Fishing report: Most anglers down on luck at Lake Mead

Friday, March 12, 2004 | 9:59 a.m.

NEVADA DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE

Anglers who have been fishing from shore in the Boulder Basin of Lake Mead have had very little luck in recent days.

One fisherman reported to the Nevada Department of Wildlife that he fished Hemenway Harbor for two days this week and caught only one striped bass that weighed just over a pound. Another angler fished Pumphouse Cove for two nights and caught two channel catfish.

Rainbow trout fishing has been fair after the plants, but the fish have been moving quickly away from the stocking locations. NDOW will wrap up its stocking schedule today with plants at Hemenway, Horsepower, Pumphouse and North Saddle coves.

Boaters who have been fishing in the Overton Arm have told NDOW creel clerks that they have had some success for stripers by trolling with downriggers near Fish Island. Largemouth bass that weighed around a pound were reportedly caught and released by boaters who were fishing in that area over the weekend.

NDOW biologists say that stripers are typically preparing to spawn at this time of year so they are congregating in deep water. Once in spawning mode, they normally move to areas such as Walker Wash, the Meadows, Bighorn Island and the Meat Hole.

NDOW will conclude its spring rainbow trout stocking at Willow Beach with a plant scheduled for today.

A two-day Western Outdoor News largemouth bass fishing tournament last weekend at Cottonwood Cove resulted in some impressive catches, according to Bob Ellis of Las Vegas who competed in the event. The winning entry on March 6 checked five fish that had a combined weight of 15.5 pounds while the winner on Sunday also had five fish that tipped the scales at 19.9 pounds.

Over the weekend, Maes checked several anglers fishing from the dam at Haymeadow Reservoir who caught 2-3 pound rainbows that were stocked as 9-10 inchers by NDOW in the fall. Boaters were catching recent planters as well as some of the larger trout.

The surface water temperatures at Cold Springs and Haymeadow reservoirs are in the low 50s. Maes said that the fishing will continue to improve as temperatures rise and he predicts that the fishing could be very good as soon as this weekend.

Campers should be prepared for temperatures that have been dipping into the low 20s at night. Afternoon highs have been in the upper 50s.

A few anglers fished the stream behind the reservoir and landed rainbow trout that averaged 11 inches. The fish were taken with worms and PowerBait.

Nighttime temperatures were dipping into the low 20s while the daytime temperatures were in the low 50s.

The water is a little murky because of the runoff from the melting snow. The reservoir is now about half full because of the snowmelt.

A couple of anglers caught rainbow trout that averaged 10 inches. They were taken with rainbow-colored PowerBait.

Channel catfish will again be stocked in the ponds during the summer months when water temperatures are too warm for trout to survive. Trout plants will resume in November.