08-21-2009, 10:15 PM
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#008000][size 3]1. The largemouth bass bite got even better at Diamond Valley Lake this past week -- if that is even possible. The largemouth bass are stacked up in 25 to 40 feet and whacking plastics, and there's some morning surface action. The bluegill and redear are running up to nearly two pounds and showing off the dams in big numbers. The best action is from boats, but both species can be caught in good numbers from shore. For an update on the action, call the marina at 951-926-7201 or Last Chance Bait and Tackle in Hemet at 951-658-7410.
2. The heat on the Colorado River is withering right now, but the smallmouth bass bite will make you forget the heat. With little pressure, the bite is good to excellent from Needles to Palo Verde. While many of the bass are small, in the one-pound class, they fight hard, jump, and will wallop surface lures. Hook a three-pounder and you'll think it's six until you get it lipped. Whether you fish Needles (call Park Moabi for an update at 760-326-3831), Lake Havasu (call Angler's Pro Shop at 928-854-2277) or the lower River around Blythe (call B&B Bait at 760-921-2248), you will find almost untapped fishing.
3. This one is staying in our top picks: Crowley Lake. For fly anglers, it's really turning on with the bigger fish cruising the edges of weed beds eating perch minnows and hammering stripped streamers. There are a lot of quality rainbows, cutthroats and browns being caught right now, and it will just continue to get better as we move into September. Even when this isn't in the top picks over the coming two months, remember this pick. Call Crowley Lake Fish Camp at 760-935-4301, The Troutfitter at 760-934-2517, or Performance Anglers at 760-924-2181 for an update.
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#008000][size 3]FRESHWATER HOT SPOTS[/size][/#008000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#008000][size 3] TROUT: Some of the local mountain waters continue to have good action. Green Valley Lake and Lake Hemet are both top bets. Green Valley is getting private plants each week now. Big Bear Lake is tougher but did receive a DFG plant this week. In the Eastern Sierra, the bites are good on planted fish from north to south, especially the Bishop Creek drainage, the waters around Tioga Pass, and the high elevation waters throughout the region. For fly anglers, the East Walker River, upper Owens River, Hot Creek, and Crowley Lake all have good to excellent bites, with the hoppers now out in pretty good force in the river meadows. Crowley has been particularly good. In the Western Sierra, the Kern River is excellent with a lot of dry fly action now morning and evening in the upper reach, especially the Wild Trout stretch.
LARGEMOUTH BASS: The largemouth bass bites are mostly just fair right now, but there are flurries of excellent morning and evening topwater bites. The top picks are again Diamond Valley, which is awesome, and then Sutherland, Perris, and Casitas. All are producing good average-sized fish, perhaps in the three to four-pound range. Other decent bets include Castaic, Piru, Skinner, and Silverwood. In San Diego County, Barrett remains fairly good (actually, pretty dismal for Barrett at only about three fish per rod), but Upper Otay, Wohlford, Lower Otay, El Capitan, and Hodges are all worth fishing. On the lower Colorado River, the smallmouth bass bite from Needles to the I-40 bridge, in Lake Havasu, and Havasu downstream through about Palo Verde is good, and the largemouth bite is starting to really improve in lower river backwaters.
STRIPED BASS: There is pretty good striper action at all of the Southern California striper spots with Pyramid, Skinner, Silverwood, Castaic and Diamond Valley all cranking out fish, mostly on sardines and anchovies. Best fish are showing at Diamond Valley and Castaic. The California aqueduct near Taft is also good, but with a lot of small fish (remember there is an 18-inch minimum size here). On the Colorado River, Willow Beach broke open six weeks ago and has been producing quite a few 20-pound class fish since on big, trout-like baits. Tops this week was a 40-pound class fish. Lake Mohave is fair on fish to four pounds on sardenes at the dam, while Havasu is slow but has shown some more improvement in the past week. Few reports on wipers at either Elsinore or Hesperia this week.
PANFISH: The bluegill and redear bites are good just about everywhere. Diamond Valley and Lake Perris are hot. But just about every water with bluegill are still seeing at least fair to good fishing, even if the fish are mostly smaller now. Crappie bites have lulled most places, including Isabella Lake, which finally seems to be sputtering out. Lake Cachuma is still surprisingly producing fish at the narrows, and some fish are still showing at Piru. The tilapia bite at the Salton Sea s still very slow.
CATFISH: The lower Colorado River flathead and channel catfish action remains fair to good with the Blythe-Palo Verde area to Yuma the hotspot for big fish. Other places of real note include Diamond Valley Lake, Pyramid, Silverwood, Skinner, and Isabella. The planted water lakes -- Hesperia Lake, Jean's Channel Cats, Irvine Lake, Santa Ana River Lakes, and Corona Lake -- are also all pretty good.[/size][/#008000][/font]
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2. The heat on the Colorado River is withering right now, but the smallmouth bass bite will make you forget the heat. With little pressure, the bite is good to excellent from Needles to Palo Verde. While many of the bass are small, in the one-pound class, they fight hard, jump, and will wallop surface lures. Hook a three-pounder and you'll think it's six until you get it lipped. Whether you fish Needles (call Park Moabi for an update at 760-326-3831), Lake Havasu (call Angler's Pro Shop at 928-854-2277) or the lower River around Blythe (call B&B Bait at 760-921-2248), you will find almost untapped fishing.
3. This one is staying in our top picks: Crowley Lake. For fly anglers, it's really turning on with the bigger fish cruising the edges of weed beds eating perch minnows and hammering stripped streamers. There are a lot of quality rainbows, cutthroats and browns being caught right now, and it will just continue to get better as we move into September. Even when this isn't in the top picks over the coming two months, remember this pick. Call Crowley Lake Fish Camp at 760-935-4301, The Troutfitter at 760-934-2517, or Performance Anglers at 760-924-2181 for an update.
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#008000][size 3]FRESHWATER HOT SPOTS[/size][/#008000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#008000][size 3]
[/size][/#008000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#008000][size 3] TROUT: Some of the local mountain waters continue to have good action. Green Valley Lake and Lake Hemet are both top bets. Green Valley is getting private plants each week now. Big Bear Lake is tougher but did receive a DFG plant this week. In the Eastern Sierra, the bites are good on planted fish from north to south, especially the Bishop Creek drainage, the waters around Tioga Pass, and the high elevation waters throughout the region. For fly anglers, the East Walker River, upper Owens River, Hot Creek, and Crowley Lake all have good to excellent bites, with the hoppers now out in pretty good force in the river meadows. Crowley has been particularly good. In the Western Sierra, the Kern River is excellent with a lot of dry fly action now morning and evening in the upper reach, especially the Wild Trout stretch.
LARGEMOUTH BASS: The largemouth bass bites are mostly just fair right now, but there are flurries of excellent morning and evening topwater bites. The top picks are again Diamond Valley, which is awesome, and then Sutherland, Perris, and Casitas. All are producing good average-sized fish, perhaps in the three to four-pound range. Other decent bets include Castaic, Piru, Skinner, and Silverwood. In San Diego County, Barrett remains fairly good (actually, pretty dismal for Barrett at only about three fish per rod), but Upper Otay, Wohlford, Lower Otay, El Capitan, and Hodges are all worth fishing. On the lower Colorado River, the smallmouth bass bite from Needles to the I-40 bridge, in Lake Havasu, and Havasu downstream through about Palo Verde is good, and the largemouth bite is starting to really improve in lower river backwaters.
STRIPED BASS: There is pretty good striper action at all of the Southern California striper spots with Pyramid, Skinner, Silverwood, Castaic and Diamond Valley all cranking out fish, mostly on sardines and anchovies. Best fish are showing at Diamond Valley and Castaic. The California aqueduct near Taft is also good, but with a lot of small fish (remember there is an 18-inch minimum size here). On the Colorado River, Willow Beach broke open six weeks ago and has been producing quite a few 20-pound class fish since on big, trout-like baits. Tops this week was a 40-pound class fish. Lake Mohave is fair on fish to four pounds on sardenes at the dam, while Havasu is slow but has shown some more improvement in the past week. Few reports on wipers at either Elsinore or Hesperia this week.
PANFISH: The bluegill and redear bites are good just about everywhere. Diamond Valley and Lake Perris are hot. But just about every water with bluegill are still seeing at least fair to good fishing, even if the fish are mostly smaller now. Crappie bites have lulled most places, including Isabella Lake, which finally seems to be sputtering out. Lake Cachuma is still surprisingly producing fish at the narrows, and some fish are still showing at Piru. The tilapia bite at the Salton Sea s still very slow.
CATFISH: The lower Colorado River flathead and channel catfish action remains fair to good with the Blythe-Palo Verde area to Yuma the hotspot for big fish. Other places of real note include Diamond Valley Lake, Pyramid, Silverwood, Skinner, and Isabella. The planted water lakes -- Hesperia Lake, Jean's Channel Cats, Irvine Lake, Santa Ana River Lakes, and Corona Lake -- are also all pretty good.[/size][/#008000][/font]
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