Lake Henshaw

[Joe211]

Any info on this lake in regards to average depth, max depth, best times of year and top spots. Also, I read that the average crappie coming out of here is 1 lb (12'') Is there any truth to this? I fished Cuyamaca a few times and caught tons of crappie but 90% were 7''. Are there whites and blacks in Henshaw? And any useful info would be much appreciated. Also, I know of Diamond Valley Lake but am a newer So Cal resident, are there any Lakes in the Imperial County region that are great for panfish? Also, any good bluegill info on Henshaw would be appreciated as well.

[CrappieSchocker]

Don't know depth info but I have fished there by the dam which seems to be a popular spot. There is a bubbler by the dam. There are some good sized fish in there but the times I have been there the average fish was 10". You should check out lake perris for the slabs and big gills. There is good rockpiles and some nice channels there.

[Joe211]

Thanks for the info. I've been able to gather some good intel over the last week towards a good plan of attack. As for Perris, yeah yesterday I concluded that that one really seems to have some nice potential there. Got a couple days comin up in Henshaw next week, hopefully fill the slabernackle with some decent ones. So far Cuyamaca's been the extent of my callico fishin and I'm ready to graduate from 7'' micro crappie. P.S. Nice slabs you posted at Perris,,,, twin 12 inchers?

[jimeisaac]

Thanks for the info. I've been able to gather some good intel over the last week towards a good plan of attack. As for Perris, yeah yesterday I concluded that that one really seems to have some nice potential there. Got a couple days comin up in Henshaw next week, hopefully fill the slabernackle with some decent ones. So far Cuyamaca's been the extent of my callico fishin and I'm ready to graduate from 7'' micro crappie. P.S. Nice slabs you posted at Perris,,,, twin 12 inchers?

Here is a lake map:


The following quoted from "BAZZMAN WES" posted on sdfish 14Feb2008

If you are in a boat, fish the isolated rockpile straight out from the spillway. The deepest water is near the dam bouy line on either side is good. South side steep with small rocks. the north has some bigger boulders. If you go toward where the river comes in (north bank) there are ledges cut in the bank with about 2-4 foot drops. The long flat point opposite the fishing docks has a good drop off on the north side of it.

Head south of the launch ramp, you will see some rocks out of the water, outside of which is a pile with a large tree stump. South of that across the little cove is a small point, graph ouside of that, there is some manmade points and rockpiles.

Now my 2-cents worth:
If I was after crappie and had a boat, I would try trolling jigs from the launch ramp to the dam staying 20-40ft off shore. The jigs should be 40-50ft behind the boat and speed should be 1.0-1.5mph.

If that does not produce, work the area around the dam over real good.

Straight across the lake from the launch ramp is a large point. In the old days when Henshaw was a lake and not a pond, that was Monkey Island. Work the area good.

When (not if, WHEN) the wind comes up. get upwind and let it blow you accross the flats between the dam and Monkey Island pulling jigs/minnows behind you. (see map for drift fishing recommendation)

Pay attention to the wind. In the last 5 years there have been at least 2 drowning deaths caused by the wind.

If you do not have a boat, Check out the fishing pier, lots of crappie are caught from it.

Work the bank between the launch ramp and the dam.

Work the large boulders down by the dam.

Good Luck. Crappie are cyclic, some years they bite better than others and some years they are larger than others. 2010 so far has been real poor in SoCal. Nobody is catching many crappie at all. Post and tell us how you did.

P.S.
The canals in the Imperial Valley and around Yuma hold large numbers of respectable size panfish. Mostly Shellcrackers but the Gills can be good sized also. I do not know of any Crappie spots in the IV or Colorado River.

If you are going to fish the IV/Yuma area, it would behoove you to become a member of YumaBassMan.com -- they are friendly folks, tell them Ike sent ya

..Ike..

[Joe211]

Hey Ike, good read. I was wondering about that Monkey Island thing. I came across that map you posted and was wondering about that. I'll be boating it and putting in some good all day effort out there, hopefully I could help pull SoCal out of a 2010 slump. I'll have some info Friday. Thanks, Joe

[crappiemike]

good luck out there !!! and put up a post with pics.......



cm

[CrappieSchocker]

Thanks for the info Jim. I will have to go put in some work out there.

[jimeisaac]

Thanks for the info Jim. I will have to go put in some work out there.

I think your original idea was the ticket...

You should check out lake perris for the slabs and big gills. There is good rockpiles and some nice channels there.

I first fished Henshaw with my Aunt and Uncle back in the mid 60's. I do not fish it often any more because the fishing is just as good in reservoirs closer to home. But Perris, now there is fishing worth the trip. Skinner and Diamond Valley Lake are also good, Skinner for Bluegills and DVL for Crappie, Catfish and Bass.

I am waiting for the weather to cool off a few more degrees. Then I will spend 2 or 3 days every other week or so fishing the canals in the Imperial Valley and the Colorado River and canals by Yuma. I will probably make a few trips to the Blythe area also.

[Joe211]

I threw everything I had at them (including my pride) for 10 hours and came up with a stray 3 lb catfish. I’ve been competitively and non-competitively crappie fishing for over 20 years so I’m sure enough to say that the bite was a bit off. Perfect day, wind speed, cloud cover, moon phase however the water was very stained. I drifted across a few times, worked the dam area religiously (got a couple small bites) all in all it just wasn’t a good day. Read through last week’s catch and counted about 3 or 4 crappie caught from about 14 fishermen the biggest being around a pound. I primarily slip float fished soft plastics (mostly tubes) and did not use any live bait. I think the people that came across those whooping 4 crappie may have mentioned shrimp. Pretty sure Perris or DVL is my next stop in maybe a couple weeks or so. Till then local fishing it is! Thanks again for the info and sorry for the report….. I guess the funniest part of the day was the look the boat rental guy gave me when I said I’m going crappie fishing. That look encapsulated the day.

[jimeisaac]

I am sorry to hear that the fishing was so poor however I can not say I did not expect it. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has caught a significant number of crappie this year. If you go to Perris and the crappie will not cooperate, buy a dozen worms and drop shot some bluegills from the submerged rock piles. You might be pleasantly surprised at their size. On my last two trips to DVL the only thing biting was the channel cats and they bit in fits and spurts.

Let us know how the "local fishing" works out.