Fish

These are the heaviest stocked lakes around, he said. There s no question about it, he said. If anybody ever challenged us, we would be happy to compare stocking receipts, because it would prove, once and for all, who has the most fish. Elliott also says he stocks the largest fish. He said he has dropped in a couple of hand-picked, 30-pound trout. We ll always have your 11/2- to 3-pound fish, which are still big for rainbow trout. On top of that, we will have a mix of what we call our teenagers, which are eight to IO pounds, Elliott said. And then we have what we call our super trout, which are IO pounds plus. Andy Galaviz, 25, a Cal State Fullerton graduate who works for Boeing and lives in Arcadia, has been fishing at Santa Ana River Lakes since high school. He said it s one of the best fishing holes around. I normally fish probably four or five times a year on average, and that s between Mammoth Lakes in the Sierras and down here, Galaviz said. But whenever I get a chance to fish down here, this lake and Corona lakes are probably my go-to choices. He only throws in a line on stocking days. I personally don t like wasting my time and showing up when they are not stocking, because it is pretty expensive to fish, Galaviz said. I just like to make my time worth it. Bryan Friedman, 29, of Walnut has been fishing here since he was I O. My mom dropped me off every day, and I just made friends around the lake, Friedman said. But we would always come for onereason: because theyhad the really, really big fish. At 19, Friedman began manufacturing bait and lures for the Fishing Lakes tackle shop. His Breabased company, Lip Ripper , now distributes to 1,200 locations nationwide. Friedman s secret weapon against the lakes sometimes- fickle trout: a doughbait coating, dubbed Hatchery Dust, that he sells. Bill Hunt, the water district s executive director of operationh Santa Ana River Lakes and Anaheim Lake, which is less than a mile away, and is responsible for maintaining the property. The basin acts as a natural filter and holding tank for Orange County drinking water. Our board is committed to providing recreational access to facilities where it makes sense, Hunt said. (The water district has additional agreements with a waterfowl-hunting concession at Prado Dam and a model-airplane club at another lake in Anaheim.) County maintenance periodically impacts Elliott s .business: Fishing Lakes was forced to vacate Anaheim Lake this year after it was drained to clear sediment from the lake bed; Elliott will resume business there when the lake is refilled. Over his three decades in the business, Elliott has noticed a steady decline of young anglers. He s trying to set the hook early with discounted rates and events for kids. He opened Huckleberry Pond, a small, highly stocked pool at Santa Ana River Lakes where customers can catch and purchhas a petting zoo and a goldpanning station. Fishing is American, Elliott said. Ifs apple pie. It s the way things used to be, and the