The all-around action at Irvine Lake couldn't have gotten much better than it has been for the past week, reported Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. "We've had very good fishing for trout, bass, catfish, carp, and crappie", observed Getty. "Trout are being caught all over Santiago Flats at 20 to 25 feet. Many people are getting limits in just a couple of hours. The bass fishing is still exceptional too.

"We've been seeing some trout anglers breaking out the 'old school' methods, including the Pinched 'Crawler on a jighead and suspended at 20 feet, and also the cast-a-bubble rigged to sink extra-slow."

Getty added, "Our big catfish season opener will be on Friday June 8. After the opener, summer hours will go into effect; Fridays and Saturdays until midnight, Thursday nights until 11 PM, on Mondays and Wednesdays until 4 PM, and CLOSED on Tuesdays. During catfish night-time tournaments, we will stay open until 2 AM, with the first date for that being the 'King of the Cats' event on June 9." Local guide Hubert Zimara of KFGS Service related: "We caught a bunch of nice trout just trolling for a couple of hours in the middle of the day, using 2 to 4 colors of leadcore line. Most of the fish were at Santiago Flats and mid-lake, and ranging from 1 to 3 pounds. Best lures were red/chartreuse or brook trout-color Rapala Countdown CD03's, and silver Tasmanian Devils."

Other trollers found good response from the trout while using red/chartreuse Rapala Ultralight Shad ULS04's, and Jointed Rapala J05's and J07's in brown trout or brook trout colors. Leadcore line trollers favored the cop-car color Luhr Jensen Needlefish. Bass fishing continues to be phenomenally good, with largemouth in the 2 to 4-pound range responding to almost any legitimate bass-fishing technique. Fish were reported on plastics, jigs, reaction baits, Senkos, topwaters like Rapala Skitter-Walks, and jerkbaits like Rapala X-Rap XR10's and XR12's in shad-imitating colors in just about any rocky or brushy area.

Catfish chasers found the kitties all over in the trees at the back of Santiago Flats, in depths from 5 to 30 feet. Best baits were mackerel and shrimp for whiskerfish in the 2 to 6-pound class. Time of day did not seem to matter.

Plenty of crappie are being seen both in the flats and Boat Dock Cove. The slabs are holding at 15 to 17 feet, and white Atomic Tubes with a mealworm trailer are the top tempter. Plenty of bluegill are available in the brushy shallows, but few anglers pursued them this week.

Families with children age 12 and under did well on catfish and very large carp to 8 pounds in the Kids Lagoon, using specialty European carp techniques. The Crappie Classic tournament will take place on Saturday May 19. The one-day only "No Trout Limit" event will be June 2. Surface temperature on the main lake is 68-72 degrees, with underwater visibility rated very clear. The lake level is holding steady.

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
Dwight Hwang of Irvine, 4-6 rainbow trout on PowerBait at the west shore
James Getty of Silverado, 6-1 largemouth bass [released] on a Triple Trout at the west shore
Mitz Onizuka of Irvine, 4-8 channel catfish on shrimp at the flats