Los Banos, CA (March 11, 2026) — San Luis reservoir striper fishing patterns have changed since the full moon – with the shallow topwater , fluke , ripbait and shore bait bites all slowing down. On the other hand- the trolling and jig bites have improved as the fish have began moving into deeper water in the main lake.
The water in the reservoir is still rising , with an input of around 5-6,000 acre feet a day- bringing the lake up to 1,780,000 acre feet and just 20’ from full. We may see the reservoir reach capacity at 2,100,000 acre feet this next month at this rate of input.
The water temps in the lake are holding in the 58-60 degree range- but they could be going up rapidly if the forecast next week reaching up to 90 degrees holds true. This will also greatly accelerate the algae growth in the lake earlier than usual- which gets very thick in the summer months . The decreased water visibility should also play into the best ways to successfully attract and catch fish – since they can’t see as well in those conditions.
I had two guests on Saturday, and we trolled up over 20 fish by moving from area to area all over the main lake. We also had a nice 8lber -and a 31” 12 lber ( a new PB for my guest Joseph Morgan) – all released. We pulled Lucky Craft stick baits in Shad colors about 120’ behind the boat at 2 mph at depths from 50-80’ feet. We were just picking up a fish here and there- but the tactic worked.
The upcoming predicted hot spell next week will change the bite a lot . I expect most fish to be holding deeper, and reaction type stick baits baits trolled or jigged will be the best bets. Some male fish are already starting to milt – telling me we are running about a month ahead of schedule for the early spawning season. We should have a great year
Good luck ! Never give up! Roger George
Interested in a trip? Let me know! Go to my website at www.rogergeorgeguideservice.com or call (559) 905-2954.
My recently posted YouTube video on the new “Catch America “ channel – about fishing San Luis for monster stripers has gotten over14,000 views in less than 2 weeks .
