Bank Fishing at Castaic Lake, CA

[NeroXyn]

Hi,

 

I am looking forward to fishing at Castaic Lake, especially the Upper lake, and I have several questions:

• As for these day during late summer, is it viable to bank fishing at the upper lake?
  • I heard the lake is very, very shallow right now. How much depth should I expect from the Bank (maybe from near the dam point)? How does it affect to the lure selection?
  • Speaking of lure, what exactly types of lure can you suggest?
    • I am mainly a (squarebill) crankbait guy, so I am hoping fishing squarebills are still viable.
    • I keep seeing videos and videos people suggesting a drop shot but I can't stand stay still and wait; I had bought several drop shot setups several times and still never once accomplished anything. The other finesse alternative I also keep seeing is split shot rig (by mr. WRB), which is the closest finesse technique I will ever try without boring myself.
  • How worth is it to rent a boat?
    • Which point of the lake should I focus on on the boat? Do you really need to be at the center of the lake with 100+ ft. water depth?
    • Do you need to rent it on the spot or reserve it? Do they usually ask for fishing license?
• What about the Lower Lake?
  • What is the water level should I expect fishing from the bank? Any grass or timbers?
  • Which sides/what spots do you usually recommend?

 

I realize I am asking a lot of questions, so no need to answer all of them. I just want to get the general idea before planning going there since I rarely spare half a day on the water. Thank you very much!

 

[ATA]

54 minutes ago, Bryan F. S. said:

Hi,

 

I am looking forward to fishing at Castaic Lake, especially the Upper lake, and I have several questions:

• As for these day during late summer, is it viable to bank fishing at the upper lake?
  • I heard the lake is very, very shallow right now. How much depth should I expect from the Bank (maybe from near the dam point)? How does it affect to the lure selection?
  • Speaking of lure, what exactly types of lure can you suggest?
    • I am mainly a (squarebill) crankbait guy, so I am hoping fishing squarebills are still viable.
    • I keep seeing videos and videos people suggesting a drop shot but I can't stand stay still and wait; I had bought several drop shot setups several times and still never once accomplished anything. The other finesse alternative I also keep seeing is split shot rig (by mr. WRB), which is the closest finesse technique I will ever try without boring myself.
  • How worth is it to rent a boat?
    • Which point of the lake should I focus on on the boat? Do you really need to be at the center of the lake with 100+ ft. water depth?
    • Do you need to rent it on the spot or reserve it? Do they usually ask for fishing license?
• What about the Lower Lake?
  • What is the water level should I expect fishing from the bank? Any grass or timbers?
  • Which sides/what spots do you usually recommend?

 

I realize I am asking a lot of questions, so no need to answer all of them. I just want to get the general idea before planning going there since I rarely spare half a day on the water. Thank you very much!

 

Hi,

here is so many questions, Ill PM you and share you my exprience. Castaic is my lake and I have yearly pass, I visit about 100 times a year and rent boat only couple times a year. The rest I am fishing from bank.

Tom is expert and if you lucky, he will help you and trust me he knows everything about SoCal Lakes.

[Big Hands]

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

Hi,

 

I am looking forward to fishing at Castaic Lake, especially the Upper lake, and I have several questions:

• As for these day during late summer, is it viable to bank fishing at the upper lake?
  • I heard the lake is very, very shallow right now.

 

The lake is low, but not necessarily shallow. The lake has places that could be 300' deep at full pool, so now with it over 100' below that. . . .it is low, but not shallow.

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • How much depth should I expect from the Bank (maybe from near the dam point)?

 

 

You shouldn't need to fish in more than 30' of water at this time. I didn't fish deeper than that even in the winter. There are places that you could reach 50' deep with a shoreline cast. Some places you might only get to ten feet, and there are a few places where there are humps, islands, and points that extend out that you might not see. But for the most part the shorelines are on the steep side.

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • How does it affect to the lure selection?

 

There are schools of bass that live offshore, suspended, and feasting on schools of baitfish for much of the year. There are others that spend a lot of time relating to structure and cover along the shoreline, and others that are in between that. All of those bass have to eat to stay alive, so you should conceivably be able to figure out a way to target any of them if you have the time, patience and equipment. 

 

Searching for those offshore schools in a rental boat is going to be a challenge, but you could literally drag crankbaits across main lake points or even out in the middle of the lake, and you will have some success. I have done it, and I still see others doing it. BUT, IMHO, it isn't going to be anywhere near as productive as targeting bass that are relating to shoreline structure and cover. 

I understand that many of us just have methods we enjoy using more so than others. Others really don't care as they just want to learn to catch as many as possible regardless of the method. I know that jigging spoons in 50 to 60 feet of water in the winter time may be productive for some anglers. I don't care to fish like that, and since I mostly fish solo, I can choose to fish any way I'd like.

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • Speaking of lure, what exactly types of lure can you suggest?
    • I am mainly a (squarebill) crankbait guy, so I am hoping fishing squarebills are still viable.

 

If crankbaits are your jam, then you can do all you can to learn to catch fish on crankbaits. 

 

I caught my PB (just under 13 lbs at Castaic on a crankbait), but I'd be a lying sack of manure if I tried to tell you I had a great handle on the crankbait fishing there. I have found it to be all over the place as far as what works. From topwater to 25' deep, I have caught fish on crankbaits, but I just haven't put much together as a particular pattern that holds up over time.

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • • I keep seeing videos and videos people suggesting a drop shot but I can't stand stay still and wait; I had bought several drop shot setups several times and still never once accomplished anything. The other finesse alternative I also keep seeing is split shot rig (by mr. WRB), which is the closest finesse technique I will ever try without boring myself.

 

No need to buy dropshot rigs. I tried the store bought rigs and didn't do much with them either. My advice is to save your money. They are a super easy setup to rig yourself. Use a palomar knot to tie a hook on your line and leave 12" to 18" of tag line. Attach a dropshot sinker to the end of the tag line. It really is that simple. One could argue that a splitshot rig is a tad simpler, but they are two sides of the same coin.

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • How worth is it to rent a boat?
    • Which point of the lake should I focus on on the boat? Do you really need to be at the center of the lake with 100+ ft. water depth?

 

IMHO, the best part of renting a boat is that you can use it to access shoreline that hasn't been pressured as much. There are several folks that do quite well from a rental boat. You can nose the boat into a sandy bank, use an anchor to work an area. Use the anchor to drift, stop, drift, stop along a bank, or let the breeze move you along. Some even use the gas motor to back into the wind as though they are using like others would a trolling motor.

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • • Do you need to rent it on the spot or reserve it?

 

 

I think it's first come, first served. Now that we're past Labor Day, the pressure should be much less. 

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • •  
    • Do they usually ask for fishing license?

 

Not that I am aware of. But you could get checked by other official personnel. Fish and Game violations can get ugly though. . . .

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• What about the Lower Lake?
  • What is the water level should I expect fishing from the bank? Any grass or timbers?

 

The lagoon is like a completely different type of fishing experience. Lots of shallow water, and some places where it's 60 feet deep. Lots of weeds in the summer, all the way to the surface in some areas, none in others. You can only legally shore fish from the East shoreline. You can usually fish from the fishing pier 24/7. I have no particular hot spots to recommend from the shoreline. They are kinda random hit or miss for me.

 

Fishing from a boat is a different animal. It gets shallower in the middle from south to north. The northern quarter of the lake doesn't get much over 10' deep or shallower and can be mostly choked off with weeds, for better or worse. Some anglers know how to fish that stuff. I'm more of a fiddle around the edges kinda angler and catch a fair number of bass that way at around the 18' to 25' depth at the edges of the weeds, but that is quite a ways from shore. In the springtime, it's very good along the banks too.

 

I suspect that the lagoon has just as many if not more big bass than the upper lake if you know how to fish there. I go back and forth for periods of time. I'll spend weeks at one without touching the other once I get dialed in. 

 

I am looking forward to the weeds dying back a ways in the mid to late fall. 

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

• • Which sides/what spots do you usually recommend?

 

The 'spots' I know on the lower lake were mostly gifted to me by others. In my mind, they are therefore not mine to freely give away, especially on the internet, especially while they are hot. If I home in on them myself, then that's my business. I have some on the upper lake like that too. Same with techniques and patterns. If I read somewhere that carolina rigs fished deep are producing and I go to a deep spot that makes sense and I figure out that 4" Keitech Swing Impact in Electric Shad on a 4' leader with a 3/4 ounce weight slowly crawled along cover and structure in 18' to 25' is killing it ;~), then that's mine to do what I want with. If someone else turns me on to that, then I'm not talking about nothing but 'deep plastics'. Nothing personal, just common fisherman's courtesy/code IME.

 

Some plastics that are not secrets by any stretch of the imagination. Here are some that are readily available and will catch fish:

 

4.5" Roboworm (they make at least three different 4.5" plastic worm baits and they all work): Oxblood - light red flake, Margarita Mutilator (MM III), and Hologram Shad. There are others, but those three colors are different from each other and should have you covered.

 

5" Senko - Color #297

 

C3 Shimmy in Neptune Shad (a local baitmaker that sells off of FB and some local tackle stores).

 

On 9/6/2021 at 11:07 AM, Bryan F. S. said:

I realize I am asking a lot of questions, so no need to answer all of them. I just want to get the general idea before planning going there since I rarely spare half a day on the water. Thank you very much!

 

 

There are people fishing out in the middle of the lake. Some are trolling Yak flies on lead core line catching stripers, and occasionally bass (LM & SM). Renting a boat is still a good idea because you can to several different areas, and it's easier to to fish more areas in a boat. Mornings and evenings are best. 

 

Mostly, I have been fishing very close to the shoreline, as in casting parallel as close as I can to the edge of the water, and I have been getting a large percentage of my bites close to shore, but on steep banks, and cliffs. It's easier to fish like this in a boat, but you can fish parallel to the bank from shore if you're kinda stealthy. Most of the time these days, my boat is positioned so close to shore that I have to keep an eye out to make sure the motor isn't banging the shoreline. I'm usually within a boat length from shore, but the bow will be around 12-14 feet deep or more.

 

The water level is down more than I have ever seen it, but there is still plenty of water that is deeper than many here will ever fish. There are tons of smaller fish going ape crazy right around the launch ramp area. The dam is a good spot to try even though it looks like a nothing type shoreline. Hopefully, now that we're past Labor Day, the throngs of 'other' lake users will be spending time on their other hobbies.

 

I fish plastics 90% of the time, and although I may fish slowly much of the time, it's anything but a sit and wait type of fishing. It takes focus and concentration to keep connected and the bait is generally moving as much as it's pausing. That is regardless of whether I am fishing weightless wacky rig, dropshot, texas rig worms, slipshot or carolina rig. 

 

Lately, for me, the bites have been as soon as it hits the water to about 20% of the way back to the boat. That's not always the case as I would normally work a bait all the way back to right under the boat (especially if I am fishing 20 feet or more deep).

 

Texas rig 4.5" Roboworms (ALL types honestly) in the popular colors have all been money lately. Weightless wacky 5" Senkos are the other top producers for me. I'm not saying you have to have those to get bit, but if you're having trouble, those would be what I would suggest.

 

I have seen things like jigs, buzzbaits, crankbaits, Flukes (jerked), other plastics of different types are all getting decent action.

 

No harm in asking questions. Some I will answer freely and they are worth only as much as you paid for them. I fish Castaic once or twice a week on average. I have been four times in the past week and a half. I know there are others that fish completely different than I do and have excellent results, but they're not all here sharing with you like some of us here. Locals that fish Castaic on the regular all have their own things that work well for them. Many, many of them have much better results than I do, but I have been doing alright. Good luck out there. 

[Hammer 4]

Dang Jeff, I had to give you a like, for all that typing you did..lol Not to mention some good advice. Well done.

[NeroXyn]

Thank you so much for the thorough answers! I am sorry If I had you answering it mouthful.

[Big Hands]

34 minutes ago, Bryan F. S. said:

Thank you so much for the thorough answers! I am sorry If I had you answering it mouthful.

If you're a TL/DR kinda person, you probably you probably want to beat me with a shovel. If you like details, you still may wish to beat me with a shovel, LOL.

 

Verbosity is my blessing and my curse. Probably more of the latter, but I digress. . . . blah, blah, blah, blah. . . . . ;~)

[LeoSolo]

On 9/6/2021 at 12:03 PM, ATA said:

Hi,

here is so many questions, Ill PM you and share you my exprience. Castaic is my lake and I have yearly pass, I visit about 100 times a year and rent boat only couple times a year. The rest I am fishing from bank.

Tom is expert and if you lucky, he will help you and trust me he knows everything about SoCal Lakes.

Hi there! Fellow Bank fisherman here...and complete newbie to freshwater fishing. My dream (or one of my dreams) is to catch a largemouth or smallmouth like all of the pros that I follow (Brent Ehrler, Jacob Wheeler, Seth Feider)...But, I have skunked so hard at some local lakes that I have never returned. However, I think it's time for me to get back on the horse and prove to myself that maybe I CAN get a fish out there and use some of the techniques and baits that the pros use.

 

So, do you think its worth me making the trip to Castaic for a day of fishing? My biggest fear is to get there and skunk like I did before. It's about a 1 hour + drive for me from Long Beach/San Pedro area. I dont think I am going to blow up anybody's spot, I am 1) not that productive of a fisherman and 2) I catch and release and 3) don't fish that frequently especially for a location that far. 

[schplurg]

Finally a thread where everyone spelled Castaic correctly.

[Big Hands]

On 10/3/2021 at 10:51 PM, LeoSolo said:

Hi there! Fellow Bank fisherman here...and complete newbie to freshwater fishing. My dream (or one of my dreams) is to catch a largemouth or smallmouth like all of the pros that I follow (Brent Ehrler, Jacob Wheeler, Seth Feider)...But, I have skunked so hard at some local lakes that I have never returned. However, I think it's time for me to get back on the horse and prove to myself that maybe I CAN get a fish out there and use some of the techniques and baits that the pros use.

 

So, do you think its worth me making the trip to Castaic for a day of fishing? My biggest fear is to get there and skunk like I did before. It's about a 1 hour + drive for me from Long Beach/San Pedro area. I dont think I am going to blow up anybody's spot, I am 1) not that productive of a fisherman and 2) I catch and release and 3) don't fish that frequently especially for a location that far. 

Nobody owns the lake. If you get there first, you pick your spot. A bank fisherman caught a 9.25 lb off the shore of the lagoon last weekend on a weightless Senko.

[LeoSolo]

10 hours ago, Big Hands said:

Nobody owns the lake. If you get there first, you pick your spot. A bank fisherman caught a 9.25 lb off the shore of the lagoon last weekend on a weightless Senko.

That sounds amazing! I guess what I was looking for is encouragement that bank fishing is doable  at said lake. 

[TnRiver46]

On 10/7/2021 at 3:30 AM, Big Hands said:

Nobody owns the lake. If you get there first, you pick your spot. A bank fisherman caught a 9.25 lb off the shore of the lagoon last weekend on a weightless Senko.

That’s a monster! Now wait, I thought all these lakes were owned 

[Big Hands]

14 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

Now wait, I thought all these lakes were owned 

Depends on who you ask

[Smallies]

On 9/7/2021 at 7:04 PM, Big Hands said:

It takes focus and concentration to keep connected and the bait is generally moving as much as it's pausing. That is regardless of whether I am fishing weightless wacky rig, dropshot, texas rig worms, slipshot or carolina rig. 

Thanks for all the info.  Good Stuff. 

 

New Member here, and new to fishing as well.  finally caught my first bass, and used a 4.5" Roboworm in Aaron's Magic.  I've tried all kinds of different setups, from drop shots to Texas rigs, but I caught my first fish on just wacky rigging that roboworn on a size 2 mosquito hook from owner weightless.  

 

I know people right seiko's weightless a lot, but I haven't seen much talk about a straight worm rigged weightless.  But I noticed how slowly they fall, and they give good action so I hooked it up and sure enough I pulled up a smallie.  

 

My question is, when you say the bait is moving as much as pausing, can you go into this a little more?  Also, an insight on knowing when you get a bite when you're fishing weightless wacky?  Obviously you watch your line for any unusual movement, but when I caught my first fish I was basically lifting the line to get the plastic off the bottom and let it fall again and I felt some pressure, so I started reeling and sure enough there was one on the end.  

 

I love the detail, personally, so anything you can tell me on how to fish this way would be helpful.  Thanks!

[Big Hands]

15 hours ago, Smallies said:

My question is, when you say the bait is moving as much as pausing, can you go into this a little more?  

 

Kinda like only moving it so it gets to a different spot where I can mostly let it set still and let the natural water movement impart the action. . . or not.

 

Or casting to a sheer dropoff and just letting the bait slide down the face. If it comes to rest (and you're not bit) just let it set for a bit and then move it just enough to get it falling again.

 

I will say that the way the bite had been working from spring through the summer was that I was throwing right onto or very close to the water's edge. Then just getting the bait to fall down the ledge or letting it set  and most bites on the weightless senko happened within the first 30 to 45 seconds. That is not how I work most baits. I am usually fishing them very slowly all the way back to the boat with bites coming at all different parts of the retrieve. With the weightless senko, I seemed to get bit pretty quickly or not at all. I'm not claiming that it's that way for everyone, but it has been that way for me, and several others I have talked to.

 

A senko on a dropshot works great too, but that (as with many other baits) could get bit at any point on the retrieve.

 

I will lime watch for bites on both a semi taut line or a very slack line. I wouldn't say I am any sort of line watching expert, but the bite was so good this summer, that I felt like I could play around and experiment with what worked and what didn't.

 

For some reason, and I am wondering if it's just me, but it seems that bass at the lake I fish are very willing to hold onto a plastic bait for a long time. Long enough for me watch a slack line for movement, crank in some line, feel for the fish and then decide when to set the hook or reel up into them. The flip side to that is that if I don't let them play around with it a while and opt for a quick hookset, I seem to come up empty a fair amount of the time. It seems like I can even play a subtle bit of tug-of-war with them and they'll still hang onto it and even swim off aggressively when I apply some pressure. 

 

I attribute at least some of this to using braid (with a fluoro leader) and having some fairly sensitive rods, but I have been wondering if it's a general shift in the local bass behavior where they will hang on longer, but take more time to actually commit to the point where I can get a hook into them. I was even thinking of starting a thread to see if others have noticed this behavior.

[Smallies]

@Big Hands awesome stuff man, thanks.  

 

Wait so you think with a weightless Senko, it seems like you're sayin' the Bass will hit it even when it's dead-sticked right?  Do you think that's because it was just moving and now it's still for awhile, or do you think a bass will just pick up a dead looking worm on the bottom not moving or anything.  Let's say for this example the current is dead still.  Then, do you think they would do that with a roboworm?

 

Also, if you're dragging a senko or straight tailed worm like roboworm or Iovino worm, and it's T-rigged weightless, is dragging it horizantle along the bottom enough to get it to rise a little and then do the wiggle-fall, or should you raise your rod vertically to get a little lift and then let it settle?

 

Interesting point about them holding onto it for a bit, almost as if to see if we are gonna pull it away too fast, and then they'll know it's a lure and they're about to get hooked, right?  I like the idea of a subtle, gentle game of tug of way, or just reeling into them once they've committed.  Almost like they have commitment issues, haha lol. 

 

I also have been using braid with flour leader, it seems to make line watching much easier.  How much of a leader do you recommend, though, cause obviously you want your braid to be far enough from the floor so the fish don't see it anywhere in the vicinity, right?

 

Thanks for all the great info.  I really appreciate it. 

 

[Big Hands]

I have attached some pics of the type of structure and cover I am talking about fishing in. This will give you more of an idea of why I am throwing weightless senkos right up tight against the back and not having to work the bait much. It's mostly tumbling down on it's own. Even when I fish parallel to the bank, I'll only have to slightly move the bait to get it to tumble from 1 to 10 feet with good pauses in between. On the steeper banks, if I can't get the bait with a foot or two of the bank, I would be reeling it back in and casting again. On the sheer dropoffs, I really need to be within a foot of the edge to be in the best position to have it tumbling down the bank with minimal action imparted by me rather than the bait just sinking in a free fall. On the banks that are at more of a 45° angle, if it lands five feet from the edge, it'll still be ok. 

 

Not saying I couldn't catch fish any other way, but this was easily my strongest most consistent pattern from May through September this year.

 

And there are areas within walking distance of the ramps at Castaic where you can find similar terrain and use this method from the bank.

[Smallies]

Wow, I didn't even realize Castaic was this rocky/had this many sheer cliffs.  I guess I gotta get a boat (or a kayak) lol.

[WRB]

Big Hands excellent tutorial on lake Castaic, ?? nothing I can add.

Finesse bass fishing is a mainstay in SoCal lakes Castiac is no  exception.

Strip bass evaded Castaic in the mid 90’s the giant bass population has crashed. It’s hard for bass to grow big eating Threadfin Shad and Silverside minnows while trying to compete with faster bigger stripers.  

You can effectively fish from shore by the main launch ramp down to Ball point and the West ramp area if the gate is open.

Most new bass anglers read about fishing the Heartland areas of Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Florida etc. SoCal is very very very different. Finesse and big swimbaits was started here. Our trophy bass lakes are small under 3 miles when full, but very deep with steep rocky structure, sparse wood cover.

I always recommend finesse spinning tackle with 6# to 8# test FC or mono line. Slip shot rig ( finesse C-rig) or drop shot  with 1/8 oz to 3/16 oz weights and the Roboworm mentioned.

You can fish points with a rent boat.

Tom

PS, Don Iovino booklet Finesse Bass Fishing and the Sonar Connection is a good primmer on Castiac lake. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Big Hands]

19 hours ago, Smallies said:

Wow, I didn't even realize Castaic was this rocky/had this many sheer cliffs.  I guess I gotta get a boat (or a kayak) lol.

Castaic has a ton of sheer cliff or steep banks, and there are a number of bank anglers that do pretty good, but they are limited in what they can access and have to work harder to not be surrounded by other anglers. There are also some regulars that do well out of rental boats, but at around $100 per day, that adds up quick. 

 

Your own small 12' to 14' aluminum boat with a 15 to 25 hp outboard, a foot controlled bow mount trolling motor and maybe a cheap fish finder will get the job done for a relatively modest investment, and will get you more places with more overall capability than a kayak for the same money IMHO. 

[ATA]

I always at the bank there, tomorrow going to catch me 10 stripers, lets hope I catch big one tomorrow .

[Big Hands]

I fished yesterday. The water level has risen lately. I have attached a pic to illustrate how much it has risen less than 10' in my estimation. Water temp was 59° in the fish arm and 61° in the ski arm. The fish I found willing to play were in 15' to 25', but metered others in 10' to 30', some deeper, but those may have been stripers or something else. 

 

The red line on the first attached pic is where the water level is today. The actual pic was taken the first weekend in October. I attached another pic that shows one of the few areas that was not denuded of trees before the lake was filled. The problem fishing those trees is that the water level is normally about 100' feet higher. There are a few shorelines nearby that have some trees (or what's left of them) that are higher up on the bank, but not many.

 

The clump of cottonwood trees (or whatever they are) up high on the bank in the left side of the frame is also (according to some) where the California state record bass of 22 lbs came from. WRB may feel free to correct me if that is not the case.

 

This is also about 100 yards or so away from the spot where my PB of just under 13 lbs came from. No disputing that though as I was only one of two people there to see it  ;~)

 

There were more bank anglers in the line to get in yesterday than boat anglerss, and the face of the dam had quite a few people strung out on it. There are also a LOT of tumble weeds blown up against the dam and just floating in the lake in general. 

 

[NeroXyn]

Wow, what a long way this thread has become. Thanks guys!

 

On 11/22/2021 at 2:34 PM, WRB said:

SoCal is very very very different.

Maybe I am just way too stubborn for finesse fishing, especially when my sources of knowledge have both extremes. My very first bass was caught on a squarebill in the middle of a city park in LA city and have fallen in love with the power technique since.

 

After I posted this thread and saw several replies, I dropped by the lake and speed cranked using DD crankbait (Tactical DD), hoping to force a reaction strike, and still managed to catch one. I never thought the lake has many steep ledges leading straight to deep water and I now see why mr @WRB and many of you suggested finesse approach such as drop shot (vertical fishing) or scrounger and others since you can slowly fish in deeper water.

 

Looking forward visiting again this month.

 

[WRB]

It’s works to troll along the steep breaks to locate active bass willing to strike a deep diving crankbait then fish that area. You cover a lot of water and see other good areas to stop and fish. Finesse size jigs between 1/4 to 1/2 oz like Skinny Bears jigs with 2-21/2 craw trailers are also a good choice at Castaic in the colder water periods.

Good luck.

Tom

PS, Don Iovino booklet Finesse Bass Fishing and the Sonar Connection is valuable for Castaic lake.

 

[NeroXyn]

1 hour ago, WRB said:

Finesse size jigs

I assume that is for bottom fishing? 

How deep does bass usually suspend in the lake during winter?
Considering the lake has a drastically steep structure, how do I know If I am not fishing on 200+ ft water, hovering in the middle?

[WRB]

During the cold water period Castaic bass suspend between 30’ to 60’ and only vertical structure spoons or Rapala ice jigs are effective for deep suspended bass.

You want to find active bass on structure, not suspended.

Your best choice are points and red coat to rock transition areas. 

Castaic is rising slowly now after the dam work is completed. Incoming water mixes the water column, no thermocline so bass can be and will at any depth. 

Finesse jigs using 8# FC line are affective to about 25’.

Tom