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[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]Tube Dude, I went to Willard for the first time yesterday, I fished off the shore for about three hours with no luck. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]I tried slow bouncing a 1/8 oz. chartreuse jig head with a 1.5" chartreuse tube sweetened with worm painfully slow along the bottom. I also tried a blue prism shad rap for a while and finally tried for some of those little kitties with a worm on the bottom. I think the water is still a bit cold for fast action I would imagine. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]I am going back tomorrow with my tube to get serious about it. The weather has been warm so I hope this puts the fish on a little more. Since I am on a college budget I found an access west of the south marina so I could park without a parking pass (I know I am a tightwad). Are there any other free access areas? [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]Are there any areas of the lake that produce better than others when the temps haven't quite hit optimum levels? I do have a fishfinder rigged on my tube so that will help. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]I have never caught walleye or wipers yet, so I would love to hook into one of them. Any other tips that would steer a newbie in the right direction? [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
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[cool]When you say west of the South Marina, are you referring one of those access spots around the south levee? As I recall, there is a dirt road that runs around the south levee and around to the west side. I have launched and fished all around the perimeter, but launching off the rocks can be tricky. Be sure you have a good flat area to stage and launch, and take it slow and easy.
My best early season tubing was usually right around the mouth of the channel, both north and south of the opening. Even though the current coming in from the Weber is cooler than the main lake, it attracts fish for the potential food it washes in. Catfish especially respond to the murky runoff. I used to get some of my biggest cats of the year from the end of February to about the end of May...in the channel between the marina "L" and the mouth of the channel. I would work outside the mouth, and then kick back up against the current, with a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jig, tipped with a half nightcrawler. Add some crawdad scent for added attraction. Raise and lower your rod a foot or so, to bounce the bottom and attract fish. Some hits will be cats. Others will be walleyes.
This same technique works in the open, along the dikes too. Using your sonar, work in and out of different depths, looking for fish near the bottom. These will usually be walleye, but can be wipers or carp too. Larger fish cruising above the bottom...or from the top to middepth...will usually be wipers. They are still kinda inactive, but if you find a few in an area, try casting a white 3" twister out beyond them...let it settle to the bottom and then reel fairly quickly back up through them. If you feel an occasional bump, keep reeling until they grab it and hang on. Then set the hook and grin.
If the fish are really touchy, rig a whole crawler on a double hook harness and drag it slowly along the bottom, with no weight. Stop periodically, and do a "shivver lift" a couple of feet up off the bottom and then let it settle again.
This is a transitional stage. The weather forecast is for rapid warming. That's good. A couple of degrees raise in temperature gets the fish moving. But, until it reaches about sixty degrees, the wipers and even the walleyes will be sluggish. The catfish do not hit their prime until after 65 or 70. But, they can all be caught, all year. You just have to vary the bait, the depth and the speed to suit their requirements.
Chartreuse should be a good color now...with a hot red head if you can get them. For year 'round effectiveness, however, I have always preferred white with a hot red eye. Mike Barker, from Ogden, was down here for a week or so and I gave him some on-the-water guidance. He went back up and dropped his Caddis in Willard the first day he was back...and caught one cat and two walleyes over the 20" mark...before he froze out. He was using the little white "bait bugs" I introduced him to down here, and is trying to get me to accept his firstborn as a down payment on a lifetime supply. No dice. I still haven't been able to get rid of my own.
Email me your mailing address and I'll send you up a "sampler kit". If you tie your own flies, I can have you whipping out some dynamite jigs in no time. Let me know if I need to fill in around the edges.
Oh yeah, one last thing. The area along the west dike, over in the area they call the light pole, is probably the most productive year round, for all species. As long as you can keep out of the line of fire of the power squadron, you can get some great action casting back into the rocks or bottom bouncing baited jigs during the slow times. Then, when a school of hot wipers boils up around you...and you are the only guy there...that's when you are "living large".
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Hey,plecopterahopper.<<<< Could ya add just a couple a more letters to your user name for me!!!!!!!! I went out to willard as well today,tuff day ay!!!!!!!! I know alot of places and different ways to fish willard.I'm realy 139 yrs old but the time spent at willard can't be taken off your life[  ]!!!!!!!! Hey Tube Dude hooked me up for willard and tought me things I didn't know as well.I had my first exsperiance in the donut while in Arizona fishing with Duder and now am a addict (LIFER!!) I may be going back out to willard tomarrow as well,can't be sure cause if my Dad is feeling better I'm going to take him to hyrum or the weber river.Anyway T.D. tought me some knew trixs and I'd be glad to share them with you!!!!!!! Mike
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Hey T.D.Looks as though I'm going to make a bunch a new freinds up here if I can catch up to them.Tonight I'm going to send Xman an email and see if I can catch up to him,like you were telling me,there are somethings I'd realy like to learn from him.Today was a little ruff on willard only bite all day was a small wiper about the size of a large yellow on stairroids,dang there fun!Do you know they have raised the price to park at the bay to 9.00 a day (GET THE HELL OUT A HERE!!!!)Now I know why your freind was trying to find a place to launch off the rocks!Tell him to get ahold of me,I'll help him outas well as enjoy fishing with him.Gotta go Mike
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[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]I know it, what was I thinking with such a long name. Keeps people wondering anyway. Hey I would love to hit Willard with you, I need all the help I can get. Let me know if it will work out for you, I won't be able to leave Logan until 8:30, I need to put the boys on the bus before I can go. Thanks for the invite, it is always nice to fish with someone who knows what they are doing. I hope it works out, but don't leave your dad high and dry on my account. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
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Hi there plecopterahopper,
Whoa...! You got me all shook up. I thought I was gonna see Willard, the evil mastermind behind the rat invasion, that was the subject of an old movie, recently remade. I could just the rat sittin' in a donut doing who knows what!
JapanRon
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[cool]Looks like you got your name back. Glad you are blending in and taking advantage of all the fine folks on the BFT site. Caring and sharing.
I promised PH (my friend with the long name) that I would get him a few jigs to try. He is a skilled tie flyer...or however that goes. If you guys can get set up with a couple of molds and a melting pot, you can tag team those poor fishies on Willard somethin' fierce.
I'm sneaking off to play fish hooky with Tube Babe tomorrow morning. She doesn't have anything to do at her job, and I convinced them they could get along without me at mine, so it's hi ho, hi ho, a jiggin' we will go. The dang weather is acting up though. Supposed to be 90. Won't be long 'til I'll be floatin' "wet"...with just a pair of cutoffs and some tennies...in 80 degree water. Only problem is that the air temp will be over a hundred....in the shade...and there ain't no shade.
let me know what you want for a fill in on the "supplies". I will be putting together an "upgrade kit" for Willard for you this weekend, and I'll also send a floppy disc with some of the pics from my digital.
Oh yeah, have you booked your next flight down yet?
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[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]Hey Tube Dude, good luck fishing tomorrow. 90 degrees? Must be rough[cool]. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]JapanRon, I hope I didn't cause any nightmares, I will have to watch that movie now. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
[font "Technical"][#0000a0][size 3]Mike, I sent you an e-mail, I will check messages before I go, if you don't make it that is fine. I will try to hit the inlet if I can find it. Thanks for all of your help guys. [/size][/#0000a0][/font]
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Hey!!Meet me at smith&edwards parking lot (N. end) i'll be in a blue ford 77 9:30 / 9:45 and we'll go from there. Mike
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I figured it out,YA!!!!! The water is a little cold yet for willard but I thought I'd go again for a couple hrs anyway with hopper/chopper ( thats easyer to remember )than the mixed up order he has the entire alfebet mixed up in.Hope you and tuber babe have a good time///Keilene is driving me nuts and i've lost my train of thought so I'll get back to you tomarrow let ya know how the fishing was. Mike
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[#008080][size 2]First, we sometimes call him P-Hopper[].[/size][/#008080]
[#008080][size 2]Hey Pat, next weekend the 19th. I'm heading down to Mesquite to sell my brother's kids(returning them). On the way back I'm going to hit Quail, do you having any tubing advice on there largies there? I'll probably only use 2 spinning rods(6,6'6, or 7footer). I'll take jerks, plastics, cranks, and spinnerbaits. I've only caught a few largies in my life. I prefer the bronzebacks. What do you think?[/size][/#008080]
[#008080][size 2]thanks, tommy[/size][/#008080]
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[cool]I think current water level and conditions are going to be the main issues. If you can launch, and if the boating traffic ain't too heavy yet, you have a shot at some big boys (and girls). They really get porky in Quail Creek. But, because they can be touchy, the tackle you are taking should get the job done.
Sturgeon Kid hit it about this time last year and found some fish in stickups and trees. There were also fish staging for the spawn, close to shore. The weather has been warmer lately, so the water temps should at least be in the prespawn range. Maybe they are even on the beds.
Jig and pig and plastics are usually a good bet for the biggies at Quail Creek. If there hasn't been a lot of runoff, the water will be clear, and it will take a slow fall on light line to get bit. You might even have to use smallie sized baits in clear water. Wouldn't it break your heart to hang an 8# LMB on light gear?
If the water is colored, then the old reliable black, black and chartreuse and purple are the way to go. If the water is both cold and colored, then all chartreuse with a red head will wake them up.
Spinnerbaits are often a good way to bring em in in stained water, but are not as effective if the water is real clear in QC. The cranks can work well when the fish are holding in shallower water. The crawdad colors you toss for smallies should appeal to QC's largies too. In low light or stained water, the fire tiger color is always a good reaction bite stimulator.
In bright mid-day conditions, try using Senkos and white plastic swim or jerk baits. When the fish are using structure for midday shade, you have to sneak up and make quiet pitches into small spots. If they retreat to the depths...which they do with a lot of boat traffic, you have to dredge them up with dropshots or Carolina rigs. Kinda like smallies, huh.
I don't know if you have posted on the Utah board, but there are some new members from Southern Utah that keep tabs on what's going on down there. I would also sent Private Messages to a couple of them, for some "inside info" that they may not want to post.
Hope the weather gives you a break, and that you find some fishies that want to play. Take your camera and shoot a pic or two of any fat hawgs you stick. Those fish down there are "footballs". Hope you get into them.
By the way, did you ever get your new craft? And how is the leg doing?
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hey hopper get ahold of me i know almost every area from shore that has produced wipers. and i have fished it quite a bit in a tube as well. though tube is the expert fisherman for willard from a tube i can help for the shore fishing issues.
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hey jigme
im not sure if i received your email but send me a line and we will hook up. look forward to chatting with you.
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Sounds like Wilard is a fun lake.
How big is it??
Big and small kill em all
Aaron
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[ ][size 4]ya is there some good fishing?[/size]
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[size 4]-chris[/size]
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willard is a warm water fishery. its moe of a water inpoundment than a lake. deepest level of lake at full depth is 30 feet or so. it borders the great salt lake but is fresh water. its 10,000 sum odd acres. it can be great fishing or the slowest place you have ever been. it has walleye bluegill crappie wipers (striper x white bass) channel cat and smallmouth and largemouth bass. the wipers are by far the attraction of the lake. i dont know if other people call them wipers or not but thats the name we use around here. its a nice place to float tube though. oh i cant forget probably some of the largest carp around and by the millions. during the summer it appears you could walk half way across the lake from the heads and mouths surfacing on top. so thats our famous warm watery fishery in Utah.
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Xman,I've been wanting to hook up with you ever since I went down to Arizona to do a little fishing with T.D. I am of the understanding there is a lot I may learn from you,after talking to T.D. I'm excited to get to know you and do some fishing.I've been on Arizona and Wyoming B.F.T a bit and done some fishing with some of the guys. T.D. said I should post on Utahs and introduce myself,I guess I should.My sons wedding is coming up fast and I've just been pulling what little hair out I'vr got left.Although today is the first day I've missed fishing in over a month.I'll send ya a private message in the next couple of days.By the way we have had a great time on the Weber this last week!!!!! Mike
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i wish i could fish that much haha. well looks like TD mentioned one of my favorite haunts since you mentioned the place. well ill just look forward to hearing from you. until then take care.
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Hey,Xman.I'll get ahold of you some time next week and we'll put some thing together.By the way your haunt is HOT!!!!!!! right now. Mike
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