Sunday, January 29, 2017

First Ice at Flaming Gorge

Fishing Time:  January 28-29 (Saturday to Sunday).
Weather:  Gorgeous, no wind, clear, T-30s
Moon Phase: New Moon
Location:  Flaming Gorge (Swim Beach)
Best Bait: 7-inch Tora tube jig (rainbow pattern)
Who Went:  Bobber John, Rick Everson, Jess Everson, Josh Newton, Dunc

After enjoying some good success up at Flaming Gorge a couple weeks ago fishing from the boat, we were itching to try it through the ice.  It has been frigid cold the last couple weeks and the rumor was that Swim Beach was capped with ice.  Invites were thrown out and soon we had a crew of fisherman headed to Manila, Utah. 

We arrived to a balmy temperature of -3 degrees in Manila on Friday night.  The first night it was just myself and Bobber John.  We drove down to Swim Beach for an ice check and sure enough it was frozen with a skiff of snow on top.  Perfect walking conditions for the mile journey we faced to get to our favorite hump the next day.

We woke up early and were the first ones on the ice.  However, it didn’t take long for the parking lot to fill with trucks and the 4-wheelers started flying by us as we made the journey to our spot.  A couple 4-wheelers made their way to our hump.  Lame.  Price you pay for walking I suppose.  We nestled in with the groups and set up our tent. 
We started seeing fish beneath us immediately and while they weren’t super aggressive they did show a little interest in our techniques.  We fished for about an hour before Bobber missed the first bite of the day.  Shortly after he redeemed himself by hooking up with the longest 20 pounder I’ve seen yet.  It didn’t have much of a belly, but if it ever grows one it will be a 40 pounder in no time.
The fish were active for another hour or so, but soon became grumpy and showed no interest in our offerings.  At around noon we gave up and made the long walk back.  

Bobber John and I drove up lake and found a burbot spot that has treated us very well in the past.  We set up our tent and gear and prepared for our return at dusk to hunt for some slimy eels.  Meanwhile, Rick Everson, Jess Everson, and Josh Newton were on their way towards the Gorge from SLC. 
Bobber and I returned to the burbot spot just before dark and started our meat hunt.  Bobber had big plans of filling the freezer with eel meat.  Unfortunately, the spot we picked was not as plentiful as past trips.  Rick, Jess, and Josh arrived around 8 PM and joined the effort, but only a dozen or so burbot were landed between all of us.  Filling the freezer will have to wait.

The next morning the whole group made the journey to the same spot that Bobber and I fished the day before.  Within the first half hour Rick was hooked up.  It was no monster, but a good fish in the 8-10-pound range.
The fish were a bit grumpy right from the start today, and made for some tough fishing.  Late in the day Bobber John hooked up only to lose it right at the ice hole.  We never did see it, but it came up quick, so no need to lose sleep.  Again shortly after, Bobber redeemed himself and hooked up again.  This time he was able to pull the small lake trout up through the ice hole.  
He decided to keep it, and we all started to immediately give him grief.  You see, Bobber has a track record of being gung ho to keep fish, but when we ask him later how the fish tasted, he usually responds with “uh yeah I didn’t quite get around to cleaning it”. 

When I dropped Bobber off at his house we decided to make a quick “how to” video for cleaning lake trout, Bobber John style.  After filming we quickly sent it off to Rick, Jess, and Josh for their viewing pleasure.  You can find the video on my YouTube channel here: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd1yldwK1EI

Another good trip to the Gorge with the same theme… me getting skunked!  It’s been a rough run for me.  I didn’t even get a bite this trip after spending two days on the ice.  Tough to swallow, but I guess you have to work through the slumps!  Maybe it’s because there's a 40 pounder in my future, and I gotta pay my dues.  A man can dream!

Monday, January 2, 2017

Good Things Happen When a Storm Rolls In

Fishing Time:  7:00 to 2:00 PM
Weather:  Cloudy, snow, T-30s
Moon Phase: 19% Moon
Location:  Flaming Gorge (Anvil Draw)
Best Bait:  6-7-inch Tora tube jig (rainbow color)
Water Temp:  38 degrees
Who Went:  Rick Everson, Josh Newton, Dunc
It’s my favorite time of year to go chase the big boys at Flaming Gorge, and it’s always difficult to know whether there will be ice or open water.  This year I prepared for both and tucked all my ice fishing gear inside the boat. 

Josh Newton and I left Salt Lake City late afternoon and Rick Everson met us up there later that night.  After arriving to Manila, Utah, Josh and I drove down to the Anvil Draw boat ramp to have a look.  We found open water as far north as the eye could see.  Boat trip it is.  We grabbed a bite to eat and headed to the Flaming Gorge Inn where Eves met us a couple hours later. 
We heard wind all night while we slept and woke up to 2-inches of snow in the boat.  I didn't have the boat cover with me because the snow was not predicted and that later proved to be a mistake on my part.
We shoveled out the snow and launched the boat just after sun up.
After a very short boat ride we immediately started to graph some fish.
And on the first drop of the day Rick was hooked up with a nice lake trout.  Little did he know this was only the start of the clinic he was about to put on the rest of the day.
Every time we moved it seemed we found more active fish and Eves would end up putting one in the boat.  They all ranged between 15 to 20 pounds with one small 5 pounder to break up the monotony.  Josh and I missed a couple hits, but it was Eve’s bait they seemed to want every time we dropped down.
The fish stayed active even up through early afternoon, which is not the norm, and just before we were about to wrap it up, Josh hooked up with the biggest fish of the day.  Woohoo! This was his first time on the other end of the line with a big lake trout, and he was in awe of how hard they pull.  He fought the fish well for a first timer and ended up putting a 22 pound lake trout on the deck. 
We continued fishing for about another hour until the white squall set in.  Interesting enough, when the snow came in around 1 PM the fish suddenly got very active and that’s when Josh hooked up with the big boy of the day.
I have encountered this many times while fishing and would say that many of my big fish have come right before a big storm moves in.  Definitely something to this theory.

It ended up being a 6-hour drive home on snow packed roads and white out conditions.  Coming down parleys canyon pulling a boat in a blizzard was an experience I never need to go through again.  After getting home safe I can say it was worth it, but man was it scary.  We ended up landing 5 lake trout, Oh wait, Rick and Josh landed 5 lake trout.  I only had one bite and missed it, but, I don’t care who lands em, I just love when they come aboard my boat.  Okay, okay, one fish would have been nice to feel on the end of my line, but still one of the best lake trout trips I’ve ever had! 

I woke up the next day to the boat looking like this...
Spent the rest of the day turning it back into this...
The crazy things we do for big lake trout...