Los Angeles County Fishing Reports

Balboa’s kicking out plenty of spring bass, although mostly skinny 1–2 pounders. Bigger fish have been hard to come by. Swimbaits and craw-style plastics are getting bit, especially when worked very tight to the shoreline. Water’s stained, so stick to dark, high-contrast colors like black and blue. Catfish are showing here and there, but the tilapia bite has been very good on nightcrawlers.

Guide Jim Taibi from 611 Fishing reports that bass action at Lake Castaic is still going strong. Largemouth and smallmouth are scattered across the lake in various stages of the spawn, with fish showing up on rocky points, main lake structure, and tucked into the brush in the backs of coves. Most largemouth are in the 1–2 lb range, with some bigger fish to 5 lbs. Water clarity is excellent overall, minus some stain deep in the coves. C3 Baits Shimmy’s in Neptune Shad on a Carolina rig or dropshot are doing most of the work, while wacky-rigged 5” Senkos in green pumpkin or natural shad are pulling the better bites. Jerkbaits and small cranks are starting to come into play too. As for stripers, not much pressure on them yet, but with baitfish moving shallow, it won’t be long before the big schools follow.