Irvine Lake catfish opener topped by 12-12 channel cat

IRVINE LAKE REPORT

By Steve Carson

Catfish season “officially” opened on Friday night at Irvine Lake; although it was plain the whiskerfish jumped the gun and started biting well over a month ago. The opener brought the opportunity to fish in the productive evening hours, and bite they did, reported Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. “Both Friday night and Saturday night had very good catfish bites at Santiago Flats, Boat Dock Cove, and the west shoreline. Flylined mackerel or shrimp was the best bait, with scents like Bite-On Cajun helping a lot. Along with the catfish, just about every other species in the lake is also biting well, even the trout!”

Local guide Hubert Zimara of KFGS service added, “On both Friday and Saturday, the stocker-size catfish were biting well all day long, with a lot of limits coming in on cut mackerel, but the chances for a big one are better at night.”

Bass anglers continued to find excellent action on 2 to 5-pound largemouth, with added opportunities given during the evening sessions. Daylight bassing was at the 15 to 25 foot level with jigs and dropshot baits, but evening hours saw the fish go off on a variety of topwater and reaction bait presentations. Hybrid striped bass also perked up, with numerous 8 to 11-pound wipers reported to be inhaling chunks of mackerel intended for catfish.

Crappie anglers reported that the bite on slabsides was taking off on Monday afternoon and Wednesday morning. The bluegill were also wide-open, with a massive limit stringer of 15 big ‘gills that all topped the one pound mark turned in by Marlon Meade, Mitz Onizuka, and Kyle Ishi, using Gulp! Crickets at the flats. Trout anglers skilled at deep water techniques can still find some nice-looking 2 to 3-pound holdover rainbows.

Families with children age 12 and under found decent action on stocker-size channel catfish on the marshmallow/mealworm combo in the Kids Lagoon. Surface temperature in the main lake is in the high 70’s, with underwater visibility rated very clear. Summer hours will see the lake remain open until 11 PM on Thursdays, until Midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, until 4 PM on Sundays, Mondays, and Wednesdays, and closed on Tuesdays.

Outstanding catchers of the week at Irvine Lake included:

John Moreno of Chino, 12-12 channel catfish on mackerel at the flats

Steve Christopher of Pomona, 11-0 and 7-12 channel catfish on mackerel at Boat Dock Cove

Mark Christoph of Coachella, 9-10 channel catfish on mackerel at the flats

Reginald Walker of Carson, 8-10 channel catfish on beef liver at Boat dock cove

Sam Vemati of Altadena, 12-1 blue catfish [released], on mackerel at the flats

Seth Mostero of San Juan Capistrano, 5-1 largemouth bass [released] on a Triple trout at the west shore

Chris Cotton of Garden Grove, 11-0 wiper [released] on mackerel at Trout Island

Marlon Meade of Anaheim, 1-9 bluegill on a Gulp! Cricket at the flats

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