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Has been several weeks since able to get up to Benson area. Anyone able to say what the water level is? Any of the bigger catfish coming up out of the deep holes ?
Going to try to get up there in the morning Saturday, and maybe also Monday.
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I know Cutler has been treating you good Forest but have you ever tried the lower Bear? There are some deep holes in that lower section above the bird refuge that holds some big fish, 30 plus inch cats and walleye up to 7 & 8 lbs. There are a couple of concrete launches in Corinne. The nicer one is right as you go over the bridge into Corrine on the right side, there is a smaller one on the left and a little down stream. If you have never fished that area, it is worth the try, it is closer and the catching can be just as good as the Culter part.
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Curt, I fished portions of the Bear near Corrine back before I bought my first boat in 2004. Mostly just off the bank under the old bridges east of Corrine. I used a flat bottom Jon boat I rented on base several years ago to go down river a ways. Got to about the second old Railroad bridge and water got real shallow, plus lots of junk floating and just under the surface that was a hazard. The rented boats didn't have depth finders, and I didn't want to run aground or hit something I couldn't see. Then when I got my first boat (2004 Lund 1700 ProSport) in July 2004 just didn't want to risk damage to it on the Bear.
I knew they had replaced the bridges just before Corrine, but didn't know they have improved the ramps. Last time I saw them they were still mud ruts. I just may have to take a look at them again.
I guess to get to where you are describing, I would launch at the bridge ramp, then go UP river ? The last time I tried that, there was a large dirt, rock, sand and mud island sticking up in the middle of the river just on the up river side of the ramp. So never went that direction.
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Tin-can, I went up it a couple of nights ago in my 12 foot boat and launched at the new and improved ramp in Corinne. We went all the way up to where the river goes under I-15. There was one spot where it got a little shallow near the town of Bear River but we made it through no problem. Caught some nice cats. The catching was not fast, but the size of them made up for it
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Kind of hi-jacked this thread, sorry. I have heard of walleye in the Bear. How do you catch them and where? I have tried for years with no luck, everybody says they are in the upper Bear, but I was wondering if I could catch some by the Corinne area? Any advice?
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I've caught 2 nice filleting size Walleye in the Upper Bear. We put in at the Upper Bear access near Benson Marina, and went up river to the second bend in the River. There is a fairly deep hole in the inside of the bend with a shear dirt wall about 10 - 15 feet high on the edge. Caught walleye there both times I've been there.
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This new improved ramp, is that just off the first bridge on the right (north) side of the road just before you get into town? Still have all the junk cars down along the south river bank just past the first bend up river from the ramp?
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Yes, that is the ramp. It is concrete now so you don't have to launch at that mud hole at the other bridge. Do you think there is walleye down by the Corrine area, or the refuge?
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I personally have never caught any eyes in that part of the Bear. But then I didn't expect to catch any on the upper Bear either. In the lower Bear near Corrine I've caught Channel Cat, Bullheads (lots of them), Carp (lots of them too) and that's it.
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Forest back to your original question, Cutler is still up, but it is 4" lower than it has been lately. It's about the same level as it was for the flotilla maybe a little higher. Found a 23.5" cat this morning in the river channel. First big one in the channel this summer for me. Most of the cats were 8" - 11" in the river. I didn't find any bigger cats in the shallows this morning, but I was an hour or two later than usual. Good luck. J
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I have caught and heard of Walleye below the dam, but haven't fished the lower section. I'd heard the low water cautions before and obstacles. Find that hard enough on the upper bear, where it's so muddy, there's no visibility!
Guess the water depth below the dam can vary a lot more, depending on what they are letting through? At least by the pumphouse that's what I've noticed.
sharksugar - we should have signed you up for our little contest, you found some big kitties!
Walleye will go for spinners, curly tail jigs, worms. I've heard a white curly tail bounced along is a good option. Out at Willard - lots of worm harness rigs get dragged, the color of blade can make a difference. Might find them lurking around eddys and pools.
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Well I haven't caught any eyes myself in the lower section but a couple of members have reported catching them. If I remember correctly, they were using a night crawler for cats when they caught them. I don't think there are as many as the upper section has but the ones that have been caught are bigger, in most cases. The only place that comes to mind, as far as location, is those cars that are on the river bank as you go down to the bird refuge but it has been a number of years since I read the report, so I'm not totally for sure of the location. Since the members that caught them were not trying to catch walleye, I think the best advice I can give you is to try bottom bouncing with a worm harness, especially in those deeper holes or those deeper sections of the river. Of course cats will also chase worm harnesses but I think it gives you a better chance at the eyes. Another thing that might work is a night crawler on a 3/8 oz jig head. I have had good success on lakes, casting a jig with a crawler toward the bank and bouncing it back to the boat but it only works the first and last hour of day light. Hope this help you and good luck with you river walleye quest.
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Thanks everybody.
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By the way, very nice cats, looks like you did well.
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Well I made it up to Benson with 2 objectives. 1) Go fishin
2) Check out the new transducer I put on my Eagle 502cGPSi to see if it was the reason my sonar went wacky whenever I was on Benson where the bottom is mainly mud. Result: The new transducer fixed the problem...yea......!!! Now I can be positive that I only have 2 feet of water under me....[:/].
As for fishin.........Did that today too. But the results were not as positive. Got on the water at 0700, right behind 6 Bass boats with 2 guys per boat. They got out in the middle of the marina, lined up heading north, and roared off up the middle.
I puttered over to the west side (getting good solid depth readings of 2 to 4 feet all the way) Fished up and down the west side an hour or so (caught a few Mud Cats) and realized I had left my coffee cup on my truck tail gate. Back to the dock, retrieved my lifer juice, and decided to go south under the bridge. Got to the hole just before the bridge and graphed lots of fish in and around the hole. Anchored out and washed some more worms. Caught more Mudders and a couple small channels that were still sportin their youth spots. All released.
Did cross under the bridge, and went almost all the way to the railroad bridge. but the wind started getting a bit rough. Headed back to the ramp and called it a day about 1200.
Not the greatest fishin day, but not the worst. And I did get to check out the new depth transducer. So the day wasn't wasted
i
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Guess you didn't find out what the bass boats were up to did you? Was it a tourney or something? Be fun to know how they did. I was down in Utah county today helping my B.I.L. Move so I didn't see what happened here at home today. Glad you fixed the finder. Now I worry about mine because it sometimes does the same thing yours was. Thanks for the report. J
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No, I never did find out what all the Bass boats were up to. I saw one of them later going under the bridge at the marina, heading toward the old train bride, they said they had caught one small one. One what ? I assume to be Bass.
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Hey thanks for the follow up. Seems like fall hit yesterday morning and really goofed up the cats for me. Maybe time to hit Hyrum for bows. Catch ya later J
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I need to figure out what's fritzed on my boat finder. Says the transducer isn't connected - but it's RIGHT THERE - wire, connections, the whole shaboygens.
If they were bass boats and all, pretty sure you could count their counts as for bass. Cats would be interference! Kinda like mudders and carp are to us Channel hunters! Even if I do target a species, usually a pretty equal opportunity angler.
If I were you - I'd just blast past the bridge by the road, head over to the trestle bridge and try your luck. Might even run into a crappie, or walleye if you're lucky. Though south of that bridge is restricted to 35hp and < motors.
Glad your new transducer helped, maybe that's what I need, or to hook up the one from my better finder like I keep telling myself!
One time a number of years back, went putzing around that area south of the road - and I was amazed. Dragging some lures on side planers, and it was 50ft deep like EVERYWHERE, and marked up tons and tons of fish at all depths. Couldn't get anything to bite, but by golly they were out there, and such surprisingly deep water.
THEN I realized my finder was reading "simulation". DUOH! Everything changed after that!
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Yote, I actually did get over near the trestle bridge, but the one Bass boat that has passed me under the road bridge was there moving slow back and forth on his bow mount. Where I was I was reading about 4.5 feet deep. Then the wind cranked up some, and I decided to head back to the road bridge. I sat anchored under it awhile. Blocked me from most of the wind, and the intermittent rain drops. I'd like to get back over there earlier in the morning sometime soon.
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