ARNOLD – On Saturday, June 24, I got the long-awaited news from Bill Reynolds of Ebbetts Pass Sporting Goods that the road leading to Spicer Reservoir from Highway Four had been opened.
Spicer Reservoir, at the North Fork of the Stanislaus River Basin, gives anglers and boaters the chance to battle beautiful square-tailed rainbow trout and brown trout from fry or wild trout hatchlings that spawn in Hobart Creek, Highland Creek and other tributaries of the lake.
“The lake is full to the brim and the first fishermen to fish in the reservoir have rapid trout catch limits,” Reynolds said.
I headed to the tank the next day on Highway Four and stopped at Arnold’s store to pick up hooks, granules, bait and other pieces for my first catch in Spicer since the COVID pandemic began in California. After purchasing my equipment, I headed to the tank, turning right on Spicer Reservoir Road toward the lake.
When I got close to the dam, the stunningly beautiful lake, absolutely full of melted snow this year.
Fly fishermen kayaking fished in both directions near the dam, with snow-capped peaks emerging in the distance as fluffy white clouds moved slowly across the azure blue sky.
There were several teams of fishermen fishing on the shore near the dam, but I didn’t see anyone hanging anything while I was there for ten minutes, so I headed to the boat release area. About a dozen boat trailers were in the parking lot. lot.
Fly fishing enthusiasts who fish in small boats worked in the waters of Hobart Creek where it enters the lake. The creek is open for fishing from the Saturday before Memorial Day until September 30. Only synthetic lures can be used. The creek boundary is two trout, while the lake boundary is five trout.
The first angler I saw fishing in the lake near the boat launch reported catching and releasing two rainbow trout about 16 inches long while casting a black and gold Panther Martin.
I threw 1/4 ounce gold Kastmasters into the tank without success. So I switched to bait fishing with Reynolds’ Sunrise PowerBait Tequila. On my first pitch elsewhere, I hooked and landed a 14-inch rainbow.
For the next hour, the action was excellent, I hooked an almost very thrown fish. These fish were beautiful slender rainbows of 14 to 16 inches. I kept a total of 4 trout.
I spoke with Keith Pierce about Murphys when he and his 12-year-old son, Hunter, his 11-year-old daughter, Bella, and his wife, Christina, stopped at the dock with their boat.
“We caught a total of 11 fish, added two German browns and kept 4 fish for dinner,” Pierce said.
Three other fishermen, in addition to Dustin and Duane Newman, also reported success. They caught a total of 14 trout, all rainbows, while fishing with bait from a boat.
On the weekend of July 4, Pierce and his circle of relatives returned to Spicer and reported catching and releasing many trout while dumping white plastic larvae into the lake. They ended up staying two trout for dinner.
According to a report on the lake by CDFW district fisheries biologist Ben Ewing in December 2017, Spicer includes a fishery supplemented through a hatchery and a component of wild trout spawning in the lake’s tributaries. CDFW plants rainbow and brown trout fingerlings in Spicer year.
The lake, officially known as Spicer Meadow Reservoir, is located in eastern Tuolumne County and western Alpine County, 39 miles south of South Lake Tahoe. Stanislaus River of North Fork.
Spicer is owned by the Calaveras County Water District (CCWD), operated through the Northern California Energy Agency (NCPA), and licensed through the U. S. Forest Service.
“Spicer lately has recreational fishing for brook trout, Lahontan cutthroat trout (LCT), brown trout (BN) and rainbow trout (RT),” Ewing said in the report. “Historically, Spicer had a brown catfish fishery. “
To assess the fishery, CDFW installed a fishermen’s survey box (SBA) at the public boat launch in 2015. Fishermen were asked to complete a voluntary survey form similar to their fishing experience.
Ewing noted that catches consistent with angling for bait fishermen were more consistent than any other gear form used in 2018, which also had the average catch consistent with angling in 2015.
“Most of the fish caught were rainbow trout for the third consecutive sampling season, which is consistent with storage records,” he said. 2018. This indicates that Spicer has a wild population of TBI. “
Although Spicer still has the highest catch rates, the vast majority of fish caught are still less than 16 inches, Ewing noted.
“Spicer fishermen have the opportunity to catch a variety of catchable-sized salmonids that are in wonderful physical shape and fight harder than a ‘pull and take’ farmed trout,” the report concludes.
Other trout fishing features at Ebbetts Pass Domain include White Pines Lake, North Fork of the Stanislaus River and Angels Creek. Alpine Lake is also a popular spot for anglers and boat fishermen looking for trout.
Information: Ebbetts Pass Sporting Goods, (209) 795-1686, https://ebbettspasssportinggoods. com.