Irvine Lake sees crappie going ballistic; 22-4 catfish weighed
Crappie fishing that was literally off the charts went along with a continued steady catfish bite at Irvine Lake this week.

Legendary crappie fishing expert Marlon Meade sampled the action on Friday night. "We really whacked 'em", quipped Meade. "We anchored up in 27 feet of water near the red clay cliffs at 8:30 PM, and set out a floating crappie lantern.

"It took about an hour for the food chain to build up under the boat, and when the larger minnows arrived, it was also time for the crappie to arrive in huge numbers. They were absolutely wide-open on white Atomic Tubes or white 2-inch Gulp! Minnows rigged on a one-sixteenth ounce ball head. Every crappie we caught was over a pound, and the largest was about 1.5 pounds. We even caught several nice trout under the lights"

Meade tipped, "The trick is to let the jig go all the way to the bottom, and then retrieve up very slowly."

Plenty of catfish were also being caught, with most limits consisting of "eating-size" whiskerfish in the 2 to 6-pound class. Some larger cats into the double-digits are keeping things interesting, and a 22-pounder caught and released during daylight hours was the best of the week.

Good numbers of catfish were caught on mackerel, shrimp, chicken livers, Gulp! and DuMong's, with fish being found at Santiago Flats, boat dock cove, and along the west shore.

Bass anglers did well in the evenings on topwater baits on largemouth in the 2 to 4-poound range. Bass were caught near the red clay cliffs and Rocky Point. Anglers skilled at deepwater trout techniques are still scoring some very good numbers of rainbows averaging 2 pounds on lures trolled on leadcore line or deep-soaked baits.

The Kids Lagoon is yielding good numbers of stocker-size catfish for families with children age 12 and under. Best bet in the Lagoon is flylining mackerel in the flooded bushes in the early mornings and at night. Surface water temperature on the main lake is 77 degrees, and the water level is dropping slowly. Sundays are now "Family Fun Sundays", where for each paid adult admission; one child will be admitted free.

The lake is open until 11:00 PM on Thursday nights, with a $5 discount if entering after 5:00 PM on Thursdays. Night fishing is permitted until 2:00 AM on Fridays and Saturdays, and the lake is closed on Tuesdays during the summer months.

A 10-minute inspection for zebra mussels is required for all private boats being launched. Anglers are reminded of the mandatory release policy for all catfish over 20 pounds. Lucky anglers who successfully release a lunker whiskerfish will receive a free re-entry pass to the lake.

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:
- Floriano Jimenez of Orange, 22-4 blue catfish [released] on chicken livers at the flats
- Art "Dr. Hook" Villa of El Modeno, 18-0 catfish on mackerel at the flats
- Alex Becerra of Anaheim, 15-14 catfish on beef liver at the flats