Go ahead, Call me a liar!!

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My friend called me up last night and wanted to know if I wanted to make a quick trip to Willard.

I have been wanting to fish it for a while (I had never fished it before), so I decided to go.

I didn't have my boat and decided to just cast some jigs from shore. After 10 or so casts, I hooked a fish that felt solid and just held on the bottom for a while. Then it made 4 or 5 good runs.

I assumed it was a catfish and fought it for about 5-10 minutes. I got it to the shore and it was a wiper. Of course being my first trip to Willard it was the first one I had ever caught.

My friend has caught wiper before and he told me that my fish was a striper. I told him I had never heard of Stripers being in Willard.

Anyway...., now for the fish story. I had caught a 5lb cut a few months back at Bear Lake and this fish was considerably bigger. We
both agreed that it was between 6 and 7lb.

I had no idea how big wipers grew and really didn't want the fish. My friend didn't want it either so I just let it go. It was the only fish
I caught and after calling LH2, and confirming that it was a wiper, I am sure I will never catch one that size again.

I saw several boats come near us and saw people catching fish where we were fishing.

Jason
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[Theekillerbee]

Liar! You asked for it....[] Nice work on hooking a big 'un.
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[lunkerhunter2]

Next week, let's go catch him again so you can prove it![][]
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[Fishcrazy]

I can't call you a liar,I saw some wipers that size or bigger swimming of a boil Thursday,it was almost scary
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[AFDan52]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][red][size 4] The Wipers are capable of getting up to 20lbs or so, but I don't think we will see that in Willard bay. I have to admit that it would be great to catch one the size of some of the Carp in there though.[/size][/red][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#ff0000][size 4][/size][/#ff0000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#ff0000][size 4]AFDan52[/size][/#ff0000][/font]
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[Flycasting]

Man would a 20lb wiper be fun... Better bring a 2X4 with some rope to try and land a fish like that. LOL.

I was talking to a F&G guy about the size they "predict" for the wipers at Willard. He told me maximum 8-9lbs, and that was because of the lack of any deep water there. He explained to me how the shallow water made them smaller, but I can't remember why. I guess I was thinking about catching a 9lb wiper.

Can anyone enlighten the board as to why they would not grow any bigger?
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[fsh4fun05]

Here's a pic of a 18# wiper from Indiana. No lie.[] I have caught some nice wipers out of Willard but none over 5 lbs. I couldn't imagine the fight from a 18 lb wiper.
[inline "Indiana 18# record.jpg"]
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[CROSSINEYES]

we could acheive that size a wiper but they would have to implamment a catch and release pollicy on them like bass here in ut. anything over 12 inches goes back. after about 8 or 9 yrs they would be bigguns.
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[cadresults]

Thanks for the responses. I definately want to hit it again.

LH2,

If you want to hit it on Wed or Thursday let me know.

I hope everyone has a great and safe holiday weekend!

Jason
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[wiperhunter2]

[size 1][/size]
To answer your question, "[size 1]Can anyone enlighten the board as to why they would not grow any bigger? ", [black][size 2]from the info I have read, wipers like stripers, need deep water to stay cool in the hot summer months[/size][/black]. [black][size 2]There is more oxy in deeper water, parts per billion or what ever the term is, have be high[/size][/black].[/size] The wipers will rest in the deep water and feed for short periods of time in the shallows, if they stay too long in the shallows they will die because of the lack of oxy rich water. Willard would need water around 10 feet deeper for the wipers to get much larger than they are today. With the higher water we have had in the last two years, I have high hopes that the current record will be broken, could be a pounds or so heavier but I doubt we will ever see a 10 lb wiper come out of Willard.[]

Here is an picture and article of the Colorado sate record wiper.
[size 1]From The Denver Post 3-24-04:

Pueblo Reservoir yields whopper record wiper

By Charlie Meyers
Denver Post Outdoor Editor

PUEBLO - Kevin Treanor wasn't content simply with smashing
the Colorado record for wiper.

The remarkable 26-pound, 15-ounce fish he caught Monday at
Pueblo Reservoir also is the second-largest taken anywhere
and the biggest on a fly.

The International Game Fish Association world record is 27
pounds, 5 ounces. Robin Knox, sport fish coordinator with the
Colorado Division of Wildlife, said Treanor's fish almost
certainly will rank as the fly rod world record.

The 37-inch fish with a 26-inch girth added 3 pounds to the
Colorado record, dwarfing a 23-pound, 15-ounce specimen taken
in 1996 at Nee Noshe Reservoir near Eads.

The wiper that Treanor, a resident of nearby Pueblo West and
a former fly-fishing guide, took on a streamer fly while
searching for fish on the surface might have fared even
better in the record department had he been more aware of its
potential.

"I wish I had gotten to the scale sooner," said Treanor, who
made it to a certified scale at a local grocery store on his
second attempt at weighing it. "Like a knucklehead, I drained
the live well. I believe this cost me at least 6 ounces in
weight."

Treanor spotted the fish rolling on the surface near the west
end of the reservoir.

"At first, I thought it was duck. Then when I got within 30
yards, I knew it was no duck."

He fought the fish for 15 minutes and then broke a net while
bringing it into the boat." [/size]
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[Flycasting]

Man what a fish, and on a fly rod. I pray to catch a fish like that someday! [angelic]
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