Collins Lake

The significance of late 2021 rains has been emphasized by the 50+ days we’ve now been waiting for a 2022 storm to top off the lake. While we are still hoping and praying for rain we are making the best of the dry, mostly warmer weather with weekly fish plants January – May. With the the mud abated for the moment it has been an excellent, if unexpected, time for campers and fishermen to start the year with some relaxation and fun.

The lake surface is about 19 feet from spill and the surface temperature has been stable around 50°F for about 2 weeks. The low inflow has allowed the lake to clarify a bit, and while the water is transparent at the shoreline overall visibility near the surface is still around 4ft.

Up until about 4 days ago shoreline fishing with PowerBait has been a solid bet. That’s how Rob Schappel of Penn Valley caught his 4lb 10oz trout and how Paing Thou hooked his 6lb 8oz rainbow trout and how David Pokvant landed his 5lb fish – down by the dam on yellow PowerBait.

Anthony Fontaine from Rocklin showed us his limit of big trout all caught floating PowerBait on the far side of the lake across from the beach:

But in the second half of the week we’ve noticed an increase in fish caught casting and trolling. Suzette Legardy (above, right) caught this 7lb 6oz beauty using a Gold Kastmaster while trolling the east side. Linda Thao and Hova Lee caught 7 trout on Kastmasters near the dam.

Tyler Logan showed off his two biggest for the day weighing in at 5lb 12oz and 3lbs 14oz both caught on Rapalas while fishing the east side of the lake.

Devin & Robert of Camptonville brought in a double limit dragging Rat-L-Traps by the dam. While PowerBait has lost a bit of steam we are still seeing some folks outperforming including Thor Olson and Lucas Kelly who caught 9 trout shore fishing along the north channel (Hidden Spruce Trail) using PowerBait and worms.

I have noticed that, especially on plant days, the shoreline near the plant site can get very busy. Keep in mind that we require fishermen to keep 500ft from the plant site. While I don’t want to outright condemn so called “truck chasers” – after all, we plant trout specifically for sport fishing, catching and eating – I do think it’s notable that, at least at the moment, the most productive areas have been much farther off, the dam, the east bank and the north channel.

At least I imagine that fish fresh from the farm are recently fed and when they are planted; Sure a few will bite immediately, but most will find a comfortable temperature strata and search out some new digs as they acclimate. Which is to say that if you’re fishing near the plant site you may be fishing today’s already-fed-fish, whereas further away you’re likely in less competition for hungrier fish from every weekly plant and even prior years, which means larger fish. The plant trucks are exciting, and it is fun to watch, but at least the last two weeks we’ve seen better catches in quiet corners so don’t get “hung up” on being close to the truck- there’s bigger fish and better places to set up.

Bass have had an early wake up… well to be honest I’ve always believed you could catch bass right through winter if you know where to look and conditions permit the effort. Most folks are eating trout and releasing bass so it’s not often we get a picture of a big spread to indicate conditions but Cheryl & Charles shared their haul with us:

10 good sized bass caught on worms by the dam. We might see a lull in bass activity as it gets colder and overcast later this week, but at least we can say for the moment they’re out there and they’re biting.

The 10-day forecast shows dropping daytime temperatures, down into the fifties – remember it’s (apparently) still winter. There is a chance of rain on Thursday but it doesn’t look like a noteworthy storm so just keep an eye on the wind. It tends to be comfortable up to about 6 miles per hour. Of course if it gets too cold you can always come to the general store for an espresso– or for you diehards… a giant ice cream.