Lone bass?

[@Dryflyphotography]

I must have missed the memo, been asleep in the back of the class or just daydreaming of trout fishing, but how long has Lone Lake been the home of so many smallmouth bass ("small" emphasized to fit the size of the fish as well as their mouths). Is this a new thing? Have they been around for a long time? Curious...

 

[Lue Taylor]

Always been there too bad you never caught any, looking out from launch to the right is a bass area.

 

[Stonedfish]

Haven’t fished it in a number of years.
Can’t say I ever saw smallmouth in there, but plenty of largemouth.
Maybe the bucket bios have been busy since I was last there.
SF

 

[Matt B]

Haven’t fished it in a number of years.
Can’t say I ever saw smallmouth in there, but plenty of largemouth.
Maybe the bucket bios have been busy since I was last there.
SF

Same experience here. Never caught a smallie in there, only largemouth and trout, but it's been some years since I fished it.

 

[@Dryflyphotography]

Haven’t fished it in a number of years.
Can’t say I ever saw smallmouth in there, but plenty of largemouth.
Maybe the bucket bios have been busy since I was last there.
SF

My mistake, probably were largemouth…

 

[Paige]

They were there when I fished it from 2000-2004.

 

[Smalma]

This time since the mid-1980s.

 

[Shaker Jake]

9000 largemouth fry were planted in 1922. Catfish too, but they didn’t take. The lake has a long history….

 

[Jeff Dodd]

When the fly clubs netted the lake, attempting to remove carp, we found some pretty big bass. We didn’t work the shoreline Lou mention, but down around the Lilly pads and the SW bay both held bass.

Before the lake was treated for weeds it held some big fish. In March one year I landed a fish that had to be 5-6lbs. I walked him up across the road to show my son, then returned to the lake and released him.

 

[Ernie]

When the fly clubs netted the lake, attempting to remove carp, we found some pretty big bass. We didn’t work the shoreline Lou mention, but down around the Lilly pads and the SW bay both held bass.

Before the lake was treated for weeds it held some big fish. In March one year I landed a fish that had to be 5-6lbs. I walked him up across the road to show my son, then returned to the lake and released him.

I thought there had to be a few large ones in there since I have caught a fair number of small ones over the years. What a nice surprise for you back then.

 

[Smalma]

It is probably that both the largemouth bass and catfish (typically brown bullheads) were eliminated in the first lake "rehab" (lake treatment with rotenone) circa 1950s. Unfortunately, the largemouth bass have been illegally introduced back in the lake following that first and following "rehabs."

Now that they appear to be permanent part of the lake ecosystem the best thing we as an anglers can do to maintain the best trout fishing is to immediately release all the larger bass (say those over 12") that we may catch. Generally, the significant portion of the trout impacts in have non-salmonids in the lake is food competition between the juvenile bass and the trout (they eat much the same food). The larger bass prefer larger food items than most of the insects, scuds, etc. that comprise most of the trout diet. In those larger bass search for large prey they will prey significantly target their own young. The more larger bass the fewer smaller bass and the better the over-all situation for the trout and their survival.

Curt