Bakersfield.com: Kern County news, events, classifieds, shopping, & search

May 1 fish report: Eastern Sierra opener considered 'fair to good'

The Bakersfield Californian | Thursday, May 1 2008 10:17 PM

Last Updated: Friday, May 2 2008 9:10 AM

Kern County and southern San Joaquin Valley

LAKE ISABELLA: Very good crappie bite. The fish are in the shallows on minnows and jigs. Anglers have reported lots of fish 2 to 2.5 pounds. Fair to good catfish bite on shad. Trout fair in deep water at the dam and at the mouth of the Kern River.

KERN RIVER: The Kernville area has a fair to good trout bite on salmon eggs and silver spinners. The flows are rising in the upper river, but it's still fishable. Fair trout bite in the lower river. Still too cool for the bass, but the action should start to pick up as it warms.

RIVER WALK PARK: The action from the last trout plant is slow to fair. No more trout plants until next season.

AQUEDUCT NEAR TAFT: Excellent striper bite on blood worms and lug worms, as well as Gitzits. Peter Buar, Bakersfield, caught a 23-pound striper on anchovies. Juan Morales, Bakersfield, caught a 3-8 striper on lug worms. Daniel Crowder, Bakersfield, also caught a 3-8 striper. Jose Juarez, landed a 2- and a 3-pound striper on shad. Very good catfish action on anchovies and shad. Roberto Rivera, Bakersfield, caught an 11-pound catfish on chicken liver.

HART PARK LAKE: Bluegill action good on wax worms and crickets. Good bass action on brush hogs, and Senkos. Fair to good carp bite on dough balls. Trout action fair, but winding down, on Power Bait and nightcrawlers.

TRUXTUN LAKE: Bluegill action good on wax worms and crickets. Fair bass bite on nightcrawlers, live minnows and brush hogs. Good carp bite on dough. Catfish bite picking up. Fair trout bite.

MING LAKE: Very good bluegill action on wax worms. Fair to good bass bite on Senkos, plastic worms and minnows. Fair trout action on Power Bait.

BRITE LAKE: Trout bite is fair on Power Bait and spinners, with boat anglers having the best success in deeper water. Shore anglers having a tougher time as the trout head deep with warming temperatures.

BUENA VISTA LAKES: The crappie bite is exceptional on minnows and jigs.The fish are spread out all over the lake. The bass bite has slowed down. Catfish bite fair to good on Sonny's and shad. Bluegill bite good on wax worms.

WOLLOMES LAKE: Fair to good bluegill action on wax worms and crickets. Bass bite good on minnows and plastics.

SUCCESS LAKE: The levels are up, and anglers are able to launch boats. Action slow. Bass bite fair, at times, on plastic worms and Senkos.

KAWEAH LAKE: Fair crappie bite on small minnows. Fair bass action on Senkos.

Other regional lakes

CACHUMA: Fair trout bite in 5-20 feet for trollers using red Needlefish and nightcrawlers. The trout are from 11/2-2 pounds, with some over six pounds. Bait anglers are using rainbow Power Bait and nightcrawlers. The trout bite is best in Cachuma Bay, just outside the marina and on the flats. Bass bite fair in the mornings on crankbait and plastics in the Jackrabbit Flats. Crappie bite fair on jigs and nightcrawlers in Bobcat Canyon. DFG trout plant two weeks ago. For quagga mussel and the new boat launching information, log on at http://www.sbparks.org/DOCS/Cachuma.html

CASITAS: The live shad are still driving the bass wild. The fish are also taking swimbaits and plastic worms. Top bass this week was an 11-2 caught by Peter Thompson, Los Angeles, on shad. He also caught a stringer of 10 crappie on live shad. The trout action is fair at the Coyote Launch Ramp. Fair to good bluegill and redear on live worms. Catfish bite very slow. Crappie bite fair with an improving action on jigs and live shad. Nightfishing scheduled for Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Private boats will again be allowed at Casitas in the near future, but boaters will face an inspection and 10-day dry dock requirement because of fears of quagga mussel infestation.

CASTAIC: Fair to good largemouth bass bite, with fish from 2-4 pounds. The fish arm and the lagoon are the hot spots for the bass on plastics and swimbaits. The striper bite is fair to good, with a few fish in the double-digits on anchovies or frozen shad. Some carp still lurking near the west ramp on frozen shad. Trout were planted last week, 1,500 pounds at the lagoon, and aside from a few holdovers the action is just fair. The Ski Cove is closed for the remainder of the spawning period this season. DFG trout plant this week.

LOPEZ: Bass action very good on jigs, nightcrawlers or plastic worms, especially in Wittenberg Canyon. Fair crappie action in 25 to 30 feet across from the marina and near the boat house on jigs. Good bluegill, perch and redear action on meal and wax worms. Catfish bite spotty. Try anchovies or shrimp. Fair trout action on nightcrawlers and rainbow Power Bait in Cottonwood Cove, off the Cottonwood shoreline, off the points, and across from the marina. Trollers are also having luck just outside Cottonwood Cove on Needlefish and silver Kastmasters. Most fish are under the 2-pound mark. DFG trout plant this week.

NACIMIENTO: Continued good spotted bass action on plastics and spoons. The spotted bass are in the narrows and off the rocky shorelines. Anglers reported catching 12 to 15 fish by putting in two to three hours. Fair white bass bite.

PIRU: Fair trout bite on Power Bait, plastic worms and nightcrawlers for bait anglers. Trollers have been using Kastmasters, Rapalas or Needlefish in 65 to 85 feet. Most fish are in the 1-2-pound range, with an occasional four-pounder or better. Slow to fair crappie action in 10 to 20 feet on white mini-jigs. Most fish are under a pound, with a few over. Bass action fair on nightcrawlers and plastic worms in 10 to 15 feet. Hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

PYRAMID: Good bass bite for anglers throwing jigs and plastics up shallow. Lot of fish on beds. A trout plant, 3,000 pounds, went in three weeks ago, and the bite is fair on anchovies and nightcrawlers. The bigger stripers should come out and go after the trout from the plant, but the striper bite has been very good on fish to six pounds this with fish showing on cut baits or shad-like swimbaits and cranks. Down below the gatehouse is the best area for trout and stripers. Many anglers have caught easy limits this week. Catfish are still slow, but a 15-pound catfish was caught last week. No bluegill or crappie reports yet. DFG trout plant this week.

SAN ANTONIO: Fair to good striper action in Bee Rock Cove and Harris Creek on anchovies and swimbaits. The smallmouth are scarce, however the largemouth bite is fair to good around the rocky points on swimbaits, spoons, crankbaits and plastic worms. Fair catfish action on anchovies.

SANTA MARGARITA: Largemouth bass action fair to good on Brush Hogs, plastics or crankbaits. Anglers have landed their limit with largemouth to five pounds on some stringers. The early morning bite, from sunrise to 8 a.m. is best. Fair to good trout bite on Power Bait or worms. Decent crappie action on jigs near the river. DFG trout plant this week.

Eastern Sierra

BRIDGEPORT REGION: Fair to good fishing for the opener this past weekend, with the best action on the East Walker River and Bridgeport Reservoir. Twin Lakes were fair with no huge browns reported. The West Walker was fair. In the backcountry Kirman was very good while Poore was, well, pretty poor. Virginia Lakes were good through the ice.

JUNE LAKE LOOP: All the lakes; June, Gull, Silver and Grant were pretty fair opening day, but slowed some on Sunday and then winds the rest of the week made for tougher fishing. June Lake probably had the best action overall, but Gull was good, too. Grant was slowest with low water levels, although some brown trout have been showing from the upper end of the lake.

MAMMOTH AREA: Crowley Lake had over 700 boats on Saturday and a busy shoreline. The action was fair overall, but some anglers reported very good fishing in the bays where water entered the lake. Top fish at Crowley was a 8-8 brown caught by Mike Pickler, Bishop, on Saturday. David Buckman, Crowley Lake, landed a 7-15 brown. Lots of 14- to 16- inch rainbows. Convict was fair to good. The upper Mammoth Lakes were mostly still frozen over. Only Twin Lakes was ice free. Fair to good ice fishing on upper lakes, and very good action at the Twins, where some big Alpers?226-130? rainbows were caught. Hot Creek good for fly anglers. Mid-day dry fly action at both on midge, mayfly and caddis hatches. The Upper Owens, McGee and Convict creeks all good for spawning rainbows up out of Crowley. Nymphing or eggs patterns fished below an indicator the best bet. Hilton and Crooked creeks also good for spawners. R.G. Fann, San Bernardino, caught and released several 18 to 19-inch class rainbows up to three pounds over opening weekend. Becky Matthews, San Bernardino, caught and released a 20-inch rainbow -- her best trout ever. Rock Creek Lake was good for ice fishermen.

BISHOP AREA: Bishop Creek was good, especially Intake II, and Sabrina Lake. The bite was good for ice fisherman and those fishing the open water at the dam and far upper end. Pleasant Valley Reservoir and the lower Owens River (in both the Gorge below Crowley Lake and below Pleasant Valley Reservoir) were fair to good. Good bite below the Wild Trout stretch thanks to plants last week by the DFG in the Steward Lane to Laws stretch, but flows are ripping. Fly-fishing good in the Owens River gorge above Pleasant Valley. Top action on dry/dropper rigs.

BIG PINE TO LONE PINE AREA: Pretty decent bite in both the lower Owens River and Diaz Lake. Plants this week at Convict Creek, Lee Vining Creek, Little Walker River, Mammoth Creek, McGee Creek, Rock Creek (Sections 1 and 2), Rush Creek, Sherwin Creek and West Walker Rivers (Sections 2 and 3).

Trout plants

LOS ANGELES: Bouquet Canyon Creek, Castaic Lagoon, Elizabeth Lake, Little Rock Reservoir, Pyramid Lake.

Ocean report

CHANNEL ISLAND UPDATE: Excellent rockfishing for everyone fishing in the Channels Islands region. Anglers aboard the Coroloma out of Ventura Sportfishing continues to hammer out limits of rockfish with lots of fine eating vermillion rockfish. The rest of the Channel Islands?226-130? landings are also doing excellent and waiting for a surface bite or even a nice run of Channel Island halibut.

LOS ANGELES LANDINGS UPDATE: Catalina Island started to pump out some good white seabass in a good bite. Sinclair Wallace from San Pedro took his private boat to Catalina and saw a school of approximately 100 white seabass swimming just below the surface. He and two friends limited out in just a few minutes. The following day, skipper Tino Valentine of the Phantom saw the same spectacle of nature: 50 to 100 white seabass swimming just below the surface of the water. The anglers on the Phanton also limited out on white seabass to 40 pounds. Ten-year-old Brian Meckley, Fullerton, caught his first white seabass, a beautiful 32-pounder. The Phantom anglers also had four halibut to 18 pounds and 32 calico bass. There is also a good rockfish and sculpin bite for anglers on the local boats as we await the spring surface action to really kick into gear. Still no sign of bonito and barracuda but it?226-130?s got to happen any day now.

ORANGE COUNTY LANDINGS UPDATE: Anglers aboard the Seahorse out of Dana Wharf Sportfishing have been looking for yellowtail at San Clemente Island and catching a few. The water there is warming up and could break loose at anytime. Good rockfish action there, in the meantime, along with improving calico bass action. Catalina Island boats are all over the white seabass and anglers are hoping along with everyone that the spring bite is finally on. Anglers on the 3/4-day boats have been seeing a good bonito bite at Catalina Island, as well as lots of rockfish and a few barracuda. Good rockfish, sculpin along with a few nice halibut for the local fleet. The water temps along the coast have really warmed up so we may see some excellent barracuda and bonito fishing soon.

SAN DIEGO LANDINGS UPDATE: While nothing has show up offshore yet, everyone is thinking about albacore. Some boat skippers are already talking about heading out that way. There have been excellent signs of bonito and barracuda at the Coronado Islands, but that came to a sudden halt as water temps fell. That bite will come roaring back just as fast when the water warms up again. Local boat anglers are catching a few bass along with rockfish and sculpin.