Irvine Lake sees monster 50-pound blue cat leading up to June 6 catfish night-time opener


The summer season is officially here at Irvine Lake, as a huge 50 pound blue catfish reminded everyone just what a special catfish spot it is, reported Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. "The catfish have been biting well for almost a month, and the 50-pounder that was caught this weekend really show it", observed Getty. "The big catfish was battled for 45 minutes by veteran angler Eric Hagen, and expertly netted by Chris Hagopian, using the huge salmon net he always carries with him. Hagen was using 20-pound test line, a 4/0 J-hook, and a mackerel fillet at about 1:00 in the afternoon."


Getty added, "We are stocking thousands of pounds of large channel catfish over 6 pounds each this week, and our first night catfish session will be Friday night, June 6. After that we will be open Friday and Saturday nights until Midnight, and on Thursday nights until 11 PM. All of our other fish species are also biting very well."


The catfish of course are not looking at the calendar, and good stingers of 2 to 8-pound channel cats have been biting on mackerel and shrimp at Rocky Point and Santiago flats. Most experienced catfish anglers know that you can choose to go for a limit of eating-size channels, or concentrate on big fish.


The way to garner a limit of channel cats is to use 8-12 pound test line and a size 1 or 1/0 hook, with a 1 inch by 3 inch piece of mackerel. If big fish are on your mind, step up to at least 20 pound test line and a 4/0 to 8/0 hook, with a whole slab of mackerel, or better yet a mackerel head. In both scenarios, absolutely no sinker should be used to give the bait a natural look.


Trouters skilled at deep water presentations did surprisingly well using 3 to 6 colors of leadcore line and a cop-car color Luhr Jensen Needlefish, but some good rainbows were also caught dangling a nightcrawler 6 feet underneath a bobber. Most trout were near the dam or at mid-lake.


Bass anglers in the know located very good numbers of 2 to 4-ound largemouth, with a few larger individuals seen. Bassers scored using topwaters, rip baits, Senkos, and dropshot-rigged plastics. Lots of crappie and bluegill were caught incidentally in the pursuit of other species.


The "Kids Lagoon" will be stocked with catfish this week, and will be open for families with children age 12 and under. Surface temperature on the main lake is 73-75 degrees, with the lake level receding slowly. Underwater visibility is rated gin clear. Summer hours will be: Fridays and Saturdays- 6 AM-Midnight; Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays- 6 AM-4 PM; Thursdays- 6 AM-11 PM; Tuesdays- CLOSED. The "King of the Cats" tournament will take place on Saturday, June 7.


Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
Eric Hagen of Santa Ana, 50-0 blue catfish [released] on mackerel at Rocky Point
Terry Lairson of Anaheim, 13-2 channel catfish on mackerel at Rocky Point
Bill Nelson of Orange, 7-1 largemouth bass on a plastic worm at the west shore
Jesse Gould of Orange, 11-1 rainbow trout on a Power Worm at mid-lake


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