The Fish Sniffer Feature - March 01, 2010 • Last Months Feature click here
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff
Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff
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Pardee Lake: Abundant Trout And Kokanee, Huge Smallmouths
by Dan Bacher
Lake Pardee is one of the most popular lakes with anglers in the Mother Lode for good reason. The home of the California state smallmouth bass record of 9.83 pounds, Pardee features abundant rainbow trout and kokanee salmon , big largemouths and even huge channel catfish for boaters and shore anglers.
The EBMUD (East Municipal Utility District) reservoir, located in the Mother Lode Foothills on the Mokelumne River east of Ione, also has some of the best-managed facilities of any reservoir in the state, with nicely landscaped grounds, a well maintained marina and launch ramp and superb camping facilities. You won’t find the water skiers, recreational boaters and personal watercraft enthusiasts that are drawn to most other Mother Lode lakes here – this is a recreation area dedicated to family fishing and camping.
Approximately 90 percent of the anglers who go to Pardee fish for trout. Since I first fished Pardee for trout with the late Art Wilcox in 1988, I have had many memorable fishing adventures in pursuit of trout, kokanee and black bass at Pardee. That morning we caught a nice mess of trout while using nightcrawlers behind flashers on lead core line.
Unlike other Mother Lode lakes, Pardee has an annual season from late October to the first Friday in February. The fish have a chance to rest for a few months – and opening weekend anglers are generally greeted to good numbers of holdovers along with the planters.
The key to the great trout fishing at Pardee is the heavy plants of rainbow trout that go into the lake every year, combined with the clear, cold water of the Mokelumne watershed. Pardee Recreation, the lake’s concessionaire, and the DFG team up to plant 73,000 pounds of rainbows annually.
“We put in 10,000 pounds the week of this year’s opener on February 5, including 3,000 pounds on opening day,” said Richard Johnson, who with his wife Carrie owns the concessionaire. “We plant 90 percent of the fish, while the DFG stocks the rest.”
The fish that the concessionaire plants are fish averaging 1 to 1-1/2 pounds, while the trout stocked by the DFG are generally “catchables” averaging a half pound. However, the DFG this year stocked 1,000 pounds of rainbows averaging 1-1/2 pounds a couple of weeks before the opener, according to Johnson.
Prior to holiday weekends, the concessionaire stocks trophy fish up to 12 pounds. They purchase these fish using funds from the $4.00 fishing access fee.
Both bank anglers and boaters catch lots of trout, but shore anglers have the advantage in the winter and spring when water temperatures are still cool. That was the case on this year’s opener when many bank anglers reported catching limits of feisty trout on a wide variety of baits and lures, while the trollers had a more difficult time bagging fish.
The main recreation area near the marina, where the fish are planted on a weekly basis, is the top area to fish from shore. The Lagoon behind the Marina, Rainbow Point and Stony Point Landing are among the better spots.
Anglers fish with Power Bait, Power Eggs, Berkley Gulp, Pautzke salmon eggs, nightcrawlers on sliding sinkers or under bobbers. Particularly right after a plant, shiny lures such as Cripplures, Kastmasters, Roostertails, Rapalas and Little Cleos yield the best action.
As the water temperatures warm up, boaters find increasingly better action while trolling as the fish move into the thermocline. Anglers hook the fish on a wide array of lures, including Rapalas, Hum Dingers, Needlefish, and nightcrawlers behind dodgers and flashers. The Narrows, face of the dam, river mouth and river arm are among the most productive areas.
Although German brown trout are not planted in the lake, the lake has a small but healthy wild brown population that spawns in the Mokelumne River. Annetta Stephens of Scotts Valley caught the lake's largest-ever German brown, a 13.54 lb. beauty, on May 5, 2002. She was trolling for kokanee with a Father Murphy’s bug at 50 feet deep at the mouth of the river when the monster brown hit.
During the Pardee Media Day this January 31 before the lake opened, two anglers caught two German browns while fishing for bass. Mick Radocinovich bagged the largest one, a 2-1/2 pounder. Bass Pro Bub Tosh and I also teamed up to catch a beautiful 18 inch holdover rainbow while fishing crawdad crankbaits along a rock wall that day.
Ronny Shelton of Ione shattered the lake rainbow record on June 14, 2002 when he landed an 18.65 lb. beauty while bank fishing with Power Bait in the recreation area. Just three weeks earlier, Gary Coe, president of Kokanee Power, briefly held the lake rainbow record with a 17.93 lb. fish that he caught trolling for kokanee in the narrows.
Pardee hosts a healthy kokanee salmon population. Kokanee are not known for their size at Pardee, but are very numerous, in fact, so numerous that CIFFFI and Kokanee Power pressured the DFG into finally stopping kokanee plants at the lake. Pardee was last planted with 20,075 kokanee by the DFG in 2006.
Although the majority of anglers target trout and salmon at Pardee, the lake entered the national bass fishing limelight when three smallmouth over 9 pounds were caught in recent years. In addition, the lake has probably yielded more smallmouths over 8 pounds that any other lake in the West.
Harold Hardin of Stockton set the new state record in July 2007 when he landed a 9.83 lb. bronzeback, eclipsing the previous state record of 9.1 pounds caught by Tom Brady in 1976 at Trinity Lake. He fooled the fish with a 6 inch long charcoal colored Castaic swimbait.
Lake Pardee Facts
Location and size: Situated on the Mokelumne River in the Mother Lode foothills west of Ione, Lake Pardee has 2257 surface acres and 37 miles of shoreline when full.
Management: The East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) oversees the operation and maintenance of facilities, determines recreation fees and establishes rules and regulations. The recreation facilities are operated by Pardee Lake Recreation.
Camping: Lake Pardee boasts a total of 141 beautiful, oak studded campsites located within two separate campgrounds within its boundaries. Campsites offer plenty of shade, are clean and each contain a picnic table and a fire ring. Clean, portable toilets are within a short walk. In each campground, running water is close to or right next to a site. Two ADA designed handicap sites are also available. Lakeview Campground is within walking distance of most facilities. The Oaks Campground is a little more secluded. For reservations and fee information, call (209) 772-1472.
RV Sites: Nightly and weekly RV sites, known as "C" units, are located in the Oaks Campground and feature full hook-ups, including electricity, water, and sewer connections. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring.
Boat ramp: The ten-lane boat launch ramp is a real convenience for easy launching and exiting. The extra long trailer parking area is also a plus to boaters at Pardee. The boat launching fee is $7.00 and the vehicle parking fee is $8.00. Note: EBMUD rangers will be inspecting boats for the presence of Quagga and Zebra mussels.
Marina: Pardee’s full service marina features boat rentals, boat supplies, fuel, ice, propane, oil, bait, tackle, beverages, sandwiches and snacks, lake maps and fishing licenses.
Boat rentals: are available out of Lake Pardee Marina for hourly, half day, full day and weekly rates. Deluxe and pontoon boat rentals are also available.
Fishing fees: Permits are $4.00 each day for each individual 16 years and older. A valid California fishing license is also required for all persons fishing who are age 16 and older.
Fish cleaning facilities: The state-of-the-art fishing cleaning station is an automated system where you simply approach the station and the grinder turns on automatically. Also, it is ADA designed for the disabled. It’s open 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
For more information, contact Pardee Lake Recreation, 4900 Stony Creek Road, Ione, CA 95640-9439, Office: (209) 772-1472, FAX: (209) 772-0985.www.pardeelakerecreation.com.
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