Summary & Trail Report
We had beautiful weather all week with mostly sunny skies and highs in the low 70’s at the resort. After weeks of scattered t-storms it was a nice departure and felt a little more like the high country summers we’re used to.

The biggest fish caught in the canyon this season was weighed in this week at 9.92 lbs – Jason Serafin of Oceanside was the lucky angler who nailed this nearly double digit Rainbow at North Lake using a black wooly bugger.

The wildflower bloom continues to surprise as more and more flowers continue to show. The most impressive displays at present are the flowers along the trail from Rainbow Pack Outfit up to South Lake, or over near the Lamarck Lakes trailhead above the North Lake campground. Both areas have a gorgeous variety and impressive number of flowers. With a chance of a bit more rain this coming week, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get a few more weeks out of the wildly colorful forest décor.

We’re right in the heart of the peak hiking season so it is no surprise that the trails are pretty busy in the high country, especially the Bishop Pass and Piute Pass trails on the weekends as many thru hikers are making the most of the high country summer. For some less traveled trails, day hikers can find fewer folks up at the Tyee or the Lamarck Lakes trails, or visiting cross country lakes basins like the Baboons in the Sabrina Basin.

Bishop Creek So. Fork
Creek flows have remained steady at an ideal rate for fishing, although the catching was a little slower this week. Stocker Rainbows in the 10 to 13” range were the most common catch with salmon eggs and nightcrawlers being the best baits. With the reservoir at South Lake having come up considerably due to recent rains, the forecast looks pretty good for the creek flows to remain excellent for some time to come.

Weir Pond
No first hand reports from the pond this week.

North Lake
The big news in the canyon this week was a 9.92lb Rainbow caught at North Lake. Jason Serafin of Oceanside scored the trophy using a fly/bubble rig with a black wooly bugger. Aside from that monster trout, the bite on pan sized Rainbows was excellent early in the week but slowed a bit as the week progressed. Thomas Buoyants, jigs, and powerbait were best.

Intake II
Another busy week at Intake this week and while no lunkers were reported, most found a decent bite on pan sized Rainbows near the pump house, dam and the pipe. Inflated crawlers dipped in garlic sauce, powerbait and jigs were best.

South Lake
The water seems to still be rising, but the fishing is very slow and the lake is too low for much recreation.

Backcountry Fishing

The mid-summer bite is pretty typical in the backcountry with the fish feeding early and late in the day. Midges, dries, kastmasters and jigs have been the most productive. Some of the grassier lakes are lights out on the surface bite…bring your deet as this is due to the huge number of mosquitos at those locations.