The state’s biggest wild card will be Lassen County and Modoc County, California’s most overlooked fishing spots. This year, however, they have the potential to outdo the rest of the state. If high water remains, trophy rainbow, brook, cutthroat and brown trout will be available throughout the region.

“A lot of it is going to depend on the water year. We had great years in 2005 and 2006. And if we get another great year, those waters are going to explode in 2007. We get 6 inches a year of growth on those fish,” Hanson noted. “If we can keep the ball rolling with high water, those fish are going to be huge.” He said that if the area gets another good water-year, anglers will see three size-classes:

• Three-year-old fish could push the mid-20-inch mark.
• Last year’s fish will be at least 18 inches.
• This year’s fish will measure 12 to 13 inches.

If water levels remain high, these six reservoirs should be on your radar: Fee, Reservoir C, Nelson Coral, Newlands, Delta and Bailey. The same can be said for Eagle Lake, where you will find trophy trout.

If you plan on targeting the Jefferson State, trout fishing will be good on the Upper Klamath River above Copco Reservoir and on the river below Iron Gate Reservoir. These trout are running from 12 inches to 22 inches and are plentiful. Trout and Bass Lake, Lake Siskiyou and McCloud will fish excellent, due to continued stocking.

THE NORTH COAST
Anglers living on the North Coast will be glad to know that many of the waters removed from the allotment list will be put back on the list this year. Those waters, including Dry Lagoon, Freshwater Lagoon and Dead Lake, will each be planted with catchable-size rainbow trout.

State biologist Hanson said he expects Ruth Lake to surprise anglers.

“It receives a lot of trout, and when we did our electro-fishing, the trout were awesome,” he said. Ruth has the ability to yield limits of quality fish this year.

One of the biggest question marks is whether we’ll catch the brown trout that were planted as fingerlings and sub-catchables at Trinity in recent years. Hanson doesn’t expect browns to make a big splash this year, citing escapement, predators and the lake’s size to bolster his prediction.