Topaz Lake New Years Day fishing opening 2011 : This is an annual pre-Christmas reminder that Topaz Lake, located along U.S. 395 at the Nevada-California state line, will open its 2011 fishing season, one half hour before sunrise, on Saturday, Jan. 1.
If the weather is decent, if you don't have a massive hang-over, if you like to fish and if you don't have anything else planned, this could be a fun way to start the New Year.
Are you interested? Well if you are, here is some miscellaneous information that might entice you to travel to Topaz Lake to fish there on Jan. 1:
How to get there:
It's simple, just take U.S. 395 south from Carson City for about 40 miles.
Topaz Lake will be that big blue thing on your left side.
Where to fish from shore:
Along the beach at the north end.
If in doubt as where to fish, just look for the big crowd of parked vehicles and shore fishermen.
On the far shore, past the Douglas County campground.
Again, look for parked vehicles and shore fishermen.
On the California side, along U.S. 395.
Try anywhere in the rocky areas.
However be advised that if you fish on the bottom with bait (Power Bait or nightcrawlers), you stand a good chance of getting lots of snags in the rocks.
I sure do whenever I fish there!
Where to fish from a boat:
Along the shoreline on the far side (east) of the lake.
Near the rocky point at the Douglas County Campground.
At the south end of the lake, where the West Walker River enters the lake. Note: This area is very shallow, so don't fish deep or you could snag up your downrigger ball or favorite lure or both.
Right down the middle of the lake (my favorite trolling location to try to catch fish and to also avoid snagging my lures on the bottom).
Also, be advised the Topaz Lake Marina boat launch is open year-round.
What to use from shore:
Almost all shore fishermen will be using different colors of Power Bait, red Salmon eggs or nightcrawlers.
If you use Power Bait, try orange, Chartreuse or Captain America.
If you use red Salmon eggs, try them with mini-marshmallows to float them off the bottom.
If you use nightcrawlers, be sneaky and inflate them, to float them off the bottom. You might also give them a squirt of liquid fish scent to try to entice the trout to bite.
If you are a spincaster, try tossing a lure like a Daredevil, TOR-P-DO, Kastmaster, Super Duper or Thomas Buoyant.
If you are a "Fly Guy," try a black Woolly Bugger or try a black Woolly Worm, along a sandy bottom.
If you're super lucky, you might catch a very nice sized rainbow.
However, you will most probably catch Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) planter-sized rainbow trout (about 10-13 inches in length) or an occasional larger hold-over rainbow up to about 3-5 pounds.
With luck, you might catch a brown trout with an average size of about 1 or 2 pounds. You could also catch an occasional Tiger Trout (a sterile, NDOW cross breed between a brook trout and a brown trout).
With lots of luck, you might even catch a black bass, but don't count on it. They are very few and far between.
If you're unlucky, you could end up catching a huge Carp, but they don't count as a game fish, so don't plan to brag about catching one.
If you're totally unlucky, you will get "skunked." My advice, then, is to head home, pour yourself a drink, jump in your easy chair and watch a New Year's Day football game on TV. That way, it won't be a totally lost day.
Special regulations:
You will need to have either a Nevada or California fishing license, which are both good anywhere around or on the surface of the lake.
If you fish with a Nevada license, you must have a Nevada Trout Stamp.
The lake limit is five trout, 10 Mountain Whitefish and 15 warmwater game fish, of which not more than five may be Black Bass.
Be advised that the area within a 100 yard radius of the Topaz Marina is closed to fishing. So, don't fish there! That's a big "No-No."
Special Note:
On Opening Weekend, there will be lots of NDOW and California game wardens, either in uniform or "civvies." So, don't do something illegal.
If you get caught and fined, it is going to cost you a lot of money.
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