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Echo Park Lake was constructed in the 1860s as a drinking water reservoir. Today, however, it is a detention basin for the city’s stormwater. The lake also serves as local wildlife and recreational attraction for the community.
Echo Park Lake features wetlands that provide a natural habitat to animals and fish and that improves the water quality of the area.
The recreational activities that the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation permits in and around the lake include pedal boat rides, picnics, and walks. After an extensive renovation project, the City of Los Angeles also allows fishing, an activity that residents have enjoyed at the lake since the 1940s.
Echo Park Lake features several fish species, including bass, perch, crayfish, and bluegill. Rainbow trout are stocked during winter months, and catfish are stocked during the summer months. Echo Park Lake is a catch-and-release site, and you can’t eat the fish you catch. So grab your best fishing sunglasses, a decent kayak, and get out there.
While the City of Los Angeles does not require a fishing license to catch fish at Echo Park Lake, it is a requirement of the State of California.
According to state law, you need a fishing license if you want to fish ocean waters or inland bodies of water and if you are over the age of sixteen.
If you don’t want to obtain a fishing license for one day of fishing, you can get a one-day or two-day license. If you want to catch specific fish species legally, or if you want to use more than one fishing rod, you will need proper validation from the department.
If you want to try fishing at Echo Park Lake, you can do so without having to go to the trouble of obtaining a license. On June 5 and September 6, people can go fishing without having to meet licensing requirements.
If you are a disabled veteran, recovering service member, low-income senior, or low-income native American, you may be eligible to receive a discount on your fishing license fee. You can also purchase a lifetime fishing package at a cost that ranges from $500 to $850.
You can purchase your fishing license online from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, or you can visit an approved fishing license dealer near you. These dealers include Big5 Sporting Goods, Sports Chalet, Walmart, K-Mart, Sports Authority, and 7-11. Some independently owned stores may also be approved license dealers.
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Echo Park Lake is accessible for recreational fishing throughout the year. The weather is generally pleasant during winter and fall, so casting a line in the lake during December can be a good idea. You may also successfully catch a fish during winter and fall as well, as the city stocks the lake with trout once every two weeks during these seasons.
By the end of winter, nearly half the trout is gone – not as a result of fishing activities, but because large birds eat them.
In summer, catfish is added to the self-perpetuating populations of crayfish, bluegill, bass, and perch.
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