Hodges Is the West’s Boom Lake for Big Bass

San Diego County’s Lake Hodges, rated by many anglers as one of Western America’s top lakes for big bass, is strengthening its claim. Hodges fishermen caught 13 largemouth bass, each weighing more than nine pounds, this week, and 26 more weighing at least five pounds.

“The quantity of bass being caught is down somewhat, but for big bass, Hodges is better than ever now,” reports Jim Brown, San Diego city lakes manager.

“We don’t think any lake in the west has produced 300 bass over nine pounds in a season and we have a shot at that this season. Right now, we’re at about 240.”

One reason Hodges, just south of Escondido, grows big bass is because the fish aren’t under constant fishing pressure. The lake is open to fishing only on a Wednesday-Thursday, Saturday-Sunday schedule, and only between March and October.

WILLOW BEACH--Hot spot: 39-mile marker, near Nelson Landing. Still- and drift fishing in mid-river with cheese baits. Numerous limits this week.

LAKE MEAD--Improved largemouth bass reports from Temple Bar area from fishermen using water dogs, nightcrawlers, crank baits, plastics. Striped bass fair to good in Vegas Wash, Gypsum Wash, Saddle Island with anchovies. Some top-water action late afternoons, but most stripers caught at 25-50-foot depths.

BULLHEAD CITY--Good rainbow trout fishing on lake for trollers, largemouth bass fishermen working spawning areas. Stripers abundant on river, but all in two-pound class.

SALTON SEA--Good but scattered fishing for orangemouth corvina. Guides working Desert Shores, North Shore, Bombay Beach areas. Live bait best. Fish running 8 to 16 pounds, with near limits reported this week. Fair to good fishing for sargo, croaker, tilapia as water temperatures rise.

LAKE CACHUMA--Rainbow trout best bet, by island and Santa Cruz Bay. Still-fishing best with cheese baits, nightcrawlers. All other species slow.

LAKE CASITAS--Excellent trout fishing all week. Bob Gehrke, Ojai, 7-12 rainbow, trolling near dam. Limits all week. Eight rainbows weighed in at more than four pounds, all caught by deep water trollers. Top bass: 12-0, by Joe Harrison, Hawthorne, with crawdad in Station Canyon, 10 feet of water. Very good catfish results: Bob Kalbach, Encino, 12-4 and 10-0 cats same day, cut mackerel.

LAKE PIRU--Good to excellent trout results this week with cheese baits on lake’s east, north sides; Diablo and Cow coves. Best trolling: Bobcat Cove to dam, five to nine colors. Bass limits in mornings with crank baits, in afternoons with purple plastic worms. Improved catfish at north end. John Balderson, Los Angeles, 7-0 largemouth with plastic worm in Diablo Cove.

CASTAIC LAKE--Bass and trout limits this week. Good also for crappie, catfish.

LAKE ISABELLA--Good for blue, channel catfish with cut mackerel baits. Some trout at auxiliary dam. Kissack Cove best bet for trout fishing. Bass in deep water only. Good crappie fishing at submerged trees for tubers, boaters.

SAN DIEGO LAKES--Otay: Slow overall. Miramar: Slow overall. Last trout plant scheduled this week. El Capitan: Fair to good for bass, channel and blue catfish. Sutherland: Slow for bass, very good for channel catfish. San Vicente: Good catfish action, all others slow.

IRVINE LAKE--Good trout, catfish results. Lulu Coulter, Venice, 23-12 catfish on cut mackerel, and husband Harold five-catfish stringer weighing 30-12.

VAIL LAKE--Don Dietz, Huntington Beach, 6-12 largemouth bass Thursday morning with top-water lure at north shore area, from boat. Bill Beckum, Corona, 12-2 bass with top-water lure, Bayou Bay. Ken Mollie, Anza, 13-0 and 5-12 catfish with cut mackerel.

LAKE SILVERWOOD--Jay Anderson, Riverside, 30-0 and 24-0 striped bass by spillway on two different days this week. Good striper fishing this week. Near-limits of largemouth bass.

LAKE HENSHAW--Very good catfish, bass results. Frank Westerman, Pipestone, Minn., 35-4 catfish stringer, with dead shad. Joe Perry, Mike Pulice, Montebello, two bass limits totaling 40 pounds. Largest: 7-8. All on black plastic worms, north shore.

BISHOP AREA--Good mixes of brown, rainbow, brook trout at Lake Sabrina, 8 to 13 inches. Ice gone from South Lake, fair fishing reported. Back country trails, lakes opening up quickly. Intake II, North Lake: Good fly-and-bubble action late afternoons. Lower Owens River: Low flow, good fishing mornings, evenings. Pleasant Valley Reservoir: Fair fishing, but high temperatures in canyon. Crowley Lake: Fair to good trout fishing, very good Sacramento perch action.

CONVICT LAKE--Limits of small rainbows, browns this week, slightly larger fish caught by trollers and still larger trout in Convict Creek.

GULL LAKE--Good fishing all week. Limits reported. Trolling three colors best bet, with long leaders. All small gold lures working. Evening fly fishing good near reeds.

BRIDGEPORT AREA--Fair overall. Upper, Lower Twin Lakes good for stocker-size trout. Green Lakes improved for brook trout. East Walker River fair, with evening fly fishermen using maribou patterns catching some trout in 6-0 class. Virginia Lakes improved. Very slow fishing at Kirman Lake.

Saltwater

SAN SIMEON--27 anglers (1 boat): 4 ling cod, 24 rock cod, 281 red rock cod, 11 bass, 89 red snapper.

MORRO BAY (Virg’s Landing)--16 anglers (2 boats): 121 ling cod, 56 rock cod, 36 red rock cod, 30 bass, 7 red snapper.

AVILA BAY (Port San Luis)--21 anglers (1 boat): 5 ling cod, 1 halibut, 63 red rock cod, 50 yellow bass, 70 rock cod.

SANTA BARBARA (Sea Landing)--45 anglers (2 boats): 148 calico bass, 16 sand bass, 8 bonito, 10 mackerel, 5 whitefish, 32 rockfish.

VENTURA (Ventura Landing)--21 anglers (1 boat): 10 calico bass, 8 mackerel, 3 halibut, 15 sand bass.

OXNARD--76 anglers (4 boats): 6 rockfish, 9 halibut, 28 barracuda, 1 sheephead, 250 bonito, 225 calico bass, 20 sole, 3 cow cod, 225 rock cod.

PORT HUENEME--18 anglers (2 boats): 105 rock cod, 18 halibut, 10 sand bass.

MARINA DEL REY--81 anglers (3 boats): 7 halibut, 12 calico bass, 18 sand bass, 180 rock cod, 40 bonito.

REDONDO--138 anglers (3 boats): 1 yellowtail, 529 bonito, 88 bass, 211 barracuda, 235 mackerel, 30 rockfish. Barge--29 anglers: 150 bonito, 4 bass, 605 mackerel, 12 rockfish.

SAN PEDRO (22nd St. Landing)--27 anglers (1 boat): 5 yellowtail, 47 barracuda, 12 calico bass, 15 sand bass, 53 bonito. (Ports ‘O Call)--62 anglers (3 boats): 11 yellowtail, 157 barracuda, 249 calico bass, 15 sand bass, 1 white sea bass, 40 blue perch, 17 bonito.

LONG BEACH (Belmont Pier)--10 anglers (1 boat): 50 bonito, 75 rockfish, 20 mackerel, 2 sand bass. (Queen’s Wharf)--63 anglers (3 boats): 61 barracuda, 284 bonito, 231 calico bass, 6 sand bass, 9 halibut, 5 sheephead, 67 whitefish, 133 blue perch, 50 mackerel.

SEAL BEACH--9 anglers (1 boat): 21 rockfish, 14 barracuda, 13 sand bass, 45 bonito, 51 calico bass, 2 yellowtail.

NEWPORT (Davey’s Locker)--150 anglers (5 boats): 17 barracuda, 286 bonito, 2 yellowtail, 1 sole, 3 rock cod, 2 halibut, 351 calico bass, 53 sand bass, 123 mackerel, 3 mako shark, 8 blue shark, 2 whitefish, 1 sheephead, 1 white sea bass.

DANA WHARF--61 anglers (3 boats): 253 bass, 4 barracuda, 11 bonito, 1 halibut, 6 rockfish.

OCEANSIDE--47 anglers (2 boats): 87 calico bass, 4 bonito, 14 sand bass, 105 rockfish, 95 whitefish, 13 sheephead, 17 mackerel.

SAN DIEGO (H&M; landing, Fisherman’s, Point Loma)--92 anglers (5 boats): 39 yellowtail, 174 barracuda, 4 bonito, 59 bass, 73 rockfish. (Seaforth)--134 anglers (5 boats): 51 yellowtail, 169 barracuda, 24 bonito, 92 calico bass, 3 sand bass, 15 rockfish, 77 mackerel.

Trout Plants

LOS ANGELES--Big Rock Creek, Bouquet Canyon Creek, Castaic Lake, Castaic Lagoon, Crystal Lake, Jackson Lake, Puddingstone Lake, Pyramid Lake, San Gabriel River (East, West and North forks), Santa Fe Reservoir.

SAN BERNARDINO--Big Bear Lake, Jenks Lake, Santa Ana River, Santa Ana River (South Fork).

RIVERSIDE--Fulmor Lake, Hemet Lake.

VENTURA--Piru Lake.

INYO--Baker Creek, Big Pine Creek, Bishop Creek (Lower, Middle and South forks, Intake II), Cottonwood Creek, George Creek, Goodale Creek, Independence Creek, Lake Sabrina, Lone Pine Creek, North Lake, Lower Owens River (below Tinemeha and Laws Bridge downstream to Stewart Lane), Pleasant Valley Reservoir, Rock Creek Lake, Shepherd Creek, Taboose Creek, Tinemeha Creek, Tuttle Creek.

MONO--Bridgeport Reservoir, Convict Creek, Convict Lake, Deadman Creek, Glass Creek, Grant Lake, Green Creek, Gull Lake, June Lake Lee Vining Creek, Little Walker River, Lundy Lake, Mammoth Creek, McGee Creek, Mill Creek, Robinson Creek, Rush Creek, Rock Creek (Paradise Camp to Tom’s Place, Tom’s Place upstream to Rock Creek Lake), Sherwin Creek, Silver Creek, Twin Lakes Bridgeport, Virginia Creek, Walker River (Chris Flat Campground to town of Walker, Leavitt Meadows Campground to Sonora Bridge).

KERN--Alder Creek, Cedar Creek, Erskine Creek, Hart Park Lake, Kern River (Democrat Dam to KR1 Powerhouse, Borel Powerhouse to Democrat Dam, Isabella Dam to Borel Powerhouse, KR3 Powerhouse to Lake Isabella).

TULARE--Bone Creek, Deer Creek, Dry Meadow Creek, Kern River (South Fork), Kern River (Fairview Dam to KR3 Powerhouse, Johnsondale Bridge to Fairview Dam), Nobe Young Creek, Peppermint Creek, Poso Creek, South Creek, Tule River (Middle Fork, North and South forks of Main Fork, Cedar Slope area), White River.