Birdman Of Castaic Lake

Photo courtesy of the Ojai Angler

By Chris Cocoles on Oct. 15

Castaic Lake, located just off I-5 north of Santa Clarita, covers 350,000 acres, so it can be a daunting body of water for anglers to attack. But veteran bass  guide Marc Mitrany of the Ojai Angler (805-640-8491; ojaiangler.com) said looking for fall bass that are feeding on shad around the surface starts with the birds. Mitrany, who will be featured in November’s print edition of California Sportsman for a Castaic Lake update, channels his inner Alfred Hitchcock/Tippi Hedren -of The Birds (not the birds) fame-  when he fishes the lake.

“I’m watching the birds, they’ll tell me where to be from a long ways away,” Mitrany says. “I don’t use electronics that much over there. It’s mostly a visual.”

Mitrany is counting on where the birds are feeding on the threadfin shad that swim in Castaic. The birds and bass are both in search of the food supply near the surface. Plenty of green and blue heron gather at Castaic on a regular basis.

“The birds are there 24 hours a day.  I’ve almost never been let down by that,” Mitrany said. “If I see those green and blue heron are there, there is going to be bait there and there are usually going to be fish there. If there are no fish around, there is definitely going to be bait there.”

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