I have recently moved to Henderson Nevada and am looking at doing some fishing.
I am from New Zealand and am used to sea shore fishing. So my first question since I am a total lake novice is what sort of gear should I be looking at, im looking at something cheep and cheerful, kinda like walmart stuff. I am on a visa so Im not looking at long term investments.
By gear I mean rod, line, hooks etc.
Is mead my best bet for shore fishing near Henderson?
If so, where should I go for shore fishing, does time of day matter, are any days super crowded? and what baits should I use?
In short - Usa/Lake novice
1. What gear should I use
2. where at mead should I fish from the shore
3. What bait should I use (Am a fan of Gulp back in NZ)
4. What time should I fish?
Sorry for the basic questions, this is a new world for me, and I want to go in prepared. I have read a number of forum posts, but all pretty much assume you have basic knowlegde of American fishing, where as I dont really.
If it means anything, I fish catch and release, so eating quality isnt to much of a concern for me, verses fight and size.
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You are the second person from New Zealand with that question. Lake Mead has carp, catfish, small and large mouth bass, sunfish , and stripers. It depends on what you want to catch. You said something that you would like to go for size. I know carp are easy to catch from shore in the summer as that they are jumping out of the water all over but I am not sure about in the winter. Lake Mead can be a frustrating lake to learn how effectively produce fish.
Stripers are schooling fish so when they are biting they are biting other wise good luck. To find stripers you need to find the shad. To find shad you need to find the birds. But all of this isn't easy for shore fishing.
There are many fishing docs/piers located around lake mead. These will usually be crowded on weekends all day and night. Not as bad in the wee hours of the day tho as that is when only the serious fisher men are out and not every one and their little kids.
For shore fishing you can use a basic pole from wally world for just about any fish. You would have be really lucky to get anything too big to come your way that could actually snap your line.
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This time of year they also stock Rainbow Trout on Fridays at Mead. Sometimes the larger stripers will come in to eat the trout so there is a chance at a larger one using a large rainbow trout looking lure. You'll need a bit heavier rod, reel, and line to handle the lure. Willow Beach is another choice. Its about an hour away on the other side of Hoover Dam. Trout are planted every Friday pretty much year round. Large striper up to 50 lbs have been caught down there chasing the trout. Most seem to have been caught south of the marina. Use light tackle for the trout and heavy stuff for the striper.
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I found this technique while fishing for small stripers at the beach areas. Standard trout pole, spinning reel, 6lbs line and 1/16 to 1/8 oz lead head jig. Use a small chunk of anchovy. Cast out and let it fall on a tight line (close the bail) they will hit it on the fall. If nothing on the way down a catfish might get it on the bottom. Try casting out every 10-15 minutes for about an hour. Make sure you chum while fishing, cut the anchovies into pieces. The mid-sections are good for the hook and heads & tails for chum. This time of year you might look for deeper water, like cliffs that drop to 35 or deeper.
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Thanks for all the replys so far.
@LV got a link to that post?
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I did not save the link I only recalled it.
I believe the secret to fishing lake mead is not to use sinkers. The fish (stripers and bass) seem to be able to see them. I have heard stores of people fishing all day with sinkers and then some one coming along telling them to rig up with out a sinker and cast out and catch them on the first cast in the same area they have been fishing all day.
I would test out the guys strategy above using the jig head with anchovy on it. Don't forget to post back and tell us how you did.
I have also heard that stripers like to bite in nasty rainy weather also.
The reason it is so hard to find out how to fish lake mead is that those who know how aren't really on the internet much. They are out catching fish :p. Also who wants to give away their secret to catching fish? I would try talking to people for their secrets. I learned alot from a guy at wally world buying lures. He showed me all his favorites and how to use them and when to use them. He also said for catching stripers you pretty much need a boat so you can find them and chase them.
Fishing at the trout plants would be your best bet to land stripe zilla from land. Altough that rig and lure is alot more expensive than a wallyworld rig but then again you have the chance to catch a big one. You also may only end up with a sore arm and frustrated after a day of chuckin the big wood as they say and not catching anything.
Good luck
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Thanks lvrider, we do catch a lot of fish at the lake. We only keep what we can use. Spring to summer are 30 to 50 fish days but we only take about 10 home. Also, you are correct, on some items. I am only online at lunch time or if my fishing partner/brother-in-law is on the road. So we all agree keep it simple and get more bites.
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try the link to AC plugs site:
[url "http://acplugs.com/"]http://acplugs.com/[/url]
hire a local guide for a day - save you a lot of time and expense over the long run. Visit
Sometimes Kingman Wash can be good. find it on a map. pretty easy access from road over Hoover Dam
Pro Tackle
141 Industrial Park Road #306
Henderson, NV
Michael Sisko owner
702-382-7400
Many bass anglers hang out here. Depending on the day could be a wealth of confusing information.
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We fished Kingman Wash after the clean up of the north side dirt roads (about two months ago). Wow the water is so low the asphalt launch ramp is about 40 yards out of the water. Also seems to be dive cove, permanent dive markers and all. No bites, divers said some fish were seen but still nothing. Two years ago this was the hot spot.
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If you hike along the shore west towards the main channel, there is secondary cove and the sandy gentle rock covered long point. This a spawning area for bass. Across the cove on the west side is a steeper point which drops off into 80+ ft on the north side - it sometimes holds bass and stripers. Then scrambling further west - be careful!...there are several rocky outcrops along the edge which come up to about 20 ft. and drop off into 50 ft of water. In winter stripers sometimes push the shad along those ledges.
Don't bother with the main bay where everyone camps and parties.
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