Most anglers dream of catching a 20-pound limit of bass no matter what the circumstances are – but especially in a tournament situation. That magic 4-pound average is a weight that seems to be a benchmark for anglers across the country, much like a 10-pound bass is. If you can weight 20 pounds, you've had a day of a lifetime, one you're sure to remember.

Now consider a lake where a 20-pound limit might get you a check in a tournament (if no one else showed up), and if you were just fun-fishing you'd consider the day to be "average." Well, that's what we're talking about this time in the Hot Zone – a lake where, for the last month, it has taken in excess of 23 pounds of bass to win tournaments, and where in four out of seven of those tournaments it took more than 25 pounds.



Where is this bass factory you ask? It's southern California's Diamond Valley reservoir in Riverside, Calif. Check out these weights for the last seven team tournaments (place, team, number of fish, biggest, limit weight) – and also note the weights for the three-fish night tournament.

May 5, 2007
1. Marino-Williams: 5, 6.28, 24.18
2. Lillibridge-Phua: 5, 6.99, 23.18
3. Lacher-Metroka: 5, 6.93, 22.47

May 12, 2007
1. Krumsiek-Krumsiek: 5, 9.83, 26.13
2. Rakowitz-Southern: 5, 6.49, 23.08
3. Grover-Berry: 5, 6.54, 22.34

May 26, 2007
1. Uribe Sr.-Linder: 5, 5.6, 25.2
2. Rakowitz-Southern: 5, 4.59, 22.97
3. Grover-Berry: 5, 5.73, 22.14

June 2, 2007
1. Grover-Grover: 5, 7.58, 26.34
2. Whitehall Jr.-Valdivia: 5, 6.11, 21.29
3. Uribe Sr.-Bietz: 5, 5.42, 20.89

June 9, 2007
1. Rakowitz-Southern: 5, 6.61, 23.51
2. Hodges-Jioras: 5, 5.83, 21.39
3. Grover-Berry: 5, 4.83, 17.3

June 10, 2007
1. Grover-Rakowitz: 5, 6.08, 25.28
2. Krumsiek-Curry: 5, 5.74, 21.27
3. Emmet-Bergham: 5, 4.68, 20.02

June 16, 2007 (night tournament)
1. Kuno-Kuno: 3, 7.79, 18.34
2. Keniry-Dickson: 3, 6.34, 17.01
3. Taylor-Coffen: 3, 5.55, 16.62

This isn't the only time Diamond Valley has been hot. It's been on fire since its opening in 2003, and the fish have increased in size each year. In fact, at one team tournament this spring it took over 38 pounds (five fish) to win.

The lake was built during the '90s by damming up a valley and was filled with water provided from the Colorado River aqueduct. The lake is 4,500 surface acres and was designed by California Department of Fish and Game fisheries biologist Mike Guisti to be the premier bass lake in southern California. His careful planning has been for the benefit of anglers everywhere. And if the past is any indication of the future, this lake could possibly produce 30-pound limits with regularity very soon.

In order to give BassFans an idea of what the bite has been at Diamond Valley, we talked with local pros Kyle Grover and Mike Phua about this phenomenal fishery.

Threadfin Shad = Largemouth Bass

"Right now everything is shad-oriented," Grover said. "You can catch them in the morning until about 10:00 a.m. and then it dies until the wind starts blowing in the afternoon. They're not on structure right now. They're on bait."

Ranger pro Mike Phua agrees with Grover but added: "We're targeting schooling fish on underspins (a Road Runner-type bait). But the key is you have to be in the coves that don't have as many shad. Some coves have shad in them from top to bottom. You need to stay away from those places because the fish won't bite the lure. There's just too much bait. You have to find the coves with sparse bait."

The bait of choice has been a 1/8-ounce Sworming Hornet Fishhead Spin. "We're rigging the Fishhead Spin with a 3-inch Zoom Super Fluke or any small fish-tail type lure," Phua said. "To get the bait out there, we're using a Performance Tackle custom dropshot rod, and 5-pound Sunline FC Sniper line."



Submerged trees have been the ticket for these anglers. "The primary trees you can see coming out of the water, and the secondary trees are in 15 to 25 feet of water," Phua said. "You have to find a shallow cove that has deep-water access to it, throw to the bank and let it sink. Then start a slow retrieve out. If the bait ticks the secondary trees, you're on."

He added that 5- to 6-pound line may seem light for fishing around these trees, but you need it because the water has 35-foot visibility. "You can see the fish come up from the trees, sometimes three to four fish at a time, and eat the bait," he said.

"The key to landing these fish is to position the boat over 50 to 55 feet of water, and work out. If you're in shallower water, the fish will wrap you in the trees."

Other Tactics

Although the shad bite is the predominant bite right now, other tactics are working too. "Carolina-rigging creature baits like lizards and brush hogs or 8- to -9-inch worms are working too," Grover said. "You have to mix it up."

"The spook bite is on too," Phua added. "First thing in the morning, you can find areas of busting fish and I always have a Super Spook tied on for that. Sometimes you can get a really big fish doing that."

Seasonal Variations

"Season to season you need 25 pounds to win any tournament here," Phua said. "There's a little transition time in the fall when the fish are schooling which gets a bit tough because the fish aren't relating to anything but suspended bait."

But as the lake goes into winter, "the Carolina rig and swimbaits become the go-to baits," he said. "Swimbaits like the LA Slider and the Triple Trout, are the best baits to throw because of the planted trout.

"For Carolina-rigging, big creature baits, like the 8-inch Zoom Brush Hog or Zoom Magnum Lizard work the best."

Grover adds this on color selection for the Carolina-rigged baits. "Anything in green-pumpkin, watermelon or pumpkinseed are the best colors. It's really pretty simple."

Phua also turns to ice jigs in the winter. "Ice jigs produce a lot of fish in winter too. Find areas in coves that have 60 to 100 feet of water in them and look for balls of shad. Vertically fish the ice jigs over these balls of bait. Doing this, you can load the boat in a hurry."

The spring can be tough for sight fishermen. "Spawn time is tough sight-fishing-wise," Phua said. "The water is so clear, the fish spook easily and that makes them extremely hard to catch. The key is to locate the fish and then pull far off them and throw Senkos and jigs in the area so you don't spook them."

Notable

> The lake has a strictly-enforced 25 mph speed limit on it. You must obey this speed limit or you will be ticketed by the lake ranger.

> The lake is run by the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) and you have to register your boat with the MWD prior to launching. You must have a boat that has a direct-injection or 4-stroke motor. Registration can be done at the guard shack at the bottom of the entrance on Searl Avenue before you enter the lake.

> Kyle Grover can be reached at Anglers Marine (anglersmarine.com), a Ranger dealer, for the latest information on the lake at 714-666-2728.

> More information on Diamond Valley Reservoir can be seen at dvmarina.com.