Lake Gregory Festival

[ordane]

Whats up all my name is Danny and I'm fairly new to the site. I grew up fishing Imperial Beach Peir and the SD Bay and just recently got back into fishing. Since I live out in Riverside now I have been sticking to the freshwater scene hitting the mountains and local lakes.

So anyway, I hit up one of my favorite weekend spots on Saturday to find out they are having a town festival at the lake. So much for parking... I usually fish down the trail from the main parking lot but thats where they had all the rides and music. So, this time we went down by the Baseball field.

One guy was telling me they had just stocked it for a derby and he was pulling out trouts left and right the day before. I didn't hear about any derby but it would have been nice to get some of those trout.

It was still nice on that side as it wasn't too crowded but there just wasn't anything biting. All we got was a couple cats and the dude next to us got one trout. I'm just going to blame the bad fishing on the noise from the fest but, I still had a good time bbqing with the fam and hanging out on the lake.

[Kelster]

There is a point over by the fields that seems to hold fish.

[Frequent Flyer]

r ther still crazy weeds?

[ordane]

r ther still crazy weeds?
There is a spot on the other side that I like but it is crazy weedy.. I lost one of my Rooster Tails there.

[TheAsianGuy]

My coworker lives right next to the lake. She indicated the lake's weeds are practically breaking surface. So, fishing the lake is ridiculous at the moment unless you want to lose all your lures and baits. However, cats and gills are biting like crazy if you can manage to get to the middle of the lake and some nice shaded spots near the baseball field.

[ordane]

I did catch a couple bass in there a few weeks ago but they were tiny still.. Maybe next year they'll have a few more lbs on 'em!

I will have to explore around the Baseball Field a lil more.

[P1M]

I have been there twice in the last month have killed it both times. Yes there are weeds however; there are spots that are clear. Walk around and you will find them. I have only been on weekdays so I am sure the weekend gets packed.

[ordane]

I have been there twice in the last month have killed it both times. Yes there are weeds however; there are spots that are clear. Walk around and you will find them. I have only been on weekdays so I am sure the weekend gets packed.
Its actually not too bad on the weekends depending on where you fish from. People come out but I cant say I've been on a day that it was "overcrowded." It was pretty crowded for the festival but not so much with fisherman.

[Catlady]

Hi guys,
I am going to Gregory tomorrow early, and since the marina is now closed, will fish from shore. I would like to go after either trout or cats (or bullheads). Where is the best place to fish from shore? The guy at the marina via phone told me to try on the south side of the lake by the beach entrance (across from the marina).
Any tips?

Thank you

[TheAsianGuy]

Can't fish at the marina. However, trouts will be near the chamber of commerce. You cannot miss the large amount of people hanging around there shoreline just below the picnic area. Cats hang everywhere along the baseball field and along the eastern shoreline. You may have to wade a bit until you reach knees deep, then cast as far as you can (150 to 300 feet) into the deeper depths. The cats are on the hunt right now at night for panfishes all along the southern shore under the trees. I noticed that they like to hang around near the fallen trees and stumps. Just becareful if you're planning to walk on the tree. Lost my cell phone in the water because I didn't see the patches of brown moss as I slipped and fell into the water.

Water weeds are abundant at the lake right now. Just make sure to rig your bait into weedless style when ever you can.

[ordane]

I do like that area you were told about. I like to walk the dirt path opposite way of the Beach area. Just find some Tree Roots coming out of the water near shore and you'll probably find some Bullheads. One day I was over there and this group of maybe 4 totalled over 20 Trout so I know they are there also.

Near the Baseball Field on the east end is pretty good as well.

[Catlady]

I do like that area you were told about. I like to walk the dirt path opposite way of the Beach area. Just find some Tree Roots coming out of the water near shore and you'll probably find some Bullheads. One day I was over there and this group of maybe 4 totalled over 20 Trout so I know they are there also.

Near the Baseball Field on the east end is pretty good as well.

Thank you Ordane and Asianguy. I havent done very much trout fishing. What is a good rig set up for fishing trout from shore?

[ordane]

Thank you Ordane and Asianguy. I havent done very much trout fishing. What is a good rig set up for fishing trout from shore?
I like the Texas Rig to avoid the snags, for trout I would go with some Garlic Marshmellows. As for lures I like Spoons but I have already lost a couple there. Spinnerbait is fun but it hasn't been very effective at Gregory for me so far.

[TheAsianGuy]

Thank you Ordane and Asianguy. I havent done very much trout fishing. What is a good rig set up for fishing trout from shore?

Since there is plenty of lake salad that grow all the way to the top down the depth of 5ft, any rig that will prevent a snag will be an awesome rig. For me, when that occur, I switch to the following:

I normally use a rod with 2 reels, or 2 rods with 3 reels. One reel contain the 6 to 8lbs test line, while the other is 2 or 4 at max. One is to deal with the weed using bottom rigs, while one is bobber rig. Lighter line will give you a better hookset with trouts than heavy. Flouro leader is critical to make sure to hide the line from the trouts. They are notorious in detecting those mono lines, even down to 2lbs. But in the heavy weed environment, you may be able to get away with it. Clear water environment, you're out of luck.

Shoreline with plenty of weed: Switch to slip bobber rig, with 12" of leader, rather than the usual 18" to 24". In the old days, I use powerbaits. Now, I use my own concoctions, infused with plenty of garlic, Velvetta cheese, olive oil, and a hint of dried grounded krill or anchovy. A super killer for trouts and cats. There are small hooks that has weedless design built into it, or use a small rubber band light enough to prevent snagging yet allow the fish to get hookset. For me, I cover the hook, and only leave less than 1mm of hook exposure to get that hookset. However, the chance of getting snag while reeling in for a bait check is 20%, if the salad is thick. I also use crickets to cover most of the hook, and expose only a small portion of the hook's end.

I also play with fly fishing lures, such as foam critters from Betty's bug collection. I use a clear float to run the line through, give a nice 18" to 24" flouro leader, toss that puppy out about 50ft from shore, further if I can, and slowly reel in 2ft every 2 minutes. I also play with the green crappie rattling float. Attach that near the clear bobber, and as you pull the line in, jerk it a bit, and the rattling sound will give an enticement to the trouts below. It even caught a few panfishes in the early hours.

Shoreline with powerbaits that float: People like to use treble hooks, which is a huge mistake when you have massive weeds at the bottom. Single hook will do just fine. Switch to slide sinker rig for cats, using a 1/8 slide egg sinker. Perfect for casting up to 75ft from shore. Always aim for a sweet spot, which is dark, in the shade, and/or deep due to a sudden drop off. You can see it by standing high up in the hill before going down to the lake's shore.