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[cool][#0000ff]Not a bad showing, for a weekday morning. TubeBabe, myself, Swedishfish, LloydE (& friend), Out4aFloat and tlspyder13. All those folks were in tubes. We were joined upon the water by Beggin4Bass and Fishhound, in their small boat. Hope I didn't leave anybody out. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]TubeBabe and I were first on the end of the dike this morning. We were almost aired up ready to launch when Lloyd and friend drove up. Next was Swedishfish. Spyderman slept in again this morinng so he and Out4aFloat were later getting launched.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There was a brisk east breeze before daybreak, and it looked like the wind had blown strongly the night before. The water was really "colored". Water temps were 74 at launch, and 78 at 1 PM.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The morning white bass bite was not much to get excited about They were really active on Saturday and TubeBabe was looking forward to getting to play with some of them. I hooked a couple of decent sized ones early on minnows, but they were just not whacking the fancy jigs and lures I was throwing.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]No walleyes today, for anybody. Most of us caught at least a few small white bass. Average were the 10 inchers, but there were a few 12 - 14 inchers brought to tube as well.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I caught the first channel cat a little after 7 AM. A nice 22 incher that weighed right about 4 pounds. After about an hour of nothing else, I scored a 19 incher and then my largest for the day...a 24 incher that weighed almost 6 pounds. After that I caught a solitary mudder and a couple of sub 12 inch channels. Cute little things.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]TubeBabe spotted me the first two cats and then she went to work. She announced over the walkie talkie that she had a big ol' daddy cat, about 7 pounds. Turned out that it went 27 inches and 8.4 pounds on the scales. Biggest kittie of the day. She also landed three more large cats...up to six pounds, and a couple of the bitty kitties like I caught.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Tlspyder13 caught a couple of nice kitties while we were there too. His largest was just under 27" and weighed in at 8.2#...just a teeny bit smaller than TubeBabe's biggun. He seemed to be having fun with those kitties and whities.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Poor Lloyd. I think he used up all his luck on the walleye he caught last Saturday. He was snake bit, but couldn't get kittie bit. I guess I need to hook up with him for some on the water CATFISH 101. But, he will probably just catch walleyes by accident. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Swedishfish stayed off in the distance and muttered something about a "few white bass" whe he cruised by within shouting distance one time.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I know the boys in the boat scored some fish. I will let them fill in the details.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I think we all had a good time. There was only the slightest little breeze a couple of times through the morning. Dead, flat calm slick otherwise. Tough duty. A light north wind came up just at noon. Game over.[/#0000ff]
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[angelic]I waited as long as I could to let TubeDude catch the first ones. But ... that only meant that I had to catch the biggest and the most (catfish). Sorry, guys, but I just can't let you out fish me when it comes to those kitties!
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[font "Tempus Sans ITC"][#005000][size 3] three words
wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
thank you.... [ ]
MacFly [cool]
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Killer report as usual Pat.
I bet that huge whitey towed you all over the lake, didn't it?
And isn't it weird how women simply have the most outrageous luck fishing, even though they aren't as fanatical as we are? [  ]
-ABT
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So the weatherman screwed me again. That's the last time I listen to Fox news at nine (it was the 1st time too).
Nice report TD glad to see the kitties came to play today. I was begining to think they all moved and left no forwarding address.
As far as wind blowing all night. It blew here off and on all night. I think it is time to trim the tree from the side of the house again.
So TubeBabe ya schooled the boys in Katttin did ya. Way to go kiddo.
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[cool][#0000ff]I will probably have my arm in a sling for days, after the epic battle with that widdle whitie. Tough little tyke.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Who says TubeBabe is not as fanatical about her kitties? You have not had the pleasure of being bowled over as she runs over you to get launched first. Oh yeah, she is every bit as "dedicted" to her fishing when it comes to the kitties.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]it's is really good that she is so "lucky". Helps keep her interested.[/#0000ff]
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[cool][#0000ff]The tree in my backyard was rockin' and rollin' when I got up to go fishing. I was cursing the "road influence" on fishing trips. Then, I read your "bail out" PM and began to have hope. Sure enough, the winds calmed and all the flags were hanging vertically on the way to the lake. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I watched in apprehension, lest I see your truck coming down the hill...for verily, it would unleash the fury of the W monster. But, as our good fortune would have it, you out "FOXED" the W monster. While it was watching for you, we had a nice day.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]By the way, TubeBabe scored her best fishies in the honey hole area off the end of the dikes...in 5-7 feet of water. Most of the bigger fish today were taken on carp meat.[/#0000ff]
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Wished i could have joined you guys on the lake, But someone had to keep the big trucks rollin...
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Seems like when the kitties are in the whites move on. As I recall from last year the white bass fishin was slow when the kitty fishin was good.
Who sez them fish are dumb? Them whities are pretty smart little buggers. They know when to leave town.
Glad to be on service and keep the wind with me. I spent part of the morning in SF checking out a new project. The W blew the whole time I was there. Right down out of Spanish Fork Canyon.
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Well it was a fun morning even if there weren't as much fish activity as I'd hoped. I only landed a few whities, first one reaching 13-14 inches. I picked him up within minutes of hitting the water on the north side of the dike.
I did get there late due to some untimely log sawing. But I showed up on my own and was on the water at 6:00am. I went to the north because everybody else went south. I also fished that water for the first time yesterday morning. And thought that I may have better luck now knowing what was over there. Didn't help much today. I would still like to head completely around the corner and see what is there. Does anybody have any advice for me over there?
Nice meeting you LoydE, always good to put a face to a name.
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[cool][#0000ff]Actually, the area around the point (first spring) and to the west is some of the best fishing on Utah Lake. There are several warm water springs that come in along that stretch and historically it has produced some of the best white bass and walleye fishing anywhere on the lake.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]You can kick around to the first spring fairly easily in a float tube. And, on a wind free day you can also kick a good distance down to fish along the rocky shelves that come out all along that point. But, unless you know the area...from lots of experience...you can invest a lot of time in R & D without much to show for it.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]In past years, we could go through the openings in the wire fence around all that area and drive along the rutted dirt roads for fishing and launching access at several points. Last year they closed the fences and posted the whole area...no entry, no fishing. Bummer. It is all privately owned, so they can do that...right down to the high water mark. And, tha last two years the lake has been up to that mark.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There is one spot that they leave open to shore access. It is at a turnout spot a mile or so around from the ramp. It is a popular spot for wading wallie whackers to enter the water and to wade out to the ledges. You can also take a float tube down and launch from the old ramp at the "L". Maybe we can have a mini floatilla down there sometime and I can take you guys out and introduce you to some of the better spots. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I have tubed around Lincoln Beach since the late 70's. I have fished it in high water and LOW water. I have a pretty good knowledge of the underwater terrain, and how that affects movements and holding power of some of the structure.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I fish the "flats" a lot these days for a couple of reasons. First, with the high water of the past two years, "normal" fish patterns around the rocky shelves changed...and I have been unable to really dial them in. Second, it is a long kick over there, when I can still catch plenty of fish closer in. But, the past couple of years we have been fishing over flats that were high and dry before the high water returned. If we get a poor water year, and Utah Lake drops much, most of the fishing will be NORTH of the dikes again.[/#0000ff]
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I have really wanted to try North of the dike since we saw about 15 people camped over one spot trying to jig up a walleye. Is that a good area when the water cools down? Or can you get into the eyes jusrt as well on the flats?
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[cool][#0000ff]It CAN be very good. Or, it can also be neutral. Much depends upon water depth, ambient lake water temperatures and whatever the current outflow might be from the spring. See the attached pics for an example of what the spring looks like in low water and high water.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]In previous low water years, the water inside the enclosed spring basin would be warmed by the warmer spring outflow. That would attract all species in the lake, to the water that was several degrees warmer than the chilled lake waters. The deep hole around the spring would often be filled with white bass, walleyes, catfish and largemouths. And, it would usually be ringed with happy harvesters...filling the beds of pickup trucks with white bass...and dragging off over limits of oversize (slot) walleyes...several times each day.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]When the water level came back up, when the drought ended at the end of 2004, the rocks at the end of that arm in the first picture were covered by several feet of water. And, the water over the spring was also several feet deeper. The small amount of slightly warmer water coming out of the springs now does not have much of an affect on water temps in the immediate area. I have tubed right over the spring, in the winter, and sent down a thermometer for readings. There is no noticeable difference, even in the coldest weather. So, the spring does not have the fish magnetism it has in lower water conditions.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]However...that whole point at the north end of Lincoln Beach is one of the few spots on the lake that has rocky structure. That provides a lot of attraction for multiple species year round. These days there are "hot spots" during prime periods of spring and summer where walleyes seem to congregate, and are more easily found and caught. Those are the places you will see large groups of wading anglers and small boaters anchored up, casting into the same places all day long. And, when the fish are in, most folks catch a few. I prefer to search out my own little spots and enjoy catching fish in more solitude. Call me antisocial.[/#0000ff]
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What a day to oversleep on. Sorry about that again Out4aFloat. Still made it in time to have some fun with the late sleeping kitties of the day. Should have known that TubeBabe would let me get close to biggest fish of the day but not quite there although I'll bet the 1.5" one I found after you left was defintely the smallest.
Road thanks for keeping the heavy winds up there with you.
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It was good to meet you Matt, and thanks for the tip about the white bass. I took your advice and picked up several more before we went home. I had a great time on the water with new, and not-so-new friends. It was good to meet tlspyder13--by the way, great catch! It was good to fish with Brian again. I also had the opportunity to meet TubeBabe. I enjoyed fishing with her and TubeDude. They are both great people--gracious,friendly, and enjoyable to be around. By the way I knew TubeBabe could fish because of the posts I have read, but she is much more capable than I ever imagined. Thanks everyone for a great morning on the water. Everything was wonderful! (Well, I might have caught a kittie or walleye and it would have been much greater!)
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I would say that is quiet a difference. It looks like ya all had a good time and will have a few tasty Krispers as well.
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[cool][#0000ff]There are little wisps of hickory smoke curling up from the smoker in my backyard. By sometime this evening, I will once again be enjoying some smoky/spicy kitty jerky. Add some cheeses, crackers or bread and the appropriate beverage and life don't get no gooder. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We usually release most of the larger cats...especially the big Daddy cats. They have a lower flesh to total weight ration (big heads...skinny bodies) and they are not as numerous as the chunkier and better eating mamas. The smaller cats are better for the deep fryer. The bigger ones are best for smoking. By the time I get through brining and dry-smoking even a large fillet, it is kinda shrunk up. Little cats turn into smoky paper.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]My favorite kitties for the fryer are those small ones from Willard. We got several under 20 inches at Utah Lake yesterday and YES...we will be transforming them into Kitty Krispies tonight. Bring on the chili cornbread.[/#0000ff]
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That is some great information Tube Dude. I would like to try it out some time. I fish alone a lot just to get familiar with a body of water. But a little background knowledge NEVER hurts.
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Mmm TD you are killing me. I have not fished for a couple of weeks and got laid up by this nasty stomach flu bug going around. I am starting to get my appitite back and smoked Catfish, cheese and for me I would have to chase itwith a nice glass of sour grapes or a tall cold barley pop and Mmmmm.
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