Excellent fishing on Lake Tahoe

Hello fellow anglers.

Fishing has picked up for some local lakes and dropped off for others.

But just a reminder to get us all in a good mood: Mark your calendar for March 8. That will be the day we turn our clocks ahead. That is less than a month away.

Now for some local reports in our fishing world.

LAKE TAHOE: Fishing has been excellent, reports Gene St. Dennis. Trolling at Cal/Neva and Sugar Pine points have been most productive. Eighty to 280 feet of water, and get your presentation right down on the bottom. Average Mackinaw has been 2 to 6 pounds with a couple in the 9-10 pound class. Gene has reported limits on a daily basis. Rainbow and the brown action on the other hand has been slow. For more information, call Blue Ribbon Charters at 530-544-6552.

CAPLES LAKE: The ice is only 14 to 16 inches thick, which is very unusual for this time of year. They have a base of 2 to 5 feet around the lodge area.

A few anglers have ventured out around the dam area to Woods Creek. In the past two weeks anglers have caught an

8-, 10-, and a 13-pound Mackinaw trout, as well as a few rainbow trout. Most anglers have been using night crawlers, some have been using small silver spoons jigging right off the bottom. Just a note, the resort is open for cabin rentals and discount ski passes for guests. Why not go fishing for a day and ski the next? For more information, call the Caples Lake Resort at 209-258-8888.

RED LAKE: The lake as of last Sunday had about 16 inches of ice covering the lake. Anglers were doing fair with worms or jigging gold Kastmaster lures. Please always use caution when venturing out on frozen bodies of water. This time of year especially with our temperatures not staying around the freezing mark during the day. And always take a buddy or tell someone where you are going and when you will return.

INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR: As of last Saturday the fishing was fair to good. Average fish being caught was around 13 to 16 inches. I talked to a few anglers that had done well using half a night crawler casting closer to shore. One angler showed me a very impressive picture of his catch earlier in the week. We both estimated seven pounds. On Sunday, Renee joined me. Same scenario, fishing was good. But to give you a hint, if you do not get a bite in 20 to 30 minutes, move over 10 feet. It will make a difference. I watched one angler most of the afternoon catch his limit while two anglers 30 feet to his left never received a bite. Best bait of the day was half a crawler and a dip bait or salmon peach power bait. While the fly anglers had good success with olive wooly bugger or copper john flies. Also as a note, Sunday when we left with our dinner, the lake was 98 percent ice free and the clarity had a slight cloudiness to the water. Most of all, it was mostly weed free on the north end where we fished.

TOPAZ LAKE DERBY: I have received no reports from the general store this week. But as of Jan. 27, these were the lucky anglers for that week.

George Ness, a local, 4.5 pounds on power eggs, Ken Robertson from Yerington 4.4 pounds on worms, Don Romine from Gardnerville 3.6 pounds trolling a triple teezer lure, Ken Dines a local 3.1 pounds on worms and Jeff Dines from TRE, two pounds.

TOPAZ LAKE: Linda Fields told me that very few anglers have been out, despite the great weather. In fact, last Saturday there was not one boat one the lake she could see. Unfortunately for this week, the fishing has not been good. The lake has risen a little with the rain and runoff they received the week before. And as for my own fishing adventures last week, I am not one of the weekly anglers to report. But I had a great experience fishing and feasting at the lodge. A win-win situation. For more information, call the Topaz Marina at 266-3550.

CARSON RIVER EAST FORK: Just past Markleeville from Hangman's Bridge down to the Nevada state line is open to catch and release all year. Artificial lures and flies only. As a reminder, the Carson River resort is open for lodging all year. For information, call 877-694-2229.

Hope this helps you on your next fishing trip. As the weather gets better, I will be adding more places to fish in this report. If you have any questions in our fishing world call the Naw line at 267-9722.

- Good fishin' and tight lines.