Estevan McDonald of Golden State Custom Baits was out there and taking advantage of the hot bite on quality fish in an alpine setting. He was able to limit on Golden State Fishing minijigs, and his haul included a 6.3-pound kicker.
“Lots of people were catching on plastics in marina cove and the surrounding area, and fish are still staying near where they were stocked,” McDonald told Western Outdoor News.
He’s a regular on the SoCal trout scene, and in the Eastern Sierra for that matter just like Temecula angler Tracy Hartman who is also no stranger to contributing to WON’s fishing reports whenever she hits the water.
“I got three trout from 3 to 6 pounds, all on spoons,” said Hartman. “I actually missed more than I caught. It’s a beautiful lake. I love that place.”
Another notable trout that stood out from the overall-solid numbers put up by the whole field of trout anglers hitting Hemet of late was a 5.5 pounder caught by Gavin Archuleta who was drop-shotting One Eleven Custom Lures Trout Stix in white/yellow.
Part of what makes Lake Hemet so unique as a Southern California trout fishery is the bite tends to hang around for weeks if not months after one of these big stocks. Sure it tapers off and limits get hard to come by, but there are always fish to be caught at some level. The lake gets a fraction of the angling pressure in general than most SoCal lakes, and management also does a great job of keeping stock dates on the down low so truck chasers don’t pound freshly-dumped trout into oblivion before anyone else gets up there.
Lake Hemet is open daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m, and entry is $25 per vehicle or $150 for an annual pass. For more information, visit GoLakeHemet.com.
