Fishing at Fairmont Reservoir, Los Angeles County, California

• Overview

  Out in Los Angeles County, California, sits Fairmont Reservoir. The water sits 2,982 feet up. It measures about 160 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Start from Green Valley, 6 miles down the road. After that come Leona Valley at 10 miles and Quartz Hill at 13 miles. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Fairmont Reservoir

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. The old creek line under the surface is the feature worth finding. A reservoir gives you a hard edge, a shelf, and not much else. Open biodiversity records for Los Angeles County list flathead grey mullet, common carp, rainbow trout and bluegill. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Fairmont Reservoir gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 44°F in January and 76°F in August. The hard part of the year is the heat, not the cold. Heat pushes fish deep from June onwards, so start early. Spring and autumn carry the year; summer squeezes it into the ends of the day. On Fairmont Reservoir that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. Nothing in the way of made access shows up nearby: no ramp, no car park, no path. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Sort the permit out before you load the car. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. If the gate is shut, Hughes Lake at 2.3 miles is the nearest alternative. Treat Fairmont Reservoir as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.