High water-levels present challenges for fishermen

Submitted photo/ A bank angler hauls in a panfish from a farm pond.

Nevada Daily Mail

Angler Justin Whitlock of Springfield, doesn't let the high water or hot temperatures stop him from fishing.

Last weekend, at Pomme de Terre, he was fishing from a dock at the State Park Marina. He said, "With all the high water and heat, this is the best place to try to catch fish."

Whitlock started fishing at the Pomme when he was a youngster and still hits the lake every chance he gets. "I fish at Fellows and Table Rock (lakes), but I know the Pomme very well, so I hit it whenever I can. With all the high water this summer, it has made the fishing difficult," he said.

Overall, lakes throughout the state have been affected with unusually high water-tables this summer making fishing more challenging.

There were fewer anglers on the water last weekend. However, there was plenty of activity as boaters took advantage of the sunny skies to cruise the lake, ski and swim. Brenda Vaughn, at Nemo Marina said it was like business as usual for a hot July weekend.

She said, "As for the fishing, the crappie fishing has been so-so. I haven't heard much about the white bass, but the fishermen have been catching perch left and right using worms.

"I don't know much about the catfish or bass. This part of the lake is clear, but when you get close to the Bolivar Landing, you may run into some off-color water and debris. There has been a lot of activity on the lake, people are vacationing, so they are still coming, and high water isn't going to stop them."

Like most of the area lakes, keeping docks open has been a choir. Vaughn said, "We have been doing a lot of work to keep our docks open. We have extended the walkways a lot.

"On two of our docks we have been taking people back-and-forth because they can't get to their boats. Once the water gets back to normal, the fishing will get back to normal as well. Right now, it's a day-to-day challenge."

Hugh and Brenda Vaughn have been at the Pomme for a long time. Hugh bought the Nemo Marina back in 1977 and has been at the Pomme 38 years, while Brenda has been there for 27 years.

This year the water level reached 21 1/2 feet. Vaughn said the water is falling around 6-inches a day without any more rain. They have seen high water before, in 1993 and 1995, when the water reached a record 26 feet above normal.

Although the bass fishing has been slow, some bass anglers like Robert Duncan and Tim Hughes, Kansas City, have been catching fish by fishing places that are dry when the lake is at normal level.

Duncan said, "Several years ago when the lake was high, I found bass in the flooded trees and brush. So this past weekend, Tim and I gave it a try and caught several nice bass, with one of them weighing 6 pounds. You have to work at it, but it's worth it when you have some action.

"Last Friday, in spite of the heat, high water and lots of boat traffic on the lake, we managed to catch seven keepers by using twin-spinners in the flooded trees."

Earle Hammond, known as "Mr. Muskie" around the Pomme, said he had a great June fishing for muskies.

He said, "I took a couple anglers out on the 13th, 16th and 20th. In those three days, we had 19 muskies in the boat and lost several others. It was some of the best muskie fishing ever. After all the rain and heat, I haven't been working at muskie fishing, but it will get better once the water starts to cool down.

"We have been catching some bass by fishing in the flooded timber and trolling a lure called Livid Shad. Crappie fishing is slow, but some are caught by fishing in the brush."

Although the area lakes are high and the summer temperatures hover around the 90 degree mark, you can still catch fish.