave Nicholson's 29 pounder showing the way. Most of the action centers around bottom fishing.

Gisela Kinder reports from John's Marina that except for one day of sand dab activity, bad weather has restricted fishing activity off Eureka.

Salmon season officially opened Sunday on the Sacramento River below the Red Bluff Diversion Dam with quite a few bright kings caught from Red Bluff to Chico. Anglers can expect 1 to 2 fish per outing with back-bounced K-15/K-16 sardine wrapped Kwikfish producing most fish. Salmon are averaging 18 to 24 pounds with an occasional 30 plus king reported. Back bouncing roe and a Quickie in flame or hot pink have also produced some beautiful kings.

Trout fishing from Redding to Red Bluff has remained steady for wild rainbows averaging 1 to 3 pounds with the occasional 4 to 6 pound 'bow being reported. Best bet is side drifting small Glo Bugs in egg colored patterns with a small piece of roe. Back trolling small hotshot 50's in silver or gold colors have also produced many 'bows.

Repeal of Temporary Limits on Sturgeon Harvest

Recent 120-day emergency regulations on white sturgeon and green sturgeon will be repealed July 19, the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has announced.

The 46-to-56-inch (total length) slot limit on white sturgeon and the zero-bag limit on green sturgeon, both in temporary effect since March 20, 2006, will again be 46 to 72 inches (total length) and the sturgeon daily bag and possession limits will again be one fish.

The temporary slot and bag limits were intended to increase the spawning potential of white sturgeon and green sturgeon in 2006. Preliminary information suggests that sturgeon spawning in 2006 was successful due to the combination of unusually high and persistent river flows in the Sacramento-San Joaquin river system, the temporary limits on sturgeon harvest, and voluntary catch-and-release of legal-sized sturgeon by conservation-minded anglers.

White sturgeon are the object of a popular year-round sport fishery conducted primarily in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River System and San Francisco Estuary. They are often targeted for illegal harvest and commercial trade for their roe, which are processed into caviar, and flesh. The green sturgeon is a threatened species under the Federal Endangered Species Act. As with sturgeon world-wide, populations of both species are particularly sensitive to habitat loss, habitat degradation, and over-harvest. Protection of the white sturgeon fishery and conservation of both species warrant on-going and additional habitat protection and law enforcement, as well as sufficiently-protective sport fishing regulations.

In public meetings this fall the California Fish and Game Commission will consider proposals for sport fishing regulations submitted by the public and DFG for implementation in 2007. DFG will evaluate proposals to the commission for regulations on sport fishing for sturgeon by considering the biology and status of sturgeon, the sturgeon fishery, and public opinion compiled by DFG on the merits and feasibility of potential regulations.