Nevada’s Pyramid Lake is known for many things. The lake is home to the Lahontan Cutthroat Trout. In 1859, Nevada’s Silver Discovery, i.e. the Comstock, changed the landscape forever.

While the U.S. government granted the Paiute tribe Pyramid Lake and the surrounding territory into reservation. It is a stand alone story.  Members of the Paiute tribe capitalized on its prized asset the Lahontan Cutthroat Trout. The fish were plentiful and  trout not were only abundant, but a single fish weighing over twenty pounds was common. The enterprising Paiutes realized that there was market in Virginia City, Reno and surrounding territory. One of those markets was Susanville, and which the  Lassen Advocate  duly noted on May 5, 1892 5;3 – A load of Pyramid Lake trout arrived in town by a couple of Indians today and were disposed of on short notice.

The good times would not last forever. First, there was a complex beaucracy between State of Nevada and Pyramid Lake Reservation, that the former wanted protect the lake’s fishery. The. commercial fishing by the Paiutes had greatly diminished the stock. Second, the other blow was in 1902 with Newlands Project that diverted water from the Truckee River (Pyramid’s water source)  to form the agricultural district of Fallon. One of the side effects was decreased inflow water to Pyramid resulting in lowering lake levels.

By 1910, Nevada authorities had legislation in place restricting commercial fishing of Pyramid. While it looked on good paper, it was not easily enforced. By the early 1920s, Pyramid Lake trout could no longer be transported out of state.

In the Honey Lake Valley that ban went largely ignored. In 1921, C.O. Fisher, was made Lassen County Fish & Game Deputy and he was to enforce the law. On January 27, 1925, Gee Hong, the proprietor of Susanville’s Republic Grill pled guilty of fish from out of season.  Hong stated he purchased the Pyramid Lake trout from Indians, who are allowed to fish commercially. but he did not know they could be sold only in Nevada. Hong was fined $25.00. Fisher issued a warning that even local anglers who fished Pyramid Lake would be fined too, as well the Indians who transported them.

Local anglers were not pleased that they could not  bring their catch back home from Pyramid Lake. In 1935 the local sportsmen petitioned the Lassen County Board of Supervisors to lobby the State of California Fish & Game Code Section 623 to exempt Lassen County residents from such. The petitioned stated “Whereas, a great many sportsmen in Lassen County, California, do considerable fishing  in Pyramid Lake, and believe that they should have the privilege of bringing their entire catches into Lassen County, California.”  The Board approved a resolution, but the State did not budge, and it would decades later before  the restrictions were lifted.

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