Jim Matthews
Outdoor Editor

Cats to eight-plus pounds caught
in good action at Anaheim Lake
Catfish to over eight pounds were the highlight of anglers’ stringers posted at Anaheim Lake over the past week. While the average fish are in the two-pound class, and limits have been common, quite a few bigger fish are showing from deep water.
Jimmy Suchy, Anaheim, had two of the bigger catfish this week at 8 1/2 and 6 1/2 pounds fishing the marshmallow-meal worm (M&M) combo. Pedro Villa, Anaheim, had a 4 1/2-pounder to top off his five-fish, 14 1/2-pound stringer, also caught on the M&M combo. Donovan Miller, Fullerton, landed 10 catfish up to four-pound on shrimp. Victor Estrada and Justo Rios, both Santa Ana, had a 10-fish, 20-pound stringer at the pump house on the M&M combo.
The tilapia are also pretty good, but few anglers are targeting the tasty panfish. Josh Clark, Duarte, had tilapia to 1 1/2 pounds while also getting a pair of catfish to 4 1/2 pounds. He was fishing shrimp, but the tilapia are generally best on half a nightcrawler.
The best catfish action remains in deep water where the fish retreat during daylight hours to avoid coromorants. The marshmallow-meal worm combo has been one of the top baits this past week, but shrimp, mackerel and nightcrawlers are also good bets, and adding a prepared scent like Love Sauce, Bite On, or Gravy to the baits is improving the strike ratio.
The bubble hole and the hump directly between Catfish Island and Honker Island remain the top spots, but most points along the whole west side of the lake and the deep water off Trout Island are also good bets. Shore fishermen capable of making long casts to deeper water are having just as good success as boat anglers during the day, and the shore night action is very good as the fish move up tight to the banks.
The weekend Catfish Derbies continue to be held each Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Entry fee is $5 for any of the five permit time frames — from 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, from 5 to 11 p.m. Saturday evening, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, and from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday evening. (There are no derbies for the mid-day special at noon or the 24-hour fishing pass holders.) All of the derbies feature a 100 percent payout of the whole pot to the angler catching the biggest catfish. If 10 anglers enter at $5 each, the biggest catfish caught among those 10 anglers wins that angler the whole $50 pot.
Anaheim Lake continues to receive twice-weekly plants of catfish and tilapia on Tuesday and Thursday and will through the rest of the summer fishing season.
Private boats, kayaks, and float tubes are allowed at Anaheim Lake, but they will be inspected for traces of water or evidence of quagga mussel contamination before being allowed on the water.
Anaheim Lake will be open seven days a week with fishing allowed from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on day passes or from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on an evening pass. Each of these passes is $25. Seniors pay only $23, with a $20 special on Wednesdays. All of these passes have a five-fish limit. For kids 4 to 13, a three-fish pass is just $12. There are 24-hour passes offered every Friday and Saturday night. The 24-hour passes cost $75 and have a 15 fish limit. An angler can bring his wife and up to three kids 17 and under and all can help fill the 15-fish limit on one of these passes, and camping is free at Corona with a 24-hour pass. For Anaheim Lake fishing information, call 714-996-3508 or log on at www.fishinglakes.com.

Corona Lake’s hot catfish
action just won’t slow down
Corona Lake’s catfish bite has remained good to excellent with many anglers posting limits of fish that are averaging a consistent two pounds this past week.
The top catfish reported this past week was a five-pounder landed by Jim Davis, Murietta, off the south shoreline on JD’s new Whoop Ass mackerel bait. He also had a tilapia and a crappie on the bait. Carlos Temo and Sal Romo, Pomona, had nine catfish for 18 pounds on shrimp and mackerel from the middle of the lake in a boat. Brad Miller, Corona, landed five cat that weighed 12 pounds on mackerel, while Joe Summer, Ontario, also had a five-fish limit on nightcrawlers and his stringer was right at nine pounds. Case Peters, Anaheim, weighed in five on the new Whoop Ass biat that weighed 11 pounds.
There also continues to be a fair number of crappie and tilapia. The crappie are action around structure in deeper water on small jigs with most about a half-pound. The tilapia are mostly in shallow water, also around structure, on nightcrawler pieces and they are running up to a pound or better.
For the catfish, nightcrawlers, shrimp, mackerel, and the marshmallow-meal worm (M&M) combo with Eagle Claw Gravy or Lip Ripperz Love Sauce scents continue to be the best baits. Hot spots have been the deeper water off the dam and the back end for boat anglers. Shore fishing has been best off J.D.’s Point, the dock shoreline, and the dam area.
Catfish and tilapia plants go in at least twice a week, including both blue and channel catfish.
Corona Lake is still having its five “Biggest Catfish” derbies every weekend. Entry fee is $5 for any of the five permit time frames — from 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, from 5 to 11 p.m. Saturday evening, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, and from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday evening. (There will be no derbies for the mid-day special at noon or the 24-hour fishing pass holders.) All of the derbies feature a 100 percent payout of the whole pot to the angler catching the biggest catfish. If 20 anglers enter at $5 each, the biggest catfish caught among those 20 anglers wins that angler the whole $100 pot.
Private boats, kayaks, and float tubes are allowed at Corona Lake, but they will be inspected for traces of water or evidence of quagga mussel contamination before being allowed on the water.
Corona Lake is open seven days a week with fishing allowed from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on day passes or from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on an evening pass. Each of these passes is $25. Seniors pay only $23, with a $20 special on Wednesdays. All of these passes have a five-fish limit. For kids 4 to 13, a three-fish pass is just $12. There are 24-hour passes offered every Friday and Saturday night. The 24-hour passes cost $75 and have a 15 fish limit. An angler can bring his wife and up to three kids 17 and under and all can help fill the 15-fish limit on one of these passes, and camping is free at Corona with a 24-hour pass. For Corona Lake fishing information, call 951-277-4489 or log on atwww.fishinglakes.com.

Santa Ana River Lakes’ Kid’s
Pond to remain open all summer
The main fishing areas at Santa Ana River Lakes are closed, but the Kid’s Pond (Huckleberry Pond) is open all summer Wednesday through Sunday. The main fishing operation has moved just a few blocks away to Anaheim Lake.
Santa Ana River Lakes is undergoing maintenance through the rest summer and not reopen until trout season early this fall.