Havasu's fishing report

LAKE HAVASU

Lake Level 447.19, water temperature 62- to 68-degrees.

Striper bite is moderate to good with catches coming on artificial and live baits. The paddle tail Sassy Shad baits are working now and the color of choice is white and or pearl blue. These baits can be worked in a variety of ways to catch either big or average fish. The larger striper tend to hang below the shad in the deeper waters and the groups of moderate sized striper are the worker fish that chase and attack and wound the shad. As the dying shad spiral down to their death the larger stripers will indulge on an easy to come by fast food meal!

The Sassy Shad can be trolled at various depths as well and you will catch a quantity of fish but when fishing the Sassy Shad on the bottom and using the "Pop & Drop" technique you will draw an attack from a much larger lazy fish!

Cast out and let the 3/4 ounce head swim bait fall to the bottom and upon the retrieve slowly drag across the bottom for a few feet and sharply snap the rod tip to pop the bait up off the bottom about 6-12 inches and let it drop and set still for a few seconds. Repeat this pattern again and again until it is time to recast. Using scent attractant will enhance the fishes sense of smell for a tasty meal and help to keep the bait in the mouth for an increased chance of a successful hook set. Sizes of these baits vary and the choice is simple. For the larger fish choose the 5-inch Paddle tail with a 1-ounce head and the 4-inch paddle tail for the quanity and moderate sized fish on a ¾-ounce head bait.

The large and smallmouth bite is fair now as the rapidily cooling water temperatures continues to drop. The early morning topwater bite is sparce and the techniques for the fall/ winter patterns are needed to catch these fish. The slower and finesse presentations seem to be the most successful at this time.

Split shotting in about 15- to 20-feet of water or dropshotting your favorite 4-inch Roboworm,Sculpins or Lake Police Cross Tail Shads will work the best.

Crank baits in the deeper water over rocky shore lines will likely get you a nice smallmouth. Smallies like crawdad colored small wobbling deep diving crank baits. The Storm Wiggle Warts or Norman DLN Divers work well in crawdad or shad colored shades.

Report courtesy of Debbie Blanchard, Anglers Pro Shop.

LAKE POWELL

Shad made a tremendous comeback in 2008. They fed the rising generation of game fish left over after the old generation passed out of the picture in shad-poor 2007. Young stripers grew rapidly, doubling in weight from 1.5- to 3-pounds from spring to fall. Some trophy stripers remain and continue to pack on pounds but the bulk of the population weighs in at 3- to 4-pounds and is primed to produce a bumper crop of stripers in 2009.

Striped bass hatched in 2009 will survive on plankton early in the year and may eat some shad in summer and fall if shad are abundant. The main predatory impact of the new striped bass overpopulation will not be felt until 2010. Striped bass fishing in 2009 will be great for large numbers of 4-pound fish. If shad are scarce, bait fishing will be excellent. If shad are abundant in 2009, then stripers will grow to 6-pounds before the predation induced forage crash occurs in 2010.

Bass, particularly largemouth, were treated to a forest of habitat as the lake rose 45 feet in 2008. Brush that had grown around the lake edge was flooded providing dense cover for largemouth, crappie and bluegill. Copious shad were added to the fish forest resulting in lush habitat and feeding conditions seldom seen in this lake.

Smallmouth hung out on the rocks at the edge of the habitat forest feeding on shad at a leisurely rate and loving it. These conditions were optimum for all sport fish. Bluegill, crappie, walleye, and catfish all excelled. The perfect mix of food and cover was to the liking of all participants, perhaps with one exception.

The only one left out in this ideal aquatic situation was the angler. When fish are well fed and housed they have no reason to respond to baits and lures with more than a token attempt. Stripers lost interest in anchovy bait in early summer. With live shad or dead bait on the menu there was little reason to choose bait. Cover made it hard (not impossible) to coax bass out of the sheltered lair to feed when they could consume sunfish and shad without leaving home.

It is refreshing to have a complacent fish year like this occasionally to allow the sport fish a chance grow larger at their leisure. The standard at Powell is large numbers of small fish with low to no forage, which makes hungry fish easy to catch. Results in 2008 were completely different with fat fish being difficult to catch. Those pleasant conditions (for fish) remain in place today and it may remain that way through winter.

Patience is the key. This season is all but over. Normal conditions will return. Fishing success will improve in 2009. The end result will be excellent fishing for bigger better fish. I love it.

Main lake stripers have gone quiet. My best guess for the lack of feeding is a general attitude of satisfied luxury. They have all the food they want or need. They feed only when they want and are quickly sated. They seem to have little regard for the anglers who would really like to get close and personal with these fat fish.

Here is what’s happening. Stripers are feeding quickly during their prime feeding times. At first light and last light there is a brief flurry of feeding. Some of it is on top when five fish splash in unison. These fish are as susceptible to angling as are any stripers when they decide to eat. They grab anything close to their mouth when in feeding mode. The event lasts for about 20 minutes and then its over.

This quick boil is almost impossible to find by running around the lake looking for boils because it is of short duration and happens early when light is not adequate to illuminate a few splashes. Those that have been successful are camped near the action and waiting when the sky lightens in the morning. Once a feeding location is known, an angler could be waiting at the right spot to get 5 quick fish. Find them one day and return to the spot the next for consistent action.

During daylight, fishing is tough with only a random boil that could happen anytime, any place and then not repeat. Spooning is good if a school is found but they move quickly out of the zone. Cooler temperatures will improve spooning results as shad move deep. Trolling is working near the inflows where shad abundance is high. At Hite and upper San Juan use a deep diver to get down 20-feet and near the lazily moving stripers.

For this week the best bet is to fish for bass around shad schools located in the backs of many brushy coves. Surface lures tossed near brush (with shad) are being whacked with regularity morning and evening. During the day plastic tubes and drop shot shad baits are working on the deep water side of brushy shad coves. Fish 25-feet for best action on keeper sized fish.

When fish are fat and fussy the strategy is to make them mad. Shad colored baits blend win well with thousands of shad. Sometime the wild colors of a fire tiger crankbait trigger a reaction when shad colors will not. Go bright and see if the fishing fortunes improve.

Report courtesy of Wayne Gustaveson, Utah Division of Wildlife.

LEES FERRY

Fly Fishing was reported as very good.
With the flows back to normal (fluctuating) the fishing is getting better day by day.

Trout have moved back into the riffles and are on the feed, we feel it has to do with the fluctuation of water. The majority of the fish brought to net have been larger lately. Guess the big guy’s are kicking the little guys out of the cafeteria. These trout are eating the San Juan worm like no tomorrow. Midges and scuds are working well too.

Walk-in area was reported to be fishing very good, as well as up-river. With these flows we are able to fish the pocket water above the big rock area. Care must be taken in this area because of the water levels. You can get yourself into a lot of trouble if you don’t pay close attention to what is going on around you. Next thing you know you can’t get home.

The big rock area is productive as well. In the early morning hours this will fish well, and then slow as the flow peaks. Not to worry, because it will pick right back up later in the afternoon so, don’t give up on this spot. Have a snack and a nap and get back out there in the later part of the day.

Spin Fishing Glo bugs bounced off the bottom. Also, black and olive jigs were effective.

Beginning on Nov. 1, releases from Glen Canyon Dam resumed daily fluctuations. The release volume scheduled for November is 600,000 acre-feet which translates to an average daily release of 10,000 cfs. Daily fluctuations about this average will likely be from about 6,500 cfs during the early morning hours to about 12,500 cfs during the afternoon and evening hours.

The steady flows are an experimental flow designed to test the hypothesis that steady flows might benefit the humpback chub. These flows are scheduled to occur in September and October, through 2012. Normal flows for this time of year would be fluctuating flows from 5,000 cfs to 10,000 cfs. The higher steady flows should be a real positive for the river and aquatic resource by keeping the “green line” at 12,000 cfs.

The “green line” is the level in the river that the vegetation and aquatic organisms inhabit. This line is directly related to the lowest level that the river flows, which would normally be the 5,000 to 6,000 cfs level this time of year. By keeping this level at 12,000 cfs, the available area for the vegetation and aquatic organisms is dramatically increased. The steady flows should also allow increased survival of last year’s crop of baby trout; trout fry survive better in steady flows versus fluctuating flows.

The midge hatches have been prolific. This is a direct result of the lower flows. Despite the midge hatches, the best fishing has been found in deeper water. The water levels are perfect for wading most of the popular spots at the Ferry, however, the best fishing has been fishing out of the boat, drifting or anchoring the boat and fishing the deeper runs off of drop-offs or at the tail-out of riffles. The key to success is to stay over fish, get the flies down to the bottom, and get a long, perfect dead drift.


LAKE MEAD

Water levels have been rising a little, the elevation is approaching 1,108 feet above msl. Fishing has slowed.

Launching conditions at South Cove have remained nearly the same for the last three months. The new concrete ramp the National Park Service just completed is two lanes with cones marking the edges. Use caution not to go off the sides of the metal extensions at either side. National Park Service is working to keep the ramp open.

LAKE MOHAVE

The lake level is down and is running at 633 feet above msl. Lots of bass and bluegill located on fish habitat in 10- to 15-feet. As the aquatic vegetation has died off, the fish have consolidated around submerged trees and brush.

Biologists from both Arizona Game and Fish Department and Nevada Division of Wildlife have continued to install fish habitat in both Carp Cove and Box Cove. The largemouth, bluegill and catfish are really utilizing the new structures. Additional habitat will be added at several locations over the next two years. These structures are fish magnets.

WILLOW BEACH

Trout are stocked every Friday. Fishing has been pretty good for trout. Most of the success has been coming from or around the new pier. Try using green Power Worms, or salmon eggs. Anglers report the fishing being best before 7:30 a.m. The striper fishing has been fair.

TOPOCK MARSH

The chat in the Topock Marsh is that a few largemouth bass are being caught in between a lukewarm crappie bite. The Old Western Trader is selling plenty of minnows, but anglers working the crappie are either not catching or not telling. Water temperature in the Topock Gorge is 65-degrees and striped bass should be putting on the feed bag for winter. The line-sides are being taken, but the number of fish on the stringer remains down from previous years. Artificial lures are not producing strikes.

It seems the fish only prefer protein based bait – mostly the ubiquitous anchovy. Striper action may be uncertain, but over the last four weeks the catfish bite has been voracious. Channel cats ranging from 3- to 10-pounds have been, and continue to be, picked up. Look for deep pockets with plenty of structure. In order not to get hung up, fish to the side of the hole.

Report courtesy of Georgia with Capt. Doyle’s River Excursions/Fun Fishing Guide Service.

PARKER STRIP

Water temperatures along the Parker Strip have been averaging in the mid sixties, and it’s the time of the year when you have to change your fishing strategies.

Bass fisherman will benefit from stepping down to lighter line; 8-pound for finesse presentations and 12- to 15-pound for jigs and plastics will work well.

Try using a 5-inch Gary Yamamoto Senko weightless around remaining grass beds with 12lb line.

Several large striper have been caught by the Parker Dam recently at night using live Bluegill. You can catch bluegill in coves along the Parker Strip using meal worms or night crawlers on No. 8 bait holder hooks.

Flathead catch fish are being caught using live bait as well. Anglers are reporting catching some in the 20-pound range near Road Runner Bar at night using live goldfish.

Water levels below the Head Gate Dam have been very low lately. Bass, along with other fish are holding to the deeper water.

Bass fisherman, try fishing the tullies with brown and purple jigs with pork frog trailers.

Stripers are being caught near the Palo Verde Diversion Dam.

Report courtesy of Anglers Central and http://www.FishParkerAZ.com.

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