Urban panfish

Started by rogan, August 12, 2018, 04:52:21 PM

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rogan

Finally had a break in the weather.  Our rainy season is actually happening this year, and we had a couple good rains over the last few days.  So the temps dropped 10 to 12 degrees and we got back to 102 for a high on sat and fri nite had an overnight low of 78 after the rainstorm, compared to the 112 high and 91 low of the previous two days.  Phoenix summers are the reverse of Midwest winters, we spend all summer in the a/c, then all winter outdoors!

I am fortunate to have several small urban lakes within 10 minutes driving from my place.  They range in size from 2 to 14 acres and contain bass, bluegill (generic term for all types of small sunfish), channel catfish, shad, four carp species - common, mirror, koi and grass carp.  Most are stocked with rainbow trout in the winter months, Nov thru Feb. In these summer months, the lakes heat up (often reaching 80 degrees) due to the shallow nature and extreme amount of sunlight, so the only real viable fishing in them during the summer months is pan fishing.

So i made a trip for panfish on Sat morn and lasted a couple of hours before the sun beat me down.  Use one of my favorite reels, a Penn 4300ss will 6lb p-line ccx in moss green, which is a perfect match to the green water of the urban lakes. Rod was a simple ugly stick, 5'10'' rated 6-15.  It's a little stiff for this use, but if something bigger happens along, i know I can handle it.


I stuck with drop shotting small grubs in white, yellow and red, but the biggest fish were caught using berkley one inch minnows in their secret sauce. Used a mosquito hook in size 8 and thought it might be too big until the little guy inhaled the entire 2 inch grub, then I decided my set up was ok.  He may have been the smallest fish I have ever caught on hook and line.  Also manage a couple juvenile bass...

It was great to get out after a break in the weather and just catch something.


Ron Jones

That is perfect catfish bait right there.
Ron
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

George6308

Sure beats a day in the office!

Gfish

Love them 'gills. One a the better warm-water species to catch fly fishin. Probably like many fisherman, them's the fish that enabled me to learn many of the fishing basics. I believe they are a little more hardy than bass. Only downside is their tendency to proliferate to the point of bein stunted.
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

mo65

Quote from: Ron Jones on August 12, 2018, 05:05:56 PM
That is perfect catfish bait right there.

   This type of fishing is the funnest way to gather catfish bait. 8)
~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


rogan

Ron, I agree! I like bluegill for flathead bait. Az is strict with live baitfish, they must be caught from the water where they are used, no transporting live stuff.  We've had too many instances of disease and "local guy" stocking programs.

G-fish, they tend to be smaller in the urban lakes, a little stunted I think... but the bass and channels will eat them.  I taught the kids to fish with fiberglass "cane" poles, ultralight jig heads with berkley trout worms and 4lb test line. To keep it interesting, we would pick a challenge before we went, largest fish, smallest fish, first fish, most fish, etc.  The kids had a lot of fun.

rogan

Mo, you are exactly right, these sessions are my practice for the overnight flathead trips where I have to catch some bait before I can fish for the big ones.

happyhooker

Back 45+ years ago, when I grew up in Phoenix, they didn't stock any urban lakes, and there weren't many such lakes anyway.  But, we fished the irrigation canals, and since all that water came from Lake Roosevelt and the other lakes east of the City, you'd be surprised what kinds of fish showed up.  Below the last dam on the Salt River (Stewart Mountain?), the water released came from the bottom of the lake and was quite cold, perfect for the trout they stocked in that stretch of river, summer or winter.

Frank

Ron Jones

I used to collect craw-dads, as well as red ear and other minnows out of irrigation ditches in Yuma and Winterhaven. Used them all over the area for perch, blue-gill, catfish (channel and flathead) and black bass. Then they started stocking stripers in the spill ways and trout in the cold water ditches. The trout were GREAT bait for anything if you could keep them alive.
Ron
Ronald Jones
To those who have gone to sea and returned and to those who have gone to sea and will never return
"

festus

Quote from: Ron Jones on August 12, 2018, 09:19:55 PM
The trout were GREAT bait for anything if you could keep them alive.
Ron
Trout are popular bait for muskies, striper, and big cats here in East Tennessee. And it's ok to use practically any other fish for bait as long as it was caught legally.

steelfish

Ultra light fishing is really fun

congrats for that urban fishing session
The Baja Guy

Gfish

Quote from: happyhooker on August 12, 2018, 08:49:15 PM
Back 45+ years ago, when I grew up in Phoenix, they didn't stock any urban lakes, and there weren't many such lakes anyway.  But, we fished the irrigation canals, and since all that water came from Lake Roosevelt and the other lakes east of the City, you'd be surprised what kinds of fish showed up.  Below the last dam on the Salt River (Stewart Mountain?), the water released came from the bottom of the lake and was quite cold, perfect for the trout they stocked in that stretch of river, summer or winter.

Frank
Frank, aren't people FROM Minnesota supposed to move TO places like Arizonia or Calif., for warm dry air and golf, as my parents and 4 of their siblings did?
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

happyhooker

Quote from: Gfish on August 14, 2018, 08:04:07 AM
Quote from: happyhooker on August 12, 2018, 08:49:15 PM
Back 45+ years ago, when I grew up in Phoenix, they didn't stock any urban lakes, and there weren't many such lakes anyway.  But, we fished the irrigation canals, and since all that water came from Lake Roosevelt and the other lakes east of the City, you'd be surprised what kinds of fish showed up.  Below the last dam on the Salt River (Stewart Mountain?), the water released came from the bottom of the lake and was quite cold, perfect for the trout they stocked in that stretch of river, summer or winter.

Frank
Frank, aren't people FROM Minnesota supposed to move TO places like Arizonia or Calif., for warm dry air and golf, as my parents and 4 of their siblings did?

Indeed, I was born in NY and moved to AZ as a kid.  But, when you have a spouse who's from Minnesota....

Frank

Gfish

Last I remember from Calif. fishing regs. was; you weren't allowed to use "gamefish" as bait. We did it alot though using small Bluegills to get some of the bigger n' smarter Largemouths, when I's a kid.
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

Rivverrat

Quote from: festus on August 12, 2018, 09:29:51 PM
Quote from: Ron Jones on August 12, 2018, 09:19:55 PM
The trout were GREAT bait for anything if you could keep them alive.
Ron
Trout are popular bait for muskies, striper, and big cats here in East Tennessee. And it's ok to use practically any other fish for bait as long as it was caught legally.

   Same here in Kansas as long they were caught from the water fished... Jeff