Paul Clouse, Ted Cribari, and Al Hurwitz fished Lake Del Valle on September 11, 2025. We trolled the entire lake seeking mainly Smallmouth Bass. We were rewarded with eight Smallies ranging in weight from 1/4-1.7 pounds. Several of the fish, including the 1.7 pound fish caught by Paul (wearing red vest ) are pictured here. Six of the fish were caught in the flats of Heron Bay, one along the western shoreline, and one in Swallow Bay. All of the fish were released in excellent condition.

We used in-line Panther Martin and Mepps Spinners with scent applied to the lures. There were three important differences from our previous outings:

1. The fish were deeper, being caught 23-25 feet below the surface in 30-40 foot water columns.

2. We used 3/8 oz instead of 1/4 oz
spinners to provide a both a larger profile and deeper running lure.

3. The Smallmouths had finally moved out to the flats of Heron Bay. This migration is a strong predictor of heavy pre-Fall and pre-Winter feeding. It represents the first time this season that we have caught this many Smallies in Heron Bay. It bodes well for even larger aggressively feeding Bass being caught in Heron Bay in the days and weeks ahead.

It was a beautiful day with temperatures in the 70’s. The water clarity was very good with a surface temperature of 73-74 degrees.

We are excited to return, particularly to continue our pursuit of the Smallmouth Bass. We thank all of the Del Valle staff for their great help in our fishing efforts!

All the best,
Paul Clouse, Lafayette 
Ted Cribari, Los Gatos
Dr. Al Hurwitz, Saratoga