JIM MATTHEWS'PICKS OF THE WEEK
1. Picking the top bites after a week like this is a fool's errand, but one of the most consistent bites the past three weeks has been the action on big Humboldt squid out of San Diego and Oceanside. Seaforth Sportfishing and H&M Landing in San Diego and Helgren's Landing in Oceanside have all be making evening trips and their anglers have been slamming the 15 to 30 pound squid. Well, they were before this wave of storms. This is the most likely of the three picks to come back on quickly. For updates, call Seaforth Sportfishing at 619-224-3383, H&M Landing at 619-222-1144, or Helgren's Sportfishing at 760-722-2133.
2. Diamond Valley Lake's striped bass continue to be one of the best bets of a soggy lot this week. There was a 20-pounder caught this past week and Mt. Lassen trout were slated to go in Thursday this week, which may or may not happen with the weather. The trout plants have been key to turning on the striper bite. Call ahead, and if the plant didn't make it, you might want to reconsider and try one of the other top picks (or stay home and watch football). For that update, call the marina at 951-926-7201 or Last Chance Bait and Tackle 951-658-7410.
3. With the weather forecast calling for nicer weekend weather, Hesperia Lake continues to look like a top bet for trout fishing. As with most places this week, call ahead to make sure the bite hasn't been messed up or even closed by the heavy rain. You might want to make sure the stocking truck was able to make it down. Hesperia Lake is still getting 2,500 pounds of trout a week, and it produced rainbows to just over 12 pounds this past week. For an update on the action and trout stocking, call the store at 800-521-6332 or 760-244-5951.
FRESHWATER HOT SPOTS
TROUT: The urban trout season is wide open, and all the lakes are cranking out nice stringers of fish. Hesperia Lake is getting 2,500 pounds of trout a week now and cranked out trout to 12 pounds this week. Irvine Lake has been good but it was closed much of the week because of rain. Call ahead. Corona Lake's water level rocketed up and it was muddy but still producing trout and had a 20-pounder this past week. Santa Ana River Lakes was also muddies up but still pretty darn good on fish to eight pounds. All of the San Bernardino County Park Lakes -- Glen Helen, Cucamonga-Guasti, Prado, Yucaipa, and Mojave Narrows -- also remain good with a few nice fish over five pounds showing. In San Diego County, Wohlford, Poway, Jennings, and Dixon all remain top picks with regular plants, but Cuyamaca is perhaps the best bet in this region with limits showing in less than an hour for good anglers. Check ahead everywhere to make sure lakes are open and plants were delivered.
LARGEMOUTH BASS: The largemouth bass bites are just spotty right now, with really just one big exception -- Diamond Valley Lake continues pretty good. There are a few quality fish showing at lakes where trout are being planted, with Casitas the best of those in a distant second place behind DVL. Smallmouth bass remain fair with flurries of good action in the lower Colorado River from Parker to Palo Verde. And there's almost no fishing pressure.
STRIPED BASS: The Diamond Valley bite remains a top bet with fish to 20 pounds this past week. Skinner remains slow thanks to weather, while Pyramid, Castaic, and Silverwood all had light fishing pressure and are harder to gauge. Before the storms, all three were fair with lots of two to five pounders showing at Pyramid. On the Colorado River, there has been very little fishing pressure and most bites are off.
PANFISH: The bluegill have all but died everywhere, but one decent redear bite is lingering for diligent panfish anglers. That bite is Lake Perris with the action in deep water on nightcrawler pieces or jigs tipped with bait in the marina area. Crappie bites are surging a couple of places with others keying up to take off. Top bet for bigger fish are the Buena Vista Lakes (west of Bakersfield). On the Central Coast, Lopez Lake turned on with a number of 25-fish limits posted before the storms, but the fish are all just under a pound. The Topoc Marsh on the Colorado River is also one to keep an eye on, and quite a few crappie are showing El Capitan and Lower Otay in the San Diego region. The tilapia bite at the Salton Sea is very slow.
CATFISH: Slow most places, but water flowing into most lakes from the rain has a tendency to turn on the catfish bites. Casitas is a notable spot for this kind of activity in the Santa Ana arm of the lake. Perris, Skinner, and all of the San Diego area lakes can also see their catfish bites perk in the rain. Catfish would be our sleeper picks of the week.
