Trout anglers at Irvine Lake tallied trout to 12 pounds this week using a variety of techniques, reported Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. "Shore anglers are doing best in the early mornings, and should cast out further as the morning goes on", observed Getty. "Trollers are doing well pretty much all day long, but it really gets going in the afternoons."

Bait dunkers are getting their fish on several different baits, with the hottest being Gulp! Pinched Crawlers and Power Bait Mice Tails, but also stretching to the unusual, like shrimp marshmallows. Best locations for soaking bait were Boat Dock Cove and Woody's Cove.

Trollers dragged both the reliable firetiger-color Rapala Countdown CD3's and CD5's, and also Rapala X-Rap XR4's and XR6's in hot pink and red/chartreuse at mid-lake and Santiago Flats.

Most trout are ranging in the 2 to 5-pound class, with some better-grade rainbows to 12 pounds spicing up the stringers. A few brown trout were also seen, but it is thought that several steelhead were mis-identified by anglers as being standard rainbows, and were not reported. Posters are up in the Pro Shop to assist anglers with correctly ID'ing the spirited steelies.

Bass anglers are finding their quarry starting to stage for the spawn, with good numbers of 1 to 5-pound largemouth being highlighted by the occasional bucketmouth to 8 pounds. Good locations for bass anglers included the Red Clay Cliffs, Rocky Point, and the west shoreline. Increasing numbers of crappie are being caught incidentally by trout trollers, and a few catfish can be found feeding actively where water runs into the lake.

Families with children age 12 and younger found good action in the Kids Lagoon on trout in the 1 to 3 pound class, using Mice Tails and Power Bait. Surface temperatures in the main lake reached the low 60's. Be sure to drop by and say hello to the gang at the Irvine Lake booth at the Fred Hall Show this week in Long Beach.

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Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included: Bob Fowler of Seattle, 12-0 rainbow trout on Power Bait at Boat Dock Cove Robert Moore of Moreno Valley, 11-0 rainbow trout on shrimp marshmallows at Woody's Cove Dave Pierson of Garden Grove, 10-10 rainbow trout on a Power Worm at Woody's Cove Rob Russo of Huntington Beach, 3-10 brown trout on a Kastmaster at Trout Island John Morrow of Placentia, 8-8 largemouth bass [released] on a swimbait at the west shore Mitz Onizuka of Irvine, 4-1 channel catfish on mackerel at the creek Howie Childs of Lake Forest, 5-trout limit totaling 23-1, topped by a 7-1 rainbow, on River-2-Sea lures at mid-lake