Best Spring Walleye Ever

Lake Powell has produced some of the best Walleye Fishing this year I have ever seen.  All my guests have been catching and the size are 3+ lbs.  Water temps have reach 72 degrees which is now beginning to show Stripers on the top “slurping”.  This is what we have been waiting for.   Judy was as the Shad Rally and one of the “participants” caught 101 stripers on his boat.  Lots of smallmouth are still being caught.  Stripers are gaining size and weight and we should start seeing them pop up all over now.  Wayne Gustavson reported this year has been the best in 5 years he has seen for what is coming.  Give us a call and come enjoy the “best fishing” ever at Lake Powell

Capt. Bill

Photo Caption. Ed Feller (right) and his favorite brother Jeff fished together at Hite. Trolling for stripers was good, but smallmouth bass fishing was better.  They had a great fishing trip which will make great memories.  Now is the time to take the family fishing at Lake Powell

Lake Powell Fish Report – May 10, 2012
Lake Elevation: 3635
Water Temperature 64-72 F
By: Wayne Gustaveson

For another week Lake Powell’s water level is stable and temperature remains in the low 60’s which is ideal for excellent bass, walleye and crappie fishing.   With day length and ambient temperature increasing the best tip is to fish in the shade.  That includes the shady side of an individual rock or the shady side of a canyon. Seek shade to increase catch.

Bass nests are still seen in the clear water and some have male guards cruising in the vicinity.  But bass spawning is near completion.  Smallmouth have begun the migration from shallow nesting areas in the backs of the coves toward the channel where they will reside on rocky points and ledges for the rest of the summer.  Adult smallmouth have moved down a notch and can be found in deeper water depths at 10 to 20 feet.  Young smallmouth are still ever present and eager to attack lures just about anywhere.

Largemouth bass really do not like to leave brush. Big adults are still residing in the thickest trees they can find in shallow water.  Expect them to be 5-10 feet of water surrounded by tree limbs.  Weightless rigged senkos are still accounting for a good catch of bucket mouth bass for those fishing shallow brush lined coves.

Walleye are the hot ticket right now particularly north of Bullfrog. The best technique involves worm harnesses attached to bottom bouncers which can be slow trolled along a fairly flat bottomed.  Bottom bouncers will travel along slick rock humps and flood plain bottoms with ease but are not good in thick tree lined areas. Select a relatively open bottom and troll at a depth of 20-40 feet.  Walleye are often captured with flat line trolled wally diver type crankbaits and randomly caught with plastic baits while fishing for bass.   Fish the edge of bass habitat in slightly deeper water to find walleye.

Striped bass fishing is heating up from Good Hope to Hite where trolling leads to decent catches of fat fish up to 6 pounds. In the main lake stripers are still waiting for the spawning trigger.  Males from 2-4 pounds are holding in 25 to 40 feet of water eating plankton and a few crayfish. Schools are very active at dusk and dawn. Troll shallow running crankbaits, swimbaits, or bucktail jigs to locate a school. Once found, return to these spots every night and morning to catch another cooler full of fat stripers from stationary schools. During the day fishing success drops off, although this week there has been a noticeable increase in school size and some have been willing to greedily attack spoons for short periods morning and evening.  Large females are still mysteriously sulking during the day. They can be caught at night near schooling males.

One of these nights spawning will occur.  Those lucky enough to witness the event will be able to catch stripers on every cast for hours. Spawning fish will range from 2 pounds at the smallest to 50 pounds plus for adult females.  They will all be mixed together so a 2-pound fish could be caught followed by 30-pounder.  Cast a single hook on a bucktail jig after dark to prevent hooking your hand during lure removal. Striper spawning is a singular event that should be on any anglers bucket list. I have been fortunate enough to have witnessed this event only about 5 times in 30 years.    Night fishing is not my favorite but conditions are right this week for striper spawning to occur.

Here is the plan.  Choose a calm night when water temperature has increased from the low 60s in the morning to mid 70s in the evening. Choose a warm night when water temperature remains high. That triggers the females and spawning occurs.  Find the male aggregation by trolling or casting to prominent points at dusk. Sometimes surface splashing near shore at dusk marks the spawning coves. Anchor the boat one long cast from shore. It is fine to catch males while waiting for the bigger fish to move in.   This event is the only fishing experience that exceeds a major striper boil lasting longer than an hour.  The time is close. I hope you find them.

Smallmouth action is at it’s best and stripers are on hold as for as the “anchovie” bite goes.  Top water action is only a month out and it shows to be excellent.  Stumbled across a few Walleye this week as well which is always excellent.

Capt. Bill

Photo Caption: Ray Young, retired fishing guide from Page AZ,  caught a 15.4 pound striped bass in Navajo Canyon using a whole anchovy on a slow trolling rig about 2 hours after dark. Stripers are nearing the spawn which makes them active at night and dormant during the day. Trophy fish are more likely to be caught at night during May.

Lake Powell Fish Report – May 1, 2012
Lake Elevation: 3635
Water Temperature 64-66 F
By: Wayne Gustaveson

On Hold!

Lake Powell is stable and holding at elevation 3635 (MSL) where it has been for over a month.  Water flowing in equals water flowing out with no sign of increased runoff.  This means that bass and crappie nests are still visible.  Water temperature is holding in the low 60’s which is ideal for excellent bass, walleye and crappie fishing.    The end result is ideal fishing conditions that will continue for a few more weeks. Here are the details.

Bass have mostly pulled off the nests as fry have hatched following a good spawn in mid April.  But males still guard the swimming fry for a time and are in close proximity to the nest.  Bass are seen cruising in shallow water rather than guarding each nest. But it’s not over.  Soon guarding males will abandon swimming fry and reoccupy the nest. They spawn again and start the process over again.  The difference this year is that anglers will be able to see nests in May that are usually covered by murky runoff.  Males will now randomly spawn and guard nests depending on where they are in their individual nesting/spawning cycle.  The end result will be visible bass which are very aggressive on nests shortly after eggs are deposited but slacking off in aggressiveness a day or two after the event.   Crappie follow a similar pattern but their second spawn is weaker than large and smallmouth bass.

Immature bass have really moved into the shallows at the edge of deep water. Young smallmouth are on the edge of the rocky channels and coves while young largemouth are in the brush thickets.  Both species are eager to hit plastic grubs and senkos.

Walleye fishing improves each day.   Many bass anglers catch walleye while fishing for bass. Those specifically targeting walleye with worm harnesses and slow trolling bottom bouncers are doing even better.    Walleye depth is 12 to 25 feet with best location being on the edge of the shallows with deep water access nearby.  Best time to fish is in subdued light of early morning or late evening. It is possible to find a good bass reef while fishing during the day and then return to the same spot after dark to find it taken over by walleye.

Darn stripers!  These critters are thinking about spawning but are not quite ready. That means males stake out a point off the main lake near a potential spawning cove and wait for females to arrive.  The cove would normally be less than 30 feet deep.  Male stripers have been ready to spawn since early April but females are still holding off, hence the inconsistency of striper fishing right now.  Once in place males don’t move much and are often dormant during the day.  They can be found by trolling and casting near points.  Spawning will not occur until females are stimulated to spawn by rapidly rising water temperature and increased inflow near a flowing tributary.  The earliest spawn has come near May 10 and has been delayed as late as June 10.  Finding a spawning striper school is the only thing better than fishing a boil.  The only problem is that it all happens at night.

When trolling for stripers and everything is dialed in like the fish position on the fish finder, wind speed and fish taking the trolled bait, mark that position on the shore line.  Immediately then wind drift back over that area with a fly rod and a full sink line and any shad type fly.  Use a fast retrieve back to the boat.  It is worth several  passes before you resume trolling for the next school of fish.  A great way to breakup the fishing day if you are also at Fly Fisherman at heart.

Photo Caption: Autumn and dad Dave McQuitty caught a 5-lb Striper trolling with a deep diving white bomber near mud line at Hite. Stripers are fat and healthy but the big news is about large and smallmouth bass moving into the shallows to spawn.

Lake Powell Fish Report – April 18, 2012
Lake Elevation: 3635
Water Temperature 55-65 F
By: Wayne Gustaveson

Bass Return to Beds

It is the third week of April and true to form bass are returning to the shallows to spawn.  There was some early nest building during the first week of April which happens only occasionally, but the actual spawn will occur during the coming week.

Male bass build the nest, guard the eggs, and protect the young during the first two weeks after hatching.  They are amazingly aggressive and will attack anything that moves for the first day or two after spawning.   Every fish that gets too close is chased away. Every lure that is dropped on the highly visible nest is immediately picked up and moved away from the eggs.   With each successive day aggression declines as the male bass becomes accustomed to the mundane life of housekeeping and removing offending lures.

He is saved as the eggs hatch (3-5 days) and black fry swim up to feed (another 3 days).  He stays with the young until the temperature changes again stirring spawning hormones. He then returns to the nest, sweeps it with his tail, invites a girl over for dinner and a movie and spawns once more.

Each mature male bass occupies his nest 3-5 times during the spring spawning season. Some nests are abandoned prior to spawning following a temperature drop.  Other nests are spawned on two or three times with different ages of eggs and fry on the same nest resulting from the vagaries of weather.  In the end a male bass usually ends up producing two successful broods each spring.

Lake Level has not increased appreciably in the last week. Water in the main lake is crystal clear.  Sight fishing for bass and crappie will be somewhere between awesome and amazing in the main lake during the next two weeks.  Bass also spawn in murky water but they are not easy to see near the muddy inflow areas.

Striped bass have shown some movement and increased schooling behavior.  They still seem to be associated with trees in the 25 foot depth range.  Recently there have been good reports of stripers being caught trolling over treetops in clear water.  When a school is found they are very cooperative and many fish can be caught from the same spot. Unfortunately, these clear water schools are on the move and not often caught in the same location two days in a row.

The best strategy when looking for stripers is to troll quickly over a likely looking shallow tree forest as you change locations from one bass or crappie spot to the next.  Don’t spend a lot of time on stripers until a school is located.  Then make quick work of catching 20 or 30 by trolling back and forth over the stationary school.

Walleye fishing has improved dramatically in the past week.  Warming water and limited forage results in hungry walleye that are eager to find a meal.  Fish points and drop-offs near the main channel at the magic depth of 12-15 feet for walleye action. Morning and evening twilight are the best times while live worms are the best bait.

Looks like a good time to be fishing at Lake Powell.

Jarrod with a nice 7lb. striper Trolling shad rapp in 15′ of water - Warm Creek

4-12-12

John with a nice 2lb. Crappie at Lake Powell plus 7 nice stripers 4-14-12

Justin (Jarrod’s Dad) with a nice striper 4-12-12

Photo caption: Wayne and Mark Gustaveson had a fun day fishing for bass. Water is warming allowing bass to move into shallow water  to spawn. The fish can be readily seen and caught.  Bass Fishing will be great for spawning bass for the next 3 weeks

Lake Powell Fish Report – Lake Elevation: 3635
Water Temperature 52-60 F
By: Wayne Gustaveson

Fishing is fantastic as long as you are fishing for bass in the afternoon.  Bass spawning is imminent.  It may take another week due to unsettled weather but fishing will remain very good for bass for the rest of the month.  Water temperature still declines into the mid 50s overnight but by afternoon water in the backs of the canyons and coves warms to the mid 60s.  This warming and cooling cycle produces the best bass fishing of the year.

Sight fishing for very big bass makes fishing very exciting.  Bass are cruising the shallow shoreline looking for nests sites.  Water is often crystal clear making bass very visible as they leisurely swim from one clump of brush to the next.  The secret to actually catching bass is to put the lure in front of them before you see each other.  Bass can see you as well as you see them.  One approach is to mark the spot where a large bass or nest is seen.  Return a few hours later.  Throw a long cast to the bush where the bass lives.  Let the bait rest on bottom for at least a minute or two and then twitch it once.  That should result in a hook up if the bass is still there.  The best lure this week was a 5 or 6 inch Yamamoto Senko fished on an offset worm hook.  Fish it very patiently.

The good news about early warming and small runoff is that sight fishing for cruising and nesting bass may be prolonged into May. Bass nests made this week may still be visible and only a foot or two deeper during May.  Bass fishing will be good enough that all anglers will be successful.  So remember to release largemouth bass and male smallmouth bass that are guarding nests. It is fine to keep smallmouth bass 12 inches and smaller.

Crappie are hanging in the submerged trees and are visible in clear water.  They too will be on nests by the third week of April if not earlier.  Crappie limit is 10 fish as we try to protect the population for future years when brush inevitably declines and survival of young crappie will be more difficult.  Keep 10 crappie and release the rest for another day.

Striped bass are a bit of a mystery.  Yearling stripers up to 15 inches are eating plankton in the back of the canyons in treetops where bottom depth is 15-25 feet.  Trees stick up to 5-10 feet under the surface. Trolling and casting very shallow running crankbaits is most effective during morning and evening hours.  Larger stripers make occasional appearances in the treetops but most of the time they are missing in action.  Finding big stripers is a random event.  The most successful pattern is to troll or fish deep running spoons and jigs along drop-offs where depth changes rapidly from 40 to 25 feet. Isolated schools are very cooperative when found but very difficult to locate.

Adult stripers are not often seen on the graph in deep water, and are more likely to be found toward the back of the canyon or along the edge of the main channel. They have not moved toward the channel or the Dam.  Do not expect to find large numbers of stripers in the deep water channel this spring.  They are fat and lazy living off stored fat from the many shad that were eaten last fall.  They will stay in the backs of canyons until water warms into the 70s.

Fishing will be excellent during the rest of April in between the cold storm fronts of springtime.

STRIPER FISHING

In the Spring freshwater Stripers will start staging the holding pattern mostly by school size. If your catching 1 to 2 pound class fish in the backs of canyons either fish  deeper or move out the channel then find the cover and try for larger fish. After the larger fish are caught be prepared for the smaller ones to show up again.

Captain Bill

Water temps vary from areas on Lake from 54-60 degrees throughout the day.

Largemouth have moved into the shallows to spawn in stained water. Smallmouth have moved to clear water close to the back of canyons.  Schoolie stripers are still on the submerged tree lines in the back of canyons.  Crappie are beginning to nest in the backs of canyons.  Smallmouth, largemouth, stripers and crappie were all caught yesterday on our Charter.