Lake Suggestions

Any suggestions for lakes off 80 & 50 between here and Tahoe where the fishing is decent and no PBs?


 

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2007/08/09/NSUUR9PH8.DTL

Bowman Lake Rec. Area off of 80.  See attached article.  It's been 10 years since I've been there and I don't remember which lake we camped by but this would be a good option, especially if you have 4wd.  Not off 80 or 50, but I was just up in the Bear Valley Area (HWY 4, Ebbets pass) and Lake Alpine is a good option with easy access, 15mph limit, camping, cabins, restaurant, etc.  Fishing was pretty good for 12" trout and we saw a few big ones caught as well (3-4lbs).  Before you get there is Spicer Rec. Area.  We went to Union Resevoir.  It was mid July and practically had the lake to ourselves.  Granite islands to hang out on, jump/dive off, etc.  Didn't catch any fish there (except a VERY SMALL catfish - I thought that was strange at 6800') but it is supposedly stocked.  BEAUTIFUL SPOT!  Google "Stanislaus National Forest" for more info.  The amazing thing about this whole area was the lack of people/traffic right in the middle of summer.  You could drive for miles between where we stayed (Dorrington) and Lake Alpine (about 22 miles) and not see another car in either direction!

Lakes along Hwy 50

Lake Natoma  ******** This destination provides pretty good smallmouth bass fishing opportunities in the summertime. Lake Natoma is an ideal location for kayak angling due to the restriction on gas powered motors which are not allowed between Willow Creek and Nimbus Dam, and the boat speed limit is only 5 m.p.h.  There are very few boats due to 5 m.p.h. speed limit

Jenkinson Lake - During the later part of the spring and through the summer, your best bet is to troll for rainbow and brown trout from the narrows on upstream – A lot of powerboats and jet skiers.
 

Loon Lake - There are numerous coves to fish for a trophy class brown  and  rainbow trout. During the summer troll for rainbow trout in deeper waters. Pretty many powerboats, wind surfers and jet skiers.

Union Valley Reservoir -***Fishing for rainbow trout is pretty consistent.  There is also an abundance of smallmouth bass. There were few powerboats and jet skiers the 4 or 5 times I have been here.


Echo Lake ***** Fishing is more rewarding on Lower Echo Lake than Upper Echo Lake, (which is a nicer place to paddle due to the 5 m.p.h. boat speed limit), but the fishing isn’t as good. Fishing from your kayak at Echo Lakes is excellent but it is also successful from along the shore  near or from off of the dam. I came face to face with a bear last summer down by the western shoreline.  It can get pretty windy here, so launch early in the morning. Parking is a pill...


Lakes Along I-80

Rollins  Lake -  A FREAKING ZOO


Spaulding Lake *******   Lake Spaulding is stocked with 15,000 rainbows and 5,000 brown trout along with chinook salmon. Fishing during the spring and fall fishing for brown trout is usually better than during the summertime, but there's still good trout action in the summertime. Very few power boats .
 
Donner Lake - A FREAKING ZOO


Lake Valley  ****** The boat speed limit is 10 m.p.h.  Keep in mind the wind can get nasty here by mid morning.  Bullhead catfish are the dominate fish in the reservoir, but 4,000 rainbow trout  and 20,000 fingerlings are planted annually.    Check the weather report prior to departing to see if it has recently rained or else your vehicle may get stuck in the mud in the dirt access road. Very few boats the times I have been here. Last time I was there was 2 year ago, and there had been a pretty bad fire just before the lake, but the trees around the lakes didn't burn.

Fuller lake, in the Bowman lakes area, has a 5 mph speed limit. There are usually a dozen or more so folks out in float tubes, pontoon boats or kayaks on the weekends. Planter Rainbows and holdover Browns. Most of my success has been with fishing an olive Woolly Bugger down deep using Type 4 sinking line and counting down 20-30 seconds or so. I've also caught fish on the troll from a kayak, using 1/4 oz Kastmasters. Wife caught fish using Powerbait. Of the lakes on the road that I've fished, this lake usually does the best. Almost a guarantee to come back with dinner, and due to the high water quality, the fish here taste great. At least for trout...

Regards,
Scott

Fuller lake, in the Bowman lakes area, has a 5 mph speed limit. There are usually a dozen or more so folks out in float tubes, pontoon boats or kayaks on the weekends. Planter Rainbows and holdover Browns. Most of my success has been with fishing an olive Woolly Bugger down deep using Type 4 sinking line and counting down 20-30 seconds or so. I've also caught fish on the troll from a kayak, using 1/4 oz Kastmasters. Wife caught fish using Powerbait. Of the lakes on the road that I've fished, this lake usually does the best. Almost a guarantee to come back with dinner, and due to the high water quality, the fish here taste great. At least for trout...

Regards,
Scott

I fished Fuller on Tuesday.  Small but pretty lake containing pretty, but small fish.  (Tried your Wolly Bugger tip Scott, but no takers)  More of a report in the Reports section coming soon...

Spaulding Lake *******   Lake Spaulding is stocked with 15,000 rainbows and 5,000 brown trout along with chinook salmon. Fishing during the spring and fall fishing for brown trout is usually better than during the summertime, but there's still good trout action in the summertime. Very few power boats .

Spaulding is pretty low right now.  I passed on fishing it due to the water level and the recommendation of the proprietor of the cabins we were staying at to try elsewhere.  (Skygreen - you were right about the portage too...the cabins were within walking distance...if you consider 2 miles to be "walking distance")

Donner Lake - A FREAKING ZOO

Word!  Drove by it twice during short trips to Truckee and both times it was being zig-zagged by PB's and jet skis.  That was enough for me to avoid it.

Lake Valley  ****** The boat speed limit is 10 m.p.h.  Keep in mind the wind can get nasty here by mid morning.  Bullhead catfish are the dominate fish in the reservoir, but 4,000 rainbow trout  and 20,000 fingerlings are planted annually.    Check the weather report prior to departing to see if it has recently rained or else your vehicle may get stuck in the mud in the dirt access road. Very few boats the times I have been here. Last time I was there was 2 year ago, and there had been a pretty bad fire just before the lake, but the trees around the lakes didn't burn.

Lake Valley Resevoir was actually really pretty.  It's a quick 5-6 minute drive off of 80 if you launch at the Silver Tip day use area.  The road isn't bad; lots of rocks and gravel, so even if it gets muddy it should be okay.  Skygreen is right about the fire - we could see evidence of it all along Lake Valley Road as we drove in.  The area around the lake is untouched though.  We spent 2 days at this lake paddling about and fishing.  No luck on the fish, but we were there during mid-day so it was pretty warm.  It did get windy after 1-2pm, but not so bad that we couldn't make it back to the beach.  I did see a couple of fish caught from shore, so maybe this would be a good spot in the early morning.  Water level ranged from about 50' in front of the dam to 15' at the far end of the lake.

Do you have any photos of the lakes Usagi? 

The road at Lake Valley was just dirt two years ago.  It was pretty bad when I was there.  Did they put gravel down by the launch area also and fill up the holes?

I didn't think portaging your boat to the lake would be a big problem when you were fresh, even if it was a little over a mile, but after paddling the whole day, I was wondering how you would muster up the energy to carry it back to your cabin.  How many feet down would you say Lake Spualding is?

thank you...

Sky

Do you have any photos of the lakes Usagi? 
(snip)
How many feet down would you say Lake Spualding is?

No pics... :
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,9565.0.html

The road at Lake Valley was just dirt two years ago.  It was pretty bad when I was there.  Did they put gravel down by the launch area also and fill up the holes?

It's paved until you get to the fork where you go left for the Silver Tip day use area.  That section is still dirt/rocks, but it wasn't bumpy at all.  We cruised it at 30mph easily.  The last bit as you go into the launch area is a little worse, having 1-2 spots that had dips.  Not bad at all though.

My wife and I were going to try out my new P15 at Lake Tahoe. We stayed at south shore and my wife was going to use my kayak and I was going to rent one. There were wind advisories for winds 15 to 20 so we headed north. By 10 am there were white caps 30 ft offshore at Meeks Bay.

We had a nice lunch at Truckee then headed to Serene Lakes (which I first heard of from this forum). There was very little wind and a great place for an inexperienced kayaker like my wife.