it's been a while... low water Castaic dam action with pops (5/25 am)

[dkinla]

yeah it sure has been a while since I posted up a report... just haven't had time to fish much... but got to head out to Castaic this am with my dad for some striper action...

for those that haven't been there for a while... check out how low the water level is now... yup... just as mentioned in this forum... there's now an island popping up in front of the pump tower:

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu266/dkinla/14A755E0-6E93-4641-8B89-16F9AE984FB3_zpsbpqveymc.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/dkinla/media/14A755E0-6E93-4641-8B89-16F9AE984FB3_zpsbpqveymc.jpg.html)

they say it'll drop even further with a lot of the Castaic water being diverted over to Perris lake...

We walked about 3/4 down the dam and setup with some cut sardines and bloodworms.. here's my dad tending to his rods:

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu266/dkinla/D30B4ED7-A24D-4C75-A58B-90D076628227_zps1k869le1.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/dkinla/media/D30B4ED7-A24D-4C75-A58B-90D076628227_zps1k869le1.jpg.html)

the low water level let's you see how many large rocks/boulders were deep/further out and where I got snagged often :Confused: There were some folks cruising along the dam by the edge picking up whatever they could find snagged in the now exposed rocks.

here's a quick vid of where we were and how low the water level is now... towards the end of the video, you can see higher up along the dam wall a whitish line... that's where the water line was a while ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXUt8UHbFo4

anyways, the action was just moderate... a bite here and there... but enough to make the morning fun and not too sleepy for my dad. The air temp was just right in the beginning, but warmed up fairly quickly. Hardly any wind in the am, but a welcome mild breeze started later. Water was pretty murky and moderately green by the water edge... not too much debris in the water at all (at least where we were).

anyways, I let my dad reel in all of the stripers and he was able to set the hook on 2 of them when he was awake enough in his chair to see the bite :Big Grin:

total tally for the am was 8 decent size schoolies... missed some bites, but that's how it always goes...

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu266/dkinla/9DCFE817-B1D8-48ED-8D94-F574C7F42337_zpskq8qmq0b.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/dkinla/media/9DCFE817-B1D8-48ED-8D94-F574C7F42337_zpskq8qmq0b.jpg.html)

a final quick vid at the cleaning station... we left around noon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K28UDmdjcM4

thx for reading everyone... who knows when I'll be able to fish again...

[vampirebret]

Awesome report, thanks. A father and son moment like that on the lake is just PRICELESS!

[fishinone]

Congrats on the catching guys!

In the past Castaic has gone off when the water was down.

[MikesOcean]

In the past Castaic has gone off when the water was down.

X2 what Ron said!

Great job out there with your pops!

I smell a big top water bite this year with the low
Water levels.

[DEVOREFLYER]

X2 what Ron said!

Great job out there with your pops!

I smell a big top water bite this year with the low
Water levels.

http://i.imgur.com/ggoLQqP.jpg

[dkinla]

thx guys for the nice comments...

just curious for you "old timers" who've been fishing Castaic a lot longer than I have (3-4 years maybe)... how LOW have you seen it in the past? Did it have any big impact on the striper population/fishing?

[tommibear]

thx guys for the nice comments...

just curious for you "old timers" who've been fishing Castaic a lot longer than I have (3-4 years maybe)... how LOW have you seen it in the past? Did it have any big impact on the striper population/fishing?


On Sunday, while checking the fishing licenses, I asked the sheriff about the water level.... he said by the end of the summer, it will go down another 80 feet from where it is now.... at that rate, you can probably walk over to the pumping towers....

[fshnritchey]

thx guys for the nice comments...

just curious for you "old timers" who've been fishing Castaic a lot longer than I have (3-4 years maybe)... how LOW have you seen it in the past? Did it have any big impact on the striper population/fishing?

As far as the striper population goes you have absolutely no worries- there are more striper in that lake than you can shake an uglystik at. The LMB spawn is ruined for the year and that population takes quite a hit as the stripers rape any fish under 12". As far as the fishing goes the topwater bite can go off just so long as the shad come up, some years when they draw down the shad just never come up and stay deep for the season.

[Stumpknocker]

thx guys for the nice comments...

just curious for you "old timers" who've been fishing Castaic a lot longer than I have (3-4 years maybe)... how LOW have you seen it in the past? Did it have any big impact on the striper population/fishing?
I remember fishing in my boat at Castaic sometime during a drought in the late 1970's or early 1980's when the cliffs at Sharon's rest were at least 60 feet above the water level...we could still launch at the main ramp. No stripers then, but the bass were biting.

[gillisbeach]

I first fished Castaic in the spring of 1974, and looking at the 1st photo, and, if the water level continues to decrease there will be a lot more of the "island" showing. In 1974, we would walk the length of the dam, and then land would appear on our right and continue around to a point, much what a fish hook looks like. And, the land would be at least 40 feet scramle to the top where the water pump is located. No stripers in the lake then, and shore fishing from the land on the point I described was for trout and catfish and the occassional lmb. Salmon eggs were the favorite trout bait, along with velveeta cheese, "zeke's" floating bait was not on the market yet and came along a few years later. In approx. 1977, the water was as low as I can remember and if you went up the fish arm, the water stopped well before the entrance to Elizabeth Cyn. In 1974, if you wanted to rent a boat, you had to rent a boat at the bait and tackle near Parker Rd. and Lake Hughes Rd., cannot remember the name of the store. They would help you put a trailer hitch on your car/truck and you would drive up the hill to the lake entrance. This bait store was one of the only around, and when trophy sized lmb were caught they had a certified scale to weigh, and after the weighing the fish were dumped into the lower lagoon instead of driving all of the way back up the hill. The lower lagoon was a favorite of ours for night fishing, and we caught several limits of trout and a few lmb. I've moved out of the area, but still manage a yearly return trip to the lake. Many, many fond memories at Castaic.

[vistacourt]

Awesome report. I have never fished for stripers. Does anyone have any advice for basic rigging, bait/lure and technique?

[dkinla]

Awesome report. I have never fished for stripers. Does anyone have any advice for basic rigging, bait/lure and technique?

Here's a good place to start:


http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/showthread.php?79783-Castaic-tips-for-Stripers-(after-a-2-year-layoff)

And another:

http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/showthread.php?78281-New-to-castaic-lake-tips-welcome

And one of the best recent post with great advice! Credit to fishinone

http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/showthread.php?79601-Bait-N-Wait-when-the-Striper-are-Picky-with-Equipment-Recomendations&highlight=Striper+tips

[dkinla]

I first fished Castaic in the spring of 1974, and looking at the 1st photo, and, if the water level continues to decrease there will be a lot more of the "island" showing. In 1974, we would walk the length of the dam, and then land would appear on our right and continue around to a point, much what a fish hook looks like. And, the land would be at least 40 feet scramle to the top where the water pump is located. No stripers in the lake then, and shore fishing from the land on the point I described was for trout and catfish and the occassional lmb. Salmon eggs were the favorite trout bait, along with velveeta cheese, "zeke's" floating bait was not on the market yet and came along a few years later. In approx. 1977, the water was as low as I can remember and if you went up the fish arm, the water stopped well before the entrance to Elizabeth Cyn. In 1974, if you wanted to rent a boat, you had to rent a boat at the bait and tackle near Parker Rd. and Lake Hughes Rd., cannot remember the name of the store. They would help you put a trailer hitch on your car/truck and you would drive up the hill to the lake entrance. This bait store was one of the only around, and when trophy sized lmb were caught they had a certified scale to weigh, and after the weighing the fish were dumped into the lower lagoon instead of driving all of the way back up the hill. The lower lagoon was a favorite of ours for night fishing, and we caught several limits of trout and a few lmb. I've moved out of the area, but still manage a yearly return trip to the lake. Many, many fond memories at Castaic.

geez! thx for the history lesson... I wasn't born till '75 :LOL: But that's some cool info you shared there... glad it's easier for people to rent boats now than back then...