I have been fishing Cache Creek off of Hwy 16 a lot this Fall. Pretty much all I catch are a fairly dark colored greenish fish that look very much like trout, but aren't. Their body type and fins do strongly resemble trout. They prefer the more still water holes. I have been catching them on an assortment of flies, they are not that picky it seems. They have been mostly from 8 - 10 inches. I need to get a photo as no one I have asked seems to know what they are.
Im not familiar with the waters, but maybe bass or perch/panfish(those will eat just a hook!) but both of those fish are easy to distinguis from a trout in most cases.
It definitely was not a bass of any type. Though I have pulled out some small mouth bass from Cache Creek also. I will have to bring my camera next time and get a shot of one. Their dorsal fins are not bass or perchlike, but just like a trout's. It is possible that these are called Sacramento Black Fish. At least that is the closest I can come to doing research on the net.
i'm pretty sure its a sacramento pike, proper name would be a northern squawfish(ptychocheilus oregonensis) I'v caught quit a few in the pope and putah creek arms of berryessa while bass fishing, they get pretty big but dont have much fight to em.
they are the largest member of the minnow family, and they really like to eat small trout and salmon when there are salmon present, so maybe we outta feed em to the birds, the racoons, the otters, or whatever......
