Bountiful fish, ideal weather make fall classic

Summer is getting away like an angry marlin smoking the drag of a cheap reel.

But fall is coming on like hordes of salmon charging upriver to spawn a new generation.

What an invigorating time this is for anyone who loves to fish, whether to the west or east, south or north. There’s crispness in the air and vivacity in the water.

This is true 80 miles at sea, where a cool-down has kept albacore in our midst much longer than predicted.

It’s also the case 350 miles inland, on Eastern Sierra slopes, where the natural refrigeration of overheated streams -- light snow fell in some areas Thursday -- has trout shaking lethargy the way a sodden dog shakes itself dry.

Changes are evident, too, off Baja California, where football season entails tackling oval-shaped tuna till arms dangle limply in protest; and where fall colors are most brilliant on the luminescent bodies of leaping dorado.

And so is autumn apparent in that polar opposite universe known as the North Coast where, on both sides of the California-Oregon border, majestic rivers spilling into the Pacific are being met by shimmering king salmon, returning to complete the life cycle.

So it merely comes down to choice of species and direction. But whatever course is chosen, a classically fall experience awaits. A brief rundown:

Banking on albacore

This is the most productive season since 2004. And because the outer banks did not warm as expected, the longfin tuna are still feeding voraciously southeast of San Clemente Island -- they’re being caught as close as 55 miles from the mainland -- and probably will remain through the fall.

Their only protector, it seems, is strong wind, the kind that hampered the fishing this week.

“It’s all eyeball fish,” explains Philip Friedman of 976tuna.com. “You don’t see anything when you’ve got whitecaps and 20 knots of wind. But when the weather flattens out you see birds picking, you see fish jumping and it’s so predictable, it’s scary.”

A top score this week: 92 albacore Wednesday aboard Outer Limits, from Seaforth in San Diego.

East Walker revival

A watchful eye has focused on the fabled East Walker River near Bridgeport on the northern fringe of the Eastern Sierra.

A trout die-off was anticipated in August as water temperatures soared into the mid-70s. Guides steered anglers to streams less affected by heat and low flows.

This week, though, readings on the East Walker dipped into the low 60s, sparking a great awakening among browns and rainbows.

One fly-fisherman caught and released 31 trout in one day while casting nymphs, says Jim Reid, owner of Ken’s Sporting Goods in Bridgeport. Another used streamers and released 15 trout to about 23 inches.

“They seem to be fully recovered from the heat of the summer,” Reid says.

Elsewhere in Bridgeport

Bridgeport Lake, though only about 60% full, is losing algae and prime to become one of the region’s top fall fisheries.

However, brown-baggers are trolling Twin Lakes, which are known for the gargantuan brown trout that rise to feed in October.

(Upper Twin boasts the state record, a 26 1/2 -pound specimen; a slightly smaller brown was pulled from Lower Twin.)

Reid predicts the bigger browns, which like to prey on smaller rainbows, will become active “in another week or two.”

Back-country beauty

Similar changes are evident throughout the region, from the June Lake Loop to the Mammoth Lakes area to the upper recesses of Rock Creek and Bishop Creek canyons.

Portions have already received a dusting of snow and trees are becoming radiant with hues of yellow, orange and red. And the higher one travels, the more picturesque the landscape becomes.

“The back-country is not to be overlooked as the colors are spectacular,” says Jared Smith, who runs Parchers Resort atop Bishop Creek canyon. “The fishing is also spectacular and the level of solitude one finds on the trail is remarkable.”

Tuna blitz Baja

Rains from a recent hurricane washed debris from arroyos into the Sea of Cortez. Dorado love to gather under floating objects and fly- and light-tackle anglers love to cast for acrobatic dorado, a.k.a. mahi-mahi.

With marlin, sailfish and wahoo also lingering offshore, there have been few dull moments from the East Cape region to La Paz.

But now the situation is spiraling out of control. Tens of thousands of small tuna, often referred to as footballs, have entered the fray and anglers can spot them frothing in patches much larger than any football field.

Headline on the Tailhunter International fishing report: “Tuna explode off Las Arenas in best bite of the year as fish chew only 100 yards from the beach!”

Travel tip: Don’t forget the wasabi.

Klamath is king

High surf this week “pinched down” the mouth of the Klamath River, delaying the mass influx of king salmon, but Mike Aughney of USAfishing.com reports a drop in the swell and predicts a banner weekend.

Guide Ken Cunningham reports: “The fish are just waiting to come in and that should break loose any day now, and when it does, we’ll have big-time fishing, with people catching 20 to 30 fish, no problem.”

Gold River Guides’ Jim Bansemer, who runs Panther Creek RV Resort at Klamath’s mouth, put a client onto a 36-pound king Wednesday.

Anglers are eyeing other rivers as well. Some, such as the Smith and Chetco, will require rain to puff up and to allow angler access.

Aughney’s second choice, behind the Klamath, is the Trinity, where steelhead and salmon have already accessed the middle section of river.

“The action here will only get better the next three to four weeks,” he says.

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pete.thomas@latimes.com