Location

Diamond Valley Lake is located in Hemet, approximately 85 miles north east of downtown San Diego. To get to the lake, take the 15 North to the 215 North. Exit Newport Road and go east. Newport Road turns into Domenigoni Parkway, continue straight until Searl Parkway, turn right and follow to the lake's marina. 

General Info

Diamond Valley is Southern California's newest, and largest reservoir. This giant reservoir was built between two mountains with the construction of its three mammoth sized dams. They began to fill the lake in 1999, and finished in 2002. The large East and West dams stretch over 1 mile in length each, seperated by over 4 and a half miles of water. Because of its immense depth (260 feet at full pool), Diamond Valley holds more water than the Colorado River's Lake Havasu (260 billion gallons vs. 201 billion gallons).

The lake was practically groomed to be a world-class fishery. The Department of Fish and Game began stocking the original "pond" with the best largemouth bass specimens they could find, many coming from Lake Hodges. The growth rates of the fish at Diamond Valley are unparalelled by any other lake in Southern California. The lake opened to fishing and boating in October of 2003, and has quickly become the premier bass and trout reservoir in Southern California.

Schedule and Boating Info

Diamond Valley is open 7 days a week for shore fishing, boat launching, and boat rentals. All private boats must pass an inspection by the Metropolitan Water District prior to launching for the first time. The MWD has fairly strict requirements as far as what boat engines are permitted on the lake. For a full outline of boat requirements please visit DVLake.com Boat Requirements.

There is a 25 mph speed limit that is strictly enforced by the local Sheriff. Boats operating with 200 feet of the shoreline, and within marina areas must adhere a 5 mph speed limit.

The lake closes daily 1 hour prior to sunset, and all vehicles need to be out of the parking lot prior to it getting dark. 

Facilities

Urban Parks operates a well-stocked concession stand that sells refreshments and a decent supply of fishing equipment. The marina features an impressive rental facility, with Triton aluminum bass boats available as well as a fleet of pontoon boats.

Fishing Information

Diamond Valley, as mentioned earlier, is arguably the premier fishery in all of Southern California for many species of fish including largemouth bass, rainbow trout, smallmouth bass, and striped bass. The bass fishing is normally very good, especially for largemouth bass and rainbow trout. The lake record largemouth bass was caught on March 16, 2007 by Mike Long which weighed 16.43 pounds. Many believe Diamond Valley may be the odds-on favorite to produce the next World Record largemouth. While there are always several ways to catch a good bag of largemouth at Diamond Valley, one of the most consistent producers is drop shotting off deep points using the "Morning Dawn" colored Roboworm with a drop shot rig.

The rainbow trout fishing at Diamond Valley is also fantastic. Generally the fish caught there are among the hardest fighting, healthiest rainbows in the region. Fish in the 6-10 pound class are common, hold over trout feast year-round on the lakes abundant shad population. The cool deep water available allows the trout to survive the warm summer months of Southern California. The lake record rainbow is 11.30 pounds caught by a shorefisherman. Anglers such as trout guide Mark Franco, have had great success using deep trolling techniques using lead core line and/or downriggers to get down to the fish.

One of the other unique opportunies available for anglers on Diamond Valley is the striped bass fishing here. Large striped bass have become more and more common, and growing to very healthy sizes. The striped bass enjoy an endless supply of panfish, trout, and shad and can be caught on large topwater baits and swimbaits. The lake record Striper was caught by Art Berry of Hemet on November 11, 2005 and weighed in at 29.77 pounds.

Fish Species

• Largemouth bass (limit of 5 at a 15" min.)
• Smallmouth bass (limit of 0)
• Trout (limit of 5)
• Catfish (limit of 10)
• Bluegill (no limit)

Special Regulations

• There are strict boating regulations at the lake, please see the link above for all boat requirements.
• No dogs are allowed at the lake.
• Shorefishing is allowed in designated areas only, which amass to about a mile and a half of accessible shorefishing.
• Live bait is not allowed at Diamond Valley, excluding nightcrawlers and red worms. 
• No float tubes are allowed. 
• No BBQs are allowed.
• Bikes are not allowed.

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