Pardee Lake Recreation Area will reopen for campers 8am Thursday February 4th and 12:01 am Friday the 5th for fishing. All facilities (except pools) will be up and running.

The forecast as of today calls for some showers or rain midweek tapering off by the weekend. Lake level looks to be 15 feet below spill as of today, this may change a little by opening depending upon the amount of rain. Water clarity is good to 15 feet with some debris after rain runoff.

Bank Fishing-Rainbow Point, Blue Herron, the Launch Ramp and the bank behind the EBMUD boathouse will all be good spots for opener. Bring chartreuse, rainbow power bait, power eggs, maggots and night crawlers. The old standard sliding sinker setup is still the best along with Kastmasters and wooly buggers.

Trolling-----No reports to draw on yet so the Narrows is worth a try on the way out to the River Mouth and points upstream. The fish are usually within 10 feet of the surface this time of year so long line; drifting and lead core are all very productive at shallow depths. Small red and rainbow lures tipped with a night crawler usually works.

Bass-Yesterday was media day for a number of catch and release pro bass anglers to pre fish the Lake for area magazines and local publications. The weather was cool and clear and the fishing was good. Anglers used swimbaits and jigs to catch small and largemouth bass in the River Arm.

The California Department of Fish and Game has planted 1000 lbs of trout prior to the opening. PardeeLake will plant 5000 lbs early this week and another 5000 lbs on Friday for the opener.