A special stocking of big trout for last weekend's Sport Chalet Trophy Trout Tournament paid off big time for Irvine Lake anglers, with lots of trout in the 6 to 12 pound class caught. Some even bigger trout remain at large, with fish pushing 20 pounds stocked but not caught yet.

There was little doubt regarding the capture of numerous big trout, with Tom Baker of LaSalle pocketing over $1500 in the Sport Chalet Tournament with a 7.0 pounder, then David Blankenhorn coming in second with a 6.6 pounder and Thomas Joy nailing down third with a 6.0 pounder.

Non-competitors did even better, with fish up to 12 pounds being caught almost daily, including a couple of nice browns. The biggest trout were caught on trolled Rapalas or drifted nightcrawlers, but the ticket to a limit was using the new Gulp! Trout Dough. Hottest color in the Gulp! was white, and the best leader length was 16 to 18 inches. Most SoCal tackle stores [including the Irvine Lake Pro Shop] now have the Gulp! Trout Dough in stock.

Good catches of trout were made from the west shore, Trout Island and along the restriction lines in Sierra Cove, with trollers also scoring at mid-lake.

Bass anglers were nailing excellent numbers of 2 to 5-pounders on crankbaits, spinnerbaits, plastics and jigs, with the red clay cliffs a major hotspot. The fish are preparing to spawn, and are up in 5 or 6 feet of water.

The few anglers targeting catfish have done very well, with several limits of 3-pound class whiskerfish being checked in. Bluegill are starting to bite mealworms and waxworms near the docks, and spawning carp continue to boil around the lake. Some crappie are being caught incidentally by trout anglers.

The rising water level has nearly overtaken the rushing pipe at Sierra Cove. Once the pipe is completely submerged, an assessment will be made regarding moving the restriction buoys closer in. Please call the Pro Shop for up to the minute status information.

Due to a malfunctioning water pump, trout stocking at the Kid's Lagoon will be suspended until repairs can be completed.

Final results of Sport Chalet Tournament:
Tom Baker- 7.0 pounds [$1547]
David Blankenhorn- 6.6 [$751]
Thomas Joy- 6.1 [$530]
John Romero- 5.8 [$397]
Robert Gutierrez- 5.7 [$309]
Chris Edwards- 5.6 [$265]
Leland Holden- 5.6 [$221]
John Le- 5.6 [$176]
Bill Ammerman- 5.4 [$132]
Paul Toner- 5.4 [$88]

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
Randy Sheets of Huntington Beach, 12.8 pound trout on a Rapala at the west shore
Andre Guras of Fullerton, 11.4 pound trout on nightcrawlers at the west shore
Christy Virgini of Valley Village, 9.2 pound trout on a Rapala at mid-lake
Stan Conroy of Anaheim, 7.6 pound brown trout on nightcrawlers at Trout Island
Candida Reyes of Orange, 6.5 pound trout on Power Bait at the west shore
Stan Kong of Garden Grove, 4 trout totaling 21.16 pounds, topped by a 7.6 pounder on Power Bait at the west shore
Tom and Joey Baker of LaSalle, 9 trout totaling 31.4 pounds on Rapalas at mid-lake

Media contacts:
Dave Noyes or Jimmy Getty at the Irvine Lake Pro Shop [714-649-9111] Steve Carson at scarson@sunset.net