"The fish sees a piece of food wiggling and drifting in the current, and the sinker is so far away he doesn't feel anything when he takes the bait. The cork is there to let you know when he moves off with the bait. When he moves the sinker, then the cork moves, and you know you've got him."

Booth's terminal rig works for all four species of panfish, including shellcrackers. In fact, regardless of the season, it's the only rig he uses for bait-fishing. Worms are his primary bait, but he always leaves the dock with 100 crickets.

"In late April and early May," Booth said, "expect to find fish 5 to 6 feet deep around the eddies. As the water warms, gradually move to shallower water.

Once you've found fish, noted Booth, the pattern holds throughout the Delta. Not that you'll have time to check many spots: "By the time you fish the second one," he explained, "you should have a limit."

If the fish aren't biting, Booth tries to arouse their desire to feed by chumming. "Bream have a great sense of smell," he offered. "Use this to your advantage by removing an inch of dirt off the top of your worm can and throw it upcurrent, so it drifts over your fishing area. Repeat after 45 minutes. In a sense, you are chumming with the dirt."

Even though anglers can find shellcrackers spawning in late April, Booth sticks with the creek mouths because of the number of staging fish. As it warms, the fish move in waves toward the shallows.

When his catch rate falls, Booth abandons the job of gatekeeper and repositions to the shallows. He doesn't travel far, as the beds may start only yards into the creek.

"In June," he exclaimed, "you can't hide a worm! If you want to eat a sandwich, you'll have to put your poles in the boat. It's a great month to take your friends, because you are more likely to find fish."

Popping noises on the surface often alert Booth to the presence of bedding fish. "You'll hear them sucking insects down," he said. "Fish places where there's more than one fish feeding."

Booth also uses a fly rod and a white popping bug to search for bedding fish. "Work the edges of the creeks using a popper in the early morning," he advised. "If you can catch three fish in one place, carefully back away. When you have your poles ready to fish, ease into position to anchor.

"The biggest mistake anglers make when fishing beds is dropping their anchor and not letting it slide slowly to the bottom. Banging it on the side or bottom of the boat will spook the fish.