OUTDOOR NOTES : Hopes, Water Levels Are Running High for Trout Opener

An invasion of trout fishermen is about to begin and, with few exceptions, the thousands who will partake in opening day on Saturday should find conditions throughout the Eastern Sierra to their liking.

Extended forecast: Mostly clear with daytime temperatures from 50 to 75 degrees.

At Crowley Lake, long the popular choice for opening-day fishermen, the water level is higher than it has been in years, “and the quality looks very good as well,” said Curtis Milliron, a Department of Fish and Game biologist stationed at Bishop.

Milliron said a sampling trap located above Crowley on the Owens River is showing a small run of Kamloop Junction-strain rainbow trout, “and we expect that to increase.”

Last summer, the DFG put more than 85,000 Eagle Lake-strain, 95,000 Coleman-strain and 81,000 Kamloops Junction-strain rainbows into Crowley. All fish were tagged so their movement through the Owens and other tributaries could be monitored.

Also new to Crowley is a concessionaire other than the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks, which had run the lake since it was formed 50 years ago. Sierra Recreation, which has announced long-term plans for Crowley, has been well-received by nearby communities and has had its staff working full time for a couple of months preparing for the trout opener.

For those venturing farther off the beaten path in the Bishop and Mammoth areas, there are a few things worth considering.

Sabrina and South lakes are covered with ice. Because of recent warm weather, there is a danger the ice could break if ice-fishing is attempted.

“Judging by the amount of snow that’s back up there, it’s probably frozen,” said Gary Gunsolley, owner of Brock’s Sporting Goods in Bishop. “But we’ve had some pretty warm weather here this past week or so, so I don’t know how safe it will be. It was 75 degrees Monday.”

The road to South Lake is open to Parcher’s Resort, which means a mile-long hike will be required to reach the reservoir.

Rock Creek Lake, above the town of Mammoth Lakes at 10,000 feet, is frozen and should support the weight of fishermen, but caution is advised and a long trek through the snow will be necessary to reach the lake.

At the June Lake Loop, conditions are said to be perfect.

“It’s going to be absolutely wonderful on the June Lake loop,” said Elayne Logue at Ernie’s Tackle. “There’s no ice and all of the lakes are wide open. The water level is probably up a little bit from last year, but the runoff hasn’t really started yet--so we’re not going to see a lot of silt or riled up water.”

In Bridgeport, Twin Lakes are again being billed as the likely lakes to produce the largest fish on opening day, as they have for the past three years. “I would imagine it will come out of one of the twins again,” said Tom Geiser of Ken’s Sporting Goods in Bridgeport. “That’s typical.”

Last year, Lower Twin produced an 11-pound 10-ounce brown trout on opening day. The next day the same lake yielded a 13-pound brown. Upper twin produced the biggest fish of the season, a 16-pound brown.

Elsewhere in town, Bridgeport Reservoir is little more than half full, which means there is water in the marina area for the first time in years.

The West Walker River “is fishable,” Geiser said, adding that lakes Kirman, Poore, Lane and Roosevelt are accessible and free of ice.

Virgina Lake is still covered with ice, but the road is open. Geiser said there will be another check on conditions at Virginia on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the East Walker River continues to be plagued by insufficient flows and poor water quality.

But overall, prospects are good for opening day in the Eastern Sierra.

Add trout opener: Trout planting schedules should be kept despite continued water problems and bird predation at state hatcheries, according to the DFG.

Hatchery supervisor Mike Haynie said it has been a rough year for the hatcheries, but said goals “to produce plenty of half-pound catchable trout” will be met.

Under new DFG provisions, fishermen will be able to keep 10 brook trout under eight inches as well as five trout of any other species, except for Kirman Lake in Mono County.

Daily bag limits are five trout and 10 in possession in most waters, but there are exceptions and they are listed in the 1992 sportfishing regulations booklet.

The California Fish and Game Commission, which last week held a public hearing in Sacramento to determine whether to ban recreational fishing for salmon, will reportedly meet again Thursday to decide on closing or restricting the ocean salmon fishing season.

The state might ban fishing to three miles out, or conform to or further restrict regulations imposed by the Pacific Fisheries Management Council two weeks ago.

The commission has set May 14-15 and June 18-19 as dates public testimony will be taken on salmon fishing in rivers and streams. The DFG has recommended the closure of the Sacramento River system, the San Joaquin River system and areas of the Klamath River system to protect runs of salmon that are at historically low levels.

Briefly

SALTWATER--Spring fishing came early to Southland waters, and now there are signs of summer off San Diego, where fishermen at the Coronado Islands are reporting an early showing of yellowtail. The Prowler, which runs out of Fisherman’s Landing, included a 36-pound white seabass in its count on Monday.

Cabo San Lucas: Marlin fishing was slow during the past week, with about one boat in three reporting hookups. But dorado and tuna have been keeping fishermen busy. And thresher sharks have reportedly moved into the area. One tipped the scale at 285 pounds.

East Cape: A little bit of everything, including blue marlin, which are showing more than a month early. Top fish: a 405-pound blue marlin caught aboard the Rancho Buena Vista fleet by Shirlene Kramer of Simi Valley. Tuna to 70 pounds and dorado averaging 35 pounds make up the bulk of the catch.

Loreto: Yellowtail averaging about 20 pounds are providing most of the action, but that could change. The first blue marlin of the year, a 105-pounder, was caught last week; a 150-pound mako shark was landed, and yellowfin tuna, dorado and sailfish are beginning to show.