At the end of the day on Wednesday, Dec. 31, your 2009 fishing license will no longer be valid.

It has become an annual tradition in our family for us to get not only my fishing license in December, but also get my wife’s license as she is my fishing partner. We try and start out the new year by going fishing somewhere on Jan. 1, the first day of the new season.

With perfect timing, the 2010 fishing license and all related stamps are now readily available at your favorite sporting goods outlets. As is generally the rule, there’s the usual small increase in the fees as well.

The cost of the basic license will bump a whole 30 cents over last year and is now $41.50. For the two-rod stamp it is the same at $12.85.

If you plan on fishing for sturgeon anywhere sturgeon roam – bay area waters, rivers, sloughs, landlocked in lakes, or even in ocean waters – the Sturgeon Fishing Report Card is also required. The good news is that report card is still free for 2010.

Nobody disputes that the cost of the fishing license and related fees are pricey. In fact, instead of stuffing a fishing license into a stocking, you might just want to put it in a box and wrap it.

However you give your favorite person their fishing license, just pick it up for them. It is one of the most welcomed gifts by any angler.

REPORT CARDS SOON DUE

Whether you actually went or not, if you even had plans of fishing for sturgeon in 2009, you were required to have a Sturgeon Report Card. Even if you caught a sturgeon and released it, you were required to record that catch on the card.

That report card, used or not, is required to be mailed back to the Department of Fish and Game by Jan. 31. If you did not go, simply write “none” on the card, slip it into an envelope and mail it. Officially, the 2009 Sturgeon Report Card expires Dec. 31, and the 2010 replacement is again free.

The address is at the bottom of the backside of the report card. Mail it today if you’re not going to go before the end of the year.

CURRENT FISHING

If you wanted to fish the many lakes in the high country that were still providing great rod bending action, well, you may have missed out. The storm doors finally opened and it appears many of the higher elevation lakes that were fishing well are now, or will soon be, locked out because of increasing snow levels.

American River: The whole river will again be wide open from the Hazel Avenue Bridge downriver to the mouth beginning Jan. 1. In the areas open to fishing now, the steelheading is fairly good without the shoulder-to-shoulder triers that’ll be out there when the river reopens. Salmon numbers, as forecast, are expectedly low, but there are some pretty good numbers of steelies in the river. Among the smaller fish, there are also the 10-pounders roaming the waters. While you can cast-retrieve just about any steelhead offering, I’ve done fairly well even bottom fishing eggs with a sliding sinker from shore in places like Watt Avenue this time of year. Fly casters and those tossing egg-imitations like a Glo-Bug, a Spin-n-Glow or baits such as a crawler, eggs or roe are finding the bite.

Ocean waters: Even the rock cod fishing is and has been closed for a while now. The boats out of all ports, however, have found some massively huge schools of Humboldt squid and the fishing is nothing short of outstanding. These aren’t the little squid you buy where there’s a bunch in one-pound boxes. Some of the larger Humboldt’s easily hit the 60-pound mark. It nothing unusual for party boats to put 200 or more of these big squid aboard. If you go, black ink flows everywhere, so dress with the expectation of getting stained, or wear at least rain pants that will repel the ink. One trip and you’ve definitely got a lot of squid for calamari steaks.

Jenkinson Lake: Catch a day when it’s not snowing or raining, pack up the rig and the kids and have a great day of fishing. Just park at the boat ramp and soak Power Bait off a sliding sinker rig and you can get a nice stringerload of rainbows.

Lake Oroville: Lake is, as most are, way down but the fishing is outstanding. Silver salmon have been recently planted and you can hammer limits up to 12 inches on spinners, worms or drifting a minnow. Tons of bass to be caught as well, with the Middle Fork providing good action. Need to get down up to 35 feet, though, with plastics hammering big numbers.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, contact George directly at

GeorgesColumn@AOL.COM.