Catfish anglers at Irvine Lake dominated the action this week, reported Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. "The catfish bite has been decent most nights, and right after the thunderstorm, it was really good", observed Getty. "Lake regular Phil Hildenbrandt had an awesome week, and got a 'Grand Slam' by catching every kind of catfish we have in the lake. He scored blue catfish weighing 15-12 and 14-7, along with channel cats of 8-6, and 8-0. Hildenbrandt then got one of the rarest fish in the lake, an 8-6 albino catfish. All of his fish were caught on mackerel at Santiago Flats."

Good stringers of eating-size 2 to 6-pound channel cats were caught by anglers who concentrated near brush, which unfortunately meant that most of the larger fish escaped. Santiago Flats was the top location, with mackerel, bonito, commercial preparations, and Gulp. Bloody Shad Guts all fooling the kitties. Best tactic for crappie anglers was fishing at 16 feet over submerged brush on Santiago Flats from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM in the evenings. Favored lures for slabs to over a pound were white Atomic Tubes and white 2-inch Gulp! Jigging Grubs.

Bass chasers found mixed action on their quarry. Mostly 2 to 3 pound largemouth were found in a variety of locations, including the Red Clay Cliffs, Rocky Point, and Sierra Cove. Plastics, jigs, and tailspins were the most commonly reported lure choices, and lighter line was definitely called for. Hybrid striped bass [aka sunshine bass or wipers] were a bit more reclusive this week. Some 3 to 4-pound class fish were caught by anglers soaking chicken liver at night, or tossing shad imitating lures into boiling fish during the day. Anglers trolling with 7 colors of leadcore line near the dam are finding a surprisingly steady bite on rainbow trout to 3 pounds, with a Cop-Car color Luhr Jensen Needlefish tied to 6-pound mono leader being the top enticer.

Irvine Lake Pro-Team leader Marlon Meade also found an excellent drifting bite. "We fished early in the morning", reported Meade. "The bite was really good on mixed rainbow trout, steelhead, and largemouth bass by dropping a splitshot-rigged orange or chartreuse Power Worm down to the 40-foot level in 72 feet of water. There is also a huge bloom of juvenile shad in the lake right now; all of the fish are stuffed with them." Plenty of bluegill and redear were caught in brushy areas on mealworms and Gulp! Crickets. The Kids Lagoon had very good catfish action on stocker-size fish for families with children age 12 and younger, with the marshmallow/mealworm combo the best bait. The main lake water level is receding slowly; surface water temperature is 80 degrees. A minor algae bloom is developing due to the warm water.

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
Phil Hildenbrandt of Anaheim, 15-12 and 14-7 blue catfish [released] on mackerel at the flats
Phil Hildenbrandt of Anaheim, 8-6 and 8-0 channel catfish on mackerel at the flats
Phil Hildenbrandt of Anaheim, 8-6 albino catfish on mackerel at the flats
Whitney Curry of Silverado, 4-0 hybrid striper [released] on jerkbait/Hot Sauce at the flats
Don Spencer of Orange, 3-1 largemouth bass [released] on a tailspin at Sierra Cove
Marlon Meade of Anaheim, 3-12 rainbow trout on a Power Worm at the flats
Curtis Meade of Anaheim, 3-1 steelhead on a Power Worm at the flats
Chris Collin or Orange, 2-0 steelhead trolling near the dam
Mitz "Magic Man" Onizuka of Irvine, 1-9 crappie on a Manic Minnow at the flats