Times Spent Outdoors: Priceless!
Times Spent Outdoors: Priceless!
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The Arizona Game and Fish Department wants to remind all boaters, anglers, and personal watercraft users that this year’s boating season has arrived and to please exercise safe, responsible practices when on the water. Safe boating recreation is a must, and everyone should take a minute and remember to check your boats, personal watercraft and all equipment before launching at your favorite lake or waterway. Make sure you have all required safety equipment, such as proper life jackets and w... Full story
The first 28 years of the Yellowtail Derby, began the end of March 1946 and ran for six months. Anglers were more interested in tuna in the fall. We listened! The move to spring in 2011 brought many more anglers into the competition, as well as the number of fish caught, including the winning 39.5 lb. Yellowtail caught in the waters off La Jolla. The Yellowtail Derby has added excitement to the traditional yellowtail spring bite. Fast Forward To 2013 The Yellowtail Derby will be competed from... Full story
Stripers are still running along the canyon walls in the southern lake. They spilled into the main channel 3 weeks ago and have been eager to hit bait offered by anglers ever since. I have heard they are chasing boats, begging for anchovies. Well, that may be a bit much, but if you pass over some hungry stripers please stop and feed them! Glen Canyon dam still holds the majority of the fish, but many are behind the barricade out of casting range. The Chains parking area offers good shore... Full story
You've probably seen it before: Every stretch is different. The way the banks wind and present a new portrait of our meadows and trees and mountains changes with each jaunt to another fishing hole. Spring surely is here. As we hit another stretch of above-average seasonal spring temperatures, the opportunity to hit the White Mountain and Mogollon Rim streams and lakes will broaden. Unfortunately, many lakes and streams remain inaccessible, but any day now — Rarin’ To Go One lake is raring to... Full story
Declining lake level will have a huge impact on spring fishing. Current lake level is now at the projected low of 3600 and it will likely decline another foot before spring runoff reverses the lake level. That is great news for boaters using the southern lake as it will allow the construction crew currently deepening the Castle Rock Cut to remove one more foot of soil and make the pass last a bit longer in future low-water situations. But, fish care more about the water level as it relates to... Full story
March offers the best time of the year to fish your nearby park lakes for trout, sunfish, bass and catfish. Good fishing for trout will continue through March as all lakes receive their final winter stockings. Most trout are biting on Power Bait fished on the bottom, but worms and small jigs have worked well at times. The cool morning hours are the best times to target the trout. As waters warm up, try fishing for largemouth bass that are now moving closer to shore as they prepare to spawn and... Full story
When Arizona became a state in 1912, many wildlife species were in dire straits. Fifty years later, most wildlife species, especially game animals, were abundant beyond the hopes of even the most enthusiastic conservationist. A newly published book, Bringing Back the Game: Arizona Wildlife Management, 1912–1962, examines wildlife management in Arizona during those formative years as sportsmen, and later professional game wardens and biologists, worked to return game populations to abundance a... Full story
OLYMPIA – The fishing season for halibut will be shorter in Puget Sound this year, but anglers fishing off the southern coast of Washington will have an extra weekend day to fish for the big flatfish under catch quotas for 2013 adopted by the International Pacific Halibut Commission. This year’s recreational catch quota for all of Washington’s areas is 214,110 pounds. The quota for the spot fishery in Puget Sound is the same as it was last year, but fishing time will be curtailed to compe... Full story
It’s been a cold winter at Lake Powell. Water surface temperature bottomed out at 44 F and presently fluctuates between 45 at night and 47 during the “heat” of the day. Water level continues to decrease resulting in the closure of the Castle Rock Cut and the primitive launch ramps at Hite. Luckily, the last cold spell featured an increase in the snow pack in Colorado, which means there will be some runoff this spring. On the bright side, those anglers who continue to bundle up and venture out h... Full story
Columbia Zone News: States set spring chinook, sturgeon seasons for Columbia and Willamette rivers Willamette sturgeon retention season announced for July Beginning Jan. 1, 2013 the Columbia River, and select tributaries (listed under regulation updates for Northwest Zone and Willamette Zone) will be restricted to barbless hooks when fishing for salmon, steelhead and trout. SALMON, STEELHEAD, and SHAD COLUMBIA RIVER MAINSTEM, Buoy 10 upstream to I-5 Bridge Effective January 1 - February 28, 2013, under permanent regulations: Open for adipose... Full story
Throughout the winter, lakes in the Urban Fishing Program (UFP) have been successfully stocked with rainbow trout at two-week intervals. More trout and bigger trout arrived the week of Jan. 7-12 as part of the UFP’s annual incentive trout stocking, making this a great time to go fishing. Many fish in the 12-15 inch range are part of this special delivery, and some 3-4 pound whoppers are expected. Get ready for some big fish action by making sure your fishing line is in good shape, your hooks are... Full story
The 2013 Arizona Fishing Regulations are now available at all seven Arizona Game and Fish Department offices and at fishing license dealers throughout the state. They are also posted online at www.azgfd.gov/fishing. “Arizona’s diverse fisheries offer great opportunities all year round,” said Acting Fisheries Chief Eric Swanson. “If getting outdoors, staying healthy and spending quality time with family and friends are among your 2013 resolutions, fishing is a great way to meet your goals, have f... Full story
NEWPORT – Anglers after halibut will hear the details of the Pacific halibut quota for 2013 and have the opportunity to weigh in on the dates of openings in the Central Coast Sub-area spring all-depth halibut fishery. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 4, at the Holiday Inn Express, 135 SE 32nd St., Newport (South Beach). Attendees will be asked to comment on the spring (May to July) all-depth fixed dates between Cape Falcon and Humbug Mountain, back-up dates for the spring fishery (in case quota remains after the fixed dates), a... Full story
OLYMPIA - The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission will take public comment on proposed changes to the state’s sportfishing rules during a public meeting Feb. 8-9 in Olympia. The commission, a nine-member citizen panel appointed by the governor to set policy for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), will convene at 8:30 a.m. both days in Room 172 of the Natural Resources Building, 1111 Washington St. S.E. A complete agenda for the meeting is available on the commission’s webpage at http://wdfw.wa.gov/comm... Full story
Temperatures are warming, birds are singing and spring chinook salmon are starting to move into the lower Columbia River. Spring is still a ways off, but February offers plenty of opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. This year’s return of spring chinook is expected to be lower than in the past few years, but the fishery still offers anglers an opportunity to catch some of the Northwest’s most highly prized fish, said Joe Hymer, a fish biologist for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). -We’ve already received a few repor... Full story
The Arizona Game and Fish Department has been receiving inquiries from outdoor enthusiasts who are uncertain about new Forest Service Travel Management Rules and whether the rules apply to them and their favorite recreational areas. Many hunters, anglers, campers and wildlife watchers are especially concerned about how the new travel management rules are being enforced, especially in national forests located in Arizona. In response to these questions and concerns, Arizona Game and Fish has... Full story
Get Out For Trout This is the time of year when the Arizona Game and Fish Department really kicks in its winter trout stockings in the lower-elevation lakes. You can’t beat the recent weather, so now is a great time to get out and fish for trout. Fishing Updates Anglers sent in the following reports this week: Brand reported that he caught some rainbow trout at Desert Breeze Lake (an Urban Fishing Program water in Chandler) using spring green Power Bait, small panther martins, mealworms, and n... Full story
Rainbow trout stockings are well underway and will continue all winter long at two-week intervals. Trout range in size from 11-12 inches in length, with some fish up to 16 inches. Fishing is good to excellent for anglers using scented dough baits (such as Power Bait), worms or corn on the bottom. Tip: Anglers using 2-4 pound test line are getting 2-3 times more bites than anglers using 8-12 pound line. Small spinners such as Roostertails and Panther Martins, or spoons such as Kastmasters and... Full story
There was a small crowd waiting when Justin Fleck backed Excel into the slip in front of Fisherman’s Landing Dec. 9 sometime around 4 a.m., and it rapidly grew until there looked to be several hundred folks clustered around the biggest yellowfin tuna ever caught. By 6 a.m., to say the place was a zoo might be understatement. The trip was a Braid charter to the Hurricane Bank with 22 anglers. The star of the event, electrician John Petruescu, was pinned to the dock rail by reporters, p...
Each year as part of its highly successful program to manage and conserve bald eagles in the state, the Arizona Game and Fish Department asks outdoor recreationists to help protect important eagle breeding areas by honoring the closure of 21 areas across the state. Various land and wildlife management agencies close the breeding areas for part of the year, beginning in December, to protect the state’s 55 breeding pairs of bald eagles. Some of the closure areas are located near popular r... Full story
Roosevelt Lake is the upper most and largest in a series of four reservoirs on the Salt River. The Bureau of Reclamation constructed Roosevelt Dam in 1911 forming Roosevelt Lake. At full capacity it is approximately 22 miles long with 91 miles of shoreline; its maximum depth is over 300 feet and it can store 1,653,043 acre feet of water. Roosevelt Lake is also home to a variety of game fish including largemouth and smallmouth bass, black crappie, yellow bass, bluegill, channel and flathead catfish and carp. Threadfin shad, gizzard shad, and blu... Full story
New 2013 Sportfishing Calendar Bill Roecker’s fresh, colorful 2013 Sportfishing Calendar is stuffed with information and great features like the long-range record fish of the year, the most common hook knots, world records, holidays, equinoxes, long range schedules, moon phases, LA tide charts and tidal corrections for San Diego, San Francisco and Santa Barbara, with those gotta have 'em, copyrighted Tidelines™. It won't set your hook for you, but Bill Roecker's 2013 Sportfishing Calendar, wit... Full story
The City of Tempe and the Arizona Game and Fish Department will host the annual Welcome Back the Trout celebration from 3-5 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 20, at the SRP Tempe Town Lake Marina. The public is invited to come down and watch as thousands of rainbow trout are released into the lake. Arizona Game and Fish will conduct a free fishing clinic starting at 3 p.m. About 100 free loaner rods, reels and bait will be available during the event, along with instruction and tips from seasoned anglers. Pe... Full story
This is the last 2012 fishing report from Wayne Gustaveson for 2012, and we thank him for all the excellent information he has provided us for the past 12 months. It has been an interesting year with more highs than lows. Bass and walleye fishing in the spring was awesome, followed by a great run of surface fishing for juvenile stripers in summer. Now, going into winter it’s a mixed bag with unexpected fishing opportunities occurring each day. For example, on Saturday we took a side trip into Ca... Full story
November promises to provide excellent fishing at Urban Fishing Program lakes. The Phoenix and Tucson urban lakes have been loaded with catfish all fall with one last stocking in early November. Additionally, 15,000 bluegill were stocked. And, good news: The first trout delivery for the winter season began on Nov. 15 (see below for more information on the trout and bluegill stockings). Top baits for catfish are hot dogs, shrimp, and stink baits with fish biting throughout the day. Anglers are... Full story
