Fish Bits for the week of 2/26/20
Ella Garcia shows what she pulled out of Lake Davis on Feb. 22. Ella turns 12 on her third birthday Feb. 29. Photo by Robert GarciaBucks Lake Lodge
Rebecca Gutierrez up at the lodge said the road is closed and there are no guarantees it will open before Mother’s Day, but the fishing is good. Anyone with a snow mobile is in luck. The lake is not frozen over.
Michael Thomas let the word out on Fishidy the kind of luck he had up at the lake Feb. 17. He caught a 2 lb. 15 oz., 23-inch Lake Trout with a kastmaster.
“I should probably keep my mouth shut but I am still learning this lake and I could use some experiences from others to feed off of. Went here in November last,” said Thomas. “Had a 60 to 70 fish day. Most were taken by a gold Kastmaster. These included brookies, browns and rainbows and one mackinaw. The mack was a pup, but still nice. The rest were small and cookie cutter. It was like a grand slam of trout sort of day. All from shore. Hopefully in the spring those trout will become hefty.”
Frenchman Lake
Goodwin’s General Store staff report there is no ice on the lake at all. There are plenty of people going out fishing, but staff were unable to report if anyone is catching anything. Fishermen must be taking their catch straight from the lake to the frying pan.
With weather like we have been having, catching fish vs. just fishing would just be an added bonus. A spring day on Frenchman could be pretty perfect. The fish are out there. If you figure out what they are biting and feel like sharing the information: [email protected]
Lake Davis
“The fishing is really slow at the moment,” said Robert Garcia, “but Ella caught one fish this morning.”
Lake Almanor
John Crotty of Almanor Fishing Association and the volunteers of the AFA are still tending to the tens of thousands of tiny trout at the Hamilton Branch hatchery for Lake Almanor. “The fish are doing great,” said Crotty. All is well and it is looking like it’s going to be a great spring, when it gets here.”
Plumas County enjoyed another week of unseasonably dry, mild weather. “As I write this report at 7 a.m., it’s 42 degrees, three days ago our morning low was 19,” said Crotty. “We are predicted to see another spectacular weather week with temps ranging between the mid 20s to mid 50s with no precipitation in the foreseeable future.”
Water temps continue to hover around the 40-degree mark and lake level is unchanged from last week. Visibility is 6-10 feet.
Fishermen are beginning to take advantage of the great weather; recently the main parking lot at Canyon Dam was full with a dozen or so trailers in the overflow lot. Most boaters were targeting trout with a couple of bass boats on the water.
“On Saturday, Feb. 15, Billy Perrault and I fast trolled the West Shore starting at Fox Farm, ending at Goose Bay. We were fishing in water from 15 to 40 feet deep with our lures spread out in 5-foot increments throughout the water column,” said Crotty. “We caught an even mix of browns and bows all fatties and in great shape, our largest fish was around the 4 pound mark. We were using speedy shiners and Rapallas at 2.5 miles per hour.”
While Crotty and Perrault didn’t mark any large schools of pond smelt, the fish were feeding on them and pond smelt patterns were top producers.
Bank fishing has slowed as the planters have moved out of the coves, as have the bigger fish. As long as this weather pattern continues, cove fishing will remain tough.
It may seem that spring is in the air and our winter is behind us. “I would caution that March and April can and will bring snow and ice up here,” said Crotty. “For now the fishing is good and the weather is great.”
Veterans Fishing Day
The date has been set for the fourth annual Veterans Fishing Day hosted by AFA on June 27. In 2019 the group worked to gather 49 boats to accommodate 97 Veteran’s fishing for the day.
Vets who would like to participate can call 284-0861 or [email protected] for questions and sign up. Fishing on June 27 starts at 6 a.m. and a big barbeque takes place around 3 p.m. at the Lake Almanor Rec #1 picnic area.
Registration for this big day takes place before May 22, any vets wanting to sign up afterward will be placed on a will call list. Contact early to reserve a spot.
Send pictures of your early spring fishing expeditions for publication in the Feather Publishing Sports Section to [email protected]
