The best fishing is currently up Lake about 40 miles. We are seeing sizable fish and good action. I am recommending a 1/2 day trip 5 hours dock to dock. Full days currently are not very productive as you will see the bite go down after 4 hours and that can be frustrating for the avid angler. Here are some recent photos of this week and last week.
Two distinct patterns are now in place making it much easier for anglers to find stripers. Striped bass adults are hungry for shad that hide in the backs of coves and canyons. Shad are shallow and stripers are deep, guarding the migration route leading to the shad sanctuary. Stripers are found by graphing the submerged creek channel leading to the back of most short coves. Consistent holding depth for striper schools is 40-60 feet.
My search pattern involves graphing the breaking edge of the submerged channel. I like to look at the bottom from 45-50 feet very near the edge leading to shallower water. Lately most fish traces graphed in this zone have been striped bass. Shad, both gizzard and threadfin, are shallow. Bass are in the brush. So any traces in deeper water are likely stripers.
To confirm fish identity drop a spoon straight down, let it hit bottom and then jig it two feet off bottom and let it fall back a couple of times. If no takers speed reel quickly in 15 foot bursts, then jig the spoon once more art mid depth. This gets the attention of resting stripers who then may show interest as the spoon descends to the bottom once more. A combination of speed reeling and rapidly descending spoons usually gets a striper school going within 5 minutes early in the morning.
Second Pattern: Stripers are more often found on steep canyon walls after 9 AM. Cut bait, first chummed and then hooked on a short shank, lightweight jig head is an unbeatable combination right now. Look for a cliff wall than ends near a rocky flat or rockslide where resting stripers have a close venue to forage on crayfish. Chum excites the resting school. Once started, the school feeds for about an hour before shutting down once more. Catches of 25-50 three-pound fish are common right now.
You will find striper school composition with larger fish resting on the bottom (50-60 feet) with mid-sized fish in the middle and small young of year stripers near the surface. Once the school starts feeding the size classes mix and any size fish can be caught. Often a few fish will hit the surface but we have found surface action includes only the small and mid size stripers. Bigger fish are usually deeper.
Regular boils with adult stripers still happen morning and evening near the inflowing water of the Colorado and San Juan.
By: Wayne Gustaveson September 1, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3634 Water Temperature 75-78 F
Bass fishing is steady for those using drop shot rigs and fishing the ends of rocky points leading into the main channel or the submerged creek channels leading to shad sanctuaries.
Fishing is great! Expect to catch lots of stripers. Lake water is still warm so put fish in a cooler on ice. Don’t put them on a stringer in the warm water where decomposition will be accelerated
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Lake Powell Fish Report
By: Wayne Gustaveson August 25, 2010
By: Wayne Gustaveson August 25, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3635 Water Temperature 77-80 F
Lake Powell Fish Report By: Wayne Gustaveson August 25, 2010 Lake Elevation: 3635 Water Temperature 77-80 F The main lake fishery is evolving once more. There is still a separation of shad from the striped bass population but that separation is working to the advantage of the angler. Stripers are hungry making them very vulnerable to angling. At first light this morning we found a few stripers chasing shad near shore. It was not a boil but the splashes observed were obviously made by a handful of stripers. Casts with a shallow running crankbait to the splash rings confirmed 3-4 pound stripers were feeding on top in the predawn light near shore. That action was short lived but soon replaced by a whirlpool of tiny stripers running along the shallow shoreline. These 6-12 inch fish were working the shad schools over in the brush. The tiny tigers would readily hit a 4-inch shallow running crankbait and put up a tremendous struggle for their size. The amazing part was the entourage of 20-40 stripers chasing each hooked fish back to the boat. A glance at the graph confirmed that these fish were schooled under the boat in 20 feet of water. We dropped spoons down to the waiting fish and they immediately began playing volleyball with our spoons. Catching was fast and furious. Later at the fish cleaning station we found that these smaller stripers had more shad in their stomachs than any of the large stripers. After losing contact with the small fish we ran toward the back of Warm Creek. In the middle of the bay near the floating restroom we saw more isolated splashes. Surface lures cast to the splash rings were ignored but the graph indicated a huge school of fish below the boat. Spoons were deployed and stripers (2-5 pounds) were caught every cast for over an hour. Some fish would hit within visual range right under the boat while others were 60-90 feet deep. We just let our spoons free fall waiting for the line to stop or twitch, at which point we took up the slack and set the hook. Spoon fishing is now wide open. Only a few stripers are finding shad while the rest of the school is eagerly hitting anything resembling a shad. If I could only use one lure right now it would be a spoon. This strategy will likely hold for the rest of the year. Bait fishing is still excellent both at night and during the day when stripers have quit chasing on top and go deeper to rest. Stripers are still boiling at Hite for the last 2 hours of daylight each evening. Water temperature is beginning to fall. It will be another two weeks before bass return to shallow water. For now smallmouth bass are still down at 20-35 feet. Largemouth are in the brush. Both species want the bait worked slowly and fairly deep. It takes a while to convince them to bite but they will cooperate with the patient angler. Bass fishing will improve dramatically when water temperature cools another 10 degrees. Catfish and sunfish are still ready and willing. The forage shortage that is beginning makes it wise for all anglers to keep most of the fish caught. Striped bass, 9-12 inch smallmouth, and walleye should all be harvested. Largemouth and crappie should be released as their numbers will decline with a decrease in brush shelter next year. Every small striper caught should be kept as they are the most efficient predator in the lake right now.
By: Wayne Gustaveson August 18, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3636 Water Temperature 78-82 F
Adult stripers are now separated from shad forage in the main lake. Predation from all game fish has been intense and very effective for the past two months. What shad are left have moved shallow into the warmest water with brush where adult stripers cannot effectively follow. Small yearling stripers still chase shad on the surface each morning and evening but large boils are confined to the inflow areas and to isolated coves where stripers have close access to deep cooler water. There will be another short boil season when water temperature drops in late September but for now fishing techniques must change.
While boils have ceased, catching stripers became much easier. Adult stripers are hungry and very willing to eat bait presented to them in holding areas. The classic holding spot features very deep water, such as a steep cliff along the main river channel, which ends suddenly in a shallow flat area, or an isolated rock slide. Stripers without shad search for crayfish which are found under rocks in shallow water. They hold in deep water and make quick feeding trips to rock slides and shallow rocky flats. Just think of areas that have produced good striper fishing in early May when bait fishing is good. All those spots should now be in play once more.
Expect to find striper schools holding at the dam, buoy 3, buoy 9, buoy 12 (Warm Creek Wall), Navajo Canyon, mouth of Labyrinth, Last Chance near main channel rock slides, Rock Creek mouth. At mid lake the mouth of Lake Canyon, slick rock points near Lost Eden, mouth of Halls Creek, Bullfrog Bay (Dome Rock) and points upstream from Moki Wall.
From Good Hope bay upstream shad are still available so striper boils continue. The same is true in the upper San Juan. Stripers are in prime condition where shad are plentiful. Condition is still good in the lower lake but stripers are no longer growing. Average fish weigh 3.5 pounds.
Bass fishing is still good most days for those that fish drop-shot or Carolina rigs with soft plastic baits down to 30 feet. Fish slowly to entice a bite from curious bass.
Catfish are very willing to eat and provide great sport near camp in the evening hours. Numbers of visitors have diminished making the lake more attractive for anglers. With the change in shad forage it is now recommended that all stripers caught be kept. It is time to save shad once more. “Catch and Keep” stripers for the benefit of all fish species in Lake Powell.
By: Wayne Gustaveson August 4, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3636 Water Temperature 80-84 F
Stripers and shad are in transition mode again. “Slurps”, where stripers casually eat tiny shad and ignore most angler offerings, are coming to an end. Shad have grown some, but more importantly stripers have ranged a bit closer to shore and found larger forage to eat. Size of shad found in striper stomachs has doubled in a week’s time. These larger shad are harder for stripers to corner and catch. That makes stripers much more aggressive in pursuing shad and much more likely to hit lures. All of this equates to good times for anglers who love to use surface lures. Striper “boils” have now started.
In July there were countless numbers of finicky pods of complacent stripers popping up randomly throughout the day. Now there will be fewer surface disturbances seen but those that do come up will hold more fish with a larger appetite. Timing will be much the same with early morning and late evening being most productive. But there will be boils found at random times and locations throughout the day.
It is now wise to have a rod rigged with a full size surface lure that can be cast long distances. When fish come up the rod can be quickly deployed and a fish caught as soon as the boat nears the surfacing fish. If the first fish is landed quickly enough a second can be caught from the same school. Boil duration will increase with each day in August.
Best location for boils is Good Hope Bay but this transition period will make fishing exciting and productive over the length of Lake Powell. Expect to find boils close to the main channel in all canyons. Stripers will not go toward the back of the canyons and coves until later in the month or until September if open water shad numbers hold out that long.
Not all splashes will be made by stripers. One-pound smallmouth have seen tantalizing shad schools and moved out into open water. Bass usually feed individually or with 2-3 friends. Small groups of surfacing fish in shallow water near shore will likely be boiling bass. They provide great sport on surface poppers and shallow running jerk baits. Largemouth will also come to the surface to feed. Run buzz baits, stick baits and poppers over submerged treetops at first light in the morning for largemouth action.
Walleye are still found in large numbers in the tree tops from Bullfrog to Hite. Trolling the edge of the tree line in 30 feet of water with medium diving lures that run just above the tree tops is very effective.
Catfish and sunfish are often ignored because of the glamor of their larger cousins but these smaller fish provide great sport for youngsters just learning how to fish. Lake Powell is a great place to teach kids how to fish because their efforts will be rewarded within a short time. Sunfish can be seen swimming around trees and near boats. They can be caught on a small worm-baited hook. Teaching children how to fish is a worthy goal for any family trip.
Remember to clean drain and dry your boat before coming to Lake Powell. It is still mussel free and will remain that way if all boaters practice good mussel defensive practices.
By: Wayne Gustaveson July 28, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3636 Water Temperature 82-87 F
The best feeding period is the last two hours of daylight. On calm evenings it is possible to catch 10-25 surface feeding stripers. If the pesky afternoon wind blows there are not a lot of fish caught.
Expect to see quick little pods of 5-10 stripers busting the surface and then going right back down. If the schools are larger or the small school comes back up a number of times then it is possible to catch more fish. The southern lake is pretty quiet with only a few stripers caught per day. Catch rate is more respectable in the San Juan and at Red Canyon in Good Hope Bay.
It is possible to find a resting school of stripers that will respond to bait. Stripers favor a few deep resting spots and can be caught in good numbers at depths of 30-70 feet. Find stripers on the graph, chum heartily and then drop bait to the depth that stripers were seen. This action is spotty as stripers really prefer to go in search of shad. They may be resting in a deep holding area one day and be gone 3 miles up channel the next.
Expect real boils to begin in mid-August after shad have grown larger.
Bass fishing follows the same pattern. Fish are deep and not very cooperative. Little smallmouth are still shallow and will provide consistent action, but larger fish are as deep as 35-50 feet. All of this will change as surface temperature declines a few degrees and the full moon wanes. This week best fishing will be found on calm evenings during the last two hours of daylight.
Catfish and sunfish are not affected by full moon. They still provide fast action for kids of all ages on live worms near camp.
By Wayne Gustaveson
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3,637 msl
Water Temperature 82-87 F
PAGE, Ariz. — Lake elevation has stabilized and water temperature is at its peak for the summer. It was 84 degrees this morning at sunrise. These factors allow sport fish to settle into a pattern without responding to water level changes. Occasional monsoon cloud bursts are taken in stride without lasting impact.
The water is warmer than most fish prefer sending most deeper during the heat of the day. Young shad take advantage of this and hang out at the surface hoping for separation from lake predators. Striped bass hang out at cooler depth strata but “look up” for a chance at an easy meal from the tiny bait fish. Stripers rise quickly and as a group surround shad, eat quickly and then go back to cooler water. Sometimes the whole process takes a few seconds. At other times a bigger shad school makes it worth working up a sweat to eat more fish and the boil may continue for a few minutes.
Catching fish focused entirely on eating three-quarter inch long larval shad is challenging, especially when the predators have to dive quickly for personal comfort. Here are some tricks to even the playing field a bit until shad have time to grow large enough to be bigger targets.
When a boil is observed try to determine direction of travel so the boat can be in position to cast when fish resurface. The most vulnerable time for slurping stripers is the first time they break surface in attack. Almost any lure cast to a fish as it breaks surface will be eaten.
More likely the boat will be in casting range when the school is headed for deep water. Follow the diving fish with a small diving lure like a Lucky Craft pointer or rattletrap. The most versatile lure is one that will descend quickly to the fish holding depth. Spoons and swim baits can be fished on top, at mid depth and in the deeper cool zone. Vary speed of retrieve until it is apparent that fish want it fast or slow. That speed preference seems to change throughout the day.
Catching slurpers is challenging. This activity is found lake wide and seeing slurps morning and evening is assured. Boiling fish are found more often uplake when cooler water is closer to the surface because of the recent heavy runoff. Best boils and highest catches are coming from Good Hope bay to Hite.
Don’t forget bass with all the surface striper chasing going on. Casting a plastic grub in smoke or watermelon color at fist light in the morning is almost a sure thing. Again the northern lake is best.
Ten-inch smallmouth are ever present over the length of the lake. Little bass and sunfish provide great sport for kids learning how to fish. Take some time out from water sports to teach a youngster the joy of fishing. He or she will be forever grateful. Small hooks and live worms are all that is needed. The same goes for catfish. Fish cats in the evening at supper time and bass in the early morning or under the shade of the houseboat. Can it be that easy? Try it and see.
Lake Level 3637.99
Water Temp: 80-85
Been fishing quite a bit and stripers are best found this month by cruising to locate schools that are constantly moving. This being what I call the 10 year cycle for larger fish in the slurping stage that normally would be the 1-2 lb. schoolies as the nights begin to cool in August. You will be able to spot feeding fish a 1/2 mile away in the mornings. Right now fishing can be excellent on the fly and spin tackle and it will only get better. Had 4 boat trip yesterday with our boat catching the “largest striper’ 5 lbs. Excited for August and Fall especially.
Fountain Ready to Go
By: Wayne Gustaveson July 7, 2010
Lake Elevation: 3638 Water Temperature 79-84 F
Bullfrog Is Boiling!
The main channel upstream from Bullfrog has erupted with significant sustained striper boils. That is the place to be right now. Cruise the main channel from Bullfrog to Good Hope Bay early in the morning or in the evening to find cooperative striped bass chasing shad on the surface. Slurping boils are still seen every day in the main channel near Wahweap but fishing near Bullfrog and upstream is much more rewarding.
Boils are seen more often in the main channel than in the backs of canyons. Shad migrate into the channel in search of plankton where they are found by stripers that have recently completed spawning in main channel areas. Later as shad grow larger they will leave the channels and bays to seek shelter in brush ringed coves. For now, search the channels and bays morning and evening to find hungry striped bass.
The next step in boil progression will be at Hite. The water is now clearing rapidly as runoff has subsided to normal summer flow patterns. With increased visibility shad will migrate into the channels as they have done down lake and stripers will find them. There are more shad in the productive inflow areas. Expect boils to be bigger and stronger each day in the Hite area. That will be the place to be from mid July to the end of the month.
Walleye fishing remains strong from Bullfrog to Hite. Record numbers of walleye were found in northern lake sampling last year. Those fish are hungry and willing to hit live worms, plastic baits and trolled crankbaits. Morning, evening and night are the best times to fish for these light sensitive fish. They can be caught mid day and afternoon in areas where wind or wave action has created a mudline which provides shade for these ambush feeders. Muddy coves along the main channel are great walleye producing spots.
Bass continue to hit plastic baits, live worms, and spinnerbaits. Largemouth will be right inside dense brushy shelter. Weedless rigged baits that can be worked through and retrieved from brush are the most effective. Four-pound largemouth are still being caught each week.
Smallmouth bass are on rock structure and seemed to be found more often in the backs of canyons and coves than in open bays. Trailing a single tail plastic grub rigged Carolina style or fishing drop-shot rigged plastic baits directly under the boat at 25 feet seems to the best method for successfully taking bass right now.
Catfishing is awesome on sandy beaches near camp in the evenings and just after dark.
It’s the dog days of summer but Lake Powell fish don’t care. They are still being caught in good numbers and in exciting fashion. .
Fishing with family from Michigan via our Trax & Trails 6-26-10 Nice 2.5 lb. largemouth caught by son Allan. Smallmouth remains active and good with stripers on top but down quickly. Best bite with moon phases. Fly fishing good early in a.m. small stripers but will increase in size as weeks go on. Out today with my friend Bill today and fish were caught on the fly rod. I recommend 1/2 day trips with “heat” as fish go down quickly as afteroon approaches. Got questions? Call me. Capt. Bill
