The Structure Cafe

Longtime angler Jim Putney knows every fishing hot spot on San Diego's lakes

By Ed Zieralski

UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
October 25, 2003

Jim Putney said there were times over the past 30 years when his dream of turning out a book about San Diego's best fishing holes was "dead in the water."

It was an interesting choice of words considering that Putney's main fishing focus is underwater stuff, not dead-in-the-water stuff. It's the study of the characteristics, structure and habitat that attract fish.

Yes, it took a long time, but now that it's done, his just-published book, "HotSpots," likely will change the way many anglers fish San Diego's lakes. The book is a true treasure from a man who has no peer when it comes to studying fish behavior and structure at all of San Diego's lakes.

"We're so happy this is finally done," Putney said. "This book was dead in the water I don't know how many times. I can't tell you the amount of time and work that went into it. But I know it's a true resource, something people can take to the lakes and use as a reference. And to be honest, I don't care if I sell one book. I'm just glad I'm leaving something behind for fishermen."

"HotSpots" details eight San Diego lakes, plus two bonus topographic maps for Murray and Barrett. The main section includes text that describes top fishing spots at each lake, a topography map of each lake and an aerial photo of each lake at low water level to show main points and structure.

Putney shows how some lakes, such as Murray and Henshaw, have been enhanced with man-made structures such as concrete manhole rings, pipes, tires, rocks and old stumps, all buried in places to give fish a place to hide and live.

At Lower Otay, for instance, Putney identifies 14 different areas as "hot spots." He not only details the spots, but he talks about what time of year is best to fish them, what baits to use and how to anchor or fish the area more effectively.

Putney even tells readers where the water clarity is best at various lakes, should a fisherman decide to do some sight fishing, or scan the area for spawning bass.

Putney, 69, and artist Glenn Vitalis, who did all the artwork, illustrations and graphics, formed a dynamic partnership. The book blends Vitalis' knack for photo collages, drawings and graphics with Putney's grasp of science, undisputed fishing knowledge and San Diego fishing pedigree.

One look at Putney's book and it's clear the man put in his time on San Diego's top lakes and made the right connections. He's been fishing San Diego's lakes for more than 55 years and has sound, local knowledge of San Diego and Mission Bay and the Salton Sea. Putney has either fished or interacted with every member of the San Diego Bass Fishing Hall of Fame.

He sipped coffee at a Lakeside bait and tackle store and fished with Bill "Pappy" Wade, the inaugural inductee into the Hall of Fame and the man considered the patriarch of bass fishing in the county. And he was great friends with Hall of Famer Bob Cook. He pays tribute to Cook by dedicating the book to him, and he includes a picture of Wade between his sections on El Capitan and San Vicente. "Those were his two favorite lakes," Putney said. Putney, along with fishing buddy Gary Caradonna, once held the double-limit bass record of 67 pounds at Lake Henshaw.

Putney traces his fishing roots to Morena and Barrett, two lakes he fished as a youngster with his dad. He cleaned boats at Barrett so he could go out in the afternoon with a dozen mudsuckers and catch bass, back when bait was allowed in Barrett.

But his love for fishing was instilled by his father, the late Jim Putney Sr.

"He was my best friend," he said. "I'd rather fish with him than any of my best friends." Putney took his fishing prowess to another level in the late 1960s when he met Elwood L. "Buck" Perry. "I went to a seminar Buck Perry was giving at the old May Co. store, and when I heard him talk about fishing structure, that did it," Putney said.

Perry is considered the father of structure fishing. The Hickory, N.C., fishing legend took his scientific background and direct observations he made and formed a scientific and logical way to fish based on structure and fish behavior. He perfected the art of using spoonplugs to find structure, locate fish and entice them to strike. Today there's even a club called "Spoonpluggers of America." The goal is to perpetuate and keep pure Perry's teachings.

Putney became an immediate disciple of Perry's and actually went to work with Perry, teaching his structure fishing classes here in San Diego. It gave him the tools he needed to begin a lecture and seminar series of his own, something he still does.

"I remember my first class out at Henshaw, and I had 20 fishermen coming," Putney said. "I didn't know what I was going to do with 10 boats, how to spend time with each one. So I marked 10 structure spots with buoys and had the fishermen go to the buoys and fish until I got around to them." The fishermen all caught limits, five each, totaling more than 200 pounds.

"Jack Ford, who was running the concession there at the time, was getting a bad time from some fishermen in the office because they weren't catching any fish," Putney said. "They were complaining that there weren't any fish in the lake. So Jack had us pour all 100 bass out on the restaurant floor."

Putney also did a monthly map feature for the old San Diego Fisherman Magazine. It was then that Putney began noticing the major fluctuations of the water levels, and how certain levels uncovered or covered structure.

"It was really frustrating to map them, but I learned a lot every year because it was always changing," he said. "My main challenge was to develop a guide that can be used no matter what the water level is at these lakes."

His formula: "Our job is simple. We need to be fishing in the right place, at the right time, using the right presentations."