WILLIAMS
LAKES:
KAIBAB
LAKE - Fish on the bottom with corn and worms. Some
nice largemouth bass were caught during our electrofishing
surveys along with quite a few trout. The majority of the
bass were in the 1 lb range with a few up to about 4 lbs. Quite
a few bluegill were also caught. Crappie and bluegill fishing
was good on flies, especially crayfish patterns.
CATARACT
LAKE - Stocked with catfish. Lots of nice size channel catfish
and largemouth bass were caught during our electrofishing surveys. The
biggest bass were in the 4-5 lb range and there were lots of
catfish in the 3- to 5-pound range.
CITY
RESERVOIR - Stocked with catfish. One of our interns
caught 2 catfish on flies last weekend.
DOGTOWN
LAKE - Stocked last week. Fishing was fair to good
on marshmallows. A few large brown trout have been reported
by lure anglers. We caught a lot of small crappie along with
some nice size brown trout during our electrofishing surveys.
JD
DAM - Road is open.
RUSSELL
TANK - Lake is to shallow to stock.
SANTA
FE - Lake is full. Stocked with catfish.
WHITEHORSE LAKE - No report. With the monsoons hiting the area,
the fishing should be decent when the barometer is dropping. Other
than that, try fishing deep using traditional baits.
FLAGSTAFF LAKES:
LOWER
LAKE MARY - Fishing was fair to good during the week
using worms fished about 3 ½-4 feet below a bobber. Some fish
were also being caught on pink Power Bait. Fishing is better
early in the morning or late in the evening, but fish were
being caught in the middle of the day, especially when the
sun went behind a cloud. Fishing was better a couple of hundred
yards uplake from the dam compared to fishing right off of
the dam. Fish seem to be growing quickly with some larger
fish (12-14 inch) being caught.
UPPER
LAKE MARY - Perch were being caught on the upper
part of the lake near the weeds and in the narrows area on
worms. Pike were being caught in the same areas on anchovies. Catfish
are starting to be caught on the upper end of the lake with
our creel clerks checking a 12 lb cat caught on anchovies and
a 17-pound cat caught trolling.
ASHURST
LAKE - We sampled the lake in mid April and caught mostly large
(10+ Lbs) pike in our nets, only 1 trout was caught. Some large
pike and a few trout were bring caught. The folks were fishing
the south end of the lake from shore. Has been stocked
FRANCIS
SHORT POND - Fishing was good. Catfishing was good
on hotdogs, chicken and corn/hotdog combo. Trout were being
caught on corn near the inflow area and on the dam.
KINNIKINICK
LAKE - Road is open. Stocked last week
MARSHALL
LAKE - No report
OAK
CREEK - Fishing was good for brown trout and rainbow
trout. Use flies for browns and bait for rainbows. Scheduled
to be stocked
LONG
LAKE - Road is open,
SOLDIERS & SOLDIERS
ANNEX - Road is open
BEAVER
CREEK/WEST CLEAR CREEK - No report.
STONEMAN
LAKE - NO FISH.
VERDE
VALLEY
BEAVER
CREEK/WEST CLEAR CREEK - Fishing for trout is fair
and fair to poor for smallmouth bass. Try night crawlers for
the trout and small crayfish-like lures on ultra lights for
the smallmouth.
DEAD
HORSE STATE PARK - Catfish were stocked the week of
April 19 and June 12. Frozen anchovies or night crawlers should
work best for them. Bass and bluegill are also active. If
you would like your child to catch their first fish, Bluegill
can be easily caught with a number 10 hook with a small pieces
of worm under a bobber. These will not be large bluegill, but
they can be a lot of fun for little ones to catch.
Trout stocking will resume in the fall.
OAK
CREEK - Stocked weekly through the end of summer.
Fishing was good for brown trout and rainbow trout. Use flies
for browns and bait for rainbows.
VERDE
RIVER (throughout Verde Valley) - Bass fishing has
been good using small spinners and curly tailed grubs. Both
largemouth bass and smallmouth bass abound in the river between
Clarkdale and Camp Verde. Look for some depth in pools with
shady overhangs. Always check your regulations before fishing
this area with live bait. Game and Fish Commission Rule requires
anglers to only use live bait that has been caught in the river. No
transporting of live baitfish or crayfish is allowed.
PRESCOTT
AREA
FAIN
LAKE - Incentive Trout were stocked just before the
Fourth. That was the last trout stocking until the fall. Fishing
is best immediate following the stocking. Bright colored Power
Bait, worms lures and flies all seem to work well. Catfish and
Bluegill were stocked last the week of June 12th. Anchovies are
your best bet for the catfish.
GOLDWATER
LAKE - Trout were recently stocked. In general, fishing has not
been as good this year as it was the last few years.
The lake has been near full all year so trout may be using areas
of the lake that require anglers to experiment more. Typically
in the summer months, water temperatures force trout into deeper
areas. Anglers should try fishing in 15 to 20 feet of water with
bait floating just off the bottom.
The sunfish and bass should be actively biting. One angler reported
catching two bass after fishing hard all day, but they were 2 –
6 lbs.
Game and Fish has been trying to boost the some of the warm water
species in Goldwater. Bass and catfish have been stocked three
times over the last three years. The bass are being stocked to
give a boost to a dwindling population in the lake and to reduce
the excessive number of crayfish. Please practice catch and release
with the bass, while the population gets re-established.
Game and Fish Biologists surveyed Goldwater on Sept. 15, 2009
and found bass and catfish populations to be much improved over
last year. The number of green sunfish was greatly reduced. The
bass had a successful spawn last year. If you fish Goldwater
and are having luck, please e-mail me at mchmiel@azgfd.gov so
I can share your successes with others.
Granite Basin –The bass and bluegill are starting to bite, but
it is still slow. If you fish Granite Basin and are having luck,
please e-mail me at mchmiel@azgfd.gov so
I can share your successes with others.
LYNX
LAKE - Brook trout were stocke the week of June 21st.
Rainbow Trout were last stocked, the week of June 14th. This
is the last scheduled trout stocking until the fall due to high
water temperatures. Catfish and Bluegill were stocked on June
12th. Fishing should really pick up following the stocking.
Trout can be caught on Power Bait, corn, or spinners. The brookies
tend to feed near the bottom. Cut anchovies, night crawlers or
hot dog are your best bet for catfish.
Lynx can be difficult to fish, if you are not catching anything
try moving to a new spot. There are some good spots on the north
end of the lake that don’t get fished as heavily as the south end
does. Again, at Lynx, there is not oxygen for fish below 20-feet
at Lynx. So fish in 15-18 feet using a floating bait such as PowerBait
or marshmallow.
Fingerling brook trout were stocked Sept. 17 ,2009.
MINGUS LAKE – Trout were stocked last the week of June 14. That
was the last scheduled stocking until September. The gate is open. The
best bait is usually orange, pink, or white Power Bait, fished
on the bottom with a treble hook and an egg sinker. Fishing can
be really good at times, because angler use is lower than other
lakes in the area. This lake is more remote than the other Prescott
area lakes and not very big.
Someone illegally stocked yellow bullhead into Mingus several
years ago. These fish compete directly with the trout and keep
growth rates very low. If you witness anyone, anywhere, moving
fish like bass, bluegill, catfish and stocking them, please report
it to our Operation Game Thief Hotline at 1-800-352-0700. Illegal
stockings cost YOU money!
WATSON – No new reports- The fishing should be picking up by now,
but I have not heard of many anglers fishing Watson. Both Bass
and catfish should be active by now. Large numbers of small crappie
are in Watson, but I have not heard about people catching them.
Game and Fish Biologists surveyed Watson last fall and found the
bass, sunfish, and bullhead to be plentiful. Crappies were also
doing well. Look for the crappie fishing to pick up in a year
or two. If you fish Watson and are having luck, please e-mail me
at mchmiel@azgfd.gov so
I can share your successes with others.
WILLOW
CREEK RESERVOIR - The fishing has picked up. Anglers
continue to have success catching bass. Plastics seem to be
working the best for now.
If you fish Willow and are having luck, please e-mail me at mchmiel@azgfd.gov so
I can share your successes with others.
OTHER
WAYS TO GET THE FISHING REPORT:
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