Best Tip for Trout Opener: Stay Alert on the Road

If you’re among the thousands of fishermen who will be traveling north on U.S. 395 today, hoping to get to the party on time, here’s a sobering fact:

Inyo County’s highways, U.S. 395 in particular, have claimed nine lives already this year, far above normal. And most of those accidents involved drivers falling asleep at the wheel.

Today, as is the case a day before any Eastern Sierra trout season opener, traffic will be especially heavy on 395, building throughout the morning and peaking in late afternoon and early evening. This is when the potential for disaster is greatest.

“A lot of people coming up for the opener will work half a day first, and by the time they get up here they’re just too tired to drive,” said officer Marc Morrison of the California Highway Patrol in Bishop. “We strongly recommend that they stop and switch drivers periodically, or pull over to rest for a few minutes--whatever it takes to get here safely.”

Once there, Morrison cautioned, fishermen can party to their hearts’ content, as long as they don’t get behind the wheel afterward.

“We do get people who settle in up in the hills at their campgrounds or wherever, have too much to drink and then feel the need to drive into town and that’s a problem,” Morrison said. “We’d just as soon not arrest anyone, but we don’t want anyone to get hurt either, so we’ll be watching that very closely.”

Morrison did have one other tip. “Power Bait,” he said. “I think that’ll be the hot ticket on opening day.”

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Planning to auger in a new season from atop a layer of ice? If so, Gary Olson offers these words of wisdom:

“What most people do is, No. 1, they toss a rock about six to eight inches in diameter about 10 feet out and if it breaks through the ice then, no, obviously you shouldn’t go out. You then go out about 10 feet and drill about eight to 10 inches with your auger and, if you’re still into solid ice, then everything’s fine.”

Olson is owner of Bishop Creek Lodge and runs the concession at South Lake. South Lake and nearby Sabrina and North lakes, atop Bishop Creek Canyon at 9,000-plus feet, are expected to have ice two to three feet thick on opening day. The same goes for Rock Creek Lake near Mammoth Lakes.

These lakes should support the weight of an opening-day crowd, but conditions can change in a hurry and fishermen are urged to consult with experts before stepping out, and few will actually suggest that you do so.

Ice fishing, literally and figuratively, will not be the hottest ticket on opening day.

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Fishing is expected to be superb throughout most of the Eastern Sierra this weekend.

Many will log five-fish limits well before lunchtime. Invariably, some will not stop at five and those are the people Department of Fish and Game wardens will be looking for.

“I have four wardens stationed here and I’m bringing down another 17 for opening weekend,” said Lt. A. Lawrence, who is based in Bishop. “We’ll have several special details deployed in [Inyo and Mono counties].”

Lawrence said they will be after “the small minority who willfully violate the law.”

Of the 4-8% said to fall into this category, most will be guilty of over-limit fishing.

Last year, wardens on opening weekend issued 79 citations--34 for over-limits, 15 for using barbed hooks in restricted waters, 12 for fishing before the start of the season, seven for fishing without a license, seven for possessing undersized fish and one each for chumming, giving a false statement to a warden, using two poles and fishing in a closed area.

In all, 30 waters in the two counties carry special restrictions. They’re clearly described in alphabetical order in DFG regulations booklets, which are available in sporting goods stores throughout the region.

SALTWATER

* Local: The focus remains on Catalina, where good weather finally enabled consistent access to the island’s windward side, resulting, as predicted, in some excellent runs on white seabass. The oft-finicky croakers have been biting all week, at times in the predawn darkness and at times in late afternoon. One-fish limits have been the rule.

* Southern Baja: Two weeks ago they were targeting sierra mackerel off Cabo San Lucas--fishing was that bad. This week? Catches include a 507-pound blue marlin, a 370-pound black marlin, a 420-pound hammerhead shark and a 272-pound swordfish. The water has warmed from the mid-60s to 71 degrees and the game fish are responding. Tuna counts remain high, and striped marlin and wahoo numbers are rising with the temperature. The best fishing has been in the gulf, but at midweek attention turned to the Pacific. . . . The East Cape and La Paz areas are still experiencing north winds, but the windy season is all but over and fishermen have been scoring impressive numbers of tuna during calm periods, anticipating a seasonal increase in marlin activity.

FRESHWATER

* Southland: Three of Southern California’s most heavily promoted and productive trout fisheries are hoping to steal some of the thunder from the Eastern Sierra’s opener, using beefed-up plants of trophy-size trout to bait Southland anglers.

“There will be more big fish caught right here at these lakes than at any of the Sierra lakes,” says Bill Andrews, co-owner of the Santa Ana River Lakes and Corona Lake concessions. Andrews is hyping the annual Sierra Grand Opening at his small freeway-side reservoirs in Anaheim and Corona, respectively.

Irvine Lake’s event is called the Mt. Lassen Trout Classic, named in honor of the Mt. Lassen hatchery that grows and ships trout to all three lakes.

Irvine Lake, at least, sits in a wilderness environment, in the hills above Orange County.

SARL can be reached at (714) 632-7830, Corona at (909) 277-4489 and Irvine at (714) 649-9111.

* Grand Canyon: Lee’s Ferry Anglers Guides and Fly Shop, on the Colorado River at the upper entrance of Grand Canyon 15 miles below Lake Powell, has purchased nearby historic Cliff Dwellers Lodge and will move there June 1. Details: (800) 962-9755. After June 1, the number is (800) 433-2543.

SKIING / SNOWBOARDING

Mountain High has edged Snow Summit to become the top winter area in Southern California, in terms of skier-snowboarder visits. The Wrightwood hill announced this week it has surpassed 570,000 visits, putting it No. 3 in the state behind Mammoth Mountain and Heavenly Ski Resort, respectively. Since changing ownership in 1997, attendance has increased 215% from 180,000 to 570,000 and counting. Mountain High is expected to remain open until at least May 6.

SKATEBOARDING

The first stop of the 2001 Mobile Skatepark Series will be at Ontario Mills Mall May 5-13. More than 60 top professional skateboarders, in-line skaters and BMX riders, including megastar Tony Hawk, will be performing at what is billed as “the only interactive youth culture festival series in the world.”

Live music, pro team competitions, amateur competitions, stunt contests and an open skatepark, enabling children to skate with their favorite pros, are on tap during an event sponsored, in part, by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Hawk is expected to put on an exhibition and sign autographs May 13.

Hours are noon-8 p.m. daily. Admission is free. Details: https://www.asaskate.com.

RIVER RAFTING

With rafting season at hand, outfitters throughout the state are anticipating a decent season but a significantly shorter one because of a smaller Sierra snowpack. The Kern River near Bakersfield is expected to have one of the longest seasons, with raftable flows through mid-August. Outdoor Adventures’ Kern River operation has changed its name to Kern River Outfitters. Its Web site: https://www.kernrafting.com.

WINDING UP

The Marine Mammal Care Center at Fort MacArthur in San Pedro is holding an open house Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to celebrate the International Day of the Seal and to drum up support for an overworked staff of volunteers.

“We may not have the marine mammal chic of Sea World, or the Animal Planet network television exposure of the L.A. Zoo, but what we do have are wonderful volunteers who contribute their valuable time to help care for sick and injured seals and sea lions,” Hugh Ryono, spokesman for the facility, said in a news release.

Scheduled are narrated animal-care sessions involving dozens of pinniped patients, an information booth, activities for kids and informative lectures. Admission and parking are free. Details: https://www.mar3ine.org.