lake powell?

[PineviewFisher]

when is the best time to fish lake powell? We are thinking about going in april and do some fishing and camping. My wife wants to go before it gets to hot. Where is a best place to camp? The best place to fish from shore? Is there a place where i can rent a little boat for the day? Thanks for the info.
pineviewfisher
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[trout_slayer]

Mid April to Mid May is really good fishing for all species of fish down at Powell. I will be there myself in May (4th-9th). What part do you plan on going to? Bullfrog? Call the Bullfrog Marina and ask about their boat rentals. There are many canyons to camp in and all of them offer great fishing too. Keep an eye on wayneswords.com for all your lake powell info.
TS
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[N.E.T.O.]

For the last 3 years (this is the 4th) we have done 2 Powell trips every Spring: The 1st trip is always around the 1st weekend of April, and we go to Wahweap and fish around the dam. The 2nd trip is always the first weekend after the 15th (my anniversary) and we go to BullFrog.
Dependent on what species of fish you want, timing is critical. Since we fish for all species, (mostly stripers) we don't really care. The black bass spawn (large/small) sometimes is happening during the middle of April when we are there and the bass fishing can be phenomenal. The striper fishing is actually much better at Wahweap earlier, but this year I've been reading that it will be a little more even this year due to the shad conditions, etc. A great resource for timing your trips is Wayneswords.com.

The fishing is always good, but the lake itself is just outstanding that time of the year. No crowds, mild weather. One of my favorite places on the face of this planet.

Randy
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[Ryno]

The third week in April is always "hot fishing", unless it falls on the full moon. The full moon this year is on the weekend of April 19-20th, so I would plan on the weekend before or after.

The month of May can be a good time from year to year, but you're at the mercy of spring run-off. This year will have exceptional run-off with all the snow in Colorado. If it warms up quick, the water will come-up fast which spells poor fishing. This has even more of an effect the further uplake you get, and it's not impossible to see the mudline/debris as far south as Bullfrog. Two years ago, we went down and fished Good Hope Bay in late April. The weather was warmer than usual, the high country lacked good snow, but the warm trend was enough that the lake rose 4 inches a day. Fishing deteriorated each day we were there for black bass, crappies, and even stripers.

If you want to camp from shore and are willing to drive in somewhere, check out a map of the lake and find uplake canyons like Farley's, White, and Blue Knotch. All have good dirt roads (with the exception of occasional wash-outs), provide excellent shoreline accessibility, and good camping. Some guys even haul there tubes/kick-boats in and fish these areas. You could easily find good fishing for bass, walleye, and crappies in those areas. There are also roads into the back of Bullfrog Bay and near the dam in Wahweap and Warm Creek Bay.

You can rent boats on the water at Bullfrog, Halls Crossing, Wahweap, and now Antelope Point. You can get anything from a small aluminum boat to runabout (or a houseboat if you like). You can also rent boats from Page, AZ and Big Water, UT and tow them to the water, which saves you a little on the cost.

It can be phenomenal fishing in April. I would first avoid the full moon phase, secondly miss the run-off, and finally hope for normal spring temps. Then cross your fingers that none of those little windy, cold fronts come through which can shut the bass spawn down from day to day. If "all the stars align", you can easily fish 40-50 smallmouth days or 50-100 striper days in late April to early May. Good luck!
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