As I crested Scott Mountain summit, elevation 5401', the day's first rays of sunlight reflected off the fresh snow as if the forest was covered with diamonds. The valley below was blanketed in fog and framed by the snow-covered Trinity Alps. It had snowed Saturday night and Scott Mountain Highway is not plowed on the weekends. As it was Monday morning I left myself plenty of time to navigate the pass. The road on the south side of the summit is a steep set of switchbacks that when covered with snow looks more like a bobsled run than a highway. I was pleasantly surprised to find it freshly cleared. I arrived so early, there was plenty of time to read about the Super Bowl in the morning paper and enjoy a big mug of joe.

John Gray, The "Maine" Guide, pulled into the Trinity Center boat ramp and we soon had the boat launched and gear stowed. Scooting across the lake through the near freezing fog at 40MPH in a bass boat gave new meaning to the term "biting cold". Mercifully it was a short ride.

The near-record winter rains of the 2006 La Nina made January fishing tough if not impossible in the northern 100 miles of California; and Trinity Lake is no exception. The lake level is about twenty feet higher than normal, providing expanded fish habitat and the water is significantly colder than normal for this time of year making bass somewhat lethargic. "We'll catch fish but I'm not expecting to boat forty," John told me.

Dredger tailings are the predominant bottom feature of the North end of Trinity Lake. Miles and miles of rock piles, some up to sixty feet tall, were haphazardly thrown together by mechanical monsters chewing up the riverbed in search of gold. These hundreds of mounds and numerous trenches provide rich habitat for bass, trout, and kokanee living in the manmade lake.

"The fish are slow; work the bait over the rocks as slow as you can," John informed me. "Without getting snagged in the rocks," he added. Sounds easy enough. I snagged up and lost tube jigs on my first two casts. I soon figured out how slow one could retrieve without hanging up the jig. However, this is definitely one of those situations where if you aren't losing gear you aren't fishing.

John's rod bent over and he set the hook. The top third of the rod began twitching, in contrast to the bending and motionless pointing of a rod tip at the water when snagged. The fish took off on a run, heading straight for the bottom. John managed to turn the fish around for a while then it took off again. Eventually John prevailed. After removing the shad pattern minnow jig and getting a photo of the three-pound smalley, the fish was released to fight another day.

A short time later I felt the slow pickup of a bass. I set the hook and the fish took off pulling out line. Soon I had my first bronzeback of the day to the boat, the tail of the pumpkinseed gitzit hanging out of the three pounder's mouth.

We methodically worked our way through the dredger tailings as a pair of bald eagles leisurely circled overhead. By midmorning we had landed four fish, all smallmouth. The smallest was three pounds, the largest pushing five.

Then the bite just shut off. We tried fishing different locations and conditions. We motored up to where the river enters the lake. Large schools of kokanee, a forage fish for the bass, frequent the area in late winter. We didn't mark anything on the scope. We tried fishing a few spots where creeks enter the lake and worked the natural terrain, to no avail. "Normally this time of year you can find a willow and there will be a dozen bass nearby," John said. "This year every bass has his own willow," he chuckled.

John was still talking as we both noticed a bald eagle circling about a hundred feet directly over the boat. John has been fishing Trinity Lake for more than fifteen years and the eagle seemed to recognize him, unconcerned about being so close to humans. I have never been that close to an eagle! I reached for my camera and took a few shots. The eagle went into a dive and snatched a fish out of the lake about 20 feet away from us. It was an impressive show I will never forget.

The fog burned off and the sun finally came out around noon. John had switched to a kokanee pattern minnow and managed to hook one more fish. The afternoon just turned into one of those beautiful days to enjoy nature realizing that sometimes there is more to fishing than catching. It was just us, a lake, snow covered mountains and the eagles.

The size of the Trinity Lake bronzebacks is impressive for a lake this far north! There are more accessible bass fisheries in the area; however, the magnificent setting and the quality of the fish just might be worth the drive or extending your fishing trip a day or two. Trinity Center is a 90-minute drive from Redding.

For more information, or if you would like to fish with John, he can be contacted at: 530.623.4352 or through his website, www.snowcrest.net/themaineguide

Trinity Center Services:
Parking at the ramp: $5.00
Gas and fishing licenses can be purchased at the market.
Dining is it and miss so bring your own food!
There are numerous USFS campgrounds nearby.

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