Nov. 6 fish report
| Thursday, Nov 05 2009 05:32 PM
Last Updated Thursday, Nov 05 2009 06:46 PM
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Monika McKenna, 6, of Bakersfield, caught this bass at Lake Truxtun on Saturday using a night crawler.
Cindy Risi of Delano holds up a 7-pound, 26-inch steelhead she caught on a recent fishing trip to the Hell's Canyon area of the Snake River in Idaho. She used roe for bait.
Gary Hackney of Bakersfield caught this 35-pound king salmon recently at the Klamath River in Northern California. He used a flat fish spinner with anchovies for bait.
Kern County, southern San Joaquin Valley
LAKE ISABELLA: There continues to have good catfish action, mostly on frozen shad and cut baits. There is still a pretty decent crappie bite on live minnows in the French Gulch marina area. The bass action slowish with the best bet on cranks, plastics, jigs and live bait. Few trout up around cemetery, and just slow to fair trout action at the auxiliary dam in deep water. Carp action has slowed way down.
KERN RIVER: Flows in the upper Kern are back down to around 370 cfs and the river is fishing fair to good in the 20-mile roadside stretch above Kernville with a dry fly bite most morning, predominately on smaller fish. Some nice fish showing in the Johnsondale Bridge stretch. Matt Seger, Bakersfield, caught and released 3-0 rainbow on cricket. The lower river is still off-color but still fair to good for smallmouth bass in the Richbar, Hobo areas off on spinners, crawlers and plastics. Most fish are small. Improved catfish action with quite a few cats in the pools on nightcrawlers and cut baits. Greg Conley, Bakersfield, landed two cats at 6 pounds and one at 8 pounds on minnows.
TULE RIVER: Very slow. All of the usual stocking areas, including the lakes at Balch Park, have not been planted for over a month.
AQUEDUCT NEAR TAFT: Striper bite improving a little bit with the warm weather again. While nothing big has been reported, the bite is pretty good on bloodworms, sand worms and a few fish on shad-like cranks. The catfish remains pretty good on cut baits. George Flud, Bakersfield, landed an 18-pound catfish and a 23-inch striper this week.
HART PARK LAKE: Good trout action after last week's DFG plant. Best action on Power Bait, Gulp trout baits and green, garlic nightcrawlers. The bluegill bite remains good on wax worms, meal worms, or red worms. The carp action is also still fair on Powder Bait. Slow bass action.
TRUXTUN LAKE: Good trout action with yet another DFG plant this week. Best action on floating baits and the green, garlic nightcrawlers. Bluegill are good on wax worms or crickets. The carp action remains fair to good on dough baits and Powder Bait. Slow bass action on nightcrawlers and plastics.
RIVER WALK PARK: DFG trout plant again this week and good trout action on garlic Power Bait, with corn Power Bait and chunky cheese Gulp also decent bets. Green, garlic nightcrawlers have also been good. The bluegill bite is good on crickets, wax worms and meal worms. Bass are very slow with a few on plastics, nightcrawlers and small swim baits.
MING LAKE: DFG trout plants last week and three weeks ago, and there has been fair to good action since on floating dough baits. Bluegill are good on wax worms, crickets, meal worms and red worms. Slowing carp action on fish on Powder Bait, but other dough baits are also working. The bass and crappie bites are very slow.
BRITE LAKE: DFG trout plants the last two weeks.
BUENA VISTA LAKES: The Taft Trout Derby is schedule for Nov. 14, and the lake will be planted with over a ton of trout prior to this event, including the usual assortment of huge rainbows topping 10 pounds. The lake levels are down, but the bluegill bite remains good on wax worms, meal worms and nightcrawler pieces. Fair catfish action on frozen shad and Sonny's Dip Bait. Good carp action on Powder Bait. Bass, stripers and crappie all slow, but the odd crappie still being caught on live minnows, and a few more largemouth are showing on plastics and cranks.
WOOLLOMES LAKE: Very good trout action with another DFG plant this week. Best action has been on floating dough baits. The bluegill bite remains good on wax worms, crickets, red worms, or meal worms.
SUCCESS LAKE: DFG trout plant this week. Fair to good bluegill bite, fair bass action on cranks and plastics, but other species were mostly slow.
KAWEAH LAKE: Fair to good bass bite on live bait and plastics, and quite a few bluegill are showing.
Other regional lakes
CACHUMA: Trout plants are scheduled to start this week with the first plant of the season from Calaveras Trout Farm. Other Calaveras plants are set for Dec. 4, Feb. 16, March 16 and April 16. Trout are still in deep water at the dam and off Johnson's Cliffs. Trollers are scoring fishing eight to 10 colors of leadcore and Needlefish or Rapalas. The largemouth and smallmouth bites are both fair, but the catfish action has slowed with only a few fish showing on cut baits and nightcrawlers. Just a few crappie at the narrows and the odd redear and bluegill showing in the east end and Stork Flats on nightcrawler pieces.
CASITAS: Tougher bass action this past week with the best bite early and later in the day on nightcrawlers and plastics, with some fish on topwater and reaction baits. The catfish have slowed to nothing, but the Bluegill and redear remain fair to good in most coves on nightcrawlers or red worms in 10 to 15 feet of water. Trout still very slow.
CASTAIC: Striped bass and largemouth bass action has been excellent on live shad or anything shad-like. Lots of 2-pound largemouth reported over the weekend with some bigger.
LOPEZ: Fair to good action on bluegill and redear with wax worms, meal worms and crickets the top bet. A few crappie showing on jigs. The bass bite is fair, and only a few catfish have been reported this week
NACIMIENTO: Fair spotted bass action with cranks, plastics and swim baits all producing fish. Catfish fair on cut baits, mostly early and late in the day. Carp slowed in the marina area on dough baits.
PIRU: Few reports with a fair to good bass bite on plastics and nightcrawlers and a few trout showing for trollers. The crappie bite is still fair on small jigs in 12 to 18 feet of water. Catfish slow.
PYRAMID: The trout action has been improving and a DFG plant this week should keep that action perking. Best action has been around the marina, but the fish are starting to spread out. Most of the fish are in the 1- to 3-pound range. The largemouth and smallmouth bass are a better bet with pretty fair to good action.
SAN ANTONIO: Water level came up a little with recent rains, but there are still few reports except for catfish, which have been pretty good. Best bet on cut baits. Ricky Franklin, Bakersfield, had a stringer of cats with fish to 15 pound, all on shad.
SANTA MARGARITA: Bass slow with good anglers lucky to get a fish a day. The crappie have been improving with some nice fish coming in on small red and white jigs. The cats have been good. Light pressure. The marina store is open Wednesday through Sunday.
Eastern Sierra
COLEVILLE-TOPAZ REGION: The West Walker River has continued good for planted and wild trout with a lot of fish nymphs under and indicator. Little Walker River is good for brookies and rainbows. Kirman Lake is excellent on brookies to 18 inches but few cutts this past week. Best action on nymphs, scud and streamer patterns for float-tubing fly anglers. Roosevelt, Lane and Poore all good, too.
BRIDGEPORT REGION: Flows on the East Walker have dropped to 40 cfs early this week (down from 200 cfs last week) and the bite lulled for a couple of days but has since come back on. Lots of brown trout on beds, so careful wading is recommended to not ruin spawn. Overall pretty good streamer and midge fishing. Bridgeport Reservoir has been good for shore, float tube and boat anglers fishing the East Walker River channel and other creek channels. Yellow Power bait and gulp eggs as well as ?206-140?crawlers are all producing for the bait fishermen. For fly anglers, it's been the best with soft hackles, streamers and midging under an indicator. Twin Lakes have been really improved over the past couple of weeks with browns and rainbows showing up in the catch. The Virginia Lakes -- Big Virginia, Little Virginia and Trumbel -- all still good.
LEE VINING REGION: Lower Rush Creek in the special regulation section has been good on small caddis dries or a two-fly rig with fish to 16 inches reported, but water level is getting low. Some baetis hatches. Below 395, Rush is good but the fish are very small. Saddlebag and Ellery slowed way down but Lundy remains good for bait, lure and fly anglers.
JUNE LAKE LOOP: Light fishing pressure. Just slow to fair action throughout the loop, with the best bite on holdover planted trout or brown trout. Best bite is early and late in the day. Walker and Parker lakes are both good, especially for browns and brookies in the stream mouths.
MAMMOTH AREA: Crowley Lake is good to excellent on midges under indicators in 12 to 15 feet of water, and the perch streamer bite remains hot for quality rainbows and browns with a lot of fish over 18-inches. The fish are stacking up in the North Arm (Owens River) of the lake. Also quite a few browns in Whiskey Bay, McGee Bay and the mouth of Hilton Creek. The upper Owens River and Hot Creek are both very good for fly anglers. In the Mammoth Lakes, all the lakes are slowing down, but there is a good brook trout bite in the stream mouths. The Twin Lakes have a pretty good morning bite with a lot of midging fish early and late in the day. Fair action on holdover planted trout in Rock Creek and Rock Creek Lake.
BISHOP AREA: Light fishing pressure throughout the Bishop Creek drainage, but the action is fair at all the lakes, especially at the inlets for browns and brookies. Sabrina Lake has been pretty good with a lot of holdover rainbows, some to 3 pounds. South Lake is good at the dam and inlets in the upper lake, mostly on planted fish, but quite a few brookies to 13 inches are being caught in these inlets. Bishop Creek is fair on holdover planted trout, with some wild fish. North Lake good for shore anglers and float tubers with a very good bite, mostly on holdover rainbows. The lower Owens River remains good for fly anglers. Pleasant Valley Reservoir has been fair for lure, jig, bait and fly anglers, especially for float tubers fishing near the inlet. Owens Gorge good for small browns on small dries.
BIG PINE TO LONE PINE AREA: Generally fair to good action in the small streams after DFG plants.
Trout plants
LOS ANGELES: Castaic Lagoon, Elizabeth Lake,Pyramid Lake.
KERN: Lake Truxton, Lake Woollomes, the park at River Walk Lake.
TULARE: Lake Success.
Ocean report
LOCAL TUNA NEGLECTED: There is still a pretty good pool of warmer water off the Southern California coast holding a bluefin, albacore, yellowtail and yellowfin, but there is simply zero boat coverage. The one or two boats fishing the region this week found very good action with all four species having fish up into the 30-pound range.
ISLAND UPDATE: San Clemente continues to have a very good yellowtail bite but very little fishing pressure. The Opion out of Pierpoint Sportfishing was at Clemente with six anglers who caught 20 yellowtail in the 30-pound class over the weekend. There also continues to be a good calico bite at Clemente. Catalina Island has slowed down this week but there's still a consistent pick on the calico bass and bonito.
NEARSHORE NEWS: While most skippers are switching over to rockfish as coastal waters cool, there is still a pretty good bass bite in the Santa Monica Bay with both calicos and sand bass showing in the catch. On some days, it's four or five fish a rod, and on others it has been seven or eight fish. The Spitfire out of Marina del Rey, along with the Victory and Southern Cal out of Pierpoint have all been tapping into this action this past week. But even the angler participation in this bite is minimal.
LONG RANGE UPDATE: The mulit-day fleet fishing San Martin Island and Alijos Rocks to points south have been seeing exceptional fishing. On Tuesday, anglers aboard the Royal Polaris landed 112 yellowfin and 32 yellowtail with fish to 35 pounds while heading south. The Royal Star and Intrepid both had yellowfin over 100 pounds in the hold this week.
