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[#0000FF][cool]Sunday dawned bright and sunny...an hour earlier. Took TubeBabe out to breakfast and headed south to make a recon run around Utah Lake. Had to find a spot for a potential float tube launch this week. Cain't stand it no more. I was tubing by mid February last year.
Started at American Fork Boat Harbor. Rotten green ice with lotsa water around the edges. Nobody fishing but you can still walk out on the docks and drill next to them. There was also open water at the mouth of the channel and for a ways back inside. Open water outside for a hundred yards or so...and around to the west...off the mouth of the American Fork River. Also looked like the open water went clear around to the Lindon area for a ways offshore.
Next stop Lindon...after running into a construction road block on the last hundred yards of road before getting to the harbor (see pics). Had to go back out to Geneva Road, drive down to the back access road (Vineyard Road) and then come in the back way along the lake. That road is open to Lindon Harbor but is still subject to the same road block to the east.
Stopped first at the bubbleup. Water has come up about 2 feet since late last fall when the bubbleup pipe was out of water for a long ways into the lake. It is now covered complete. Only one buoy...way out at the end. I could see water coming up around the buoy and noticed it was spilling into the outflow from the "cooling pond".
Lindon Harbor is opening up. Water all around the edges...quite a bit in some places. And the harbor mouth is wide open with a couple hundred yards of open water out to the main lake ice shelf. The water around the shoreline is open clear around to American Fork to the north and a long ways south. Once the ice opens up off the ramp a bit more a boat could launch and hit some of the better spots.
Next stop...the pumphouse area. A major construction project going on there. No public access from the big parking lot next to the river. But even if you got down there the ice is rotten, with openings around the edges. I walked in from the park, across the bridge over the gates and took some pictures of the big dirt "coffer dam" the construction crew has put across the old Jordan River channel to keep water out of their work area. The gates of the inlet channel are all still closed too. Not a drop of water going downstream from the Jordan River. I guess that accounts for the lake rising. Hope they let it get a few feet higher before they open up the gates. Those gates were running wide open by late March last year and then again later in the year as they dropped the lake level for their construction project.
Next stop...Saratoga Springs Harbor at Pelican Bay. Nobody fishing. Rotten ice with lots of water around the edges. Still fishable from the docks. Water open at the channel mouth.
Headed for the Knolls to see how the land owners had fenced and posted it for the current off-limits status. Been a while since I was last there. WOW. Posted signs on both sides of Hwy 68 all the way from Pelican Point to Mile Marker 19. No access on either side. They are serious. Did take a brief looksee drive down the road at the Knolls. Took a picture of all the signs and the new no-nonsense fence. Hope we can get something resolved soon. One of my favorite tubing venues.
Since TubeBabe and I were enjoying our nice Sunday drive and no reasons to head back too soon we decided to drive around through Goshen and come in the back way to Lincoln Beach. The boat channel was the usual ugly ice with water around the edges. There was one guy and his little girl fishing off the dock. We talked to them and they had not had a nibble. But the little girl was having a good time playing with the night crawlers. Thought about ripping off her purty little Barbie pole but didn't want to forfeit my Grandpa badge.
Walked out to the end of the south dike to get a closer look at the newly formed iceberg there. It blew in yesterday with the north winds and the big chunks of 12 inch thick ice still looked fresh...with that bluish look of Alaskan glacier ice. There was open water in some spots and lots of cracks and openings. Don't think I would wanna do any more drillin' and chillin' down there...even with the thick ice cap.
Decided to forgo stopping at the Spanish Fork River mouth or going down to the Provo Boat Harbor. Opted instead for a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup shake at Arctic Circle in Spanish Fork and then headed home.
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Thanks for the update Pat. Looks like it wont be long before you get wet at the Provo Pond. I didnt realize they had put a dam on the river to keep water out at the pumphouse. Must be some serious work. A lot more than replacing the pumps and bases. It is  to see the posted areas at the knolls, but, I cant say I blame the land owners the way the area was trashed was a statement on the ethics of some fisher folks. I hope it gets resolved soon. Good report Thanks for taking the time
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Thank you. For the good scouting report with pics. All questions about access were answered. Tight lines.
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If you ever need any community help to get the Knolls going again, in the form of whatever (petitions, phone calls, letters)...
Let the community know, I think there are a lot of people on here that don't want to see that place closed down for good.
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I am new to fishing Utah lake and its surroundings so sorry for the dumb question but what's the story about the knolls? Someone do something to make them close it off for everybody or something like that?
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[cool][#0000FF]Right now, the negotiations are in the capable hands of DWR folks from the Springville office. They have a lot of experience in negotiating with land owners to get access rights for sportsmen. The negotiations are going slowly (if you are anxious) but everybody is remaining open and cordial while the necessary facts are gathered and put into the hopper.
In a recent email from Chris Crockett he indicated that there would indeed be a call to the public to get more involved in the matter. One thing they are trying to arrange is an open meeting with land owners, county commissioners, etc. That information will be posted as soon as it is available.
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To give you a short answer yes. The longer version is the area has been trashed beyond belief. An organized cleanup effort was made in the area and several trucks of garbage were hauled off. A couple weeks later it looked as though nobody had ever cleaned up anything. This area has been a great place to fish for many years but for those who frequent the place over several years there has been a growing concern over the amount of trash being left there. I have even seen people leave a matress. The usual trash, fishing line, baby diapers and every kind of beverage container you can think of. It is that the area was shut down but as I said I can certainly understand. I am hoping that the negotiations can bring a new opportunity to fisher people however I am sure that agreement will be fragile if the trashing continues as it has in the past few years.
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Thanks for the great information and news[  ] I had thought of making the same sort of trip this weekend but life intervened. I was also looking for "iceberg" pictures from earlier years to show some people who hadn't seen it. You saved me twice in one post!
I might take my antique tube out this next week and see if I can still handle COLD water.
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[quote crappielover89]I am new to fishing Utah lake and its surroundings so sorry for the dumb question but what's the story about the knolls? Someone do something to make them close it off for everybody or something like that?[/quote]
[cool][#0000FF]The Knolls has been one of the few places around Utah Lake remaining open to the public with no fees. It has long been popular for camping, fishing...and shooting. Unfortunately, it has also had a continuing problem with lots of trash left behind and irresponsible shooters.
Over the past decade the Knolls has attracted more and more of the kind of people who have no concerns with the ecology or the esthetic beauty of a place. They take advantage of the free access to have campouts and parties...and then leave behind great quantities of trash.
A lot of us "regulars" have made an effort to keep the area cleaner by taking plastic garbage bags with us whenever we go...and carrying out the stuff left behind by the trashers. We have also had a number of volunteer cleanup days in an effort to show the landowners that some of us do care.
During the last year the situation has escalated. The perimeter fences have been cut...to allow scofflaws to gain access to posted areas for fishing, trashing and all the other activities. Livestock has been lost and other damages have been done to cattle and structures. There has also been an increase in vandalism to parked vehicles and even physical attacks on unprotected and vulnerable anglers. One of the final straws was the increase in the number of stray bullets that were perforating cars or even homes along the lake.
The LDS Church and other landowners in the area have finally had enough. They have decided to simply fence off the entire area and turn the policing over to the Sheriff's Department. Apparently they were advised that they have a legal liability for damages incurred by anyone who is hurt or killed while on their property. In our litigious society that can be monumental.
Unless we can work out something to satisfy the land owners and make at least a narrow access area open to the public again, I am afraid the only fishing in that area will be by boat...launched from other areas.
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[#0000FF]I think I will probably try a launch at Lindon some day this week. The water has been open there for a while and is being oxygenated by the wind. The water in other areas is a sick color and is not likely to have many active fish.
Here's another ice pileup picture from a couple of years ago at Lincoln Beach.
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I love it when the ice moves in and stacksd up like that. I was lucky enough to be out one day several years ago when there was about a 40 mile an hour west wind and sheets of ice actualy stood up 5 feet high before tipping over. It was fun to watch
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I hate to say it but I think people should find a better place to shoot.
I swear one time I was out in my float tube and some idiots were shooting into the lake... I wasn't 100% sure of it, but pretty dang sure!!! If stray bullets are hitting houses and other structures its clear the shooting needs to go.
It's too hot and dry out there in the summer for a bunch of shooting going on anyways. I remember a fire out there a few years ago and if I'm not mistaken it was from shooters.
I have nothing against recreational shooting/shooters but it seems to me like there are better places to go and do that.
I was always amazed at the amount of trash at the Knolls. If people can't use the place without trashing it then I guess it probably did need shut down. Sad to see though. I know over the years you have hauled off your fair share of trash from that place TD. Maybe if there was a designated community trash clean up once a month it would help with that problem. It's not much fun and nobody wants to do it, but in the future I think picking up trash has got to become a "hobby". It's not all that glorious but it does give you some exercise, fresh air and a feeling of accomplishment. Better than some "hobbies" people cling to.
Also, perhaps the landowners would feel more comfortable about opening it back up for day use only. As someone who likes to night fish a lot that is too bad, but there is some truth to the old saying: "Nothing good ever happens after midnight".... I think if you got a paved parking lot down there with some benches and picnic tables and plenty of trash cans.... people would respect the area a little more. It doesn't make sense to me but I think some people feel like since there are no facilities, (bathrooms, trash cans, paved road, picnic tables) etc then it's more likely they will get away with "trashing" the place.
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Shooting over the lake !! NO ONE would do that would they ??? I was at the Bubble up in my boat with my son and a friend of his. Two idiots were on the shore by the little park south of the Bubble up, target shooting. They had targets up on the shoreline to the north and were popping away with their 22's. I yelled at them, but they kept it up, so I called the County Sherriff. It was fun to watch two Deputies converge on them, one from the north and one from the south and haul them away !! We had to get up against the shore line to get out of the line of fire !!
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Perhaps they should (and it pains me to say it) start up a fee for entering the area. That should keep most the "rift raft" out.
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As much as it pains me to agree, I do. Anything that's "free" is liable to be thought of as valueless.
On those shooters: those are not "hunters" nor "target shooters." People who do that are vandals with guns - and deserve to be treated as such.
And now, back to our regularly scheduled fishing thread...
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Thanks for the post & pics Pat. I too feel bad about seeing the knolls area closed but can fully understand why the landowners had to do so. A couple years ago I made a trip down just to clean up some of the trash. Completely filled my pickup bed in less than 100 yards. Went down a few months later with the same thing in mind but after seeing where I'd been earlier I said to he-- with it. If anything it was worse than before. Went up to the outlet gates and loaded five 55 gal. trash bags with stuff picked outta the rocks on the west side. A couple youngsters that were fishing there jumped right in to help but some of the others just looked on kinda annoyed at our intrusion. I might just mention that the guys that helped me were both hispanic. I had to put that in because of the prevailing (too often correct) stereotype of hispanics.
As for irresponsible idiot (plus many many other unprintable vile expressions of disdain and outrage) shooters in the knolls area, I have been there in my boat on a couple occasions when rounds splashing in the water got me the he-- outta there. I know I'm cynical but I still wonder if there aren't some people who go brain dead when they pick up a firearm. Now, they may just be brain dead to begin with, I dunno.
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I agree with your sentiments.
Some would like to think racism is done and over with but I think we all know that is naive thinking.
I've seen people from all different backgrounds and creeds leaving trash behind. It's a human problem we have, not a race one.
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[#0000FF][cool]I too have heard the whine of lead zinging over my head while tubing at the Knolls. Free shooting ranges are just like free camping...it attracts the irresponsible types who just want to shoot something...without regard for whoever might be in the line of fire.
During some of the many tubing trips I have enjoyed at the Knolls I have heard just about every kind of weapons discharge you can imagine...from 22 plinking pistols to 50 caliber rifles...and even what sounded like a howitzer. There have been days when the collective noise of the recreational blasters made it sound like World War III in progress. Really ruins the esthetics of a quiet day on the water...especially when errant shots whine nearby or splash in the water near you.
I have made recommendations to add at least a big dumpster out by the road...for easier pickup. They have tried setting up trash collection barrels down by the edge of the water but they always get stolen, shot up or smashed by nutjobs with big trucks.
Part of the negotiations are to gain easements in return for road improvements, free fencing and some other niceties down on the water...like a small launch area with decent bottom and a dock. DWR would love to be able to enhance that area but it will only attract more of the wrong folks unless fees are assessed. Lots of codgertatin' and decidicatin' to do. It could go either way.
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It as others stated pains me that we might have to turn it into a fee area, but, I am about convinced that is the only way to help the area. It costs money to maintain a dumpster, docks or ramps or even picnic sites. I also think any kind of fee will discourage some of the folks that trash the area. I can only hope the fees would be reasonable. It is that every access to Utah lake is so badly trashed with the exception to the fee areas.
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It is mind blowing what you see left as trash out there sometimes. I remember nearly running over a meat cleaver left in a fire pit about three feet from the water line when launching my toon last year. I certainly don't always feel safe floating away from my truck or even being there when few people are around. That place is so good to fish but it really needs better management if it is going to be open again. I know I am open to paying a fee if they can somehow restrict the trashers from getting in.
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