Summer's proximity and warming water temperatures are pushing Irvine Lake's trout population deeper, according to Tony Martinez at the Irvine Lake Pro Shop. "The trollers using leadcore are doing well", observed Martinez. "The regulars are still catching their trout limits on bait, but it's a little slow for others."
Top trolling setup was a downrigger or leadcore line with 3 to 7 colors out, followed by a Rapala. Favored Rapalas included firetiger-color CD03 and CD05's, along with brown trout or brook trout-pattern J05 or J07 Joined Rapalas. Best spots were mid-lake, near the red clay cliffs and along the dam restriction lines.
Bait anglers did well along the west shore and Trout Island, with Gulp! Trout Dough and Gulp! Salmon Eggs in combination with a nightcrawler working best in the early mornings. Plenty of 2 to 5 pound trout are filling the stringers, with some 6 to 10 pounders keeping things interesting, especially for the leadcore line trollers.
Bluegill fishing has exploded for anglers offering redworms, mealworms or cut nightcrawlers near the dock. Bass action has taken a downturn, with few anglers going after the species. Some good catches of carp have been made using European specialty techniques. Catfish in the 2 to 10-pound class are biting well on shrimp, mackerel and Bowkers near the docks and at Santiago Flats.
The week of June 6 will see a bonus stocking of over 5,000 pounds of big blue catfish, many of which are well over 20 pounds. This will be in addition to the usual 5,000 pounds of channel cats that will be planted weekly. Catch-and-release will be mandatory on these big blues, and they will feature a distinctive "double tag" identifying them. Releasing one will earn the angler a free admission pass to the lake. Also mandatory is releasing all catfish over 25 pounds, and again a free pass will be given to the lucky angler.
The summer dispersal of water has begun, and the lake level will be drawn down approximately one foot per week. The popular west shore road is again open to vehicle traffic. A new pump is being installed in the Kid's Lagoon, and it is anticipated that the Lagoon will re-open for fishing in mid-June. Starting the week of June 8, the lake will be closed on Tuesdays. The boat launch has been moved to Trout Island for the time being.
Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
Del Silva of Orange, 9.9 pound trout on Gulp! Salmon Eggs at the west shore
Jaime Nazario of Chino Hills, 8.1 pound trout on a Panther Martin at the west shore
Chris "Trollmeister" Hagopian of Redondo Beach, trout weighing 7.6, 6.9, 6.1 and 5.0 deep trolling with Rapalas at the cliffs
Robert Ito of Huntington Beach, 7.0 pound trout on Gulp! Trout Dough at the west shore
Sue Bacas of Huntington Beach, 6.11 pound trout on a nightcrawler at the flats
Charles Botano of Los Angeles, 4.14 pound steelhead on a Roostertail at mid-lake
Media contacts:
Daniela Galvadon at the Irvine Lake Pro Shop [714-649-9111]
Steve Carson at scarson@sunset.net
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The multiple species that inhabit Irvine Lake are almost all on the menu now, according to Dave Noyes at the Irvine Lake Pro Shop. "Just about everything is biting if you know how to fish for them". "We've been seeing good catches of catfish, bass, crappie, bluegill, and of course lots of trout. You never know what you've got on the line until you see it." Trout chasers have noticed that their quarry is moving deeper as warmer weather arrives. Trolling......
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Overall trout action was good at Irvine Lake this weekend, although the big batch of recently-planted steelhead were mostly elusive. Plenty of trout limits were weighed in with the majority being very nice fish between 2 and 5 pounds. Decent numbers of 6 and 7 pounders added to the weight totals, and a number of the drag-ripping steelhead were hooked but not necessarily landed. Some gusty winds in the afternoon hampered success. The hot ticket to a limit of rainbows......
