Barrett Lake Fishing Tickets

Barrett never disappoints!!! A catch and release fishery Barrett is fantastic!!! No barbs on hooks and no bait only artificial baits are allowed. I have personally had many 60 fish days,off the lake by noon! There are no concessions so pack in what you need and pack your trash out. I have fish Barrett hundreds of times through the years and i must say it is my favorite lake to fish bass! Plenty of wild life to see also hunting for ducks in the winter. Don't miss the best fishing in Southern California. God bless America!!!

Lost like 12-13 because we have to use barbless hooks. Only caught 5. And those 5 spot the hooks while in my net!

We got lucky with a 2023 Saturday opening ticket! It was pretty cold in the AM but as the weather warmed up, so did the fishing! We stayed to the end for the evening bite and glad we did!

The fishing was slow but we caught a few fish. We got hustled by the lake crew for extra bucks that I didn't understand. All in all its always a good time out there.

Lake Barrett has attained almost-mythic status among SoCal lakes. Completed in 1922, it was closed to the public until 1994, and has been managed ever since to try to maintain an extremely high quality of fishing. The lake is only open 3 days/week, from May-Sept. There is no private powerboat launching, anglers must rent a boat or bring kayak boats or float tubes. Since you are on Ticketmaster, you probably already know access is limited to around 100 people or so per day. Fishing is 100% catch-and-release, with barbless hooks. The primary targets are northern strain largemouth bass, but the lake has a large population of large bluegill and crappy of the bass aren’t cooperating. The lake is located close to the Mexican border, and while owned by the City of San Diego, is surrounded by private property. It’s accessed thru a single gate, then over a couple of miles of graded dirt road. 4x4 is not required, there are just a few rocky spots and some steeper sections, but nothing a passenger sedan can’t handle. The City website is inaccurate in that the gate opens at 4:00am, not 5:00 am. The rental boat docks are at the bottom of a short, fairly steep hill from the lowest parking lot. No steps, just a dirt road. The rental boats are basic Jon boats with 6 or 8 HP outboard, so you will need to bring your own electric motor and battery. You might want to bring a wagon or hand truck to minimize trips back to the car. The weather can be extremely warm June-August and there is little to no shade along the shore, so bring sun clothes, a wide brimmed hat, sunscreen, and plenty of water. There is no concession stand, and boats are first-come-first-served, so pick a boat, load up, and go. Grab flotation cushions from the common dock box, or bring your own. Barbless hooks are required, so be sure to crush the barbs on any flies or lures you tie on (you don’t have to do all your lures, just the one you have on). All of your standard Bass lures/flies will work, although most people focus on the top-water/shallow water bite. The predominant forage is threadfin shad. Fishing is best in May and Sept, but can be good in the summer months as well, especially if the water levels remain stable. Most of the shoreline has a band of matted weeds and underwater moss

Slow at first for me, catching just a couple. Then i switched to Sinkos and landed 25 with my biggest being a 22.5 inch 7 pounder

Always a good day to be on the water. But Barrett seems to be fading as far as the number being caught. Still worth the scenery though

Fishing was good little bit of a tough grind in June BUT the season opener in May was a complete opposite that bite was wide open !!! 60 to 100 BASS a day and it just gets less and less until the shad spawn & bite comes IN JULY overall it’s a great lake and I love it,I go every year PS mid to late September is a good chance for a giant

Barrett Best fishing in California!!! 100 fish days are not uncommon! Got 30 in a few hours on Sunday Catch and release only ,Barb less hooks, no bait allowed . It is like Disneyland for bass fisherman. Up the night before with anticipation of my day at Barrett. Also you can only get tickets through Ticketmaster. Good luck!!!!

Staff is very helpful and friendly Fishing was great

Wonderful trip. Everything you could ask for. Only trouble was a discrepancy in the gate schedule. Tickets say the gate opens at 5am.

Barrett Lake California is awesome! It Is like going to Disneyland for an avid bass Angler:-). It is a a catch and release Lake only! No bait allowed! All Barb's must be removed from hooks! The fish are of a northern strain which fight very hard:-) and there are plenty of fish! This is the lake that if you have an old lures you always wanted to try you probably have luck at Barrett with it:-). The road to Barrett it is a little rough but can be handled in a smaller car. SUV or truck would be better:-). The people there are very nice and take care of you well. The lake is not trash like a lot of the city Lakes due to the respect of the Anglers at this Lake have:-). Definitely worth getting in on the Ticketmaster app to get tickets:-) good luck!

The bass bite was wide open And looking forward to making another trip also there are good pan fishing options also crappie and bluegill all over Top water bait and shad spawn are about to happen

Barret is always an exciting fishing experience. Get there early and you’ll be happy.

Another epic day at Barrett, the wind kicked up and put a damper on fishing for a few hours. When the wind eased up we’re able to get massive numbers on top water. Biggest fish was a 4.7 & 4.6. Please have fishing etiquette, theres plenty of fish at Barrett. No need to encroach on each other just because they are on a good top water bite. Thanks and be courteous to each other.

nice, beautiful lake, a lot of fish, perfect weather,nice people

Headed out to Barrett Lake on May 8th. First trip of the year there, water levels up really nicely minimal crowds. Met Lori at the gate with a smile, drove in with high expectations. All that said the lake is not the same as it once was in terms of numbers. Fish however are much healthier and bigger for the most part. I ended the day with 15 all together, which is remarkable at any other Lake in San Diego.the lake was great my experience with Ticketmaster on opening night of ticket sales was a dismal failure however. No tech support no one to answer questions or return emails regarding problems accessing their site. That was way more frustrating than not catching forty fish on my first day at the lake. I sent three emails called multiple times only to be disconnected and never had an email returned as of yet. The lake gets four stars Ticketmaster -1.

Excellent time. Between three of us we caught 111 bass and couple bluegill. The biggest was 4.52lbs average around 1lb

Fish on at lake Barrett !!!! Great time on the lake, got some steady fishing in what else can you ask for . KPG

had a great time, lake was perfect for fishing, from sun up to sun down. plenty of room for everyone to fish.