Ramp Conditions
Lake Elevation: 5099 ft 4 ?? inches on 6-5-08 (Taken at Stones Landing)

Spalding Marina: The first ramp as you come into the Spalding Marina is fine for launching at this time. The shoal straight out registered 3 feet deep but was probably a couple inches deeper. I left my big outboard all the way down and didn't stir up any silt. However, I would definitely keep an I/O outdrive up about half way. The second ramp was being used for installing some of the private docks but looked pretty shallow at the shoal leading out to the lake.

Eagle Lake Marina: Folks at the marina did remove sediment from the east side of the ramp. The equipment could only get so close to the dock but there was good water on that side now. Stay between the buoys marking rocks. The marina folks are working on improving the launching and lowering the docks very soon.

Stones Landing: The south side of the ramp (right side looking down from the top) is pretty shallow for larger fishing boats but fine for smaller ones. There are several good size rocks laying on the bottom and directly out from the ramp. The north side (left looking down) is deeper and at the end of the dock there was a solid four feet of water. Again, several boulders are scattered about as you go out or come in. As a precaution I would keep my out-drive up a little while leaving the dock.

Lake Surface Temperature, Clarity & Water Quality
7-3-08
Official CDFG Temps and pH
26 ft visibility in the south basin today

North Basin: 71-72 F from 68.36 F; pH Level: 9.49 on 7-3-08; Dissolved O2: 70%
Middle Basin: 71-72 F from 69.62 F; pH Level: 9.49; Dissolved O2: 75% t
South Basin: 68-69 F from 66.9 F; pH Level: 9.33; Dissolved O2 735 to 75%. The thermalcline is starting to show
significantly. The south basin temp is 68 to 69 degrees to 15-20 feet deep. We now have a 5 to 6 degree F temperature drop
from 25 to 30 feet. O2 starts decreasing at 35 feet and the dissolved O2 was significantly lower this week at 50
ft (around 30% which is low for trout to be that deep for any period of time.

CDFG has not posted the voluntary "catch and keep" recommendation but the water quality is almost meeting the criteria and may be posted in the next couple of weeks.

Algae and Surface Weed Locations
Southwest winds have helped clean up areas of the lake that were inundated with algae. However, it did simply just move it around. The middle of the south basin has several bands as well as several crossing the Miners Point ledges and Frank Morgan Summit. Areas farther south have been much cleaner. We are seeing more bands of pollen floating in the middle and north basins.

So far the algae hasn't quite "exploded" and even though we see it here and there the lake is in good shape with good fishable water.

When driving through the algae keep your eyes on your water pump stream....in-boards watch your engine temperatures. This algae can and does plug up intakes. Honda Outboards are very susceptible to plugging up due in part to very small water jackets, ports and connectors on the water pump tubing. Check and clean any three-way T connector, common area of blockages.

The "Reel" Weather
ALL FIRE INFORMATION AND ROAD CLOSURE INFORMATION
A MUST SEE ON LOCALNEWS1.NET
UPDATES ARE POSTED AS SOON AS THEY ARE RECEIVED!

Finally some clean air to breath the last few days. We still see a little smoky haze on the distant horizon. But remember, localnews1.net for all the fire info and road closures if something else happens in the future. Haze is still in NOAA's forecast through Tuesday night. But, we are in good shape now.

We are seeing mostly clear skies. We have had a few clouds blow through late in the afternoon the last couple of days. Winds picked up early yesterday but today they started off mild and variable but finally settled in to a northeasterly flow. Winds are expected to be less than 5 mph for the next couple of days.

High temps are expected to hit 90 to 92 degrees F tomorrow and Wednesday and low temps are expected to reach the low 50's but we haven't seen temps that high yet.

Best Fishing Locations and Depths
Awesome early bite but shortly after sunrise it slowed down considerably for the bait fishermen and has improved a lot this last weekend. Fish have been hanging at the 30 to 35 ft depth in 40 to 65 feet of water (I like 50' to 55' of water for some unknown reason).

The Youth Camp to the Biology Station has slowed down considerably. We have had a fish migration south over the ledge towards Blacks Mountain and Shrimp Island. The last couple days we have caught more fish in 38 to 45 feet of water than 30 to 35 feet of water..

Eagles Nest, the Snag (north of E.N.) and the Springs on the east side are finally holding tighter schools of trout. The bite on the east side has been pretty good early but dies off shortly after sunrise. But, the later (mid morning) bite has been best for us over on the west side at Shrimp Island and Lake of the Woods. But, as above, we are moving out to a little deeper water now (my mercury thermometer registered 72 degrees this morning at 6 feet deep which is a couple degrees higher than last weeks official temperature. And, is probably the reason the fish moved out just a little for us.

Fish numbers are increasing along the west side of the south basin from Wildcat Point through Lake of the Woods and the rocky points and ledges to and beyond Shrimp Island. Despite a couple "dead zones" fish are starting to school up tighter and in larger numbers. Our favorite depth to anchor in off any of the ledges along the west side is 35 to 45 feet. That will change in a few weeks and more fish will be caught out in 50 to 65 feet....generally when surface temps reach 72 degrees.

Bait Fishing
Bait fishing has produced beautiful limits this week. Expect it just to get better. The bite has slowed down on the east side after sunrise but switch to the west side for the late morning bite. Our magic number for a nightcrawler under a slip bobber has been 31 to 33 feet deep the last couple days.

Use of attractants is often a good choice. These fish have been particular to garlic gravy and krill flavors in the past, but don't use it on all your bait in the water. One day they like it and the next day they don't even look at it. If it gets the most attention....I don't have to tell you what to do.

Trolling
Most trollers are finding plenty of clean water to work and .... Have found a harder hooking bite this week.. Trout are beginning to congregate in larger numbers now however, it seems that too many trollers with downriggers in one area is pushing some pods out towards the middle of the south basin. If you stop seeing fish in that one location....move out.

Four to five colors deep has been the number for leadcore trollers which is roughly 25 to 30 but depends totally on speed. Don't be afraid to drop out 6 later in the morning or afternoon. We are starting to pick up a few more fish at 33 ft.

Make downrigger adjustments for lure running depth...IE often folks will run a lure that has a 6 ft running depth at 100 ft behind the boat ... if you run your downrigger at 30 feet, your lure may be running at 36 ft. Rubber grubs don't naturally sink as deep as some lures. Just make sure that you are not running below the target range in the deep water. Fish foraging the bottom in 30 to 35 feet of water are flipping rocks...in that case, get things down. Leadcore works best for that method.

Trolling nightcrawlers continues to be effective (no flashers). But, often these fish will hit very light and just nip of the tail dragging behind the hook. If that happens leave little to no tail...thread the entire worm on the hook (I have been known to use a smaller size 8 or 10 hook insuring it can not be seen and small enough to allow good movement of the bait on the line as it is being trolled. Also, be sure that the nightcrawler does not twist in the water and that nightcrawlers should be trolled much slower (a lazy S look is what you want to see) than lures and flies. Nightcrawlers should be trolled no faster than 1 mph where flies and lures such as needlefish or rapala's require speeds between 1.2 and 1.8 mph. Uncle Larry's lures in Perch and Tiger colors in front of grubs or nightcrawlers has been working too.

Hottest lures: Needlefish in orange, (pearl, brass and nickel back), firetiger, red dot frogs (We have a very successful Western toad population as well as several frog species around the shoreline. Don't think for one minute that these fish don't know one (a frog or toad) when they see one....yes, they eat ???em. Both the yellow dot (black center) needlefish, the red-dot frog needlefish were working best but it did depend a little on the locations. The Perch Needlefish has been a good producer this week (and trollers are working hard). Nickel bikini has been a "standard" Eagle Lake lure for decades and can generally get bit when all else fails). Sure-Catch lures large Red Dog is getting quite a bit of attention and the "gator" which is similar to a red dot frog needlefish in color was the one getting the most attention. Rainbow runners in orange and pearl also produced fish this week

Trolling Flies: We continue to run Brown and orange leech patterns. The best color to start with has consistently changed from day to day for us....one morning it will be orange until about 7 AM and then the brown flies get more attention. On flat water the brown fly has been the best for us. We continue to run at least one topline after sunrise but most all the hefty fish we have been catching this week are at the 30 to 32 ft range.

Grubs: Brown, orange, amber, olive (red flecks) watermelon (generally starts picking up more attention later in July and into August). Black is also a good color to have in your tackle box and has been known to be something that works when the bite goes off. Some folks use wiggle or action discs anywhere from 4 to 18 inches ahead of the grub for more action in the water. But, I have found that sometimes too much movement, especially on flat water, is just that. It's not as easy fooling a trout in clear, calm, flat water as it is when there is a ripple or wave action..

Fly Fishing
Water temps are rapidly going up along the shoreline and algae is around just about every ledge. Wading along the shoreline has been tough fishing as most of the fish are just out of range and getting farther out every day.. However, fly fisherman accessing the shallow ledges at Miners Point are drifting caddis nymphs under indicators and patience and short periodic strips have produced some nice trout...but if you see the trout, chances are he sees you too It is important (on these trout) to keep a lower profile even out on a boat).

Brown, black and olive wooly buggers in size 10 to 12 are pretty steady fish catching colors on this lake but other small nymphs and scuds have also been known to work well. As a starter tip, we prefer to use brown while fishing the rocky ledges and olive variations of woolly buggers in the moss beds and tules (damsels). We also have variations of "gold" woolly buggers as well as black (with peacock body) that come in handy when skies are overcast.

Caddis emergers under indicators has also been a lot of fun in the heart of summer, but the trout can be very "line shy" so a bad cast often spooks them. We prefer 10 ft (13' is good too) long tippets, 4 pound small diameter. Slow short strips (3 to 4 inches) will always catch more fish than fast long strips on this lake. Watch your line wake, if you wait to feel the "bite" it's generally too late to set the hook.

Shore Fishing
With water temperatures on the rise, expect the trout to be out of range from shore until fall begins. Accesses are the jetty at the Eagle Lake Marina, The Circus Grounds (located just east of Christie Day Use area which also has a nice point to fish from. Wildcat Point, Eagles Nest, Lassen County Youth Camp are also good areas for shore fishing but if the waves are breaking in at the Youth Camp be prepared to get a shower. The Youth Camp is the only accessible area to be able to reach 25 to 30 feet of water from shore. The Springs is a difficult access with a steep slope but one can access deeper water from shore there as well. All other accessible areas one can only reach 9 to 12 feet of water with a good cast. Highway 139 can be good shore-fishing but generally produces more in fall. High pH can also affect how many trout can be found in fall and how long they may stay. Generally the north basin fishes much better with 4 more feet of water.