FISHERMAN'S CALENDAR
KEY TO SYMBOLS
SO=season opened (or opens); SC=season closed (or closes); SV=season varies by district or water.
C=clear water; D=water dirty or roily; M=water muddy.
N=water at normal height; SH=slightly high; H=high; VH=very high; L=low; R=rising; F=falling. WT50=water temperature 50°.
FG=fishing good; FF=fishing fair; FP=fishing poor. OG=outlook good; OP=outlook poor.
MUSKELLUNGE: MICHIGAN: Big Lake St. Clair muskies willing to play games but most fishermen figure the hell with it as bad weather continues; one 28-pounder boated last week.
WISCONSIN: Wretched weather slowed action in northern state but OF if weather improves.
PENNSYLVANIA: Conneaut Lake and Allegheny River muskies uncooperative last week but OG if barometer lights somewhere.
CHANNEL BASS: FLORIDA: Some good catches of fish to eight pounds made in holes off shallow water along Pinellas side of Old Tampa Bay from Gandy Bridge to St. Pete. Several lunkers caught off oyster bars in Ochlockonee River at Allen's pier and Bald Point and at Nautall Rise in Aucilla River; best bait is live shrimp but mullet and red-and-white plugs are effective; OG next 10 days.
MISSISSIPPI: Biloxi agent reports redfish moving out of deep water into passes and bayous, says now's the time to go get them.
NORTH CAROLINA: 60½-pound bass landed Oct. 24 near Kill Devil Hill Coast Guard Station by Pennsylvanian Arthur Clark for new 12-pound-test line record. Fishing is hot in surf between Kitty Hawk and Ocracoke Inlet
BLACK BASS: WASHINGTON State's bass sleeper is Steamboat Lake, where good catches should be made through next fortnight
LOUISIANA: FG in rivers and creeks above salt water in New Orleans area and improving but rain would help; bassbugs and topwater plugs should get fine pay-off all next week.
FLORIDA: Lake Talquin (near Tallahassee) producing fast catches of smallish bass on flies and popper plugs. Tamiami Canal bigmouths are moody but skillful bassbuggers can coax some action OF
NEVADA: Lake Mead lowest in history but Temple Bar and Overton report cagey bait fishermen taking whoppers, and OF.
CALIFORNIA: Reservoirs of lower Colorado River producing fish on live bait and slow-trolled diving plugs are picking up occasional lunkers.
MISSOURI: Black River below Clearwater Dam SH, C, FP OF Niangua arm of Lake of the Ozarks is a mite murky and too rough for comfort but bass are starting to work again.
TENNESSEE: FG and improving on most TVA lakes despite near-record low water. Douglas Lake producing well for trollers and casters using small shallow-running plugs
NORTH CAROLINA: Fontana Lake improving and OG for a flurry of topwater action during next fortnight (but snow in the mountains is portent of freezing weather due soon).
PENNSYLVANIA: Minnow experts taking small-mouths to four pounds from Allegheny River eddies in Franklin and Oil City areas. FG for large-and smallmouth bass in Conneaut Lake, and OG next week.
NEW MEXICO: FF at Conchas and Elephant Butte lakes with plugs and spinning lures favored, and OF.
STEELHEAD TROUT: CALIFORNIA: Winter SO Nov. 1, and top spot is Sacramento River with limits common on single salmon eggs and spinners; Colusa-Red Bluff sector best, and reports say run shows no signs of letting up. First good rains will start runs in Eel, Navarro, Garzas, Gualala. Russian and Trinity.
BRITISH COLUMBIA: FF and improving in South Thompson River with several fish in 20-pound class reported and OG as early winter fish should show shortly in other streams.
OREGON: Fish now in Nestucca River in good numbers, and one 18-pound 4-ounce fish taken near Beaver; egg clusters or red yarn best lure as river is clear and falling. Columbia River is L. C at Umatilla FG below McNary Dam.
WEAKFISH: FLORIDA: Speckled weaks filling rivers in northeast Florida; live shrimp most-favored bait (At St. Augustine, Mantanzas River hot south of Bridge of Lions especially creeks along east bank and shoal near hospital on west bank. Terra Ceia and McGill Islands (north of Bradenton) and all bays in Tampa vicinity producing weaks to two pounds, with redheaded plug-cum-bucktail hottest lure.
LOUISIANA: Big catches of "white trout" reported around deepwater oil platforms in gulf off Grand Isle; lakes Pontchartrain Borgne and Katherine producing good catches, and OG next week
TROUT: NEVADA: Pyramid Lake still producing five-and six-pound rainbows (with top fish 12 pounds) as result of '51 flood on Truckee River; rainbows planted at six inches last March being taken up to 16 inches; phenomenal growth indicates this once world-famous water believed washed up since late '40s has made great comeback
BRITISH COLUMBIA: FG on upper Cowichan River for browns and rainbows. Coastal lakes holding up, and OG while weather stays warm.
NEW MEXICO: OG through next two weeks on most streams in state as upper Rio Grande reports big browns still active, but not much interested in flies except in evening; that's why worms were born.
PACIFIC SALMON: CALIFORNIA: Smith River hot with moochers taking scores of chinooks up to Bailey Riffle; silvers showing too as most other popular waters petered out (except off Golden Gate, where trollers found few fish over 20 pounds but many limits).
OREGON: FG for silvers in upper reaches of Umpqua tidewater and OG for trollers unless threatening storm center moves in.
WALLEYED PIKE: PENNSYLVANIA: First snow flurries put moxie in Pymatuning, Conneaut and French Creek walleyes, with nine-pounder at Cambridge Springs among lunkers that gulped wrong minnow.
ONTARIO: Streamer flies produced 15 walleyes between seven and 11 pounds for a party of four in the Talbot River near Gamebridge last week.
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