Outdoor Writer Report post Posted November 8, 2019 FISHING REPORT Nov. 8, 2019 Arizona Game and Fish Department TIP OF THE WEEK This week, we stocked rainbow trout into: Show Low Creek, Patterson Ponds, Green Valley Lakes, Yavapai Lakes, Fain Lake, Dead Horse Lake, Goldwater Lake, Watson Lake. In our Community Fishing Program, we're scheduled to start stocking trout the week of Nov. 18 -- just in time for the holidays. Catfish were stocked this fall and now we’re switching to trout. Top baits for trout in Community waters tend to be worms, salmon eggs, and PowerBait. Use light line (4-6 pound test) and size 8-12 baitholder hooks. There may be only a few weeks left before winter conditions prevail in the high country, so if you're looking for scents of pine, scenes of eagles and tight lines from trout, go now. Bass anglers: Sounds like the reaction bite is hot at many desert impoundments, including Bartlett Lake in the Tonto National Forest, where bass are occasionally chasing shad to the surface, even around midday. See a Bartlett report, and don't forget to consult the latest fishing forecast. Flathead catfish also are fattening up for the winter season. There's been an influx of reports of big flats being caught at places such as Lake Pleasant, Bartlett Lake, and the Verde River -- see the Catch of the Week below. Frye Creek fish stocking: Gila trout restoration in Mt. Graham area gets major boost Gila trout, one of two trout species native to Arizona, are being restored to the Mt. Graham area. A major step was taken Monday when AZGFD, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and volunteers from Trout Unlimited and the University of Arizona backpacked 250 Gila trout into Frye Creek. All Gila trout in this area were lost during the aftermath of the 2017 Frye Fire, a major setback to a recovery effort that began in 2009. The creek remains closed to fishing. See video of the stocking. Catch of the Week Send your fishing reports and photos to BFishing@azgfd.gov -- one will be selected for Catch of the Week Verde River Daylan B. caught this 41.56-pound flathead catfish on Nov. 1 on the Verde River between Horseshoe Dam and Bartlett Lake. What's been stocked this week ("Catchable" sizes only; water temp in parenthesis if available) Rainbow trout: Show Low Creek, Patterson Ponds, Green Valley Lakes, Yavapai Lakes, Fain Lake, Dead Horse Lake, Goldwater Lake, Watson Lake. See the stocking schedules Thank you, anglers! Arizona fishing opportunities wouldn’t be possible without the Sport Fish Restoration Program. It was created through the Dingell-Johnson Act of 1950 (Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act) and the Wallop-Breaux amendments of 1984. Through a federal excise tax paid by manufacturers on fishing gear and motorboat fuels, it provides grant funds for fishery conservation, boating access, and aquatic education. Save time, buy online Grab a license online (that helps conserve all species of wildlife, not to mention provides funding that goes back into fishing opportunities) and go "Fish AZ". SEE MORE REPORTS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites