FISH GALORE ANGLERS WILL FIND PLENTY TO CATCH POST-OPENER.Byline: Mike A. Anastasi Sports Editor Noun 1. sports editor - the newspaper editor responsible for sports news newspaper editor - the editor of a newspaper MAMMOTH LAKES - Twenty-three years ago, Gary Jones Gary Jones is the name of:
``I wanted to grow up with my children'' says Jones, operator of Silver Lake Resort along the June Lake June Lake is a subalpine lake in Mono County, California, located at at an elevation of 7,612 ft (2320 m). The lake is popular for fishing. Loop here in the Eastern Sierra. ``Never looked back.'' The Eastern Sierra has that kind of power over people, yet most of the anglers who fished Saturday's opener of the trout season - a grand tradition for folks from Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, since the early part of the last century - won't be back until the 2001 opener. The common perception among those anglers is that there just aren't as many fish. Curtis Milliron is working to change that. Actually, he's already changed the fact; it's the misperception mis·per·ceive tr.v. mis·per·ceived, mis·per·ceiv·ing, mis·per·ceives To perceive incorrectly; misunderstand. mis he's out to fix. For more than 10 years, Milliron has been the Department of Fish and Game's biologist in charge of Crowley Lake Crowley Lake is a reservoir on the upper Owens River in southern Mono County, California in the United States. It was created in 1941 by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) as storage for the Los Angeles Aqueduct and for flood control. . He's also at the forefront of a relatively new fisheries management Fisheries management is today often referred to as a governmental system of management rules based on defined objectives and a mix of management means to implement the rules, which is put in place by a system of monitoring control and surveillance (MCS). philosophy nationwide, and Crowley has been his laboratory. ``I have an excellent data set,'' Milliron says. ``I know exactly what wild trout do. I know exactly what hatchery-raised trout do. ``We've managed it so well that if a guy doesn't get a hook-up every five minutes now, they think there has to be something wrong.'' Anglers caught anywhere between 15 and 25 percent of the year's harvest of trout last weekend, but thanks to the DFG's strategy of focusing on three different species of trout, the lake, as well as other Eastern Sierra waterways, are generally expected to provide excellent trout fishing for the next few weeks. A dip is anticipated over Memorial Day weekend before increasing in June. ``We have such a good population of fish, we are not going to deplete de·plete v. 1. To use up something, such as a nutrient. 2. To empty something out, as the body of electrolytes. the lake like we used to,'' Milliron said. ``A lot of fish that were raised in Crowley, fish that are now off in the tributaries, they will be coming back after they recover from the rigors of spawning.'' While many anglers caught easy limits on Saturday, the day did not go well for those positioned in the wrong spots; this year's opener was more of an either/or event. While many were expecting the best opener in 20 years, Milliron foresaw the possibility of an opener that wouldn't be as strong for all anglers. ``If that happens,'' he said Friday night, ``that only means stronger fishing for the rest of the season. I know I put more than a half-million fish in that lake.'' Mike Haynie, the region's hatchery hatchery a commercial establishment dedicated to the hatching of bird eggs to provide day old chicks and poults to the poultry industry. hatchery liquid the contents of unfertilized eggs. Used in petfood manufacture. manager, said the thinking among DFG DFG Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Council) DFG Department of Fish and Game DFG District Factor Group DFG Data Flow Graph DFG Difference Frequency Generation DFG Diode Function Generator DFG Dog Faced Gremlin biologists has changed significantly over the past 10 years. ``The opener was a big, big event with hoopla hoop·la n. Informal 1. a. Boisterous, jovial commotion or excitement. b. Extravagant publicity: The new sedan was introduced to the public with much hoopla. 2. . We keyed what we did to that,'' Haynie said. ``Now, we're more concerned with creating season-long angling. In fact, some of the best fishing now is during the summer.'' In particular, Crowley Lake, Bridgeport Reservoir and Pleasant Valley Reservoir should be excellent fisheries throughout the season, Haynie said. Ed Mather, who operates a service station in Independence, said locals know not to even bother on opening weekend. There are plenty of fish after everyone goes back to L.A. ``You don't have the people, and you don't have the rat race,'' Mather said. Anglers will find their best stream fishing post-opener at higher elevations, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. professional guide Tom Loe. ``I get people who tell me they want to fish the (lower-elevation) Owens River in July,'' Loe said. ``I tell them to forget fishing and bring their swimsuit instead because that's the only action you'll have.'' Otherwise, he agrees with the DFG on which lakes to fish. ``Crowley is one of the few viable, reproducing fisheries,'' he said. ``I've taken clients out in the summer and caught 40 fish in a day and each one is at least 16 inches long.'' The very best place to fish post-opener is in the back country. By early summer, every lake will be open and safe. ``The back country,'' said Milliron, ``is so underutilized that fishing will be excellent there no matter when you go.'' CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Fernando Gasca of San Fernando shows off his trophy- sized trout. The fish were bigger than normal. (2 -- color) Fishermen take to the water during the pre-dawn hours at Crowley Lake on the opening of the trout season. (3 -- color) A waving flag is an indication of how windy it was at Crowley Lake for the opener. John McCoy/Staff Photographer |
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