These small freshwater mollusks have turned up in Otay as well as several other San Diego area waters. Quagga mussels first invaded the Colorado River system and have apparently moved down the aqueduct from Lake Havasu into Southern California waters. They reproduce quickly, clogging pipes and aqueducts and causing millions of dollars in damage to water systems.

The Department of Fish and Game is putting a number of restrictions in place to combat the movement of these destructive pests. To see how the new regulations affect your fishing, check the DFG’s Web site at www.dfg.ca.gov/invasives/quaggamussel .

Also check out the city Web site at www.sandiego.gov/water/recreation/index.shtml to see what the City Lakes requires of boaters.

If all that wasn’t bad enough, San Diego County’s recent round of wildfires burned a bit of the shore at Otay.

“The fire did get the Harvey Arm of the lake, but it had been previously burned during the Cedar Fire of a few years ago, so it didn’t do much additional damage,” said Weber.

“No structures were damaged, and if we don’t get heavy rains, we should be OK.”

Reservoir keeper Brian Norris seconded that opinion. He said that the eastern side of the reservoir was burned, but not nearly as badly as four years ago.

Thankfully, the bass fishing remains quite good. Water levels were down a bit in ‘07, and that slowed the bluegill bite in the tules.

But the bass fishing has held up very well. We got off a good spawn in ‘05, and that has now produced good numbers of fish.

“I didn’t see anything larger than a 12-pound, 9-ounce bass last year,” Norris said, although a new lake record was set for blue catfish: A 97-pounder was caught. “Having the lake open in the winter is a plus for the big cat anglers,” he said.

This spring, things will be different at Otay because with the year-round fishing, there will no official opening day.

It’s a good idea to check Otay fishing reports on Internet fishing sites to see when spring spawning activity begins. Call the city’s fishing report hotline at (619) 465-3474.

With all the future problems that might face the bass angler at other San Diego lakes, Otay still remains one of Southern California’s outstanding bass lakes.

My regard for Otay is such that more than a quarter century ago, my wife and I spent our wedding night trying to catch a few winks in the back of our pickup truck in the boat line at Otay, waiting for the lake to open so we could go fishing.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Upper and Lower Otay reservoir lie within a 30-minute drive of downtown San Diego, approximately eight miles east of Chula Vista. Upper Otay is a small lake, with only 80 surface acres and is open to float-tubers and shore-anglers only.

Lower Otay is a much larger water, covering 1,200 surface acres, and has a maximum water depth of 137 feet and 25 shoreline miles.

Lower Otay’s fish include Florida-strain largemouth bass, black and white crappie, bluegills, channel catfish, blue catfish, white catfish and bullheads. Minimum-size limit for bass is 12 inches.

Fish limits are five bass, five catfish and 25 crappie, with no limit on other species. Fish catch information is updated weekly.

Both private and rental fishing boats may launch. The city charges a $5 fee per angler for fishing, and a $5 launch fee for each boat.