Summer is just starting to heat up, we’re got out first 100°F days in the 7 day forecast. Collins Lake is still less than six feet below spill and ready for you to jump in and cool off! Generally warm weather has pushed trout down into deeper water, but that didn’t stop Ray Johnson from bringing in a limit of trout on Father Day using worms down by the dam.
The following week he brought in another limit, caught down by the dam using worms. We were excited to see Makenzie Molleson’s lightning trout caught on PowerBait. These unique fish are still being caught each week, even as we’ve had to take a hiatus from trout plants because of summer time surface temperatures.
These were notable catches as this time of year we mostly see success trolling at downrigger-depths of 30 to 40ft. Maybe find yourself a dropoff and toss a line!
Bass activity has settled down a bit. Post spawn you can still catch bass all over the lake although they may not be concentrated in the shallows like they were a month ago. Live bait is a good bet, with minnows or crawdads. Chris Wright was delighted to catch his first 13″ bass at Collins Lake.
Sunfish are still biting as the Baker family showed us with a stringer of five fish caught a the bottom of Road 11 using worms.
The biggest catch in the last couple of weeks was this massive catfish caught by Armani Aikens of Chico down by the doat dock. Nice work reeling that one in!
If you’re up for a late night with a line in the water, it’s just about perfect for catching these monsters. Use anything stinky! Weekends are still pretty busy around here and expect things to be packed till about the third week of August. If you’re looking for a quieter or cooler time to camp plan a trip on the weekdays in September or October- it’s a a beautiful time of year to be here!
Paid WiFi is available in most of the park. Buy an access code at the General Store.