Irvine Lake catfish still chewing; trout opener slated for November 6
Good numbers of catfish are still on tap at Irvine Lake, reported general manager Dave Noyes. "Plenty of eating-size cats from 2 to 6-pounds are on the stringers this week, but a few of the big ones are still around to be caught", commented Noyes. "The trick is to flyline [no sinker] the baits so that the catfish don't feel any resistance."

Favored baits for the whiskerfish were mackerel, shrimp, skipjack and bonito. Productive locations were the west shore, boat dock cove, Santiago Flats and near the dam.

Bass fishing remains good for largemouth in the 2 to 5-pound category. Best tempters are dropshot-rigged plastics and jigs fished at 15 feet along the red clay cliffs and Rocky Point. Some good size crappie to 2 pounds were caught on white Atomic Tubes and 2-inch Gulp! Minnows under floating lanterns. A few bluegill and redear were caught on mealworms and waxworms.

Anglers are reminded that the final late-night catfish session of the year will be Saturday night, October 31. The lake will then be open from 6:00 AM to 4:00 PM on Sunday, November 1. After that, the lake will be CLOSED to the public from Monday, November 2 through Thursday, November 5.

For the first time ever, Thursday, November 5 will be "VIP Fishing Day", and for $150, members of the public will be allowed to fish a day ahead of everybody else. Price includes a New York steak lunch, and shared motor boat rental [5-trout limit in force]. Advance reservations are required for VIP Day; Call Daniela in the Pro Shop [714-649-9111] no later than October 28.

Friday, November 6 will mark opening day of the 2010-11 trout season, and the winter schedule will be 6:00 AM to 4:00 PM, 7 days a week. Some 20,000 pounds of trout will be planted during the 4-day closed period just before the opener. The majority of the stocking will be rainbow trout in the 1 to 6-pound class, along with some steelhead, brookies and brown trout. A liberal sprinkling of larger-grade fish from 8 to 12 pounds, and even some real trophy trout to over 20 pounds will be providing major-league thrills.

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:

- Mitch Potillor, Walnut, 11.2 lb cat on mackerel at the Dam
- Mel Flagel, Silverado, 11.12 lb limit of cats on mackerel at Santiago Flats
- John Chapman and Phil Hildenbrandt, two limits of cats totaling 40 lbs, Skipjack at Santiago Flats
- Nick Vega, Garden Grove, 15 lb blue cat, bonita, Santiago Flats
- Fred Amburgey, Costa Mesa, 11.6 lb cat, mackerel, mid-lake
- Ronson Smothers, Los Angeles, 49.6 lb sturgeon, mackerel, mid-lake
- Omar Banks, Rialto, 12.14 lb channel cat, mackerel, at the Dam
- Tony Hernandez, Orange, 8.8 lb channel cat, mackerel, at the Dam
- Fred Grainger, Rialto, 8.0 lb channel cat, mackerel, at the Dam