Excellent catfish action at Irvine Lake this week was highlighted by a continuing great bass bite, reported Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. Good catfish baits have included mackerel, bonito, barracuda, DuMong's, and Gulp!, with the favored depth being 5 to 15 feet. The catfish are active in the mornings from 6:00 AM to 9:00 AM, and then again from 6:00 PM until Midnight. Limit catches were reported from Santiago Flats and Boat Dock Cove, with the majority of the whiskerfish ranging from 2 to 6 pounds, along with a few larger units to keep things interesting.

Bass anglers are catching fish using a variety of techniques from topwater presentations all the way down to 40 feet, with 15 to 20 feet being the prime level. Most largemouth are in the 2 to 4-pound range, with some better-grade fish from 5 to 9-pounds being caught daily. Good locations included the Red Clay Cliffs, Rocky Point, and Sierra Cove.

Only a handful of hybrid striped bass [AKA whiterock, wiper, or sunshine bass] were caught this week, mostly incidental to the pursuit of catfish. A monster wiper weighing 18-1 was caught on a chunk of mackerel by Rex Vance, while fishing with veteran guide Don Spencer at Boat Dock Cove, just missing the lake record of 18-6 for the species. Although the lunker whiterock did not threaten the IGFA world record [27-5], it is at least 15 years old, meaning the current crop of 2 year olds will be around making anglers happy for many years to come.

Anglers chasing bluegill and redear are getting stringers full of half-pounders during the daytime by offering mealworms or Gulp! Crickets under a bobber. Few anglers are pursuing crappie, as the floating lanterns necessary to attract the slabs causes the catfish to depart.

Action in the Kids Lagoon is very good on 1 to 3-pound catfish for families with children age 12 and younger. The main lake water level has gone down approximately two feet in the past two weeks. The surface water temperature is in the high 70's.

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
Rex Vance of Orange Park Acres, 18-1 hybrid striped bass [released] on mackerel at boat dock cove.
Phil Hildebrandt of Anaheim, 15-12 and 7-4 blue catfish [released] on mackerel at the flats.
Mike Dickerhoof of Atascadero, 10-4 and 8-6 blue catfish [released] on mackerel at the flats.
Elaine Dickerhoof of Artesia, 11-6 channel catfish and 10-0 blue catfish [released] on mackerel at the flats.
Marcus Stewart of Huntington Beach, 9-6 largemouth bass [released] on a sexy shad at the flats.
Jimmy Getty of Silverado, 7-2 largemouth bass [released] on a jig at the flats.