Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3818 August 16-30 | Page 19
VOL.38 • ISS. 18
Stampede Reservoir Facts
Stampede
Stampede Reservoir
Reservoir
Sierra
County
Sierra County
To
To
Graeagle
Graeagle
Stampede
Stampede
Res.
Res.
Prosser
Prosser
Res.
Res.
D a a v vie
D
ies s C
C r r e e e ek
k
d d
Ro o a a
as s s s R
P a
P
s
s
s
e
s
en n n e
H H en
To
To
Reno
Reno
Davies Creek
Davies
Creek
C.G.
C.G.
Boca
Boca
Res.
Res.
I-89 to
to
I-89
Lake Tahoe
Tahoe
Lake
I-80 to
to
I-80
Sacramento
Sacramento
Stampede
Stampede
Stampede
Reservoir
Reservoir
Reservoir
Campground
Picnic Area
Launch Ramp
Spillway Elevation
5949 ft.
Logger
Logger
C.G.
C.G.
e
u c ke
e Tr
Littl Riv e r
k k
C r r e e e e
n C
m e e n
m
e
e
g
g
a
S a
S
Winnie Smith
Mill Site
To Hobart
Hobart Mills
To
Mills
& Hiway
Hiway 80
&
80
Dam
Dam
Emigrant
Emigrant
C.G.
C.G.
Location: Stampede Reservoir is located in the
northeastern region of the Truckee Ranger District in
the Tahoe National Forest. This reservoir is approx-
imately 10 miles north of Truckee. Stampede Dam
and Reservoir are situated on the Little Truckee River
immediately below the mouth of Davies Creek and
approximately 8 miles above the confluence of the
Little Truckee and Truckee Rivers.
Size: The surface area is approximately 3,340 acres
at full reservoir storage with 25 miles of shoreline.
Season: Fishing season is year-round, with ice
fishing available during the winter. Gamefish species
found in the reservoir include kokanee salmon,
rainbow trout, brown trout, mackinaw trout and small-
mouth bass.
Boating: A three-lane boat launch is available at
Captain Robert’s Boat Ramp, located on the south
shore of Stampede Reservoir, 2 miles west of the
Stampede Dam. Boat ramps are located in Logger
Campground and the Emigrant Group Site. Kayaks
and small car top boats can be launched from shore.
Picnicking: Available is provided at the Stampede
Vista Picnic Ground.
Truckee River Operating Agreement (TROA): This
agreement between the federal government, the
states of Nevada and California and the Paiute Indian
Tribe modifies reservoir operations at Stampede,
Boca, Prosser and Martis Creek reservoirs. The TROA
will enhance conditions for the threatened Lahontan
cutthroat trout and endangered cui-ui; increase
municipal and industrial drought protection for
Truckee Meadows (Reno-Sparks metropolitan area);
improve Truckee River water quality downstream fro
Sparks, NV; and enhance stream flows and recre-
ational opportunities in the Truckee River Basin.
Facility Information: Stampede Reservoir, c/o
Truckee Ranger District, 10811 Stockrest Springs
Road, Truckee, CA, 96161, Phone: 530-587-3558
Guide Service and Fishing Information: James
Netzel of Tight Lines Guide Service, (888) 975-0990,
www.fishtightlines.com, Mountain Hardware, Truckee,
(530) 587-4844.
17
August 16-30, 2019
MAP FEATURE
To Boca
Boca Res
To
Res
& Hiway
Hiway 80
&
80
To Boca
Boca Res.
Res.
To
& Hiway
Hiway 80
&
80
Kokanee Salmon fishing is productive at Stampede from May through September. Trollers use a variety of hoochies,
spoons, spinners
spoons and
and kokanee
spinners
bugs
behind
flashers
and dodgers.
with small
Crippled
Herring
and other
be good
the school
fish school
up in late
the
behind
flashers
and dodgers.
Jigging Jigging
with small
Crippled
Herring
and other
lures lures
can be can
good
when when
the fish
up late
the in season.
season.
Brown Trout can be taken at Stampede throughout the season, but the best action is generally in the spring after ice out and during the fall
Brown
Trout
be over.
taken Troll
at Stampede
throughout
the season, Cripplures
but the best
generally
in the spring
after ice
and during the fall
before the
lake can
ices
Rapalas, Yozuri
Pins Minnows,
and action
other is minnow
imitiation
lures along
the out
shoreline.’
before
the Trout
lake ices
Troll below
Rapalas,
Minnows, Boaters
Cripplures
and
other
minnow
lures along
the
shoreline.’
Mackinaw
will over.
be found
the Yozuri
schools Pins
of kokanee.
often
hook
them
while imitiation
trolling kokanee
lures.
Troll
Rapalas, J-Plugs,
Mackinaw
will be
found
below them
the schools
of kokanee.
Boaters often hook them while trolling kokanee lures. Troll Rapalas, J-Plugs,
Needlefish Trout
and other
lures
to target
throughout
the year.
Needlefish
and other
to planted
target them
throughout
year. Lahontan Cutthroat Trout are now stocked by the CDFW. Bank
Rainbow Trout
are no lures
longer
at Stampede,
but the
fingerling
Rainbow
are planted
regularly
by the
CDFW.
Bank fishermen
and boaters
rainbows while
fishing
the and
campgrounds
fishermen Trout
and boaters
nail the
cutthroats
and
some rainbows
while fishing
around nail
the the
campgrounds
and dam
in around
the spring
early
and
dam in
the PowerBait,
spring and Berkley
early summer.
Use PowerBait,
Berkley nightcrawlers.
Gulp!, Pautzke salmon eggs and inflated nightcrawlers.
summer.
Use
Gulp!, salmon
eggs and inflated
untreatable
bacteria that
only seemed
to affect
the LCT,
according
to Rowan.
Particularly
hard hit were
the LCT-I
and they had
really heavy
losses right at
hatch.
“As such
the number
of fish we’ve
had to plant
of both strains
have been
fairly low the
last 2 years,
so we’ve had
to prioritize
the ones we
felt would
Craig Holley of Fair Oaks shows off a scrappy kokanee salmon caught
have the most
while trolling at Stempede with Captain James Netzel.
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff. successful
return
to
anglers
as
well
as
work
within
as keeping Kokanee,” said CDFW
hatchery
space
logistics
and
the big
Senior Environmental Scientist
snow
years
we’ve
had,”
he
added.
Supervisor Jay Rowan. “Following
The Department hasn’t stocked
along with that desire to go to the
LCT-I
in Stampede the last 2 years,
native fish for that basin we’ve started
but
they
did stock 7,022 PP-LCT-sub
moving to stocking both Indepen-
catchables
at Stampede in 2017 and
dence LCT (LCT-I) from our Heenan
4,710
in
2018.
Lake Broodstock as well as Pilot
Mackinaw trout have apparently
Peak LCT (LCT-PP) we get as eggs
replaced
the brown trout as the apex
from the Lahontan National Fish
predator
in
Stampede in recent years.
Hatchery into Stampede. Both are
In
the
1990s,
anglers would catch
hatched, reared and stocked out of the
German
browns
in the 2 to 6 lb. range,
American River Hatchery in Rancho
along
with
an
occasional
fish 10
Cordova.’
pounds
or
bigger.
In 2017 and 2018, the CDFW
CDFW is no longer planting
had issues with an unknown and
mackinaw in Stampede or anywhere
and holdover rainbows up to 5 pounds
in the state, so all of the fish found in
while tossing spoons from shore at the
the lake are naturally spawned.
lake in the late fall and early winter.
“Six to seven years ago the CDFW
Netzel will be fishing for kokanee
Fish Health Laboratory pathologists
through mid-September and then
found a disease in the source fish that
begin fishing for salmon on the Sacra-
we don’t have in the wild here in our
mento River in the Sacramento area
California waters so we are unable to
For more information, contact James
import the eggs,” said Rowan. “We
Netzel of Tight Lines Guide Service,
haven’t been able to find another
(888) 975-0990, www.fishtightlines.
pathogen free egg source.”
com.
Stampede and nearby Donner Lake
have similar forage –
kokanee, tui chubs and
crawfish – so anglers
should use lure color
patterns that approxi-
mate those species.
Trollers can target
mackinaw with blue/
chartreuse Flatfish,
Kwikfish , Brad’s
Killer Fish and other
plugs. Large Koke-
A-Nuts behind Sling
Blades or night-
crawlers behind
flashers are also very
effective. In the spring,
anglers hook many
mackinaws while
trolling F18 Rapalas.
Stampede, with
its abundant forage,
features some of the
healthiest and prettiest
wild rainbows in the
Sierra Nevada. Two
days after our trip, one
of Netzel’s customers
landed a gorgeous 5
lb. wild rainbow at
Stampede.
Stan Wong, Dan Bacher, Chris Dyke and Craig Holley with their
Chris Hammond
limits of Stampede kokanee.
of King’s Beach has
caught beautiful wild
Photo by JAMES NETZEL, Tight Lines Guide Service.