11-28-2011, 01:17 PM
[cool][#0000ff]I MAY have done better at the south marina. In the olden days it was much better for late fall fishing than the north marina. Also used to be pretty good for ice fishing. It was open last year and I hit it in late December just before iceup. I got one nice walleye. Never did get back for the ice fishing but nobody else seemed to do much. Things have changed. Doesn't everything?[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I used to fish the rivers a lot. Especially the Provo below Deer Creek. Hit it almost every night through the summer and most trips were at least 20 to 30 fish...mixed browns, rainbows and whitefish. And few were under 15"...with lots of 20" plus. But when I came back to Utah in 2004 I found that all my favorite spots were full of "Orvis dorks"...an insufferable lot...and that the new regulations had changed the ecology. Lots of skinny "footlongs" with very few fish over 16". But I still have fond memories of the Provo that used to was.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]About the only community ponds I hit are Willow Park. It is close to home and is a good spot to check the action or effectiveness of new fly or jig patterns. But I HATE the crowd there too. Pains me to see a family of 10...each with a line in the water...and every fish that comes in being plopped on the barbecue or hidden in a remote cooler.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]While working on some new chatterbaits last year I was running them shallow so I could watch them. The silly brood stock planters were assaulting them but could not find the hooks. However, my newfound friends around the pond swooped in and started casting over the fish and trying to snag them while they followed my lures. Kicking one of those "sportsmen" into the water just about started a riot. Ain't been back since.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Got Deer Creek in my crosshairs again this week. Then I might try a couple of spots on Utah Lake. I would normally be hitting Pineview before iceup but with the extremely high water the "normal" pattern is all wacko. Also been communicating with BLFG about coming up and hitting the whitefish. Mama Nature has wrecked our plans the last two years.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]If this year is "typical" we are due for a series of snowstorms and cold weather in the next couple of weeks. That is what usually shuts down my tubing and gets me to trade my soft water setup for the ice sled and auger. But in most years I can still find a puddle to launch in through most of December. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I used to fish the rivers a lot. Especially the Provo below Deer Creek. Hit it almost every night through the summer and most trips were at least 20 to 30 fish...mixed browns, rainbows and whitefish. And few were under 15"...with lots of 20" plus. But when I came back to Utah in 2004 I found that all my favorite spots were full of "Orvis dorks"...an insufferable lot...and that the new regulations had changed the ecology. Lots of skinny "footlongs" with very few fish over 16". But I still have fond memories of the Provo that used to was.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]About the only community ponds I hit are Willow Park. It is close to home and is a good spot to check the action or effectiveness of new fly or jig patterns. But I HATE the crowd there too. Pains me to see a family of 10...each with a line in the water...and every fish that comes in being plopped on the barbecue or hidden in a remote cooler.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]While working on some new chatterbaits last year I was running them shallow so I could watch them. The silly brood stock planters were assaulting them but could not find the hooks. However, my newfound friends around the pond swooped in and started casting over the fish and trying to snag them while they followed my lures. Kicking one of those "sportsmen" into the water just about started a riot. Ain't been back since.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Got Deer Creek in my crosshairs again this week. Then I might try a couple of spots on Utah Lake. I would normally be hitting Pineview before iceup but with the extremely high water the "normal" pattern is all wacko. Also been communicating with BLFG about coming up and hitting the whitefish. Mama Nature has wrecked our plans the last two years.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]If this year is "typical" we are due for a series of snowstorms and cold weather in the next couple of weeks. That is what usually shuts down my tubing and gets me to trade my soft water setup for the ice sled and auger. But in most years I can still find a puddle to launch in through most of December. [/#0000ff]
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