Limits of rainbow trout
at Indian Creek Reservoir
LAKE ALMANOR: No report.
LAKE ALPINE: Ebbett's Pass is closed for the winter.
BLUE LAKES (UPPER AND LOWER): No report.
BOCA RESERVOIR: No report.
BURNSIDE LAKE: No report.
CAPLES LAKE: No report. There is hard, compacted snow on about three feet of ice.
CRATER LAKE (Near Kit Carson Pass): No report.
DAVIS LAKE: No report.
FORT CHURCHILL COOLING PONDS: No report.
FRENCHMAN RESERVOIR: No report.
FROG LAKE: No report.
HINKSON SLOUGH (On the Mason Valley Wildlife Management Area): No report.
INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR: Dave Kirby of the Woodfords Station (530-694-2930) checked in and said: "Lots of open water. The reservoir is about 80 percent ice-free. A number of fishermen reported catching their limits of nice rainbows. A 4.5 pound rainbow was taken by Brett Fielder of South Lake Tahoe, Calif. He caught it on a rainbow-colored spinner. Others were doing well with either Power Bait or inflated worms. Their trout were in the 3/4 to 1.5 pound class."
Kirby has requested that anyone who catches a rainbow, practice catch and release. The rainbows are currently full of either eggs or sperm.
He also reported that Alpine County will be planting its first plant of the year in early March. That plant will consist of 1,000 pounds of catchable-size rainbows.
Summit Lake (above Indian Creek Reservoir): Dave Kirby reported that two fishermen hiked in and did not report back so he is assuming that it is still frozen and they did not fish.
KINNEY RESERVOIR: Ebbett's Pass is closed for the winter.
LAHONTAN RESERVOIR: No report.
NORTH POND: Closed.
PYRAMID LAKE: No report.
RED LAKE: No report.
SACRAMENTO RIVER: Kirk Portocarrero of Outdoor Adventures Sport Fishing in Redding, Calif. (800) 670-4448: No report as he was at the Reno Boat, Sport and RV Show.
SILVER LAKE: No report.
SHASTA LAKE: Kirk Portocarrero: No report as he was at the Reno Boat, Sport and RV Show.
STAMPEDE RESERVOIR: No report.
LAKE TAHOE - North Shore:
Mickey Daniels of Mickey's Big Mack Charters (800-877-1462) reported, "Same report as last week. My fishermen have been catching mostly Mackinaw trout (average size) with an occasional rainbow. I've been tagging and releasing most of the smaller ones. We've been trolling 250-550 feet deep in the area in front of Carnelian Bay and King's Beach. We are using Herring Dodger flasher blades with either live minnows or pearl Apex lures."
Gene St. Denis of Tahoe Trophy Trout at South Lake Tahoe, Calif. (530-544-6552): "The Mackinaw fishing has slowed down, The Macks are full of shrimp and are not hungry. We're trolling 300-400 feet deep. I've been averaging 5-7 fish per trip and the biggest last week was 10 pounds. I've been working off of Cal-Neva Point and Dollar Point. Early morning from about 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. is your best bet. Our best action has been with silver-colored, flasher blades with live minnows. However, you need to make daily adjustments in your leader length or boat speed or trolling depth to compensate for the bite slowing down.
LAKE TAHOE - South Shore: Gene St. Denis said: "Yesterday, we caught several, nice German brown trout, up to 3 pounds. We were trolling off the Edgewood Golf Course at a depth of 25-40 feet with No. 13 or No. 15, floating, silver/black Rapala lures. The Mackinaw fishing has slowed down. We've been jigging with jigs or trolling with Herring Dodger flasher blades and minnows at a depth of 150-250 feet for small to medium sized Macks."
LAKE TAHOE -- East Shore: Gene St. Denis said: "The fishing has slowed down considerably at Cave Rock Shelf. It's fair, early in the morning, for Mackinaws. We're trolling 250-400 feet deep with Herring dodger flasher blades and minnows. The numbers are down to about 4-7 fish per trip. Our biggest was a 9.5 pounder that measured 31 inches.
I've also been toplining on the east side between Deadman's Point and Logan Shoals. We've been getting a few rainbows and some Macks on either Yzuri minnow lures or medium-sized Rapala lures, trolled at a depth of 25-40 feet, about 150 feet behind the boat."
TOPAZ LAKE: Chuck Fields of the Topaz Marina (775-266-3550) checked in and said: "Fishing has picked up with the nice weather. The lake is coming up a little bit but very slowly. The water temperature is up to 44 degrees and the fish seem to be more active. There were lots of limits being reported by boaters. Most of the boaters are trolling in the top 10 feet of the water and using silver flasher blades with nightcrawlers or bright orange or fluorescent orange-colored Rapala lures. Bright orange seems to be the "hot" color. We had reports of a number of 3 pound rainbows being caught and also a 4 pounder from the North Shore."
WALKER LAKE: No report.
WALKER RIVERS (EAST-WEST-LITTLE):
East Walker (Nev.): No report.
West Walker (Nev.): No report.
WASHOE LAKE: No report.
WEBER RESERVOIR: No report.
WILDHORSE RESERVOIR: See Don Quilici's column about ice fishing at the reservoir, last Thursday and Friday.
WINNEMUCCA LAKE: No report.