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In the heart of California near San Francisco and other large population areas. Bon Tempe lake holds an attractive place for outstanding fishing opportunities in the area. It has a great location in the north of San Francisco the most dense population area in the US. For fishing in bon Tempe lake anglers visit from San Rafael, Richmond, Oakland and other near places. In short the reservoir is near to half of California population, and most of them can reach there in less than an hour.
The trend of fishing in the lake used to be higher in the past which has been decreasing recently. Due to small area of the reservoir and some restrictions like boating and other activities. Anglers are now focusing on other better options in the surrounding to fish and enjoy the habitat.
However this decline in fishing trend has led to some great opportunities on the lake. Those who want to fish at Bon Tempe lake other than any other spot will enjoy the best quality of fish. The competition for fish has also been decreasing since there are very few people casting their lines in the reservoir. In the season of stocking it becomes incredibly easy to catch great size fish easily at the Bon Tempe.
The lake is located in the Marin county in the west of San Rafael, and it is the nearest available fishing spot in the area.
Fish species in Bon Tempe lake
The Bon Tempe is stocked each year in stocking season with several species such as the basses and trout. Right after stocking season the chances to get hooked to a large bass or rainbow trout. However there also other fish species available year round in the lake. Bluegill, spotted bass and Skamania trout are also having a great presence in the waters.
The spot has a large varieties of fish in different seasons, some sorts of fish aren’t always available. While others are having great size in a specific season but not in other months. So it will be useful for anglers to determine the situation and weather on the lake and head for fishing later.
These are the major species in Bon Tempe that many anglers are fishing for most of the time.
Smallmouth bass
Smallmouths are the most commonly found fish species in Bon Tempe lake. Or this is the most targeted fish in the spot due to its larger than usual size and great quality. Smallmouth bass are usually in the deep waters of the reservoir at minimum depth of 18 to 20 feet. Finding the fish should not be tough at all at this spot as smallmouth bass is the largest population here. But the way you target the fish will probably affect your catching time.
If you use a light weight lure on your hook then it will be great to have a decent sinker along with it. It will help the lure go deeper in the water and near a smallmouth bass. As you can’t have a boat at the lake and you will have to fish from the shore all the time so you need to throw the lure as far as possible. This way it is more likely to sink better and reach the depth level of the fish.
Smallmouth bass is probably one of the best fish to catch, its easy to catch and has good quality and size.
Largemouth bass
If you aren’t well experienced to catch deep water species from shore then largemouth is probably the best choice for you. And most of the anglers with a little bit of knowledge are most likely to go after largemouth bass. At Bon Tempe lake there are plenty of them. They like shallow water and mostly stays near the shore in the range of one’s bait. This is also one of the stocked fish at the Bon Tempe lake so they are mostly available at the spot.
Before you continue here are some other great bass fishing lakes that you can explore.
It is really fun fishing for largemouth bass at the water in any season. Whether you visit when it is stocked or other time of the year you will be happy with the amount of fish in there. But the best season to fish largemouth in Bon Tempe is early summer and that is the exact time when they stock it. So the best season and days of stocking gets along each other and provides the best fishing opportunities.
As a shallow water fish the largemouth always prefer to stay in cover to be safe from other predators. The small underspin lures have proven their selves to be the best lures in Bon Tempe lake.
Rainbow trout
The lake is quite famous for its rainbow trout in summer and spring fall. It has been stocked several times during the year with trout, in recent reports fly fishing anglers have been very happy with it.
During the months of May and June one can expect the best catches of the year. October and November are also having good chances to catch big rainbows. Size of fish is also decent here averaging around 10 to 12 pounds each which is a great catch anywhere.
Catching a large rainbow trout wouldn’t be hard as they stay near the surface. Near the shore you will always find plenty of fish in casting range and they often bite during their to feed.
If you are a trout fishing lover then you can read about these trout fishing lakes of Utah and trout fishing lakes of Idaho.
Bluegill fishing in Bon Tempe lake
This species are really enjoyable as it has no specific time period to catch them or wait for the next stocking season. As they are native and they are all year round available on the lake and also near shoreline. So you do not need to be on a boat or kayak to reach them, however being selective to choose a better season will improve your chance to catch one even more.
Some fly fishing anglers are even luckier having bluegills while targeting for rainbow trout. After stocking species of the lake, bluegill is the most widely populated native fish in the waterbody.
Other species fishing in Bon Tempe lake
Skamania trout and stripped bass are rarely found fish in the lake and are caught several times. These have not grown to large scale so that anglers can target them. However Skamania trout’s habitat matches with rainbow and that’s why sometimes rainbow fishing anglers come up with Skamania. Same case with stripped bass, smallmouth bass anglers sometimes get hooked to a stripped bass as well.
Bon Tempe lake fishing seasons
Here is a general idea of fishing seasons for major fish types in the lake.
For smallmouth bass you can look year round and find a great fish in any season. However it is more easier to locate them in summer as the fish comes a little more shallow. If you want to fish largemouth then it will be great for you to wait for the upcoming stocking season and then head over.
Rainbow trout and bluegills are mostly available in spring and fall. You can expect good fishing for bluegill in winter as well as it is the native fish of Bon Tempe lake. But in winter it will go deeper and a little far from shoreline in away from freezing water.
Here are other amazing fishing spots near Bon Tempe lake Florida.
