Floyd Lamb Info

[Dennyboy]

[size 3]Hi guys and girls.....

This is my first time posting here. I've checked past Forum comments about Floyd Lamb Park and found some helpful info. I've only been to the park once so I have a couple of questions and hope that I can get a little bit of help.

I read that there are bass & bluegill in the "lower pond". Is the lower pond the one that's furthest to the east? From an arial view, the one that has 3 branches? A NW, SW, & East branch. It looks like it's the second biggest pond in the park. Is that the lower pond?

If so, is there an advantage or divantage to fishing in any specific part of this pond?

And just a real general question.....Are there bass & bluegill in all four ponds? I fished the 2nd smallest pond last October and didn't get any bites. I went to the main pond and got a nice size catfish which kept me from being skunked for the day. I tried for bass and bluegill in the big pond too, but no luck. I throw everything back anyway, but it's a kick trying to out-smart them.

For the bass I'm wondering if anyone has done any good with spinnerbaits or buzzbaits, or are the soft plastics the way to go? For the bluegill I guess a mealworm on a small hook about 18" below a bobber will work if there are any in there.

I'm going to Lamb later this week so any comments will be appreciated.
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[gnelson651]

There are LM bass and bluegill in all the ponds as well as carp. The lower pond (Mulberry Lake) is the farthest east. I've caught bluegill, largemouth bass and smallmouth bass in this pond. The bass are hard to catch and you will have to experiment with different presentations. Most likely if you catch a bass, it will be about 10". There are bigger bass in this pond, where last year one guy caught a 7 lber. The reason they are hard to catch is that most anglers release them and fish can learn to not take certain types of artificial baits.

For the bass, I've used spinnerbaits, dropshot, texas-rigged worms and crankbaits with some success depending on the season and water temp/clarity. I've lost a few lures in the process since there are snags everywhere. So be prepared to lose a few lures.

Bluegill are best caught on a small bobber with a mealworm or piece of nightcrawler on an #8 aberdeen hook. Also they will bite on small crappie baits such as 1/16th curlytail grubs or small sonic minnows. For the bluegills use ultralight gear with 2-4lb line for some fun action. Pound for pound bluegill are the hardest fighters at Floyd Lamb.

The upper lake (Tule Springs Lake) is stocked during the summer (Apr-Oct) with catfish on a monthly basis (mid-month) and stocked during the winter (Nov-Mar), with rainbow trout every two weeks. The bass like to hang out by the tules on the southshore or the northeast corner under the trees near the picnic tables nearest the water. I caught a 5 lb LMB here a few years ago on ultralight gear with 4 lb line and a small curlytail grub. That was some hard 15 minute fight trying to land that size fish on small line! I've caught some saucer-sized bluegill in the upper lake. After spawn (about now) they go to the deepest part of the lake near bottom. Use a small egg sinker sliding rig with about 12-16" of leader to your hook with a mealworm or piece of nightcrawler. Be sure to release the big 'gills, otherwise you will affect the gill population and stunt their growth by thinning out the bulls.

The two middle ponds (Cottonwood and Willow Lake) are good for some large carp (as in 20lbs+). As I said before, there are also bluegill and bass are in these ponds.

Good luck and tight lines.
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[Jimboslice]

Yah, what he said.

Wow, I would like to add some info but gnelson knows what he's talking about lol.

I don't know anyone who went to Floyd Lamb with intentions of catching bluegill and didn't. They are generally small but you will catch some if you try. Just walk around the pond looking and you should see some. After you spot them just use small pieces of earthworm. Present the worm in any fashion you like just use a small hook. I have caught bluegill in all three ponds. I only fish for them if I see them though. I walk around till I see them and fish where ever they are. I don't actually go there to fish but I have brought small kids there lol.

Same with catfish in the summer time. You'll almost always catch a catfish using "standard catfishing techniques" lol. I have only caught and fished for catfish in the big pong.

Largemouth bass I have caught in two of the ponds, the big one and not sure about the other one, but I have caught bass in two ponds. I caught all my bass on a Mepps black fury spinner, orange or yellow dots.


The reason I only throw this lure at that park is.... It what I used to use there and Sunset park when I was a kid. Me and my cousin only had these lures and they worked lol. I went back last year and bamb caught one in one of the smaller ponds. Then caught one in the bigger pond.

Your not guaranteed to catch a bass though.

I never fished for trout there, but im sure I would catch some with 3 inch power worms lol.
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[Telbone]

I have fished Floyd Lamb many times in the past years. Consider that these fish are highly pressured and well educated when it comes to lures. I try to throw something that not everyone else is using.

Before fly fishing took care of this detail for me, I used to do pretty well with beetle spins on those lakes.

Later,
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[gnelson651]

[quote Jimboslice]Yah, what he said.

[#ff0000]Wow, I would like to add some info but gnelson knows what he's talking about lol.[/#ff0000]

Thanks for the nice comment Jim. When you've fished there two-three times a week for the past three years you learn a few things.

[#ff0000]I[/#ff0000] [#ff4040]never fished for trout there, but im sure I would catch some with 3 inch power [/#ff4040][#ff0000]worms lol[/#ff0000]
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[#000000]Yup, I use the Orange/Chartreuse 3" powerworms wacky-rigged on a #8 red egg hook. Catch a mess of trout just about everytime.[/#000000]
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I would like to add Floyd Lamb has mainly redear that most call bluegill, including myself.


Last year at Mulberry Lake I saw a mess of redear swimming near shore so I took a 10' crappie pole with 6' of 2 lb line and attached a black ant fly. I touched the fly just on the water surface and shook it gently. I must have caught a 100 redear within an hour. The game warden came up to me as I just caught a redear the size of my little finger. I turned to the game warden smiling and said "bait." He looked at me strange and I laughed letting him know I was just kidding. Redear are considered game fish and illegal to use as bait. Fortunately the warden had a sense of humor and he knew me from all the times I fished there. But he still asked me for my license



Here's a map of the lakes:

[Telbone]

I didn't really touch on anything either as pretty much it had been covered. If your interested in the carp there you can make chumballs and pull them up. See sins post about his family outing. I go to Mulberry lake a couple of times a month and catch big carp. Last couple trips I didn't do well though... hrmmm.

I personally have seen bass caught at every lake except Cottonwood... btw thanks for the map gnelson, I now know the names of those lakes. I saw a guy catch a 4 or 5lb largemouth in Willow lake quite a few years ago. I've also seen some nice bass come out of the Upper lake.

My tactics for carp are simple. I usually post up at my favorite spot on Mulberry, chum them up, then pick 'em off. Once you get one it takes awhile to get it in on the fly rod. 20 or 30 minute fights are common on the 15lb+ fish. If I could get the ducks to stay out of the way one of these days I am gonna chum/stimulate a topwater bit with some dog food. I read a site that said bring a couple of bags of dogfood, chum until the ducks are full, then the fish will start rising. Never had the patience to try it though.

You can do very well by simply buying a few cans of corn. Go to the lake and pick two sites a bit apart from each other. Chum half a can of corn in each spot. Then take a spinning rod and carolina rig it with a baitholder hook. String 5 or 6 pieces of corn on the hook and try to drop it in chum spot number 1. Hook big carp, reel it in, then repeat to chum spot number 2. Rinse and repeat until your arms are too sore to cast any longer.

Later,
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[Telbone]

Unfortunately for me, I never seemed to slow down enough to take pictures. In retrospect, I wish I had done so. If nothing else, being a member of this forum has taught me to get pictures of my catch.

I caught this carp at Mulberry Lake on my fly rod when my son was 2. He's 8 now... boy how does time fly. I'm sorry that I had to scan it in the frame, but the frame broke on me and was permanently superglued back together a while back. Can't really get the picture out. This was one of the few times my wife went with me, hence the photo .

I am still having trouble posting inline photo's so this will be an attach.

Later,
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[Dennyboy]

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Thanks everybody for the excellent information. I didn't expect to get nearly that much help and so many useful pointers.

Some older posts mentioned that the park opens before 8:00 to let in maintenance crews. Is it still true that you can get in before regular park hours? I don't mind paying the fee and I won't be going too early this trip, but I just wondered for future reference.

Dennyboy
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[Telbone]

The gate used to open and close exactly at park hours. Period. However, since a ranger no longer mans the booth, this has changed.

Some private company is managing the booth. I talked to a lady working there a couple weeks ago and she said that the Ranger is required to open and close the gate. He does so early, before dawn, and late, after dark in most cases. This means you can access the park earlier and later than you used to be able to.

I also expressed concern about being locked in, but she said not to worry 'cause the ranger still drives the property telling people the gate will be locked on a loudspeaker.

Later,
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[gnelson651]

FLP in now opened at 8 am to 8 pm for summer hours in May.

The park is usually opened by the maintenance crew around 6- 6:30 am, especially during the summer months
The Park Ranger will usually run everyone off by 8 pm. Sometimes he is about 1/2 late but it will be dark by then and hard to see anything without lights. The ranger can be a real pain if you don't start packing up when he first comes by. So don't linger too long.

I buy a year pass as a senior (50+) for $15 which is a good deal since I go out there atleast once a week, sometimes 2-3 times a week. However, the regular yearly pass rate is $45 but if you plan on going atleast once a month, the daily rate is $6.00. So the $45 date is a pretty good deal.
I've made FLP my practice pond and use it for both relaxing while I fish or practice new techniques or lures. I only live 15 minutes alway so its close and convenient for a few hours of fishing.
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