Recent water quality testing from all 21 Urban Fishing Program waters were in the good to excellent range, meaning all lakes are approved for fish stocking.  Program biologists continue to monitor all waters for pH, temperature and dissolved oxygen.  Lakes are also regularly sampled for golden alga by Game and Fish and lake management contractors hired by the cities.  So far this winter, golden alga blooms have not occurred and no losses of fish have been reported, aside from some hungry pelicans that were eventually caught and delivered back to their California home.

There will be two more trout stockings in the Phoenix and Tucson Urban Program Waters; they will be the weeks of February 16th and March 2nd.  Stocking will shift to catchable channel catfish on the week of March 16th.  Green Valley in Payson will continue to receive trout throughout March.

Trout fishing continues to be good to excellent up to 10 days after every stocking.  A 6.1 pound rainbow trout from Rio Vista Pond in Peoria is the current 2009 Big Fish-of-the-Year record.  Most trout are falling for Power Bait fished 15-25 inches off the bottom.  Other baits that are producing good catches are worms, corn and salmon eggs.  Lures such as Panther Martins, Rooster Tails and Kastmasters also work well when fished 5-10 feet deep.  Patience continues to be the key, as the trout bite sporadically throughout the day with little predictability.  Not much happening for catfish, bass or bluegill, but with warming temperatures, action for these species will be picking up quickly over the next couple weeks.  Trout fishing is consistently good to excellent at Green Valley lakes in Payson with Power Bait, corn and worms working best.

Where:Rio Vista
When:02/09/09
Caught:nothing at all
Technique:worms and bunches of different Power Bait lures they wouldn’t hit anything
Comments:a couple guys caught some real small trout on worms
Name:Andrew Althaus

Where:Cortez Lake
When:02/02/09
Caught:18in. Trout
Technique:Panther Martin spinner at 11:30 am.
Comments:Put up a great fight, nice and chunky in weight.
Name:Francis Brady

Where:Rio Vista
When:Jan 30
Caught:trout
Technique:Used Power Bait nuggets rainbow and dippin sauce
Comments:Caught limit with dad in 1 hour in small pond
Name:Nicc
Where:Surprise
When:02/08/09
Caught:1 rainbow trout
Technique:small silver and blue KastMaster
Comments:ever since I started using them people have been asking me what I was catching them on and now everyone is using them heck I can’t even find them at Wall-mart
Name:Brandon Ryer

Where:Gilbert Water Ranch Lake
When:01/27/09
Caught:trout, sunfish, and bass
Technique:shore fishing w/lures
Comments:Caught 2 trout (one at 1.35lbs), 1 small sunfish, and a very small largemouth…all put back in for others to catch. Thanks for the great stocking program!
Name:minipuz

Where:Gilbert Water Ranch Lake
When:01/27/09
Caught:
trout, sunfish, and bass
Technique:shore fishing w/lures
Comments:caught 2 trout (one at 1.35lbs), 1 small sunfish, and a very small largemouth…all put back in for others to catch. thanks for the great stocking program!
Name:minipuz

Where:Veteran’s Oasis
When:01/24/09
Caught:10 Largemouth, 1 Trout
Technique:Fly-fishing with a cone head purple wooly bugger, and a Dave’s Cricket imitation at a 6″ steady retrieve.
Name:Emerson Yazzie

Where:Rio Vista
When:01/19/09
Caught:1 trout
Technique:worm 3 inches under bobber about a foot away from first waterfall .
Name:justin Hillis-Walthers
Where:Papago Pond #1
When:01/12/09
Caught:2 small Largemouths + 4-12” Rainbows
Technique:Silver 1/12th oz KastMaster and 1/8th oz Blue and silver KastMaster. Green Power Bait off the bottom for an hour.
Comments:Two Largemouths bit the silver KastMaster while the trout wanted the blue/silver. They all started hitting around 9:30 a.m. and abruptly stopped at 10:45 or so. They seem to start biting again around 5 p.m. Tried the Green Power Bait but lost patience after an hour without a single nibble.
TEMPE TOWN LAKE – This is could be a fishing hot spot this weekend with another front coming our way.. This fishery was stocked with trout last week. The water temperature is hovering around 56 degrees. There are some flows on the normally dry Salt River bed, but probably just enough create a slight current, which make actually enhance the bite.

Keep in mind that Salt River Project us not expecting the flows to increase to the point (30,000 cfs) where the inflatable dams will have to be lowered, unless of course unexpected rains melt the snow pack all at one time or something.

You can try the usual methods for the rainbows (baits like Power Bait, night crawlers, mealworms or try spinners and spoons such as panther martins, KastMasters…)  Remember no gas motors are allowed (electric trolling motors are) and you must have a boating permit, which can be obtained at the Town Lake operations center.

You can try the usual methods for the rainbows (baits like Power Bait, night crawlers, mealworms or try spinners and spoons such as panther martins, KastMasters…)  Remember no gas motors are allowed (electric trolling motors are) and you must have a boating permit, which can be obtained at the Town Lake operations center.

Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:02/10/09
Caught:Caught a limit of Rainbows
Technique:No.8 egg style hook on a short leader w/sliding sinker. Lemon or Lime Twist/PowerBait.
Comments:Cooler weather = There biting fast, so keep an eye on your line boys and girls. Also, try a 4″ Texas rigged worm for a little Bass action.
Name:Blue

Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/30/09
Caught:2 Carp, wanted trout though.
Technique:Corn w/ slip sinker.
Comments:One carp was 24 inches long; the other was a little smaller. They were caught on the south side of the lake east of Scottsdale Road. The fun part; I caught them on a 4 pound test ultra lite rig.
Name:Paul
Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/19/09
Caught:one trout
Technique:Everything in my bag of tricks!!!
Comments:Lots of algae!!! Water very dark.
Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/28/09
Caught:Nothing but a nice nap!!!
Technique:Power bait, many different lures, and red worms
Comments:But still had fun fishing with my best buddy: Walt Babnski
Name:Paul

Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/19/09
Caught: 1 Largemouth, Limit of Rainbows
Technique:Rooster Tail of the bottom, Corn/Power Bait on a slip sinker rig with a short fluorocarbon leader.
Comments:The big guy, a 14-inch Bass that was released, ate a Worden’s Vibric Rooster Tail in the green/frog pattern. Yo-yo it off the bottom. The Rainbows, (fast action) are eating your classics, corn and Power Bait. GOOD FISHING!
Name:Blue, Todd
Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/19/09
Caught:1 Trout
Technique:Bottom feed 2 hooks with red worms. Also used Power Bait but no bites
Comments:Very windy and no bits after 10:00 a.m.
Name:Paul

Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/19/09
Caught:Trout
Technique:Power Bait corn & Power Bait rainbow corn color / pink w/sparkel
Comments:Fished East of Rural Rd on ASU side of lake. Started at 8:20 a.m. and by 10:15 a.m. Limited out!! Fished bottom 10 ft away from the wall w/ heavy weight as it was very windy. Fish are near the wall and not out in the middle of the lake. They come by in schools! Fished with my buddy Kurt Khacherian
Name:Warren Risberg

Where:Tempe Town Lake
When:01/16/09
Caught:2 rainbow trout
Technique:Split shot 5 inches from hook and corn for bait Fished from 2 to 4 p.m.
Comments:Looked at your Jan 14 post about Tempe Town Lake, went there and limited out in less then 2 hours. Fished off Rural Rd East side of the bridge. Lots of bites and non-stop action. No Power Bait needed!
Name:Warren Risberg
Where: Tempe Town Lake – East Dam
When:01/11/09
Caught: Lots of fish!
Technique: Diving head first into the water
Comments:2 brown pelicans were having a hay day with the trout stocked in Tempe Town Lake!

Where: Tempe Town Lake
When:01/03/09
Caught:4 trout/ 3 big carp
Technique: Corn off the bottom
Comments:  I was quick to catch the trout, first the carp hit and the fight was on good fight carp was about 10-15 lbs and it was fun. then the trout hit and that’s what I came for.
Name:pat

Where: Tempe Town Lake
When: 01/01/09
Caught: rout
Technique: corn, Power Bait
Comments: Fished for about 2 hours…..caught limit….doubled productivity of fishing partner! He had lots of trouble setting hook!
Name: Julie Smith
LAKE PLEASANT – Water elevation is 1,679 feet, which is 74-percent full. The bite is still a little slow right now.
The Agua Fria River was flowing at around 750 cfs on Tuesday and slowed down to around 300 cfs by Wednesday and will likely slow down appreciable each day unless there is more runoff, but these current flows might get the white bass and striped bass to start staging for the spawn.

Keep in mind that the gate is shut into the eastern part of Lake Pleasant off Table Mesa Road. To access the lake on that side (where the river enters the lake), you will need to hike in.

Dropshotting is the way to fish for largemouth right now although shad impersonators will catch some attention in the northern coves.  Crappie fishing will be picking up soon with the warmer weather.  Start by trolling with John Deer grubs and blue black chartreuse jigs.  Some crappie anglers swear by using red jig heads.  You don’t have to troll but it helps to cover more ground so to speak and keeps depth and speed of your lure more consistent.
Anglers are catching whites and stripers in the northern coves with frozen anchovies.
Where:Lake Pleasant
When:01/24/09
Caught:Not a single thing
Technique:Rat-L-Traps, Rapalas, other various cranks… As well as some plastics and other odds and ends
Comments:Conditions were terrible to start off with since it was raining at sun up, but to top it off the water was around 55 degrees and there was a huge algae bloom across the whole lake. Fished for a solid 5 hours and didn’t get a single thing. Talked to other people out there who were reporting the same. Don’t waste your time right now, gotta wait for that water to get warmer!
Name:Jeremy H
Where:Lake Pleasant
When:01/16/09
Caught:9-pound striper
Technique:anchovie chunks from shore
Comments:that was the only fish I caught but a buddy caught 3 catfish about 2-3 lbs
Name:Brian Davis
ROOSEVELT LAKE – Lake Elevation is 2,151 ft (100-percent full).  Tonto Creek runoff is at on Tuesday was around 4,000 cfs but dropped significantly by Wednesday. The inflow from the Salt River on Monday at 596 cfs. Water temps are in the low to mid 50’s according to a couple anglers.

Roosevelt really started to wake up last weekend just before the second storm hit. Anglers were catching largemouth using spinnerbaits and drop shots. Crappies were taking jigs and grubs.

A couple anglers fished Rosy from about 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and caught largemouth sporadically, although quite a few of them were shallow and took crankbaits, swim baits and spinnerbaits.

A novice angler caught a 2.5-pound smallmouth with a drop-shot rig.

An angler fished this past weekend and caught 11 largemouth bass one evening at the Salt end, using mostly crankbaits. The following day he fished morning till about noon and caught a whole slew of bass in a few different spots. Both largemouth and smallmouth liked topwater lures over in the dam area. Mid-lake was another good area for largemouth and smallmouth and they loved the Lucky Craft Stacy jerkbait. Another tempting table fare was crawfish imitations for both largemouth and smallmouth.  His biggest largemouth was 4 pounds and largest smallmouth was 2 pounds. A fantastic fishing experience for this angler although it was a little nippy.

Another couple anglers caught 25 bass and most were around 20 feet deep at the Tonto end.  The fish were taking blades and cranks. They were also susceptible to drop shot and were hanging in and around the brush.  Most the fish were at the high end of the slot with a few over.

All boaters take heed anglers have witnessed the big dirt wall in Why cove sloughing off into the water.  That wall is unstable and could swamp your boat or worse if you have the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Where:Roosevelt
When:01/28/09
Caught:1 bass, multiple trees
Technique:Everything. Crankbait finally did it
Comments:There from sunup to sundown. Rough day for catching fish.
Name:gb
Where:Roosevelt
When:01/26/09
Caught:6 largemouth 1 smallmouth
Technique:I’ve fished Pleasant, Bartlett, and Roosevelt.  Roosevelt is the place to use ROBOWORMS on a “Carolina Rig”; you can’t go wrong.  I just sat with a beer and flipped it every few minutes don’t reel it in just let it sit and remember fish are slow this time of year….good luck
Comments:Went to Pleasant the other day and no results but Bartlett is not bad. The best lake to fish is Roosevelt, just go and let the bass prove it.
Name:Ryan
Where:Roosevelt Lake
When:01/24/09
Caught:2 Crappie 3 Largemouth
Technique:Both crappie and one bass were caught slow trolling minnows. The other two bass were caught on white and chartreuse spinnerbaits.
Comments:The bass caught on a minnow was under the slot and the two caught on spinner baits were in the slot. Saw a good bass caught on another boat with a red Senko on a drop shot.
Name:Joe Freye

Where:Roosevelt
When:01/30/09
Caught:10 crappies 1.5 to 2.75 lbs.
Technique:Trolling 1/8 oz. jigs in 30 to 40 feet of water.
Comments:Weather was windy, had to troll with the wind. fished from 11:00am to 6:00pm
Name:David L. Taylor
A couple anglers fished the Tonto end and caught 3 largemouth bass on spinnerbaits and plastic worms.

APACHE – Lake elevation is 1,910 ft (97-percent full).

There was some excitement at Apache Lake this past weekend.  A couple young anglers were fishing from a canoe, and it capsized around 10 p.m. Friday night when one of the young men stood up when he got a bite.  Luckily their calls for help were heard by people on shore.   Marina personnel and John Taylor, a nearby camper, were able to locate the young men who were hanging onto a buoy; John hauled them into his boat. Apache Lake personnel had blankets at the ready to warm the boys up who had been in the water nearly 20 minutes. The young men did not have their life jackets on and subsequently lost them when the boat capsized.  Both boys were hypothermic and one had to be airlifted to a local hospital.  A hearty thank you to John and all the Apache Lake people involved with assisting the rescue.

On with the fishing report…There are so many fish in that lake, people are seeing them on their fish finders but catching them is proving to be difficult.  A challenge to anglers; find out what the fish want you will have an awesome fishing experience.  Thousands of trout were stocked in that lake, so swim baits ought to do pretty well.  Yellow bass are taking live worms (pieces will work just as good).  They also like KaskMasters; the blue and silver seem to be a yellow bass favorite this year.  They like the points where the substrate drops off.  This lake has good smallmouth habitat and they like to hang where the runoff hits the lake.  Largemouth will take advantage of the feast coming down the washes as well – don’t forget largemouth like the overhanging vegetation.  Catfish are taking worms, hotdogs and just about anything else.  It’s a little chilly for them so give yourself an advantage and find them on the fish finder.
CANYON LAKE – Lake elevation is 1,659 ft, which is 97-percent full.

Persistence paid off for one angler who reeled in a couple three pound largemouth bass.  The fish finder proved to be instrumental in finding where the fish were hanging; the angler couldn’t get any action with swim baits, but bouncing a 1-ounce American lipless Shad off the bottom was what got their attention.  Pretty darn well for 3 hours of fishing on Canyon when you consider the time necessary to find the fish in the first place, determine what bait or lures piqued their interest and fighting the wind.

Another couple anglers did throw large swim baits and realized the fish weren’t real interested in them, although one angler did manage to get one bite.  When the swim bait action didn’t pan out, they tried flipping in the reeds around the lake and hooked into 4 largemouths deep in the reeds, but the largemouth won the battles and would not allow the anglers to boat them.  These anglers were also nice enough to provide another tid-bit of information by talking to a water quality biologist who mentioned the DO was a little low.  Colder water holds more oxygen, so perhaps try fishing a bit deeper – use the fish finders.

Where:Canyon
When:02/02/09
Caught:15 trout kept 4
Technique:trolling
Comments:Tolled the whole length of the lake. It took a while. Trout hanging out in the shadows near points approx 5-10 feet deep.
Where:Canyon Lake
When:01/28/09
Caught:2 Catfish 5lbs. each (channels)
Technique:Generic processed cheese.
Comments:We forgot our net, so we had to bring them up on the boat with our hands (thankfully we had gloves)
Name:Adam Combs
Where:Canyon
When:01/08/09
Caught:One teeny weeny bass
Technique:Robo worm (green) tough day on the lake, no-one we talked to had any luck at all. The lake remains beautiful with lots of debris on the surface.
Comments:Thing are going to improve soon.
Name:Charles Greco
SAGUARO LAKE – Lake elevation 1526 feet at 95 percent full.
A couple anglers fished up river below the hazard buoys with a white diving crankbait and pulled in a largemouth shy of 2 pounds.  The wind was howling due to the front coming in so they didn’t stay in the area too long but graphed quite a few fish.  Jerk bait was also catching their attention.

Anglers seem to be happy with the fish coming back at Saguaro.  There are some real nice decent sized largemouth, but don’t forget the new slot limit where you can keep one largemouth in the 13 to 16 inch slot, and big bluegill are readily taking worms and the yellow bass bite is good as well.   Catfish are a bit lethargic but not impossible to catch.
One angler reported water temperature of 56 degrees with 3-4 foot visibility.  He caught 5 largemouth bass in four hours using skirted jigs, and c-rigged plastic worms.  Fish were 12 to 14 feet in depth along cliffs in the main lake.

Where:Saguaro Lake
When:02/05/09
Caught:1 Rainbow Trout
Technique:Worms, Size 8 hooks.
Comments:I would have kept the trout, but my friend Neal knocked it back in the water with the net instead of netting it. Thanks, Neal.
Name:Catherine
Where:Saguaro
When:01/23/09
Caught:twenty five blue gills large size
Technique:drop shot with live worms
Comments:Bluegills were really huge was wondering why?
Name:Bill Howard

Where:Saguaro Lake
When:01/25/09
Caught:1 largemouth, 1 yellow, 12 bluegill
Technique:Jigging live worms and minnows off the bottom (and under bobbers) about 20 feet down.
Comments:Bite was ok from 9am to 10am. Most were caught from 3-5pm. Near Butcher Jones. No luck with plastics or crankbaits
Name:Andy E

Where:Saguaro Lake
When:01/31/09
Caught:1 Largemouth Bass, 1 Bluegill, 2 Rainbow Trout
Technique:Bass: Size 2 hook and worms; bluegill: bobber, size 6, worms; Trout: size 6 and worms off the bottom with drop shot. We had a catfish line out with a size 2 and liver, but no joy.
Comments:Rainbows swallowed the hooks, both about 10″ fish. We were fishing off the fishing docks by the marina (1st dock). Try for a size 8 hook or larger on the trout, they seem to be swallowing everything!
Name:Catherine

Where:Saguaro
When:01/29/09
Caught:LM Bass
Technique:Partner and I used Robo worms on the drop shot to produced 28 fish, some in the 1 1/2 2 lb range. Finally
Comments:Searched for balls of bait fish away from the shore and found them in thirty to forty ft of water, dropped the bait down and wallah! All fish returned to their moms for another day.
Name:CJ Greco

Where:Saguaro Lake
When:01/30/09
Caught:one smallmouth bass
Technique:Bomber crankbait
Comments:not many fish on the fish finder; windy
Name:John C. Davis

Where:saguaro
When:01/23/09
Caught:twenty five blue gills large size
Technique:drop shot with live worms
Comments:blue gills were really huge was wondering why?
Name:bill howard

Where:Saguaro Lake
When:01/25/09
Caught:1 largemouth, 1 yellow, 12 bluegill
Technique:Jigging live worms and minnows off the bottom (and under bobbers) about 20 feet down.
Comments:Bite was ok from 9am to 10am. Most were caught from 3-5pm. Near Butcher Jones. No luck with plastics or crankbaits
Name:Andy E

Where:Saguaro
When:01/22/09
Caught:Fourteen LM bass
Technique:Drop shots with a purple Robo Worm, still catching small little guys but soon to improve.
Comments:Fished in the rain most of the day and had a wonderful day. Caught lots more fish than of late and sent them all home to their moms.
Name:CJ Greco
Where:Saguaro
When:01/13/09
Caught:LM Bass
Technique:Net
Comments:Two LM Bass were stuck together. One (11 inch) bass tried to eat the other (9 inch) bass. The smaller bass was stuck up to its gills in the larger bass mouth. They were flopping around on the surface. I netted the fish and when they were in the boat they fell to the bottom and broke apart. I put the one that had its mouth wide open back into the water and it swam away. They other bass didn’t look as lively, but when I put it into the water, it swam away. I have never seen a fish that tried to eat one about its own size. I have a couple pictures; tell me where to send them.
Name:Rick Karpinske

Where:Saguaro – Near Butcher Jones
When:01/11/09
Caught:1 White 3 Largemouth and 7 blue gill
Technique:We (5 of us) went old school with worms and minnows under bobbers or jigging the live bait right off the bottom.
Comments:The bass were 9-10 inches. The bluegill was mixed. We were all just happy to finally catch a few fish!!! Next time we plan to try dropshots in the same area.
Name:Andy E
When:01/10/09
Caught:Largemouth
Technique:Drop Shot and Carolina Rig
Comments:We caught 9 fish in 6 hours. Most after 3 PM. One was an over (17″). Most were caught on drop shot.
Name:Michael Rathgeber

A couple experienced anglers fished from 10 to 3:30 and caught 9 yellow bass between 9 and 8 inches, 2 bluegill and 8 largemouth bass.  All fish were caught on KastMaster spoons.  Two good sites were Teddy Bear and Bagley flat.  The fish were all around 25 to 30 feet in depth.
BARTLETT LAKE – Lake elevation is 1,777 feet, which is 72-percent full. Lake elevation is 1776 ft, which is 70-percent full. The Verde River had been running at around 4,000 cfs on Tuesday but tapered off to 2,622 on Wednesday. Salt River project expects both Bartlett and Horseshoe to fill from spring runoff this season – for the second year in a row.
An angler caught 9 largemouth bass and all but one were good sized.  No specifics given but try fishing near the jojoba boat ramp under the no wake line.  The bass like to hang by the submerged yellow pipe.  Also, look for the warmer water and start by trying chartreuse plastic worms.
Where:Bartlett Lake
When:01/31/09
Caught:nothing
Technique:spinners and plastics
Comments:Didn’t see any fish but did see what appeared as a fairly large otter; it got within just a few feet of my line. Another shore angler said his dog chased it a bit earlier.
Name:Tony

Where:BARTLETT
When:01/24/09
Caught:2 LARGEMOUTHS
Technique:WORM 2-3 FT UNDER A SLIP BOBBER OFF A ROCKY POINT IN RATTLESNAKE COVE. ALSO USED A SPINNERBAIT
Comments:LATE AFTERNOON BITE WAS DECENT. WATCH FOR SHAD BOILS AND THE BASS ARE CHASING RIGHT BEHIND THEM IN THE LATE AFTERNOON.
Name:LEWIS HUNT

Where:Bartlett
When:01/21/09
Caught:1 blue gill,2 small bass,1 catfish and 1 crappie
Technique:1/64th ounce jig that I tie myself w/ a minnow trolling
Comments:very tough fishing at Bartlett
Name:Brian Davis

Where:bartlett
When:01/19/09
Caught:nothing but rock, stick & moss
Technique:everything but dynamite& shock therapy
Comments:nice day, but everyone on the lake said & had the same resaults
Where:bartlett
When:01/21/09
Caught:1 bluegill,2 small bass,1 catfish and 1 crappie
Technique:1/64th ounce jig that i tie myself w/ a minnow trolling
Comments:very tough fishing at Bartlett
Name:Brian Davis
HORSESHOE LAKE — Lake elevation is at 1,988 feet, 28-percent full.  They are releasing water at 400 cfs.

VERDE RIVER – It looks like the snow melt and runoff has come early. The Verde River flow at Tangle popped to 4,000 cfs on Tuesday but tapered to 2,200 cfs on Wednesday. Release from Bartlett Lake is 100 cfs.

LOWER SALT RIVER (below Saguaro Lake) –This could be a trout fishing hot spot this weekend if the barometer plummets again, but it sounds like the catch rates might not be as good with the increased flows, but it will still be a great place to experience some terrific river fishing.

Flows on Wednesday were 1,770 cfs (about eight times normal). Salt River Project expects to keep the flows going at around this rate for the duration of the runoff season, providing super conditions for fishing, kayaking and canoeing (these flows might not be the best for inexperienced river runners). It should be a hoot to fish this season.

Trout were stocked last week. Trout fishing has been pretty good.

According to AZ Fly Fishing, fly fishermen are having good luck using egg patterns, San Juan worms, green weenies and nymph patterns. There are also some mayfly hatches in midday, so try mayflies in the afternoons.

For spin anglers, try night crawlers or meal worms with little or no weight cast slightly upstream into the riffles, then let the worm float naturally downstream, mending your line as it moves. Also, small spinners (Mepps, Rooster Tails and Vibrex) cast slightly downstream can work well. Some anglers are adept at catching trout in the river using Power Bait, but most find it difficult to use. Plus, Power Bait might not get you action from bass and other sport fish.

Some anglers have caught largemouth bass, smallmouth bass and even channel catfish while targeting trout.

We will stock every two weeks from now through the end of spring when water temperatures increase and dissolved oxygen levels decrease. This is shaping up to be our best trout fishing season here since 2005.
Because of the overly-abundant food supply (lots of insect larvae etc.), the trout will grow super fast here. The hold-over trout not readily caught will look like small footballs in a month or so, so keep this fishery close to Phoenix on you’re a-list.

Where:Lower Salt River
When:02/02/09
Caught:Largemouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
Technique:Fly fishing from personal pontoon & wading. Drifting nymphs & wooly-buggers.
Comments:Fished 2/2-2/4 from Water Users down to Granite Reef. Beautiful trip, but the fishing was VERY slow. Saw lots of “fishy” looking spots, but saw no fish! I tried just about everything over the course of three solid days and only caught one tiny rainbow and two tinier bass. Ran into several other fishermen that seemed equally frustrated. If you’ve had recent success here, please share it!
Name:Chris

Where:Lower salt river
When:02/05/09
Caught:caught and released 8 rainbows
Technique:black yellow Roostertail- Best luck drifting from rapids to slower water
Comments:all decent size(12inches)
Name:Larry
Where:Lower Salt River – Water Users
When:02/01/09
Caught:3 Trout
Technique:Fished a Panther Martin where the current meets calmer water.
Comments:Got nothing to bite on any flies but saw another fly fisherman catch at least 3 on stoneflies.
Name:Joe Freye

Where:Lower Salt
When:01/23/09
Caught:4 rainbows
Technique:I used a small wet fly, a “spider” with gold body that resembled a nymph when wet. 4wt TFO fly rod. Largest trout 11.5″
Name:Steve Rubicam
Where:Salt River – main bridge area just below Lake Saguaro
When:01/24/09
Caught:1 (very) small largemouth bass
Technique:x5 fly line setup w/ size 2 ghost silver/red minnow pattern w/ medium tempo stip.
Comments:Fished 6:45-2:30 with only one other hit. Used every imaginable technique, pattern, etc… Saw many fish jumping up approx 1mi from the main area. Not a big fish catching day, but none less beautiful day to be on out in the amazing Arizona outdoors!
Name:Brandon
CREEKS – Snow made access to most creeks difficult at best this week. More snow is expected this weekend.
HORSETHIEF BASIN LAKE – Probably not worth driving to just for fishing, but it might be worth a visit if you are prowling the Bradshaw Mountains and want to wet a line for some small sunfish or bass.