Fishing: Still too soon to ice fish

Hello fellow anglers.

The snake man is here to give you a small report of our local areas. I have to start with a call I received from an angler from Kirkwood. He told me about how Kirkwood Lake has some ice covering it, and he was eager to ice skate and fish.

The angler had told me that he was going last weekend.

I would like to educate all on the dangers of ice-covered waters.

This time of year we get ice and thaw over and over again. The stability of the ice on the Alpine County lake is very unstable this time of year.

As we saw over the last two weeks, we had below freezing temps that covered Red Lake and Kirkwood Lake with a half-inch to and inch of ice.

And now you see that the temperatures have risen dramatically. I will keep you informed with all of my conections from the locals of the area as to when it will be safe to venture out on certain bodies of water to ice fish or to skate.

I do not want to write about anyone unless you are holding your catch. A stringer of five nice fish is not worth a trip to the hospital or, even worse, your life.

There are many qualified shops in our area to call to find out the conditions of certain lakes and their ice conditions.

Here are just a couple: The Caples Lake Resort (209) 258-8888, The Sportsman (775) 542-FISH or you can call the Naw Line at 267-9722.

I have looked back in my journals over the years, and only two out of the last 10 years have I felt safe enough to tell people they could ice fish before Christmas.

Some may call me way too cautious, but you are still here to fish aren't you?

Let's check out the local conditions on our higher lakes in Alpine County.

SILVER LAKE: As of 10 days ago the lake was icing over. Now the lake has thawed again. No fishing reports.

CAPLES LAKE: Talking to the general manager, Richard told me the lake looks like it does in June. In fact, at 9 p.m. on Monday night, it was 45 degrees.

There is only snow on some of the higher peaks with very little around the lake. The water level has dropped aproximately 20 feet or more. Anyone that wanted to take a small boat out would have to hand carry it for a while " even a canoe or a kayak is a workout.

Some anglers have come up on the weekends and have fished at the spillway but no one has reported in yet. The resort plans to open for lodging, and hopefully ice fishing, between Dec. 16 and Dec. 20. For reservations or general information call (209) 258-8888.

RED LAKE: Reports of great fishing a little over a week ago until the ice came. Anglers have told me of many large cutthroat trout they had caught. Then the weather changed and the lake began to ice over. As of last Tuesday the lake had thawed again. This weekend might be good for shore fishing. But we need to wait on the ice fishing.

ALL RIVERS AND STREAMS IN ALPINE COUNTY: Closed to fishing except for the East Fork of the Carson River, which is open all year to angling.

But remember only the stretch of water from Hangman's Bridge down to the Nevada state line is open with restrictions " zero limit, artificial lures or flies only. No bait fishing allowed. There are a few more rivers open all year to fish. For more information, call the Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters at (530) 541-8208.

TOPAZ LAKE: Will open in 26 days. Hope to see you there.

I hope this helps to educate the new anglers in the area and remind the seasoned anglers about how quick the area can change. Good fishin' and tight lines.

- Doug Busey is The Record-Courier's fishing columnist. He can be reached at 267-9722.