Ice Fishing Otter Creek Reservoir

Monday we ventured south two and half hours to Otter Creek Reservoir.  The reports were saying it was red hot. They also reported the ice was solid and thick.  We got a late start to our trip since Parker worked all night he wanted to get a little sleep before hitting the road at 8 am. We made our way south and stopped in Sigurd at Dave's Country Trading Post, great little spot in the road. The folks that own it open at sunrise and close at sundown regardless of the time. They make great food and this morning did not disappoint we had there breakfast sandwich and it was the best we had, had in a while.  Problem is they are retiring and selling the place, too bad because it will never be the same.

Ice Fishing Scofield Reservoir - Scout Camp 12-23-16

Friday morning I was late making it out, on the road at 7:15 I made my way to Scofield Reservoir where I met up with Parker and Dallin (Parker's BIL).  Pulled in about 8:30 and it was a balmy 7 degrees.

Loaded and ready to go I made my way down the ramp and to camp.  Parker is getting set up very nicely with equipment.  3 man tent, heater and power auger all I had to do is sit down and start fishing.  That's how it should be everyday!!

Ice Fishing Strawberry - Mud Creek 12-22-16

Thursday morning met up with Shifty and picked up Wade Cutchings and then made our way to Heber.  Stopped got a bite to eat and other supplies for the day.  We piled back in and went to Strawberry Marina to begin with seeing nobody on the ice and questioning the thickness we back tracked to Mud Creek where we could see a couple of camps setup.  We unloaded and readied our gear for the day.  It was the maiden voyage for my new smitty sled.

Tis the Season.....To Walk on Water!

I woke up today and looked outside and couldn't see myself doing anything other than fishing.  It was a bluebird day.  Cold and crisp air with nothing but blue skies.  I drove south to Huntington / Mammoth reservoir where I knew the ice was thick and the Tiger's were biting.  My day didn't start early however, getting a late start got me to the lake by 11:30 am.  Stopped at the Junction Cafe in Fairview for a bite to eat along the way.  Took a few pictures at the summit also.  Like I say it was a beautiful day.

Got to the parking lot and readied myself for the haul.  Got the sled loaded and started down the ramp to the lake.  The last 30-40 feet was quite steep and made it fun keeping the sled from taking off on me, but someone before me did just that and their sled ended up on the flats about 200 feet out. Getting on the lake and seeing where the other camps were set up I chose to stop not too far off the bank.  I cut three holes real quick with the auger and set up the flasher.  Finding I was in 7 feet of water but I was inline with the others. I dropped an ice fly tipped with bait and immediately got hit. Hooked it up for a couple cranks and it got off.  Re-baiting the hook I went back down the hole.  But nothing happened, so I set up a second pole while talking with a DNR officer checking ice depth and safety.  I put on a green paddle bug they sniffed at it but didn't hit it.  I changed it to a craw fish plastic and baited it and got nothing on it either.  The ice fly had a hits in the meantime. I put on a white paddle bug with bait and hooked up a Tiger trout, got it out of the hole on the surface only to have release and jump back in the hole. The white paddle bug got a few more hits as well as the ice fly for a bit. By 2:30 the bite had stopped and I decided I better make my way back to the truck while there was still someone on the lake. Remember that steep section I came down yep had to go back up it and wanted to make sure someone was there to call life flight if I didn't make it up the hill. On the way out of the canyon came up on a flock of wild turkeys, cool to see them doing well.

Great first day on the ice!  The ice was 8 inches with a layer of slush about 4 inches down. Definitely thick enough for the wheeler to venture on.

Fishing "Bruiser Bay"

Monday 11/14, my neighbor Terry and I went to Strawberry. All the reports were still saying the fishing was red hot and he had just returned home after an 18-month mission and was hoping to relive childhood memories. We got to the ramp around 7:30 only figure out the battery was dead!! We jumped it from the truck which was a pain but we got it started. After all that we pulled out of the marina and went across to Haws Point and then deeper into East Portal Bay. We fished through the bay and along the bank for an hour or so. We made one find that neither of knew about in the back bay that there is one deep hole that looked like it could have been a gravel pit, I mention this to remember for ice season. We made our way back towards Haws point fishing the bank and trolling a little with lures. Getting nothing but Strawberry moss and grass. The lake has turned over and is still loaded with algae and moss from the turnover.

We went around haws point and continued south to the old dam site and into Horse Creek Bay. We worked in this area for about an hour and got nothing. We then went into the meadows by Renegade and fished for another hour I caught a small rainbow and seen a couple other people catch one as well. First fish that we had seen pulled in all day. The wind kicked up so we went back toward the marina and went to the opening of the narrows into the bay I caught the bruiser from a couple weeks earlier.

In “Bruiser Bay” we fished along the banks and I caught a decent sized cutthroat at 20 inches and 4 lbs. The fish was caught on a ¾ oz. rainbow Kastmaster. After releasing it we got back on track and fished even harder now. Terry got into a beast right off the boat. His line started singing and his lightweight ole was doubled over from the battle. He had a good tug of war with the cutthroat for about 10 minutes. We landed it, measured, and weighed it took a couple pictures, and then released it to fight again another day. 26 inches and 5 pounds is what it measured out to, a slot buster but we were looking to keep today. The rainbow Kastmaster did the job again. We fished the bank again a couple trips and produced nothing.

We ventured into the narrows and fished about an hour trolling and casting but turned up nothing and decided to call it a day. Turned out to be a great morning and Terry was elated with his catch of the day. We loaded the boat and made our way home trading stories of our hometown Orem and the people we know in common. It was great to get out and share the water with a new friend.

Burraston Ponds Solo

Thursday, I went to Burraston Ponds on solo. Sometimes I need to go solo to clear my mind. I hadn’t been to Burraston in years and the last time I had gone there it was not a great memory. Every time a truck or car pulled through the area I caught myself looking over my shoulder. It was good to re-visit and see that it was okay to be there.

The morning was beautiful and the water was crystal clear. The ponds are spring fed and bigger than I remember them being. The vegetation was dense both in the water and along the banks. This is a good place to remember the pontoon next time. It is a WMA and a community fishery so the regulations allow you to keep two trout, if you choose too. The UDWR stocks the ponds with rainbow trout frequently. There are some carryover trout from year to year and get some size to them. Today was a challenge day for me, I took one lure to see if I could catch fish with only one lure choice. Today’s lure was a red/white kastmaster that resembled a daredevil. It proved to be productive.

I stopped in the first pullout to see what I was getting into and could see the massive amount of plants and moss in the water, and thought to myself this was going to be a tough fishing day. I cast a few times in this area but seen nothing follow and moved to the next pullout. Here I could really see how clear the water was and could see quite a distance out from shore and see what I was up against with the vegetation. However, this spot turned out to be fruitful. I could see fish feeding and each time I saw one surface I cast into the area. I caught three planter rainbow here and they were all nice enough to quick release at the shore as I pulled them out of the water. Nothing large but on ultra-light gear they were fun none the less.

I moved to the next spot, the second pond, it was nasty and filled with scum and debris so I didn’t stay here too long. I drove around to the end of the trail and could see the rest of the pond shore was foot traffic only. I also spied a dock of sorts. I pulled back to the trail entrance to it and made my way through about three feet of water and onto this rickety old dock. It put me above the water and the water was so clear I could see bank to bank. Here I got to watch my kastmaster work through the water for a great distance and see how it reacted to different retrieves and action. I also got to observe how the fish trailed it and sometimes even hit it with their nose or tail. That was a cool sight to see. I landed a couple more here, but being able to see them hit the lure I could set the hook, so I had to take them off. The dock was not stable and made for a fun casting platform sometimes wondering if I was going to take a dip. I really didn’t want to, the water I walked through was quite cold!!

I moved to the west side of the ponds and parked at the end of the trail. I made my way onto the island peninsula and made a few casts into both sides of the pond. I caught a couple more and released them. It was a great morning on the pond, caught some fish and cleared my head for a while. I will return here and bring my pontoon, maybe even see if it freezes over in the winter.

Banking it at DC

Thursday Shifty and I met up fish_utah at the corrals on the north end of DC and started our hike to a spot they said would be HOT! 2 miles later we found ourselves past where they thought they were and the lake locked in a shroud of fog. We made our way down to the bank and got our gear ready.  I was fishing a bobber worm set up and throwing metal on my second pole.  I had a visitor join me for a little while.

I fished in this location about a half hour and got nothing.  When the ADD kicked in it was time to move.  I climbed back up the steep bank and dang near blew a lung out doing so!  I really need to focus on getting in a different shape than "Pear" shape.  Anyhow I made it up to the railroad tracks and wandered back toward the truck looking for a good deep water pocket.  I hiked about a mile back and seen a good spot to try that wasn't loaded with algae, the lakes have turned and the gunk is up top.  I made my way down the steep bank to the shoreline.  I cast the worm pole and then started throwing metal again.  I fished for a bit and got a couple hits and LDR's with a kastmaster.  I moved down the bank looking for good water and stopped a couple times getting follows and hits at each spot I fished.

Making my way about a half mile down the bank I stopped and fished until Shifty and fish_utah caught up with me.  I got one to the bank and had two more LDR's on the kastmaster. The fishing was not hot and furious.  The morning was awesome with the fog locked in until late morning.  They caught a couple fish as well, but when asked for pictures they didn't take any.....right.  Hahaha.  We left the lake at noon and headed for home.

Rhode Island final installment

Day 5 we went back down to Cape Cod and ventured into Chatham a seaside village with a lighthouse and nice beach. I could live here. We did the tourist things and shopped and milled around and made our way up the coast to the next crossroads where we picked up highway 6 again and went back to Newport.

 

We had decided if we didn’t take a tour of at least The Breakers we would be bummed. So, we arrived at The Breakers and paid for the tour. It is a self-lead tour listening to narration as you go through the Mansion. This is the first mansion built by the Vanderbilt family on the cliffs, well actually the second the first burnt to the ground, they rebuilt it out of stone and metal so it wouldn’t burn to the ground again.

 

 

 

The Breakers is now owned by the Newport Preservation Society who conducted the tours and manned the areas. The Vanderbilt family still vacations there however, that was part of the agreement they got to keep the third floor of the mansion and live there when they wanted too. Pretty good gig they got paid 400K for the property and still get to use it as a home and get everything paid for by the society and the funds from the tours.

Alcove fountain

Dining hall

Dining Hall

Dining Hall

Music room

Music room

Library

Library

Master Bath tub in carved out
of one piece of Marble

Grand Staircase entry
into Grand Hall

Grand Hall

Tapestry

The Breakers was awesome though and crazy to think that a family needed something that huge to live in, but I’m sure it pales in comparison to some of the new ones today. Still though what a house!

We finished the night off back in Dartmouth with dinner and early to bed. We did ask to be moved because the hotel was empty and the only people on the floor with us was of course next to us and still happily married. The new room was horrible!!!

Day 6 we hit the road by 4:30 am and were the airport by 5:30 waiting for our flight to Baltimore and then home. It was a fantastic vacation and adventure, all but the hotel. We saw almost everything we went to see and seen somethings we didn’t know we were going to see.

Trout in the Mist

Thursday Shifty and I ventured to Rockport Reservoir to try for some Brown trout and smallmouth bass. we made it to the ramp at sunrise and quickly realized the water was turbulent and very low. We drove down the ramp and to see if it was as bad as it looked and it was worse.  We decided to go back to another lake, but on the way out of the park we came upon three bucks.  All three were nice sized 4 points.  We managed to get pictures of two of them but the larger of the three managed to sneak around us.  They were a sight to see!  We made it back to the overlook for Jordanelle and it was glass! We had decided to go to Strawberry along the way but when we seen this we made a quick call to the marina to see what their conditions were like. The gal that answered the phone told us that she couldn't see the lake due to the fog. Hmmm, "oh so there is no wind?" "correct" at that point we kept driving to Strawberry knowing that the fish would be hungry and aggressive.

We made it to the marina and she was not kidding the fog was socked in we could see about 20 feet and that was stretching it. We readies the boat and drove down the ramp. At the ramp the UDWR was there waiting for a load of planters to put in Strawberry. Launched the boat and headed out into the abyss. We dropped the trolling motor and began trolling, watching the gps map on the fish finder.  About 10 minutes into the troll Shifty got a hit and hooked up the first of what we planned on being a multitude of fish for the day. Landing it we continued on, but we got off course and ended up at Hawes Point and we were looking for the opening of the Narrows. Correcting our course we started out across the fog covered water and every once in a while get a glimpse of another boat on the lake. We trolled for about 30 minutes but grew tired of the pace and pulled up the trolling motor and made our way across the lake. I was in the nose watching the map and Shifty was driving, I was also watching for the shore to come out of the fog. We made it across as the shore eerily came into view, it was right out of the old horror movies.

 

We dropped the trolling motor again and made our way along the shoreline into the Narrows. I wanted to go into the Narrows to see the island I didn't know existed until I studied the map, Shifty didn't know it was there either. As we fished along the shore we came out of the fog and into the branch off leg that separated the inside island and we turned up that leg.  Still no fish at this time, not so hot and heavy. we ventured up the leg and seen two other boats in the channel and they weren't catching anything either. Shifty put on a rapala and within a few minutes he caught his second a nice rainbow trout. we got into the channel far enough that the water was to shallow to really troll so we turned around and headed out to the main Narrows channel.  We changed up colors, size and speed but couldn't get another bite. Back in the main channel the wind was blowing and cooled us down a bit. On the way out of the channel we saw a Bald Eagle fishing and then perch on a rock watching us fish. A cool sight to see.

 

 

We were back on the main body and seen a few boats in a bay right outside the channel and decided to join them. A little ways into the bay we decide to pull in our trolling gear and started casting hardware at the bank. We fished into the bay along the bank almost the end. Shifty kept saying lets go out a little deeper and about the time I was going to turn the boat out into the deeper water I got my hook up. It felt heavy and fight pretty good. As the fish neared the boat we could both see it was a nice Cutthroat. When Shifty got it in the net we both gave out a little yell because it was a "Walter". Measuring out to 22 inches and 4 pounds it was the catch of the day and my PR for Cutthroat Trout. After a couple pictures we released it to fight again another day.

We fished the bay for a little while longer but nothing.  We went back into another bay across the lake and fished it for about an hour. Then we moved to Mudd Creek and fished there for about an hour and Shifty did manage to get another small cutthroat to the boat. 3 pm and we had put four fish in the boat. We were hungry and tired and decided to call it. So we headed out of Mudd Creek and back toward the marina trolling for another hour and then we called it and pull the trolling motor in and ran to the ramp. Getting to the ramp I got off to get the truck and the boat died, out of gas! It has been a good season! We loaded the boat with the trolling motor and made our way to Heber and ate at the Dairy Keen and then home.