Castaic fishing report for 10/05

[tubeN2]

[cool] [size 3]Hey there fellow anglers,[/size]

[size 3]The water was just a mild 74degrees at 5:00 am. The weather was overcast from a heavy marine layer. The big dogs were jumping and hitting the top by 6:30. So were the smaller dogs(LMB). The Blue gills were back and plentiful.(no more 2 lbrs yet) there was a lot of LMB activity with results. [/size]

[size 3]Only caught 4 undersized and 1 legal. Caught them on purple colored Goggle eyes. C&R. Also caught 19 blue gills. Waxies were the worm of choice although 2 of them were caught on black bait bugs made by TD. Those went into the C&E category. was hungry that's why.[/size]

[size 3]Also found out that Topedo Tommy has a cousin. They were seen hanging out around the pier at the Lagoon and maintained a distance of about 15 feet from each other. Eye to eye. Couldn't get either of them to hit. Torpedo Tommy is somewhere around the 18 to 20 lb range. The cousin looks only around 16lb. Still nice targets but they are not the Moby Dick that is still out there.[/size]

[size 3]Rainbows are on the loose since they planted in the upper lake on the 23rd of Sept. Some made it down to the Lagoon. Can't wait for some of those dudes to grow up and be catchable. ha ha. They are only around 2lb right now. Didn't even try to fish for them.[/size]

[size 3]Marine layer burned off around 10:30 and started to get hot again. It was time to pack it in and leave.[/size]
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[TubeDude]

[cool]It's beginning to sound like an obsession..."The Young Man and the C...for Castaic". Keep on keepin' on. You will get a shot someday.

I'm attaching a pic of some of the newest purple glitter jigs I just got out of the final epoxy coating. Will do some wire bending and blade additions this week and send a few off ASAP. I'll PM you when they are on the way.

I usually have to work with any new glitter I get to get the feel for it. Some of them can be applied right to the bare lead. Others need an undercoating of white. Still others show up better if I paint them with an undercoat close in color to the glitter.

I experimented with undercoats of white, red and purple. The purple came out the best. Although the red undercoat produced some interesting highlights.

I will be playing around with adding both red and/or blue...and maybe some green flecks in with the purple...to get some "june bug" colors. I have done well on plastics with that color. I am also going to make up some leadhead jigs for fishing worms rigged with a jighead. Also a good way to fish some of the 6" ribworms.
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[tubeN2]

Hey those pics look good. It looks like the darker purple may do well. I was wondering as well. How good are you at dragon flies??? Just a thought. They do have a few red ones as well as some blue ones. The red ones tend to run in the range of kelly to burnt sienna. and the blue ones tend to run from baby blue to a almost purple color. huh. that figures why they like the grape flavor better.
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[TubeDude]

[cool]DRAGONFLIES? Actually, it is well known among fly flingers that dragonflies and adult damselflies are bass candy. Not too many of the real big fish will spend the energy to chase dragonflies, but small to medium sized bass can often be seen leaping clear out of the water to try to nail those elusive critters.

On Lake Pleasant, in Arizona, I once drove myself crazy trying to connect with the bass that were popping out of the water...clear out in the open, over thirty feet or more in depth. I finally saw that they were not chasing shad, as I had previously thought, but dragonflies that were skimming low and depositing eggs into the water.

On Lake Sherwood, near Thousand Oaks, I had a couple of wild afternoons with a flyrod, throwing some experimental dragonfly patterns around the cattails and other stickups in the shallows. There were hundreds of small bass and big bluegills cruising and hunting for errant dragons and damsels. Anytime I could drop my fly within sight of a fish, it was smacked hard. Those fish had learned that they needed to move fast and hit hard if they wanted to dine on dragons.

I haven't tried tying any dragons for several years, but they are not difficult. The hard part is casting them. They are not heavy but they are wind resistant. I once did fairly well by fishing one behind a bubble, with a fly rod. It casted well. The trick was to just let it sit for a few seconds after splashdown. Then a series of wiggles and jerks would usually get a strike, if there were any fish nearby.

There are many commercially tied dragon patterns. Some of them are more lures than flies...with floating foam or balsa bodies. I have a lot of different craft cord colors that would make some great looking bodies, but it is not very buoyant. The wings can be anything from plastic to squirrel tail.

I had a guy tell me once that he had some success throwing a small floating Rapala...silver with a blue back...when the fish were chasing the blue dragons. It sounds like it might work, but I have never tried it.

By the way, I am making up some lighter heads...with the darker purple. They are an ideal link between fishing heavy jig heads and drop shotting. I should be getting some off to you after the weekend.
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[tubeN2]

[cool] Hey TubeDad, I would have no problem getting the dragon presented properly and with the right format. It's just that they have some dragonflys available out here but they cost much more than the mega swim baits.

You have to draw the line somewhere.

Powerbait 3.50

lunkers 4.00

mega swim bait 5" 5.25

hand tied dragonfly 16.00

the look on my face when the total comes up on the register.............................. Priceless. ha ha

I can get like 4 packs of storm lures or goggle eyes for that price. sheeesh. And their colors don't even come close to what is really out there.

Let me know what you might be able to come up with. I might want to talk you into some brown ones as well for Bishop CA.
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[TubeDude]

[cool]In your spare time you might check for some pics of the type and color dragonflies you are seeing. With all of the materials I have...and the dyes and markers...should be able to come up with something.

In the meantime, I will consult my pattern guides for a working model.
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