Freeway Lakes near Albany ... anyone fished this year ?

[shotgun]

I have fished ther Freeway Lakes for 6 years straight now .... First couple years I caught a lot of fish and big fish too ... Then the ODF&W started stocking trout more often in it ... the banks were filled with trout fisherman ... and unfortunatly they also caught a lot of bass too ... and packed them out to the fry pan ... I have seen 3 over 6 pounds laying dead on the bank thumped on the head by a trout fisherman ...

Anyway ... for me ... last year I caught a few fish there .... this year , I have been there 3 times and have not caught a fish . I talked to another bass fisherman that I saw there ... he had been fishing for 5 hours and got 1 ... 3 pound fish ....

Has anyone else fished it this year and done any good ??? Maybe it is just me ??? But really don't think so ... And yes , I do know how to bass fish ... I started in 1974 and have never stopped ...

Thanks for your imput .... Doug

 

[Bassdad54]

Ya there has been some big fish caught alreadyI have fished out there for quite few years and it really will start to heat up this month is usally a time that I have noticed that it starts to pick up pretty good.It is just starting to clear up a little as it has been quite muddy with all the rain.They have been stocking it with trout each year for long time so a lot of the big bass will eat those planter trout for breakfast ..The trout fishermant will start to thin out thank god since they seem to think that they get to park their chairs where the only place that you can launch a boat.They will be done with the stocking of trout for the season this May 7-11 ..try it again in couple week and you should do a lot better.

PS most of the trout fisherman fish the first 2 lakes and so they havent caught all the bass yet..3rd lake is best for fishing for bass

 

[shotgun]

I have been fishing the 3rd lake .... bass do bite in muddy water as they do at my pond ... water clarity there is a couple feet now ... water temp is 60 degrees ... the carp are up , they bull frogs are out , and the turtles are suning themselves on the logs .... the bass should be up shallow in the willow near the bank in the warmest water right now ... and I have only spooked 1 fish in the willows .... I will fish it a couple more times over the next 3 weeks and see if they show , but I don't think they will in any numbers like they were 6 years ago .... but nothing is like it used to be anymore .... SAD !!!
Doug

 

[FishnFry]

I fished this spot for the first time ever yesterday, and tried lake #1 and lake #2 (don't know what order you are referring to them in, I'm talking about the furthest west lake, then the middle lake) and only got one bite, and it was a small bugger that hit on a synthetic worm of all things. I have never caught a bass and just got into fishing a couple years ago, so still have much to learn regarding technique and rigs to use. I was fishing with a bobber and powerbait on a treble, and only had orange and pink/purple... WISH i had chartreuse. From my perspective the water only looked to be clear about 8", so I wasn't expecting many fish to see my bait or hit on it. I was watching the osprey's hover and wait but they didn't get anything either. I was there from about 5pm to 7pm, and had no idea what to expect since it was my first time there. Can't say I had much action but the scenery was nice, and I was glad not to run across homeless folk under the I5 when you pass under to the first lake (west most). Always have my knife on me just in case someone shady is lurking about!

Do you guys have any tips for this spot? I'm gonna kill time here until the Santiam is primed and ready for the fun stuff!

 

[Bassdad54]

bobber and power bait isn't what you want to use try a black skirted jig with some kind of trailer or a rubber black 7"powerbait worm crawl along the bottom and hop it once in while.

 

[colbypearson]

There is still big fish in freeway and lots of them.

 

[Finneus Polebender]

There is still big fish in freeway and lots of them.

So much water so little time , why you give me the sudden urge to throw swimbaits till it hurts !