Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Hi Guys am going to target sturgeon rest of this season as had enough stripers! Any advice? I have tried the last few days without success... Using a sturgeon rig on a good rod with baitcaster... Currents always drags line away even with a 8oz weight. Using salmon roe in little baggies. Got some anise stink may try that tomorrow... Dropping the weight in 55 ft hole near Montezuma slough.
Hope you pros can help!
cheers

Jeremy Loc: America

Smelt or Pickled Herring. is best. You rig it backwards compared to fishing for other fish. They eat the head first NOT the tail first. You should get Sturgeon on Roe as well. Sandshrimp is good bait too for them. I used to use WD40 too. I would rig them with hook through the head and few half hitches on tail area on smelt or whole herring. Pickled Herring is another bait that has to be tied with string to hook. WD40 in anus until the belly swells. poke the red straw all the way through to a gill by hook. So it creates a bait stream on the bottom. Then you need to tighten line up. Sturgean bites are slow downward on rod tip and fast tip up.

Bdubya06 Loc: Salem OR

Do you have a fish finder? Up here in Oregon , heres what I do. Im no expert, but have never been skunked sturgeon fishing. We usually will look for fish in holes 20 to 40 feet. Thats about as deep as the Willamette river gets. You will need enough weight to hold the current. Squid and or pickled herring for bait. Its a very, very light bite. Your rod tip will barely twitch. Dont hold your rod. Put it in a rod holder and watch it!
Wait, wait.....make sure they have it! Set the hook like your swinging for the fences!

Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Hi Jeremy thanks man will try that after I get through the roe. Biggest trouble I found was the current. I go around high water slack but still very strong so line is pulled long way from stern.. I dont have balance rigs so kept rod in hand. Anyway will try again!

captjim Loc: Antioch Ca

Fished that spot at Montezuma many times. Target the slopes down into the hole, not the deepest spot. Try pyramid shaped weights. An 8 oz. pyramid sinker will hold as good as a 10 oz. ball and not roll around either. You can find pyramids in weights bigger than 8 oz. but it takes some searching. Try ghost and grass shrimp as well as eel.
Not the greatest tide on the 17th for sturgeon. Only a 1.5' drop on the outgoing tide. If that hole on Montezuma does not work try moving across to the edge of the shipping channel to get the best current velocity. Good luck!

Kerry Hansen Loc: Bremerton, WA

Ok, Sturgeon will lay in the bottom of the hole facing the current near the edge of the hole getting stuff that washes over the top lip of the hole. As mentioned, Pyramid sinkers are best. I also like super braid for line because less diameter so less drag by water flow. i also used a "leader" made of 80 lb white Dacron to handle wear (18 -24" long). If you are using a bait that is fragile, or there are a lot of bullheads, get some elastic thread to wrap around bait to hold together. if you are using smelt. or other similar bait, make yourself a threader. This will be something like a small scewer. on the pointed end, flatten it and file a notch in the flat. Now run it in your smelt by piercing the bung hole and running up thru the body and out the the eyeball. Now hook the eye loop of your leader on the notch and pull up thru the bait and out the bung hole until the shank of the hook just starts to enter the eye. Now with the leader, make a couple half hitches around the body and hook up. Now when anchored up stream from the hole, you need a rod that has a soft tip so that after casting into the hole and putting your rod in the holder, you rod is not jerking the bait when the boat bounces. Finely it is important to use a "Slido" to attach your sinker to your line so that the line easily slips thru when the Sturgeon picks up the bait. put your Slido above the swivel. If the fish feels the resistance of having to drag the weight, it may spit the bait out. Get a fish tailer to land your fish. My .02

Jeremy Loc: America

YUP. Kerry explained it better. Take several baits to utilize. Chop tail fin off so the current does not pick the bait up off the floor of river. I caught a lot of sturgeon. Keepers and shakers. Fresh cut bait is best. If no bites move. 20 minutes no bites move again. I would try to be there before incoming tide so less current. I agree you want to be on the part of hole where is is shallowing up. 80' deep hole is good for sturgeon.

Flytier Loc: Wilmington Delaware

If the current is strong and you can't use heavier weight, try hammering a couple nails onto the sinker so it snags up on the bottom. Might want to use a breakaway to get the rig back if you cant retrieve the sinker. Could also use a sputnik sinker.

Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Cool tips thanks, why not hold rod? I don’t have a balance rod rack

captjim Loc: Antioch Ca

Unless you are really experienced at holding a rod very still, I recommend using a rod holder. In a holder you know that any action on the rod was either boat related or a fish, but not you. Just use a holder that allows you to pick up the rod as easy as possible with the least motion.

Kerry Hansen Loc: Bremerton, WA

I also wouldn't lay it in bottom of your boat hanging over the stern. I know someone who did that and wasn't fast enough to catch it as it flew out of the boat!

Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Hi Captjim great advice thanks. Got the pyramids 8's will try the shrimp, do you use magic string to hold em on? Do you fill the hook with a big amount.. and is it best to let the shrimp rot some or use as fresh as possible?

Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Yes can do that with my holders thanks!

Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Good tips like the nails in the sinker. Not done much bottom fishing so this is all new to me!

Baddonut Loc: Pittsburg CA

Ha someone at Pittsburg ramp was seriously unhappy the other day for that reason exactly, reckoned he'd lost 500 bucks worth. He got really agitated as the next boat on the ramp had a top length legal sturgeon! I gave him a beer from my cooler he chilled!