Soft water Pineview report 12-6-07

[TubeDude]

[#0000ff][cool]I hadda get in at least one tubing trip in December to make it all twelve months again this year. Couldn't have picked a better day at a better spot.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]34 toasty degrees air temp and 39 degrees water temp at the darn dam. Long trudge down the hill to launch. (Even longer coming back up later) Water level is about 15 vertical feet lower than this time last year. Deepest spot I could find on sonar was about 50 feet.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Used tandem high-low rigs with 1/4 oz. glow jigging spoons on the bottom and chartreuse glow wermz about 2 feet above. Used several colors...tiger, pale perch, red-eye chartreuse, etc. Caught fish on every rod and every rig I fished, but the tandem with dual chartreuse glow worked the best for all species. No wax worms. Used either a piece of crawler or a piece of perch meat (not from Yuba). Both worked well.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Very little breeze so I could fish my vertical jigging finesse style. Drop to the bottom, bounce the heavy jigging spoon a couple of times and raise it a few inches. Hold and wait for a thump, a tick or just a bit of weight. Lots of different styles of bites today.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Caught crappies right on the bottom and up a few feet in 45 to 50 feet. Caught perch all over the channel in water from 30 to 50 feet deep. No big schools but lots of fish scattered all over the bottom. Most did not show up on sonar. About the only fish that showed on sonar were crappie up off the bottom a few feet.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I would not have kept most of the crappies...10 inches or under...but they all floated. No stamina at all when yanked from deep water. I did catch a couple of twelves and a porky 13 incher. The perch were all the way from 4" to 11". I probably caught somewhere between 100 to 150. Every drop in some areas with several doubles. The problem was that the dinks usually beat the larger fish to the lures. My larger perch were all taken away from areas where I had been catching small stuff...one at a time.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The bonus fish of the day was a feisty 20 inch smallie. Kicked my frozen behind on a light perch rod. Yeeee hawww. Smacked one of my chartreuse glow jigging spoons in 48 feet of water and kep my stick bent all the way to the tube. It was especially cool since I hooked, played and landed it in front of some guys in a boat that were doing their best to join me without actually tieing their boat to my tube. I had been smacking the crappies and all they were doing is getting "hook setting" practice on small perch...without hooking very many.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Most of the perch had a protruding bladder but if I released them quickly, a high percentage powered on down and did not float back up. I salvaged a few floaters to cut for bait later, and kept several in the filleting size range.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Looks like the fish are moving into the customary wintering grounds. Now all we need is a few nights of single digit temps and no wind to get 'er capped and we will be drillin' and chillin'.[/#0000ff]
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[Jacksonman]

One of these days I have to go and watch you fish. I am always amazed at your reports. Thanks for the great posts and keep them coming. A buddy and I tried finding the crappie at the Provo Boat Harbor in between slabs of ice for just 2 hrs or so and not even a bite. If you ever feel like inviting me to come watch you ice fish Utah Lake, don't hesitate to let me know.

So when do you predict the View to freeze?
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[smokepoles]

Thanks, TD! I'm living vicariously here until some hard water.
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[lavaman]

Nice report and pics, Pat. I can't believe you are still tubin'....well, on second thought nevermind, you'd go out in the middle of the ice if you could! []

You sure know how to catch dinner!

Looks like Mantua is about a week away from capping. Let me know when you get up here.
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[lunkerhunter2]

Nice work Pat. Can't wait for the ice.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]With the surface temps at 39 and lower water this year, it should happen soon. The last couple of years it has been about the last week of December and I would not be surprised if it worked about that way this year too.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Thankfully we are now in "the flow" for some more weather and as soon as the next storm system passes, and the skies clear, look out for some super low temps. One super cold windfree night will glaze the lake and if the wind doesn't tear it up it can thicken fast.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I think I have had my last tubing trip there this year.[/#0000ff]
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Thanks. You beat me to the ice last year so I thought I would get the jump on you by hitting it ahead of hard water. If you plan to go there any time soon, PM me and I can give you some shoreline coordinates to help you find to deeper spots.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Oh yeah, I forgot to post it, but I donated one of my pale perch jigging spoons to one of your striped toothy friends. I'm counting on you to go retrieve it for me.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I put a mark on the water so you should be able to find it easily.[/#0000ff]
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[lunkerhunter2]

On it like blue bonnet! I will slap him after i catch him and remove your jig. I get to keep it though. My pickins are gettin slim.[shocked]
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Hey grandson, you just let me know when there is enough ice to support my ample frame and I will join you at Mantua. That's always one of my favorite hard water ponds.[/#0000ff]
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[Out4aFloat]

Wow nice catch. Hope you didn't put to big of a mark on the water. Everybody will show up and take the good fishn.[sly]

Can't wait for the hard deck up there.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I lied. I just said that to throw everybody off. I actually put the mark on the side of my tube so that only I know where it is.[/#0000ff]
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[Theekillerbee]

Nice report Pat. Looks like you smacked them little dudes around quite a bit.
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[Flycasting]

Alright bro! I knew you'd do well there! That's a great bonus smallie too! [cool]
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[Lightfoot]

Nice job! I rode up there to check out the water conditions on the 5th and there was a section that looked like it was starting to cap. Should be soon.
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[wiperhunter2]

Wow, what a great report Pat. It seems the solf water reports have been few and far between lately with everyone thinking about ice fishing. Thanks for sharing all the great info and pictures. One question, why do you think the crappie have all the red around their mouths? I noticed several like that in your last picture with all the fish in your basket.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I can't be absolutely sure, but I might guess that the redness around the mouth is a combination of hook damage, stress from being in the basket and a bit of the "bends"...with blood expanding into some areas after being released from the pressure of deeper water.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]It is too early for spawning, so I am sure it is not some kind of crappie lipstick...to attract a mate.[/#0000ff]
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[leaky]

Well. I'm really jealous of ya catchun that smallie! WOW. Good on ya. Did she seem to do ok when you released her? No bends? I'll be looking for her next spring. []
Leaky

[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Just a quick picture and then down she went. Didn't seem to be in trouble at all. She came out of 48 feet of water which is not as bad as the 60 feet or so that a lot of winter smallies hang out in. Right now there ain't no channels or holes deeper than about 50 feet.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I told her to watch out for you next spring. She just splashed me with her tail as she dove for the deeps. Maybe you got a chance.[/#0000ff]
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[Out4Trout]

[cool]Wow. What a fun day in the tube, Pat. Likes like you put your usual hurtin' on them. Like the others, I can't wait for the harddeck up there, and your report has me even more enthused to get up there too. These cold temps this week just might do the trick. Gonna get down to 10 here in the valley in a few hours, so even colder up there. Hope I can ice fish it soon before Christmas this year, 'cause I'll be gone for a week afterwords...
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