By Paul Lebowitz

John Strange loves Lake Isabella. Why?

“Why? It’s the best lake in southern California!” declared Strange, who counted off the reasons one by one.

“Isabella has good fishing and incredible variety. We have nice trout, the lake record bass is almost 19 lbs, plus there are crappie, bluegill, and cats,” said Strange.

At the time Strange was standing behind the fishing counter at James Sierra Gateway Market in Kernville, surrounded by countless miles of first-rate trout streams ranging from the mild to the wild. But that day his thoughts were focused on the year-round fishery just a mile or two down the road in the Kern Valley.

“There are so many species of fish in there and not much pressure. In spring the trout will be on fire. Catfish too,” Strange added appreciatively.

In his fondness for the lake, Strange has plenty of company. There’s something about this place that inspires the folks who fish here. It’s visible on the beaming face of a youngster proudly showing off the rainbows caught ‘all by himself.’

You can hear it in the voice of the bass tournament angler who confidently asserts that the world record largemouth is there to be caught. And it’s obvious in the actions of the old-timer who chases an ‘unbelievable abundance’ of crappie right around the calendar, shrugging off the discomforts of hot summers and chilly winters.        

While the regulars absolutely adore Lake Isabella, her charms aren’t always so obvious to casual visitors. For starters, this is a big lake; a full-circle trip around Isabella’s banks is a 38-mile journey. Deciding where to cast your line can be a real head-scratcher. Read on for fishing advice straight from local experts, but first let’s talk about lake water level issues. 

Past drought-induced declines in the water level set the fishery back. Crappie, the lake’s claim to fame dating to way back when, suffered most visibly.

That problem is history. Several years of high Sierra snowmelt have filled the lake to its present managed level of 230,000 acre feet or so. Fish populations are thriving in the forage-rich, highly oxygenated water.

The wind blows here nearly every day. And with 9 long miles of lake, it can stir up ocean-caliber swells. In high winds boaters should exercise caution and seek shelter long before the conditions exceed the capabilities of their craft.

But take heart; chances are it won’t blow all day. Most mornings and many evenings are quite calm, particularly in the fall. Even when the wind does blow, the lake’s craggy and steep northwestern shore is often protected from the worst of it.

Now let’s meet Lake Isabella’s fish:

Trout – Kern Valley Rainbows
“There’s some big boys in here!” chortled Larry Bordeaux. The Isabella regular was perched in a folding chair at the water’s edge at Camp Nine, and although he gestured at his fine stringer of Isabella lake rainbows, his vigilant eyes never strayed from his rod tip.

“In the season I fish seven days a week, and very few are the days I go home empty-handed,” said Bordeaux, who tabbed the season as roughly December through April or early May. After that, trout action shifts to the nearby Kern river.

Bordeaux fishes a common Isabella trout set-up: the sliding sinker rig. It consists of a 1/4 to 1/2-oz. sliding sinker threaded above a swivel or Carolina Keeper, about 18 to 24 in. of 4-lb. test leader dangling below, and a small #16 treble baited with a chunk of Powerbait on the end. The alternative is an inflated nightcrawler on a small single hook.  

“From January to March there may be rain pouring down or even snow, but I tell you, it’s the best fishing anywhere,” Bordeaux claimed. His trick for catching the big ones? Patience during the fight.

“You’ve got to let them play. Loosen the drag a bit and get them tired a little at a time. You can’t horse them in,” Bordeaux explained.

“Now that there’ve been a couple of wet years in a row, we’ve seen big trout swimming up the tributaries to spawn in the spring,” said Greg Kollenborn.

The manager of the DFG’s Kern River Planting Base pours a lot of 3/4-lb. trout into the lake each year, about 10 to 12 thousand each month from November to February. Some of them are holding over in the cool depths of the west end and growing as fat as 8 lbs.

Beautiful 2 to 4-lb. Mt. Lassen Trout Farms ‘bows are kicked into the lake by the Kern River Valley Chamber of Commerce in November and January. Another 15,000 fish follow in late March for the popular annual Lake Isabella Trout Derby.  

Strange said the lake favorites for trolling are Thomas Buoyants in gold / red and copper, followed by Needlefish, small Krocodiles, and Rapalas. He recommended anglers on the Kernville side of the lake look for trout at Camp Nine or Stine Cove.

On the south and west banks, Ed Cordell recommended Kissack’s Cove and Boulder Gulch. Cordell, the proprietor of Big Ed’s Tackle in Lake Isabella, said it really doesn’t matter where you fish during trout season. “There are trout just about everywhere,” Cordell said.

Crappie – Isabella Slabs on the Rebound
“I’m always watching. If I’m dropping my line and it even slows down, that’s a crappie,” said Bernie Allen.

Allen is a master at finessing Lake Isabella’s biggest panfish. He hunts them year round, using a mini jig from spring to fall, and a Kastmater jigging spoon in winter. For Allen, it’s all in the feel.

“If you’re reeling slowly and you feel the rod tip come up, give it a jerk. That’s also a crappie,” Allen pointed out.

Allen said most anglers miss half a dozen bites for every crappie they hook. It’s more than a matter of focusing attention on the rod tip and line. Equipment choice has a lot to do with his success.

”You want a good graphite rod. Something that’s a little firm, for up to 8-lb. line, stiff enough to feel a bite,” Allen said. For his part, the 73 year old retired firefighter prefers a short 4-ft. Silstar Pinnacle rod.   

The fishing line is important too. Allen wants something soft and thin like Mustad UltraLine. “It goes down fast,” Allen said. He uses 2 or 4-lb. test.

Allen said fishing structure is the key to finding schools of crappie. One of his go-to spots is French Gulch. “There’s a lot of stuff under the water there,” Allen explained.

In summertime, finding crappie at Lake Isabella is usually simple. “Fish any place there are trees are sticking out of the water.

Crappie need cover. Not for themselves; it’s where the bait fish hang out,” Allen said. A fishfinder helps locate the critical submerged trees and bushes.

Not surprisingly, the deliberate Allen is particular about the mini jig he uses. “I like Trout Trap Stingers. They have a longer tail and an eye,” Allen said.

He recommends grasshopper color in 1/12th or 1/8th oz, but with a minor modification. “Bend the hook point out from 12 to 2 o’clock. You’ll catch bigger crappie,” said Allen. The hook point will catch deeper in the crappies’ paper-thin mouths.

Alternative baits include meal worms, wax worms, and minnows. In good years, crappie fishing is usually at its best in the springtime (March to May). Shore fishing with a mini jig a couple feet below a bobber is often productive. Just cast into bushes and twitch the rod tip. Strange takes his grandkids. “They love it. Nothing is more exciting than seeing the bobber disappear below the water,” said Strange.

ISABELLA RAINBOWS – When it’s too cold to fish elsewhere in the Sierras, trout action is hot at Lake Isabella. The lake’s prime time for rainbows runs from December through April or May.

CRAPPIE TOWN ON A COMEBACK – Good water levels and an abundance of forage have Lake Isabella’s biggest panfish on the comeback trail. Lake regulars say today’s abundance of fish is unbelievable.

KERN VALLEY KITTIES – Lake Isabella catfish bite nearly year-round. In spring, anglers target cats on the south fork flats in water as shallow as 4 ft. The standard baits all work, but for the best chance of success, local anglers net shad.

ONE VALUABLE FISH – Joe Pacheco poses with the trout that earned the Bakersfield angler a cool $10,000. Pacheco made his big strike at the 2006 edition of the Lake Isabella Trout Derby. This year’s March 31 to April 2 contest will feature two 10 grand trout.

Lake Isabella’s clouds of big crappie were in their heyday back in the 70s. “Every time you put down your line you’d have a crappie,” recalled Strange. It isn’t as good now, but both Allen and Strange are optimistic their numbers are rising.

“There are millions of them in this lake. The abundance of fish is unbelievable,” Allen said.

Largemouth Bass – No Hype, Just Quality Fish  
“There are at least a few bass over world record size swimming in the lake. I’d argue that with anybody. Along with Casitas, Isabella is one of the two best lakes to get a 10-lb’er,” asserted Rusty Brown. 

Brown should know. His Rusty Brown’s Pro Fishing Guide Service samples every Southern California bass hot spot. Although Isabella doesn’t get the hype, it’s a favorite.

“The people who come up here have the chance to catch the fish of a lifetime,” Brown said.

Bass grow big here for a couple of reasons. The lake is rich in bass-holding structure. There are plenty of hiding spots: rocks, points, and submerged brush and trees. It’s also stuffed with forage. “The lake has a heavy population of shad. The bass just feast on them,” noted Brown’s buddy Noble Smith

Brown acknowledged the lake has a reputation as a tough nut to crack. The waters are stained – this place will stymie the best sight-fishing artist – and the frequent winds put a near-perpetual ripple on the water. That doesn’t bother the tournament bass angler. 

“I like that I don’t have to battle clear water. It’s great for fishing reaction baits,” Brown said. Crankbaits are a good choice here, particularly early in the spring season.

“They tend to spawn a bit deeper here,” said Smith. Consequently, he likes to throw a Husky Jerk, Model A, or Rat-L-Trap, all lures the local Isabella basser calls “good aggressive fish baits.” White and chartreuse spinnerbaits are also solid options.

Noble switches over to plastic worms in the summertime, but said Isabella’s well-fed bass are picky eaters. “They don’t want hard rubber plastic. The softer the bait the better,” Noble said. Recommended choices are 6 to 8-in. long in black, purple, and brown colors.

In a challenging bass lake like Isabella, Noble said the key to success is to fish your bait methodically. And in the hot summer or cold winter months, that means slowing down.

How should a first-time visitor approach Lake Isabella’s bass fishery? Brown suggested focusing on main points such as Rocky, Piney, or Free Air. “They are reliable year-round. Just vary your depth according to the season. The bass will hold at between 5 and 25 ft. most of the time,” advised Brown.

Other important structures are the flats that collect spring spawners. Joughin’s and Orrick’s Coves are two of the better known.  And then there’s the Borel Canal, a submerged concrete channel that runs from the north fork all the way over to Engineer’s Pt. “It’s a very good structure. Definitely look for it on your fishfinder,” Brown suggested.

Like the crappie, Smith feels the bass here are on the verge of a boom. “In the past years we’ve caught hundreds of smaller fish. It’s a good sign of successful spawns. The lake is on the way up!” Smith said enthusiastically.  

Catfish – Kern Kitties
“Winter time, spring and summer. They hit almost all year long,” said Strange. He was talking about Lake Isabella’s underappreciated blue and channel catfish.

Maybe not so overlooked. In springtime anglers line the shore at Hanson Flat, near Rabbit Island, and at other spots far up the south arm. Although they might not talk much about it, they know the kitties come in shallow to spawn.

“They swim right up into 4 ft. of water,” Cordell confirmed. The most commonly used baits are the typical stinky stuff: mackerel, shad, anchovies, chicken livers and the like, often liberally soaked in garlic sauce. But here’s an Isabella secret: freshly dipped shad.  

“It’s legal to net and use shad, but not any other fin fish,” Strange said.

When the cats aren’t in close to spawn, look for them in deeper water anywhere from 20 to 50 ft. The recommend rig is 12-lb. line, a pair of baited dropper loops, and a good, heavy sinker up to 3 oz.