Quick Trip!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 7:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

Weather: sunny, clear, 100's

It was the day before our big trip to Alaska and I had the day off to prepare so I decided to make a quick trip to none other than the I-80 Pond. I didn't stay long but it was a good trip none the less. I caught a ton of small bass with only this one coming in at around 15 inches.
I have never in my life fished at one location with as much consistency through out one summer than I have at the I-80 ponds, but it has been so much fun with the catch rate and the size of the bass that I have been catching that it has been well worth it. Not to mention the location is much closer than anywhere else!

Back to the Pond!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 6:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Weather: sunny, 90's

Another good trip to the I-80 ponds with many more bass caught. I actually caught more nice bass today than any previous trip to the pond, but didn't land any monsters. Bass in the 15-16 inch class seemed to be everywhere! I was using my I-80 pond set up with a drop shot rigged with a power minnow in white and green sparkle. I probably caught anywhere from 15-20 bass with 10 being over 12 inches. I also had another weed diver! I was fighting a bass when it decided to do the dive straight to the pond floor and under about 3 feet of thick weeds. I had been down this road before so I knew exactly what to do. I held tight tension on my pole, waiting and wondering if this one would wiggle out like the last one caught like this. I was lucky enough that I had time to snap this photo of my rod tip and the tension kept on this fish before I landed him. You can see that I have some serious bend in my pole.Then just like my last similar predicament like this, the bass wiggled its way free and I lipped him just in time. Yet another good trip to the I-80 Pond with more to come I'm sure!

Lesson Learned!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 6:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Weather: sunny, clear, 90's

With most of June being spent at the I-80 Pond I figured it was time to try somewhere new! Although I was tempted to go back for another round! Instead I hit Utah Lake in search of some hungry kitty cats! I thought I better take two poles so I could fish one for kitties and throw something else in case some of the bass were active. The problem is that two poles is kind of a lot to handle on the tube so I had a brilliant idea to take my normal pole along with an ice fishing pole to save room. My thought was that I could cast for bass with my long pole and drag a minnow for cats with my short pole. This ended up being a huge mistake and a good lesson learned! I set them both up and everything looked good. I started dragging a minnow and then casting. Within one minute a had a huge hit on my short pole so I grabbed it and tried to set the hook. Try setting a hook with a 3 foot ice pole! Ha! It doesn't work! I had the fish half way to me and he got off. I thought oh well I will re bait and try again. as soon as the little pole was in the water and I could start casting with my other pole again I got another good hit with the small pole. I grabbed it and yanked! Lost him! This was tough! I re baited and within another couple minutes another good hit only this time the kitty cat took it and hooked it himself so I thought I was good to go. Then I realized the other reason a 3 foot pole doesn't work, you can't play the fish! This was a good fish and it started fighting hard and taking line! I tried my best but after a couple minutes I lost him in the reeds. I finally wised up and rigged my long pole the same way and put the 3 footer on the shelf. Wouldn't you know it I couldn't get a hit after that! After an hour of no more hits I finally got one and pulled in a small Channel Cat! Soon after I pulled in another. Then I got another hit and this one took me for a ride. I thought I had a good Channel Cat on only to find a 4 pound carp! I snapped a photo just as my line broke! A fun day of fishing and a good lesson learned for the future! Leave the ice poles in the closet til there is a hard deck to fish from!

First Largemouth!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Weather: sunny, clear, 90's

I got a phone call from JJ and he told me he wanted to go fishin. We tried to decide where to go and with many of the lakes fishing well right now it made the decision tough. should we hit Strawberry and go after the big trout, or Jordanelle where they are reporting some monster Smallies. Then you have Pineview where the Muskies are on fire! Not forgetting that with the temperature in the mid 90's that the Catfish at Utah Lake are probably going nuts! Its mid June which is when the fishing peaks for the year and most places are hot spots! With all these in mind we took a different approach and decided to find JJ his first Largemouth Bass! What better place to go with gas prices topping $3.20 a gallon then back to the I-80 ponds. When we got there it was approaching 95 degrees so we ditched the waders and floated our tubes in swimsuits. The fishing started off well with me landing a few small bass, but we were in search of one that would take a liking to what JJ was throwing. I have a small spot on the pond where I have caught at least a couple bass from every time I go to the I-80 ponds. So we headed there and this is where JJ landed his first ever Largemouth Bass. It wasn't a monster but he was on the board! Shortly after he landed another small bass and was now a part of the bass fishing world. I caught quite a few but never landed any big ones. JJ only caught a few but got some good practice on some of the best techniques to land bass. It was a good time on the water and we even got a bonus when on the way home we ran into a den full of baby fox's. What more can you ask for from a day on the water.

I Guess It Can Get Better!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 6:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Weather: sunny, clear, 90's

The I-80 Pond was calling my name again with the beauty I pulled out last round so I headed back for some more action! The story was almost the same except a little bit better! I got there early and immediately started catching bass. They were all in the small to medium range but the white fluke minnow was still on fire! Some guys showed up throwing weightless senkos and began to tell me that its the only thing to throw around here to catch bass. I laughed all the way down the shoreline as I was catching 5 to 1 the bass that they were. They noticed but I think their pride got in the way of them switching up! I was catching a bunch of bass in this size range when the unexpected happened! I caught a bass that felt like every other bass I had caught. I got it right up to my float tube and it surfaced! This was no small bass and once he saw me he started acting like the size he was. He took off and started peeling off line. He went left then right and I fought him all the way back to my tube and he took off again, only this time he went straight down beneath me into the thickest weeds you could ever imagine! Once he went under my rod lost all action and I was stuck right to the floor straight beneath me. My pole was doubled over to where it felt like my pole might snap! I have read about big bass diving into the weeds to get away and that they are usually successful. I sat there for what seemed like hours but was probably a couple minutes. The only thing going through my mind was how the story of losing this monster bass was going to go! I kept tight pressure on my pole knowing in my mind that the fish was probably long gone and I was left stuck with a snag that wouldn't come lose when all of the sudden I felt a wiggle! I pulled as hard as I could and Suddenly the bass came lose and I got him to my tube as fast as I could! I was able to lip him and now the story sounds a lot better, with pictures to add to it! He was a monster coming in at 19 inches and 3 pounds! He was a football! I am now completely addicted to the I-80 Pond!

I-80 Pond

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 6:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Weather: sunny, clear, 80's

With another Friday off I figured I would make a trip back to the I-80 pond. The fishing started off hot with a bunch of small bass wanting to play! I had a blast with these guys

and must of caught fifteen of them. As much fun as it was I wanted to catch something bigger, and I knew they were in there cause I have seen them swimming around the shoreline and have caught a few of them in the past. I was fishing with a earth worm when catching these dinky bass and the Bluegill were bugging me to death because they wouldn't leave it alone. I decided to go to something different in order to keep the Bluegill away and possibly the smaller bass too. I tried throwing a weightless senko but to no avail, then the magic bait was found! I threw on a fluke minnow and rigged it drop shot and instantly started catching bass again. Then it happened! I landed an 18 inch 2.5 pound largemouth. It was a brute and it is the biggest bass I have ever caught out of the I-80 pond. I left after catching this guy and figured it can't get any better than that! Here is a few pics of the big guy and also a pic of Lone Rock on the Great Salt Lake in which the I-80 Pond sits right next to.

Pathetic!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Weather: sunny, clear, 80's

Another Friday off and decisions on where to fish! I wasn't in the mood to travel to far so I decided to hit an urban pond that has created quite a buzz this year! Salem Pond! They planted largemouth in their a couple years back and they have gotten to be pretty good size from the stories and pictures I've heard and seen. I got there around 8:00 a.m. to find this Grass Carp dead on the shoreline. I walked to another edge of the pond and instantly saw Bluegill lining the shoreline under any structure they could find. I also saw a few Largemouth swimming around the same structure and they were just like the stories I had heard. some of them had to push 18 inches. Only problem was I couldn't get them to hit for nothin. I threw an assortment of drop shot rigs from plastic worms to minnows and I also tried many different colors of curly tailed grubs. Not even a bite! I did find a new bait that is killer for channel cats. Last weekend on my Powell trip I started throwing a Gulp Minnow in black shad color and instantly caught Catfish after Catfish. Well now I did the same thing at Salem pond. I only caught one cause I only fished with it for a minute, but the Cats obviously love this new rig. Unfortunately this Channel Cat was the only thing I pulled out of Salem Pond all morning! On my way home I got an itchin to stop at Utah Lake where Spring Creek enters the lake. I dropped a float tube in and started fishing a dark green sparkled plastic worm rigged drop shot. On my first cast I had a hit of a lifetime and got the fish all the way to my tube when the fish dove strait down into some brush and got me tangled up. I ended up losing the fish! 3rd cast I had another one on and the same thing happened. I was getting very frustrated cause I was obviously sitting right on top of some nasty brush. It only got worse from there! On my 5th cast I caught another one that only stayed on for about 3 seconds before spitting my hook. Being more frustrated than I think I have ever been while fishing I didn't get another bite all day. Ouch that one hurt. So to wrap up my day in one word the only thing I could think of was PATHETIC!

Another Year At Powell!

Moon Phase:

Fishing Time: All Day

Weather: mostly clear, sunny, 90's

Water Level: 3,605 ft amsl

Who Went: Phil Bringhurst, Mike Duncan, Mike Zenger, Dunc

It was time for another yearly trip to fish Lake Powell. None of my friends could go this year so I went with my cousins Phil, Mike and there friend Mike Zenger. Turns out that Zenger was a good one to invite considering he had a nice 17 foot Bass Boat, a nice truck to pull it and a Houseboat for us to stay on while we were there. We tried this trip two weeks ago only to make it to Lake Powell in the snow, stay in a hotel one night and go home the next morning due to more snow in the forecast. So now for round two. We got to Bullfrog on Friday night and finally found the houseboat in the dark. Saturday was an early wake up call at 5:30 a.m., and it was an absolutely gorgeous morning with a beautiful sunrise to start the day!

When we first started fishing it seemed as if it was going to be one of those normal days of fishing at Lake Powell. Fish were jumping everywhere and Zenger had a Smallmouth to the boat right off the rip. Soon after Phil was in the mix adding the trips first Striper. The two Duncans were still looking for their first fish while Phil and Zenger continued to catch a variety of different fish. I really got jealous when Zenger pulled in this nice Largemouth. Still the Duncan boys were fishless. We tried moving to different spots and trying different tactics but nothing seemed to work for us. Phil and Zenger had slowed down at this point but they were still catching an occasional fish. It was really starting to make me angry. I had a few hits and just couldn't bring them to the boat. We tried yet another location across from Bullfrog bay and the houseboat fields and I had 3 hits with nothing to show for it. Phil had on the nicest Largemouth I have ever seen in Powell and got it right to the boat before he decided to spit the jig out. Soon after Phil scored again with a Walleye caught on a chartreuse sparkled curly tailed jig. Still no fish for me or Mike! Our next location deep in Halls Canyon we found a cozy little cove with many dead trees and reeds lining the shoreline. I finally hooked up with my first fish of the day with a nice little Black Crappie. The action was hot for me for about 10 minutes bringing in two more Crappie, and a small Largemouth Bass. In all the excitement of finally catching fish I forgot to take any pictures! Nice going Chris! My glory soon ended and I was back to catching nothing. Mike finally got off the snide by pulling in a dink Smallmouth. Once it hit mid-day the fishing died off dramatically so we decided to hit Moki Wall to see if we could find some Stripers. It didn't take long to find them right along the wall, and with a little chum we had them all around us.

After catching as many Stripers as we wanted we got bored and decided to move on. We fished the evening looking for more varieties of fish and found very few of them. We caught a few of them here and there but the fishing just never reached the normal Lake Powell mode of RED HOT!!! It didn't impress my cousins much so we hit the sack woke up the next morning and went strait to Moki Wall where we knew we would at least catch fish. We caught Striper after Striper for a few hours and then called it a day and made it home in time to see the first game in the Western Conference finals between the Jazz and the Spurs. Jazz got blown out and the Spurs took a 1-0 lead in the series.