Weekend at the Gorge

Fishing Time:  June 25 and 26, 2016

Weather: Slight breeze, Sunny, T-80s

Moon Phase: 73% Moon

Water Temp: 60 degrees

Location: Flaming Gorge

Best Bait: 7-inch Tube Jig (Rainbow colored)

Who Went: Bobber John, Dunc

Made a quick weekend trip with Bobber John to Flaming Gorge to chase the elusive lake trout.  We were also hoping to find some spawning smallmouth bass, but the weather had pushed them a bit too deep for sight fishing.

Saturday we fished hard and spent a lot of the morning looking for active fish.  Antelope Flats seemed to have humps full of active fish, but as usual it was tough to get any bites.  We got a couple, but unfortunately no hook ups.

In the afternoon we went to look for smallmouth along the shoreline in Sheep Creek, but the cold start to the morning and big wind storm the night before had them heading for deeper water.  We did manage to catch a few including this nice 2 pounder.

On the way back from Sheep Creek we detoured into Horseshoe Canyon to admire the steep rock walls.  What a gorgeous lake.  Saw a few sheep as well...

That evening we set up the downriggers and tried our luck trolling for kokanee near the pipeline area.  We saw a lot of fish on the finder, but for whatever reason couldn’t put any in the boat.  Usually if I can find them I can hook a few, but it wasn’t to be on this trip.

Sunday morning John wasn’t feeling well so I launched the boat myself.  It wasn’t a problem early in the morning, but loading it later that day when the recreation boaters were out made for a fun experience.  People yelling at me for taking so long, I guess it’s just normal boat ramp talk, but what’s up with that.  We are all there on vacation.  Relax!

I fished at Swim Beach first thing in the morning, but soon realized I needed to move.  Not many fish were showing up.  I headed back to Antelope Flats and tried my luck there again, and after some effort I was finally able to land one.  It wasn’t a monster at maybe 8-10 pounds, but after two mornings with no hook ups I wasn’t complaining.  At least one lake trout went into the net on this trip.  

Mud Cat Bonanza

Fishing Time:  1200 PM to 3:00 PM

Weather:  Hot, sunny, T-90s

Moon Phase:  50% Moon

Location:  Utah Lake (Provo Boat Harbor)

Best Bait: Worm underneath a slip bobber

Who Went:  Dad, Devin, Addison, Dayton, Dunc

Cari was busy and I had a day alone with the kids, so I called up my dad and took him and the little ones down to the Provo Boat Harbor at Utah Lake to waste a few hours doing what I love.

We were hoping to find some big channel catfish, but only the bullhead catfish wanted to play.  No worries.  The kids just wanted to catch a fish, and they caught plenty.  The bite was hot and the kids were catching them all by themselves.  They would watch that bobber like a hawk and once they saw it go down it was fish on.  We had a bucket full of catfish in no time.  I laughed as the kids would brag to everyone who docked their boats, of how good of fishermen they are.  They were kings of the fishing world for a few hours. 

It was great to have my dad out there with us as well.  He struggled a bit in the hot sun, but I think he enjoyed seeing the kids have so much fun catching fish.  Even if they were just little mud cats.  I remember the days when my dad would take me to do the same thing.  He taught me my love for fishing and I hope I can pay it forward with my kids!  What a fun day.