CHULA VISTA – Newly retired and fishing a lake for the first time in five years, Bruce Husson caught a fish at yesterday's season opener at Lower Otay that reminded him of a more magical place.
“It's like being in the Sierra,” Husson said, holding a 2-pound rainbow trout, fooled with chartreuse Power Bait from the shoreline north of the launch ramp.
About the only Sierra lake Lower Otay resembled yesterday was Crowley, and that was because, like Crowley on its opener, Lower Otay was rimmed with boats and float tubes and lined with shoreline fishermen. And for the first time it had rainbow trout, giving it a Crowley South look.
An estimated 400 to 500 anglers showed, with more than 150 private boats launched. Exact numbers weren't available because iron rangers (self-operating deposit boxes) were used to augment the early sale of fishing and launch permits at the old concession stand. Bill Basom, reservoir keeper at Barrett, helped Otay reservoir keeper Bryan Norris in the morning and sold more than 200 adult permits by 8:30.
“We won't have an exact count until later, but this is the biggest crowd I've ever seen here,” Norris said.
Fishing was very good for those who got an early start, and most did. Dusty Runion was first in line with his boat and trailer, and he arrived at 1 a.m. Tuesday, more than 29 hours before the lake opened. Ernie Rodriguez was second, and he lined up at 5 a.m..
“This is the second year in a row I was No. 2 in line,” said Rodriguez, who fished with his son, Cameron, celebrating his 14th birthday.
It was a special opener for Ernie Rodriguez. He met former Padres pitcher and 1976 Cy Young Award winner Randy Jones on his 12th birthday when he attended a Padres game, caught a home run ball and got an autograph from Jones. Now 41, he met Jones again at Lower Otay on Tuesday when Jones was filming a segment for his show on the Outdoor Channel.
“He signed my hat the exact same way he signed that ball 29 years ago,” Rodriguez said. “He said he didn't know whether to be glad he was still alive or to feel really old. I told him to be glad he's alive and fishing.”
Jones predicted that the opener would be good, based on his group's fishing success, and he was right. Most stringers trailed by float tubers had bass on them from 2½ to 6 pounds.
Grant Curry, 10, of Rancho San Diego, fishing with his dad, Todd, weighed in the day's first bass, a colorful and fat 4½-pounder he caught on an Aaron's Magic plastic worm, drop-shotted. Eli Waldron of National City weighed in the first stringer, five bass totaling 11½ pounds, including a 4-pounder, all from the shoreline.
Rick Saunders of Spring Valley hoisted one of the day's bigger bass, an estimated 8-pounder he caught on a Western plastic worm in 18 to 23 feet of water. He said he caught and released four others that went 2¼ to 2¾ pounds.
Ed Zieralski: (619) 293-1225; ed.zieralski@uniontrib.com
To read more about the opener, and view photos, go to www.signonsandiego.com/sports/outdoors
