03-07-2003, 11:02 PM
I rarely watch Doug Miller, but just saw this on his page. The link will probably only be active until Saturday, so I'll post the content under the link. I've spent a lot of hours on this lake, and it holds a special place in my heart. I hope it recovers quickly
[url "http://kutv.com/outdoors/local_story_066155.247.html"]http://kutv.com/outdoors/local_story_066155.247.html[/url]
[size 2]Mar 7, 2003 1:50 pm US/Mountain
[/size]
In a meeting room at the DWR a couple of weeks ago; the news on Yuba Reservoir was one of those good news bad news scenarios.
First, the bad news.
"From what I understand, they will drain it and get it as low as they can and then they will put a coffer dam in front of the existing dam," said Don Wiley, Aquatic Manager, DWR Central Region.
Yuba Reservoir, located just east of I-15 and south of Nephi, has already been virtually drained by the drought. The plan is to take advantage of what water is left for this year's irrigation needs, and then completely drain the reservoir in September to complete some repairs on the dam.
Most, if not all, of the remaining fish in the lake would be lost.
That is where the bad news of this story hopefully ends.
"Yeah it is a crisis but in a way it is a blessing because we have been trying to add structure and add structure to build the Yellow Perch population to support the Walleye population," said Charlie Thompson, DWR Aquatic Manager, Retired.
Christmas trees by the hundred piled on the shoreline at Yuba last winter was a last ditch effort at saving a crashing Perch and Walleye fishery on this lake. The plan was for the trees to provide underwater structure for spawning perch. The walleye in this lake are such efficient predators that they overwhelm the perch population and then both species crash. It has been a boom and bust cycle that has repeated itself for 20 years.
In its heydays when Perch populations recover, Yuba produced some amazing fish. Brad Cutler shows off a ten pound Walleye caught in 1999. This is a state catch and release record Perch that was caught at Yuba in March of 2000.
But that was yesterday. The data gathered last year shows an 87 per cent decline in walleye numbers in two years. But the drought may actually help a comeback story at Yuba and this meeting was aimed at being ready for that chapter of the saga.
"It is definitely the rebirth of something that could be better. We are quite concerned at this time and that is why we are trying to be proactive," Wiley said.
With water levels down, brush and vegetation along the shoreline has made a major comeback. This underwater video of the Christmas tree reefs show they have not deteriorated and should also help. A change in the bag limits is also likely when the lake begins its comeback.
"I think we can level out some of it with the habitat structures and like we have talked, maybe helping out with more limits of Walleye and less limits of Perch," said Wes Schneider of Rocky Mountain Anglers.
How quickly can it rebound? The biologists say these nutrient rich waters could spawn a perch comeback in a couple of years and the walleye would trail that by another couple of years. A lot of anglers and the aquatic managers are committed to writing that chapter of this story.
"When it is on, it is one of the most prolific walleye fisheries that we have in this state...as far as the weight of the fish and the quality of the fish. We don't have another water that you can catch those quality of fish out of in Utah," Ray Scheible, Rocky Mountain Anglers.
[url "http://kutv.com/outdoors/local_story_066155.247.html"]http://kutv.com/outdoors/local_story_066155.247.html[/url]
[size 2]Mar 7, 2003 1:50 pm US/Mountain
[/size]
In a meeting room at the DWR a couple of weeks ago; the news on Yuba Reservoir was one of those good news bad news scenarios.
First, the bad news.
"From what I understand, they will drain it and get it as low as they can and then they will put a coffer dam in front of the existing dam," said Don Wiley, Aquatic Manager, DWR Central Region.
Yuba Reservoir, located just east of I-15 and south of Nephi, has already been virtually drained by the drought. The plan is to take advantage of what water is left for this year's irrigation needs, and then completely drain the reservoir in September to complete some repairs on the dam.
Most, if not all, of the remaining fish in the lake would be lost.
That is where the bad news of this story hopefully ends.
"Yeah it is a crisis but in a way it is a blessing because we have been trying to add structure and add structure to build the Yellow Perch population to support the Walleye population," said Charlie Thompson, DWR Aquatic Manager, Retired.
Christmas trees by the hundred piled on the shoreline at Yuba last winter was a last ditch effort at saving a crashing Perch and Walleye fishery on this lake. The plan was for the trees to provide underwater structure for spawning perch. The walleye in this lake are such efficient predators that they overwhelm the perch population and then both species crash. It has been a boom and bust cycle that has repeated itself for 20 years.
In its heydays when Perch populations recover, Yuba produced some amazing fish. Brad Cutler shows off a ten pound Walleye caught in 1999. This is a state catch and release record Perch that was caught at Yuba in March of 2000.
But that was yesterday. The data gathered last year shows an 87 per cent decline in walleye numbers in two years. But the drought may actually help a comeback story at Yuba and this meeting was aimed at being ready for that chapter of the saga.
"It is definitely the rebirth of something that could be better. We are quite concerned at this time and that is why we are trying to be proactive," Wiley said.
With water levels down, brush and vegetation along the shoreline has made a major comeback. This underwater video of the Christmas tree reefs show they have not deteriorated and should also help. A change in the bag limits is also likely when the lake begins its comeback.
"I think we can level out some of it with the habitat structures and like we have talked, maybe helping out with more limits of Walleye and less limits of Perch," said Wes Schneider of Rocky Mountain Anglers.
How quickly can it rebound? The biologists say these nutrient rich waters could spawn a perch comeback in a couple of years and the walleye would trail that by another couple of years. A lot of anglers and the aquatic managers are committed to writing that chapter of this story.
"When it is on, it is one of the most prolific walleye fisheries that we have in this state...as far as the weight of the fish and the quality of the fish. We don't have another water that you can catch those quality of fish out of in Utah," Ray Scheible, Rocky Mountain Anglers.
