Fishing report for week of 12/29

BLUE LAKES (UPPER AND LOWER):

Upper Blue Lake: No report.

Lower Blue Lake: No report.

BOCA RESERVOIR: No report.

CAPLES LAKE: Was reported to be mostly ice-free as of last week. Some ice-covered areas. That ice was considered to be too dangerous for skating or fishing.

DAVIS LAKE: Boat launching required a four-wheel drive vehicle due to the snow and ice. Shore anglers were using Power Bait or nightcrawlers with marshmallows on a sliding sinker. Fly fishermen were working the shallows on the west side of the lake from Catfish Cove to Freeman. They were scoring with an intermediate sink-tip line with either olive or cinnamon-colored Woolly Bugger flies.

EAGLE LAKE: Lots of Eagle Lake Rainbows were being caught by trollers, fishing 5-10 feet deep with nightcrawlers or frog-colored Needlefish lures. The average fish were in the 4-pound range and they were biting throughout the day.

FRENCHMAN RESERVOIR: Reported some ice in the shallow areas. The average rainbow trout were in the 3-4 pound range. Successful anglers were using Kastmaster lures, nightcrawlers or rainbow-colored Power Bait. Best locations were Crystal, Turkey Point, Lunker Point and Nightcrawler Bay. Both boat ramps are still accessible.

INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR: Reported to be very slow.

PYRAMID LAKE: According to the Gilly Sporting Goods Store in Sparks, "The fish are moving around and you need to locate them. If you are a bank fisherman or a fly fisherman and find the right beach, the fishing is great. If you fish the wrong beach, there is very little action. Boaters have been doing well with Flatfish or Apex lures, all along the west shoreline. There was an unconfirmed report of a 15-pounder caught by a boater."

RED LAKE: Frozen. The ice was about one foot thick. Friday, there were about a dozen fishermen. They were using Kastmaster lures, spoons, Power Bait and worms. Best action was with worms just above the bottom. Some success for average-sized brookies.

SACRAMENTO RIVER: Was reported good for king salmon averaging 25-30 pounds. The water was low and clear with flows at 5,500 C.F.S. Anglers were using Flatfish lures at Bend Bridge. The best results between Corning and Colusa were before the sun hit the water. Lures worked best in the mornings and roe in the afternoons.

SILVER LAKE: Frozen.

STAMPEDE RESERVOIR: No report.

LAKE TAHOE - North Shore: Easy limits of average sized Mackinaw trout, up to 6 pounds. Fishing in 250-450 feet of water, very early in the morning, in front of Kings Beach. Trolling with Herring Dodger flasher blades with pearl-colored Apex lures, live minnows or three-inch, blue-colored, rubber minnows.

LAKE TAHOE - South Shore: Rick Mueller of the Sportsmen's Sporting Goods Store at South Lake Tahoe said, "The Mackinaw trout fishing has been very good. The best boating success was just off the Ski Run Area or in front of Al Tahoe. The boaters were using silver flasher blades with live minnows at a depth of 150-200 feet. The Macks were running 2-4 pounds with an occasional larger one. The best fishing began at about 8-9 each morning."

TOPAZ LAKE: Will re-open to fishing for the 2000 season on Jan. 1.

WALKER LAKE: Bob Tompkins reported, "The fishing success has been spotty. Some good, some bad."

He recommended the south end of the lake for lots of smaller sized Cutthroat trout. He suggested trying the north part of the lake for larger trout. There was a report of a 10-pound, 6-ounce Cutt caught last week from a boat.

WILDHORSE RESERVOIR: Roy of the Wild Horse Resort reported, "The reservoir is now completely frozen with a covering of about 10 inches of ice. The weather is pretty cold. The last three days, the temperatures have beenwell below zero each morning. Ice fishermen have been catching nice-sized rainbows in the 15-20 inch class. They have been using Power Bait or worms with corn."