Southern Nevada Fish Reports

Early morning and evenings will give anglers the best opportunities. Bluegill are taking mealworms and night crawler pieces at the city ponds. Hotdogs and night crawlers are working for catfish. With temperatures regularly over 100 degrees, catfish plants will be on hold until the temperatures drop back down.

Striped bass boils are popping up sporadically throughout the day. Jerkbaits, crankbaits and swimbaits are all catching the fish. Anglers targeting black bass are reporting that smallmouth are hitting topwater lures and chatterbaits before noon. Largemouth are showing a preference for soft plastics. Catfish anglers are having luck with anchovies and corn near Government Wash and Kingman Wash.

Anglers are catching a few rainbow trout and tiger trout right at sunrise using night crawler pieces and PowerBait. Fly-fishers are catching their fish on olive Woolly Buggers and various nymph patterns. Bass are catch-and-release through June 30. Crappies are biting on chartreuse tube jigs.

Trout action has slowed over the past week in response to rising water temperatures, but bass and crappies are still biting throughout the day. Lures have been working best for most anglers, with various green colorations working best. Water will be low through the summer, so use caution along the shoreline.  

Black bass anglers are having luck with pencil poppers and Rat-L-Traps thrown near dense vegetation. Rainbow trout action has slowed, but fish can still be found cruising shaded areas just offshore. For a striped bass bite, try using anchovies just below Big Bend State Recreation Area.

Panther Martins are the go-to lure for rainbow trout anglers at Willow Beach this week. Some trout are in the 2-pound range. Striped bass up to 10 pounds have been caught by boaters trolling swimbaits and umbrella rigs below Willow Beach. On the lake, black bass are hitting lures in about a foot of water.

Action slowed this past week as temperatures pushed beyond 110 degrees. Anglers are catching bluegill and catfish on cloudy mornings. The bluegill action has picked up with mealworms and chartreuse grubs working best.

Stripers are attacking Kastmasters, topwater lures and crankbaits in shad patterns thrown from both shore and boat. Anglers are reporting the most boils in  the Overton Arm. In the shallows, black bass are hitting a variety of lures. Try Rat-L-Traps or soft plastics in purple and green pumpkin. Bluegill and green sunfish are taking small pieces of night crawlers in the Government Wash area.

Temperatures are reaching into the 80s during the day and dropping into the 50s at night. Trout prefer hitting PowerBait and night crawlers in the early morning or late evening. Action for bass and crappies has been good. Crappies are hitting jigs throughout the day. Bass and trout will hit Woolly Buggers. Anglers must catch and release bass through June 30. 

Warmer temperatures are impacting shore-fishing opportunities as the fish look for deeper water. Largemouth bass have been hitting on imitation crawdads, worms, and grubs in darker colors. Green or root-beer color tube baits, small jigs, and night crawler pieces are bringing in crappies. Action has been good in the late morning and slows in the afternoon.  

Anglers are enjoying an increase in striper action along the Colorado River. Fish between 1-5 pounds are taking anchovies, crankbaits, and topwater lures. One lucky angler reeled in a 24-pounder just south of Casino Row. Anglers are also seeing an increase in black bass activity near heavy vegetation.  

At Willow Beach, rainbow trout are taking worms, mice tails, and spinners from shore anglers at dawn and dusk. Boaters are having better luck with striped bass when trolling swimbaits farther south into Black Canyon. On the reservoir, black bass anglers are seeing the most action from dawn to midday. Fish in the 3-4-pound range are showing a preference for soft plastics and topwater lures.

Bluegill and catfish are taking baits at the park ponds. Mealworms have been fooling bluegill with the best bite in early morning or late afternoon. Anglers have had fair success for catfish in the evenings using stink baits or night crawlers. There is a three-fish limit at the urban ponds.    

Reports indicate that striper boils are beginning to pop up throughout the day. A variety of shad swimbaits, ChatterBaits, and topwater lures are producing fish up to 3 pounds. Black bass can be found in shady and shallow coves. Anglers are reporting catches using swimbaits on jig heads and bone-colored topwater lures.