Arizona Fishing

That is one hell of a combo right there. Where you fly fishing?

 

Big lake for sure , we always hit it after the ice comes off and the fish are pretty responsive.
So mornings are calling gobblers and afternoons doing some fly fishing.
Hope to put together a TW white mountains fishing trip to chase this guys brother !
April 2015

 

AS long as it doesn't fall on a weekend I have drill, I would definitely be down to do a fishing/camping trip!

 

I'm gonna try some sight fishing for bass on their shallow beds very soon... Pleasant, maybe Canyon and/or Saguaro.

 

I see some of you guys are from up on the northside. Is there any fishing at pleasant from shore? I would love to catch a striper but have no boat, nor have I ever been to pleasant being in the east valley. However, I have a couple days off soon and wouldnt mind giving it a shot.

 

I'm not an expert, but shore fishing for stripers isn't very productive. Between now and early May is probably your best shot, and I wouldn't expect anything over a pound or so, unless you get super lucky.

 

Is saguaro any good for fishing?

 

You know... I don't know, lol. I haven't fished there in ages. As long as the water is pretty clear and I can float around in 4-8 of water watching for bass in the spawn, I don't see why I can't land a few. Canyon lake isn't the best fishery around, but I've sight fished some monsters there in the spawn.

 

I really want to drive to the backside of saguaro and drop my kayak in and try it out. That kinda sucks about canyon... I was hoping it was better fishing there. Looks like a fun lake to kayak in.

 

Canyon is the land of the monsters, its a hard lake to fish, but there have been some real big boys caught there. the water seems to stay pretty cold compared to the rest of those lakes though... even game and fish has said it a time or two, that canyon just doesnt warm up as early as like apache or saguaro. yes they are all connected. I'm not to sure why its like that but it is.


Guess I will have to find a boat and try some striper fishing at pleasant...

 

I've got 2 inflatable kayaks.

 

Any S AZ guys been fishing lately? I think I'm going to try out Pena Blanca this weekend.

 

I'll be there Friday haha.

 

Let me know how you make out. I am going to load up the kayak and go first thing Saturday am.

 

There is absolutely great striper fishing from shore at Pleasant. Later in the summer it's the best in the north coves, and there are trails back there if you have a little clearance on your truck. 4x4 not required, but it makes it fun. I've fished all of the north coves many times, with exception of the Agua Fria river which really requires a boat because of the steep cliffs and limited access.

Late summer is crazy for stripers. Huge schools of them coming right by the shores chasing shad boils. It's exciting to be close enough to cast right into the boil and catch stripers instantly. On Alabama rigs, you can catch multiples on one cast. The larger stripers tend to stay behind the boil, and down deeper catching the injured shad that the smaller stripers hit. With a kayak, it's even more of a blast because you can constantly stay near the bait balls and troll a lure while searching for the schools.

Those small 1# stripers also make great live bait for the big flatheads that are in Pleasant. We usually catch a few dozen small stripers in the afternoon and then catfish all night with healthy natural live stripers.

If you ever want a tour, just let me know. I'll probably be out there in the next few weekends getting the catfishing season started. Stripers don't really school up in the shallow waters when the water is still cold like it is now. Gotta wait until it's hot as hell outside to get that fast action.

 

Thanks Seabass, good to know. I know they herd shad, but never figured you could effectively hit the boils from shore.

I usually go 50-70' down at night for stripers.

 

That's a great tactic, but usually requires a boat and a drop light. You can't get to those depths very easily from shore and expect your bait to stay on the hook with huge surf casts though.

Here's a map of the north coves area that I built a while back and I put comments on each of the various segments of the trails. Most are 2wd friendly with stock clearance, but I marked a few as needing 4x4 or rear locker just to be safe (off camber stuff, or steeper inclines that would spin tires on a 2wd)

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z0MCIggAVXR4.kvRW6aqiWkSo&usp=sharing

 

Yeah, it definitely requires a boat (and light). Drop a few lines with cut anchovies deep and I've bagged 25-40 stripers many times.

 

Any of yall love fishin for northerns? Cuz i do. I hear a few lakes out in az have em. They are fighters.

 

Ya we got pike, but nothing like up where you are. We have a couple three lakes or so that you can catch them fairly regularly if you're in hot pursuit, and a couple more that you can catch them on accident. I think they are awesome but I've probably only caught a half dozen or so in my life, biggest one maybe 3-4 pounds, although 10-15 pounders aren't uncommon. I think the state record is around 25-30lbs. People like to illegally stock them, which can hurt the trout fisheries.