This past week we enjoyed some warmer weather with less gusty winds and it is incredible out on the lake. The catching did slow a bit which didn’t make sense with such perfect conditions most of the time while we trolled for rainbow trout. We covered most of the territory during the past 30 hours on the lake. The majority of the fish were caught from the Observatory to Windy Pt and then along the south shore from Gilner Pt to Papoose Bay. Most trout were caught out in 34-38ft deep when we were on the west end of the lake and our lines were running from the surface down to 25 feet no matter where we covered. Leaded lines from 2-4 colors, down riggers at 3, 6 and 19-22 feet. This was a hard week to pin particular depths we had to continuously change up in order to hit 5-12 fish within 3 hours and a couple trips we had a 3 and 4 fish trip! The trout are fighting hard so patience and keeping a tight line without any slack ever is key when bringing them to the net and many did not get landed during the rougher times out on the lake over the holiday weekend. Some fish did hit the surface while flat lining various Rapalas and Flies. We had no consistency and changed up more frequently than usual but no particular lures or rigs continuously worked at same time or in same conditions. No rhyme or reason to what we caught our fish on this past week! It’s always good to have a great selection of lures in various patterns and colors. Variety of gear has been helpful, leaded lines turn on then the down riggers go off and sometimes only the flat lines hit! Details are in the swivels, snaps, beads and lengths of leaders some times. Some days it’s easy and creativity may not matter – on other days ONE small difference could be in the the only rig that works for a hour or two- like a KNOT or bead color or leader length. Many walleye, salmon and kokanee lures are favored by Big Bear bows. We find that getting outside the box of the usual favored lures of the lake is what’s workin’ well the past few seasons. PK Lures smaller spoons and flutter fish have a dimpled side and a smooth side and now come in a huge selection of patterns and some GLOW and all have glow eyes and every species in the lake has been caught on these lures! Warrior Lures makes a nice small sized spoon the rainbow trout love called the Little Warrior and the trout have a hard time flipping or spitting these and they come in one of the largest selections of hand painted colors, copper/silver/gold finishes and uv and glow as well. Flies, night crawlers, glow beads and flashers and dodgers too have been part of our selection the past trips. The hard part about the recent fishing has been location and pinning any one lure or rig or depth that was working best. Determination, willing to be creative and changing locations and speeds or turns has been critical to getting fish in the boat this past week. Don’t get STUCK in what you THINK should work have fun experimenting and learning and trying new things. Patience, details and accuracy are vital at times in order to produce. There were not many hits to spare so the wait and reeling in was more of a challenge for the newer fisher men and women on the boat but all had patience and most learned the skill and game of catching delicate trout FAST. It’s been a great time to be on the boat and see all the different things you can try with rainbow trout. Some trips we had 1/2 dozen rigs or lures that worked other times we tried 30+ different things on one trip. Thankfully, everyone who wanted to enjoy a fresh rainbow trout meal did catch enough beautiful pink meat hold overs that were nice size and quality as good or better than the fish market! The short drive, the weather and the beauty of the lake and mountains has got to be one of the MOST mentioned and appreciated part of visitors stay. web page speed The skies are blue with incredible fluffy white clouds and the sun, moon and stars are all part of the stay in beautiful Big Bear Lake. It’s always a fine time to be in Big Bear and from now until fall the fishing is spectacular. Please call Pleasure Point Marina for pontoon rentals at 909-866-2455, Golden Bear Cottages for lodging 800-461-1023 GoldenBearCottages.com and Lucky Bear Fishing Charters 909-866-7303 for guided fishing trips.
May 28, 2014 By