BorregoWrangler 1 Posted November 29, 2011 Thursday night, my family and I loaded up all our gear into our Jeep and headed out to one of our favorite areas along the Colorado River. While I usually primitive camp in this area, we decided to stay at the Imperial Valley Hunting & Fishing Club on Ferguson Lake. The road into the lake, named Ferguson Lake Road (EC800), heads away from the Colorado River just inside the California state line. The All American Canal passes under near the beginning of the road, near the start of its long journey west to irrigate the enormous market gardens of Imperial Valley. Many of the large backwater lakes, such as the one we were camped at, were created when the Imperial Dam was constructed in 1938, to harness the flow and energy of the river. Settlements such as old Picacho, once the river port for the nearby Picacho Mines upriver, were inundated by rising waters. At the same time, larger areas of water provided greater recreational opportunities. The northern end of Ferguson Lake Road terminates just south of the Imperial National Wildlife Refuge, which was created in 1941 to safeguard the area's plant and animal life. The dirt road into the lake is normally smooth and well graded, although conditions can rapidly change after rainstorms. Many of the spur trails off the north side of the road require 4wheel drive. A viewpoint 5 miles past an RV campground provides a panoramic view of Ferguson Lake, the Castle Dome Mountains in Arizona, and the Chocolate Mountains in California. There are several excellent areas to camp along the lake that also provide a place to launch a boat. Unfortunately, I started getting sick the day we left so I didn't do as much as I wanted to. It was still a good time hanging around camp with family and friends. Autumn and Audrey waiting for breakfast. This was also my daughter's first river trip. There was no shortage of food on this trip! Or booze! Looking out over the boat dock and lake. My parents, sister and brother-in-law coming in with their jet boats. Distant view of the Castle Dome Mountains in Arizona. Hangin' out on the back porch. Sunrise. Heading down river to one of the sand bars. There was football, horse shoes, skiing, and fishing here. I only caught a few small striped bass. They'll never find me here! She loved the sand. Rollin' on the river... Entrance to one of the many backwaters along the river. Homes on Martinez Lake. On they way home I drove along the All American Canal, checking out potential fishing spots. I only saw a few, as much of the bank was very steep. I'll have to do more scouting when I'm out there again. Sunset over Carrizo and Fish Mountains on our way home. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mbuckner 208 Posted November 30, 2011 Thanks for the report and pics ...... Do you have to have license from both Arizona and California to fish along that area ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mbuckner 208 Posted November 30, 2011 John, Have you seen this? Closing Access On The River !!! There is a Bureau of Reclamation plan to close upto 360 acres of backwaters on the Colorado River so they can raise endangered minnows. How far reaching this plan will be is up to you. The way it has been explained to me is that it is a done deal. Its going to happen with little public input by those who use the river. The Az G&FD has notified a few anglers in the past, and this is the reason that many people know about it at all. Some other waters have already been closed. The plan seems to be to close off backwater lakes, and then poison out all of the fish in those lakes using Rotenone to create a noncompetitive environment for those species they want to raise. Its pretty popular knowledge that Rotenone is a highly toxic substance that is used to poison fish. Fish farms use it in controlled environments all of the time. It is also pretty popularly accepted that Rotenone breaks down into non-toxic components in as little as 24 hours. One person I spoke with claims that in certain types of water condittions like in the river here that Rotenone can take as much as 3 days to break down. Decide if you believe that or not on your own, and draw your own conclusions as to what could happen to the river if you do. 360 acres of backwater lakes on the lower river would be the vast majority of them. Some anglers seem to think if you discount Martinez, Ferguson, and Squaw lake that it would take all of the rest of the backwaters along the river to make up that 360 acres. They basically imply that future access and fishing would be limited to the main river channel only. Click Here to see what others have to say or comment on this issue. Some folks have said its over blown, and others have said its been understated. I strongly reccomend that you atleast look into it and make your own decision. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dzJeepChic 2,897 Posted November 30, 2011 John, thanks for posting the trip report and pics, that was great! Audrey sure is a cutie-pie, and she sure looks like her daddy! Buckner, great catch! Thanks for posting that too, we all need to stay informed and active in the fight to keep our trails open. I'm interested to see what this is all about... Diane Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Number7 89 Posted November 30, 2011 The river looks great, I miss my boat. George:cool: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stockjeep 43 Posted November 30, 2011 looks like great fish'n, nice report Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BorregoWrangler 1 Posted November 30, 2011 Thanks for the report and pics ...... Do you have to have license from both Arizona and California to fish along that area ? You have to get a Colorado River Special Use Stamp on you license. Its only an extra $3.00 John, Have you seen this? Closing Access On The River !!! I have not. Thanks for sharing this. I'll look into it. John, thanks for posting the trip report and pics, that was great! Audrey sure is a cutie-pie, and she sure looks like her daddy! Thanks! She'll spend alot of time out there growing up, just like her dad! The river looks great, I miss my boat. George:cool: Me too. I'd like to get a 15' Jon boat. So many more fishing opportunities with a boat! looks like great fish'n, nice report Thanks. The fishing is better in the spring and summer months, though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Russ Chung 54 Posted November 30, 2011 1. A boat is a hole in the water into which you pour money 2. Even better than owning a boat is to have a friend who owns a boat The weather along the river over the Thanksgiving holiday was certainly something to be Thankful for!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
