14 March 8 , 2024 VOL . 43 • ISS . 8

FRESHWATER REPORTS :

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LAKE PARDEE

Season Opens With Big Plants , Solid Fishing

IONE – The season opened at Lake Pardee with top-notch fishing for boaters and bank anglers on Friday , Feb . 16 . 2000 lbs . of rainbow trout were planted on Feb . 1 , 3000 lbs . of rainbows on Feb . 14 and 4000 lbs . of rainbow and lightning trout on Feb . 15 , according to the Rocky Mountain Recreation Company . That ’ s a total of 9,000 pounds of trout since Feb . 1 . The lake is only open for day use this season . “ Today I started off my season at Pardee with a bang ,” reported Nate Kelsch of Big Nate ’ s Guide Service on opening day . “ Returning clients Randy , Jordan , and Dave put the hurt on three limits of big fat rainbows with some gorgeous holdovers in the mix .” “ We didn ’ t get on the water until 8 am due to an extraordinary long line to get in , but they still knocked it out of the park . including 4 doubles and 1 triple , and we lost more than our fair share !,” said Kelsch . “ I couldn ’ t be happier with the way this year has started for us not only on Pardee , but Camanche , Amador and Berryessa We are truly blessed . We kept our presentations in the top 25 ft . of water with larger fish coming deeper ,” he concluded .

- Dan Bacher

PYRAMID LAKE

Fly Fishers Target Beaches for Lahontan Cutthroats

RENO - Pyramid Lake continues to get better and better with each passing storm . The sunny , calm days are still proving to be far slower than the days with cloud cover and wind present , so choose your days to fish here wisely . We are now creeping up towards the prime months for fishing out here , and along with the improved bite we will see a large increase in the crowds . We continue to do well along most beaches , with the beaches around the middle of the lake possibly providing a slight advantage on some days recently . For first timers out here , we often recommend Pelican Point , as there is a lot of great fishable shoreline , easy access from the main road , and there are pretty much always a few fish around . Come springtime , this is widely considered the beach to be at daily . The fish will regularly congregate here , coinciding with their spawn . However , this is

Patty Poling got this beautiful rainbow trout in the main body of the McCloud arm on Shasta Lake while using a planer with 3 colors of lead core , yellow backed / antifreeze green with red dots and a 2 ” spoon .

Photo Courtesy of Rob Hower far from the only beach you should be fishing during this time . Come spring , beaches with shallower shoals such as Nets , Windless , and Warrior point can also be successful options – especially for those who prefer to strip beetles . There are fish cruising on literally every single beach . And , on any given day , one beach will fish better than any another . We continue to do well on both midges and leeches fished under an indicator . This is far from groundbreaking information - we know . But , maybe that says something about Pyramid ! Every single angler fishing out here ( hundreds on a typical day ) fishes only a handful of different bugs every day , and a majority of those fisherman catch at least a few fish . There are only so many combinations of what is essentially these two different fly patterns that can exist . Collectively , these fish have probably seen them all , and have been fooled by most . What does this tell us ? To us , it says that fly selection may not be as important as a lot of people say . We ’ ve heard

Salmon • Trout • Kokanee • Striper

it ’ s all about fishing

Brett Brady

USCG licensed bonded & insured

NOW BOOKING

( 530 ) 272-7137 • ( 530 ) 263-4451 www . fishbarebones . com 4207 people say you must fish skinny flies , small flies , black flies , etc . but we ’ ve seen these theories contradicted so many times over . We think that the single biggest factor for this lake is keeping your flies in front of fish . This sounds easy , and oftentimes it is , but there are some nuances here . It comes down to reading water , much the same as you would do if you were on the river . You are looking for topographical and temporal features along the shoreline . A few key things would be drop-offs , shelves ( these are different than drop-offs ), points , rocks ( both submerged and out of the water ), coves , sand bars , shoals , current breaks , and mudlines . You are seeking out areas of high likelihood to have fish moving through in search of forage , and this can change depending on conditions or time of year . Without giving away the farm , we encourage you to research the idea of reading lake topography , and we ensure you will see improved success out here . A great place to start with this is the still-water legend , Phil Rowley . He has quite a few write ups on the topic and his peers such as Brian Chan and Denny Rickards are also great resources to investigate

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