Fishing Report

STAFF REPORT ~ 7/27/2011

This is a scaled down, North Valley focused, version of the weekly fishing report produced by Arizona Game and Fish. To view the complete listing go to http://azgfd.net/artman/publish/FishingReport/J20-Fishing-Report.shtml
LAKE PLEASANT – Lake elevation 1,676 ft (72 percent full). With a New Moon July 30, this is an excellent time to fish at night using submersible lights. Try frozen anchovies for striped bass off the main lake points, islands and reefs.
Nighttime anglers are catching stripers using anchovies with lights. For one group the bite started at 9:30 stopped right before the wind changed directions and became real strong. After the storm passed, they again started catching more stripers till they pulled in their desired amount.
Another nighttime duo had their sights on fishing in mid lake but the wind made it impossible. They ended up catching 12 in a cove using anchovies with lights and left at midnight.
Two anglers fished from 4:30 to 10:30 p.m. and caught 21 stripers and 4 largemouth bass with topwater lures.
A father son duo employed the drop shot technique and caught quite a few largemouth bass off points in 17 to 25 feet of water. They also noticed lots of small bass feeding heavily on shad in the backs of coves.
One angler states the largemouth bass fishing is on fire right now. Off main points adjacent to deep water and secondary points is the habitat that is working for him. Wacky rigged Senkos, lucky craft Ghost minnows and drop shot with Roboworms are providing more than adequate bass enticement.
BARTLETT – Lake elevation is 1,760 ft, which is 52 percent full. Reservoir release is 150 cfs.
One fisherman started around 6 a.m. and left the lake by 11 a.m. He had good luck with cranks and jerks around the Yellow Cliffs area and a couple in the main lake. Up river he caught about 17 between 8 and 11 inches, 2 over 2 pounds and one even 3 pounds. He noticed cranks worked better for the smaller fish and sencos were what the larger bass fell for.
A father and his two sons pulled an overnighter. They caught about 25 bluegills before dark to use as bait for their total of 10 bass, 6 channel cats and 2 flathead catfish.
An angler fish in the morning and caught about 15 bass using jigs and drop shot over and among the uneven substrate visible on his sonar.

SAGUARO - Lake elevation 1,525 feet at 94 percent full. Two anglers fished from 7 p.m. pretty much all night with a little shut eye before resuming. They caught over 29 bass. No huge ones till the last one; it was fat. Most fish were caught using dropshot in about 15 feet of water.
One angler fished from safe light until nearly 10 a.m. Water clarity was about three feet. He caught 6 fish using topwater. Drop shot outfitted with Robo worms resulted in boating three more. Jigs also worked.
APACHE - Lake elevation is 1,909 ft (95 percent full).
Fishing at Apache Lake is providing excellent fishing opportunities. Anglers are catching largemouth bass in coves and next to emergent vegetation and rocky shores.

Catfish fishermen are having no problems catching them with worms. Carp are still active in various coves for those who want to hook into a big strong fish. Load your hook up with corn or dough bait for carp.
CANYON - Lake elevation is 1,657 ft, which is 95 percent full. A kayaking angler who fished from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. caught 5 bass (about 14 inches) trolling Rapalas shad crankbaits. Then he caught 2 more bass using the drop shot method off a point in Lost Dutchman Bay. He picked up 4 catfish in the main lake area off El Capitan using curly tailed minnows on jigs. He also nabbed a 15 inch walleye – congrats to him.
Canyon is not always kind to novice anglers (or even skilled ones), but it does hold some of the largest largemouth bass in the state. Summer nights might just provide you a lunker memory to hang in your mind for years to come.
Catch any whoppers lately? Email photos of your recent catch to ffeditiorial@hotmail.com with the name of the angler, the time, date, the name of the lake, where you are from, the kind of fish caught and weight and length if you know it along with the kind of bait/lure used to make the catch and you could see it on the newspaper’s Facebook page (facebook.com/TheFoothills.Focus).