October
21,
2009
Rory's Tips:
Quick
update: For those of you who are up early on Wednesday, Oct. 21,
look skyward for meteors from Halley's Comet just before dawn.
There may be other mornings offering increased meteor activity,
but NASA says Wednesday morning is best.
Cooler nights are back, which
means water temperatures in the lakes should be dropping. Some
warmwater lakes may soon experience turnover -- when the upper
stratum of water turns colder than the lower stratum, and they
will change places, sometimes with dramatic results. The
event does not always disrupt fishing, but other times the bite
turns off like a light switch.
So get your fishing in now.
It sounds like one of the hot spots right now is Saguaro Lake
for a mixed bag of fish, including lots of fesity bass in the 1-pound
range and hordes of yellow bass that love gold KastMasters and
yellowish spinners. I had an angler send me pictures of desert
bighorn sheep that blessed his fishing expedition there (see the
Saguaro Lake write-up).
Also try Roosevelt, Bartlett and Havasu. Check out the recent survey
on Apache -- it might be an autumn dark horse (not bad quail country
either). Alamo got blasted with a storm on Tuesday, which may be
its autumn swan song, or it could turn on again by this weekend.
Anglers report seeing lots of rabbits along the road there, and
you might even see some quail.
Bartlett has turned on for
crappie -- check the "crappie report" in
the fishing news below.
Still hearing good reports from most high country lakes. The brown
trout and brook trout should be staging for the spawn. Putting
some salmon eggs on the hook of any lure your use might be a good
tactic. Cutthroat trout will also feed aggressively. This is the
time of year when you can also catch large rainbows (with firm
pink flesh). This is also a great time to catch some larger brookies.
Crescent would be my first choice, but Big Lake can also get you
some nice cuts as well.
Don't forget that tree-squirrel season and waterfowl seasons are
both underway in the high country. Take along the trusty .22 and
your favorite scatter gun. I saw lots of waterfowl hunters in the
White Mountains on the opening weekend.
On
Tuesday, the department stocked trout in Green Valley Lake
in Payson (it's an urban program lake), plus Fain Lake near Prescott,
Oak Creek (should be good colors), Beaver Creek, West Clear Creek
and Patagonia Lake.
Also during the first week of November, the winter trout stockings
will really kick into high gear with stockings at Deadhorse, the
Lower Salt, Parker Canyon, and Patagonia. So once you put away
those Halloween masks, be sure to spool up new line on the fishing
reels.
There is probably one more
week or so of good fishing at Lake Powell. I might even get a
chance to go and update the photo library for the collaborative fishing guide book the depaprtment has
planned with Arizona Highways magazine. The guide is 98-percent
certain but there are still a couple of hoops to jump through.
I'll keep you posted.
Another
good place to hit right now is Lees Ferry -- this is a world-class
fishery where you can experience solitude on most of the best gravel
bars.
Keep in mind they have started stocking trout along Casino Row
in the Bullhead City area of the Colorado River. They also stock
trout at Willow Beach, where you might also see some desert bighorn
sheep.
Last but certainly not least is Fossil Creek for catch-and-release,
single barbless hooks for native chub (only a four-mile stretch
of the creek). I will try to make it there this week and check
out the fall colors. This travertine creek is special. Be sure
to take along a camera. It's a long, dusty and bumpy road to get
there, but the visual rewards are superb.
Don't miss out on the great autumn
fishing experiences. Maybe I'll see you out there.
Fishing News
Crappie Report: Good News from
Barlett
Since my last report I’ve heard real good news from Bartlett.
Several anglers have reported good numbers of Crappie been caught
up river trolling crankbaits and grubs. Plus much to my surprises
many small Crappie under 10” are being caught. This is very
good news as for the past few years we have worried that Bartlett
Crappie may not be spawning. The only catch is that SRP in drawing
the lake down for dam inspections/ repairs and the water level
is dropping fast. Because of this the bite has started to slow
down a little so the time to try Bartlett is now. And be careful
up river as there may be hazards that are not marked yet.
This past week Roosevelt has shown signs that the fall/ winter
patterns are really getting going. Art Chamberlin of C&C Guide
Service caught 18 nice slabs on the Tonto end the other day and
a few anglers have done well on the Salt end as well. Many avid
Rosey Crappie anglers believe that the time is right for the bite
to explode. As the weather cools off it’s a great time for
a weekend camping trip to Rosey. Cholla and Windy Hill are my favorite
spots to camp.
I haven’t heard any reports from Alamo or San Carlos this
week. However, Alamo has always been a great place to catch big
AZ slabs in the winter. Plus the camp sites there are very nice.
San Carlos is at about 3% and can be dangerous to launch and navigate,
so be careful.
If you need any help with tips or tackle you can find me at Bass
Pro Shops in Mesa Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 7 pm
in the fishing department.
Bill (Piscolli) Eveland
BPS/ AZCA
Despite
Economy, Tackle & Fishing License Sales Up 8 Percent
Sales increase mirrors recreational fishing's heyday in the 1960s
and 1970s
ALEXANDRIA, VA (Oct. 20, 2009) - The Recreational Boating & Fishing
Foundation (RBFF) and the American Sportfishing Association (ASA)
today announced the publication of a quarterly fishing license
sales index to track trends that have an impact on the industry
and the entire recreational fishing community.
"Not since the 1970s have we seen a single-year increase in fishing license
sales like we've seen so far in 2009," said ASA President and CEO Mike Nussman. "Understanding
how the needle moves in terms of sport-fishing participation is important not
just for the sport-fishing industry, but for the entire outdoor recreation
community. This new license metric will provide everyone with important sales
and participation information."
"Our recent research shows that fishing is the number one gateway activity
for introducing children and their families to the outdoors," said RBFF President
and CEO Frank Peterson. "We believe that national campaigns such as Take Me
Fishing™ and state-based sport-fishing marketing and direct mail are
also having a positive effect."
As of Sept. 1, 2009, state fish and wildlife agencies reported
a 7.7 percent positive change in the number of licenses sold year-to-date
compared to the same months last year (January - July 2009 vs.
January - July 2008). The same states also saw a seven percent
increase in the number of licenses sold in July 2009 compared with
July 2008.
According to Southwick Associates, the firm analyzing the data,
fishing license sales increased at a faster rate in the first quarter
of 2009 compared to the second quarter. Increases of 20 percent
or more were common in the first quarter. However, a larger volume
of sales occurred in the second quarter – the peak period
for license sales nationally – and had a greater effect
on the year-to-date sales trend than first quarter license sales.
After standardizing the July index to contain the same states as
previous months, license sales increased nearly a full percentage
point over May and June sales. In general, more fishing licenses
are sold during the second quarter (April, May, June) than any
other time of the year.
"Reasons for the 2009 license sales increases range from a slow economy, which
may allow people more time to engage in outdoor activities, to recreational
fishing being a lower cost alternative to other forms of recreation," said
Peterson.
"When the index moves by just a tenth of a point, 40,000 anglers have entered
or quit sport-fishing. Considering the typical angler spends $176 a year on
just fishing tackle alone, and contributes over $40 annually to conservation
via license dollars and excise taxes, a small change in the index represents
big changes on the ground," said Nussman.
Visit azgfd.gov.
http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/where_fish.shtml