The big fish are on the chew at South Lake in a big way including a whopper weighing in at 9 lbs 15 oz caught by Kurt Bachmeyer of Temecula, CA on a kastmaster. Lots of fish in the 4 lb to 7 lb range were also caught by a host of other happy anglers.

In addition to the big week of whoppers, action on pan sized DFG and holdover rainbows was also excellent, especially early in the week. Anglers tossing 1/32oz mini jigs in a variety of colors with orange, white or pink trout worm trailers seemed to have the best luck among the folks using artificial lures. Thomas Bouyants and Kastmasters are also producing for cast & retrieve lure tossers. Bait fishing was solid as well with most colors of Powerbait and nightcrawlers working well. Salmon eggs are also working well anywhere water is flowing into the lake. South Lake is completely ice free and the water is slowly inching up as the spring runoff is here. The concrete launch ramp is still not accessible for private boaters as the water is only a few feet up on the launch and the concrete blocks at the end are still an obstacle for even the smallest boats. Those choosing to try and launch do so at their own risk - boaters in past years have ruined trailers trying to launch at this water level.

The South Lake docks are out and our boats, pontoon boats and kayaks will all be available for the upcoming holiday weekend.
Photos:

Main Photo Above: Matt Ruppell of Bishop with a 6.7lb 'bow caught using a mini-jig at South Lake
Photo #1: Rocky Wilkerson of Riverside with a solid 4.8lb trophy caught using a mini-jig at South Lake.
Photo #2: Ty Thomas of Torrance, CA with a 4.8lb Rainbow caught at South Lake using a Thomas Bouyant.
Photo #3: Alpers stocking May 10th, 2012
Photo #4: South Lake on 5-18-12
Photo #5: Matt Ruppell of Bishop, CA with the stringer of the week - all fish between 1.5 and 5lbs caught at South Lake using mini-jigs tipped with a piece of nightcrawler.
Photo #6: Kurt Bachmeyer of Temecula, CA with a 9lb 15oz monster out of South Lake on May 17th, 2012 with a Kastmaster
Photo #7: Pontoon Launched from the rocks May 12th, 2012
Photo #8: Thomas Smith from Bakersfield, CA with a 3 1/2lb Rainbow caught using a Red/Gold Thomas Bouyant at South Lake.
Photo #9: Tina Townsend of Temecula, CA with a 4.38lb Rainbow from South Lake
Photo #10: Dan Fernandez from Norwalk with a chunky 4.7lb rainbow caught at South Lake using a mini-jig on 5/20/12
Photo #11: Matt Ruppell of Bishop with a 6.7lb 'bow caught using a mini-jig at South Lake
Photo #12: Building the docks May 11th, 2012
Photo #13: South Lake staffer Brett Powell from San Antonio, TX caught and released this gorgeous 5lb Rainbow on South Lake at the Rock Slide using a Lip Ripperz jig with a pink/white Lip Ripperz trout worm trailer.