Ladies and Gentlemen....the target length for both days of the 2013 Original Sturgeon Derby is 57 Inches! Now remember, the ONLY weigh in station is at the Foundation Sportsman's Club located at 1001 McAvoy Road in Bay Point, CA. Bring your fish in alive and healthy any time from 0700 Saturday until 1300 hrs on Sunday, February 3, 2013. The weigh master is on site all night and ready to weigh in your catch!.....Good Luck!

According to the fishermen around here...the water has warmed up a few degrees and the bite has improved significantly! Just in time for the Derby!

The usual baits are all working and fish are being reported as caught in both the shallower water and in the deeper waters.

It is going to be a great Derby! We will be taking sign-ups at the Club at 1001 McAvoy Rd, 94565 from 0630 am this morning throughout the night until 0700 tomorrow morning. No late sign ups accepted.

Raffle tickets, apparel and Pork Sammiches available only at the club! 

Target Size will be chosen at 0700 tomorrow morning and will be broadcast on channel 68...we will also post on FB and @sturgeonderby on Twitter by 0730.

Planning on getting some great photos and video this weekend? Want to share them on the website and social media?

Send us a copy! We will put them on the website & share on our social media channels! Just click HERE or find the Submission Page under Media on the navigation bar up top!

According to everyone  we spoke with on Thursday through Saturday (yesterday), the sturgeon bite has been really tough...along with stripers.  Most of the locals are blaming the cold water temperatures for the slow bite. Water temperature at Port Chicago is at 48* today according to wunderground.com.

According to the local weather reports, by  Wednesday daytime highs will be into the mid to upper 60's with night time lows climbing into the mid to upper 40's by Friday. This may just be what the Dr. ordered to get the water temperature just a few degrees warmer turning the bite on for the Original Sturgeon Derby this coming Super Bowl  weekend!

The latest word on the sturgeon bite is grass shrimp and eel are the productive baits with a few sturgeon here and there being taken at The Middle Grounds, Garnet Point, and Honker Bay. Other reports have surfaced pinpointing the bite-zone at 27-30 ft.


If you're planning on using grass shrimp, eel or whatever bait you plan on, it is highly recommended you contact your bait shop and reserve your bait for Super Bowl weekend!

A listing of bait shops from Sacramento to the Bay can be found here. 

Entry forms for the 29th annual Original Sturgeon Derby have been mailed out to all the usual bait shops and additionally to Broadway Bait and to Sacramento Pro Tackle in Sacramento! Pick up an entry form or print one from the website.... either way, be sure to get your entry in!

Be sure to check with Department of Fish and Game for the new sturgeon regulations that went into effect 1/1/13.

The members of the Club are coming together and getting everything ready for this year's Derby! We are looking forward to another awesome turnout!

A friend of the club sent me this today so I'm passing it along! If you're in the Sacramento area check it out!

Sacramento Fisherman's Warehouse Thursday Seminar for Nov 29th:
 
Sturgeon Fishing with "RT Hook" Jay Lopes
 
Sturgeon fishing has been very good lately. Jay has been putting lots of sturgeon in the boat both keepers & over size fish! Come learn how to set up your equipment and what to use for bait? Also he will be talking about all the proposed new rules for sturgeon fishing in 2013? Don't miss this seminar if you want to catch some sturgeon!
 
Seminar starts at 6 pm sharp!
 
What's HOT?          Sturgeon:   from Martinez to Cache Slough! Lots of fish in the system!
                                 Stripers:     Fish are moving into the delta in big numbers
                                 Trout:          Berryessa as trout are up on the surface, Wragg Canyon HOT!

From the discussions going on around the coffee pot....looks like sturgeon are being caught left and right in Honker Bay! Typical bait that you'd expect is doing the trick!

Also heard that the mouth of Cache Creek is full of diamond backs too...Good Luck out there!