Fishing Forum

[cool][#0000ff]Once again a planned trip to Huntington turned into a morning at Lincoln Beach. Met up with Carp_Punisher for a dawn launch. Me in my Fat Cat and he in his toon. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Water temp 75 at launch. Several late/early anglers off the ends of both jetties, so we did not get a chance to work them for whites or walleyes early. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The formerly busy bite to the south of the jetties has faded in the last couple of weeks, with the dropping water level. We elected to prospect the area around the first spring. We kicked slowly in that direction, tossing plastics behind us in the 5 to 6 feet of water. I lost one fish and landed a white bass. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Had a couple more hits. I shook them off because it was CP's turn. He never did take his turn all day. I'll let him tell his own story.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We tried dragging baits around and floating some under bobbers. I brought in several more white bass sporadically, while fishing bait with one rod and plastics with the other. I finally landed one 3# male channel cat and had a couple more brief inquiries.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The power squadron hit the water by 9 and the slow action turned to no action. One boatload of non English speaking folks almost ran right over me, and one grinning gentleman held his arms open in the tradition of asking if I had caught anything. I yelled that they were supposed to stay 150 feet away and they indicated they did not understand.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]As CP and I were moving in to try the shallower flats, we were outraced by two boatloads of Utah grunts. Everyone in the two boats immediately set out two lines on bobbers, in all directions, effectively screening us out from about a square mile of fishing water.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]One of the tanglers managed to bring in a small channel cat...very pale tan color. When asked by one of the guys in the other boat whether it was a channel or a blue, he proudly proclaimed it to be a blue cat. CP, in the spirit of friendly advisory, told them that there were no "blue cats" in Utah Lake. That aroused the natives. They told us in no uncertain terms that there WERE blue cats in Utah Lake, and the "carp netting boys" had just caught a 90 pounder in their nets.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]They went on to expound on how many really huge cats there were in the lake but that nobody could ever land them. One "gentleman" claimed to have taken many cats over 30 pounds and to have seen some over 50. CP and I just looked at each other and nodded in silent agreement. T'weren't worth wastin' the energy on those there kind. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We made a few more halfhearted casts on the way back into the channel, dodging the bloom/hatch of PWC and other power craft. I had a couple more white bass whacks, but no solid takers.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We did see quite a bit of surface activity early in the morning. There were singles and multiples of minnows squirting in the air, and a couple of mini "boils" of white bass cleaning up on small schools of minnows in three to five feet of water. That probably explains why we saw a lot more fish on sonar than we put a hook into. They were dining well and didn't need our fake stuff.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I did end up with a half dozen whities for the scampi pan. When I filleted them, most had at least one minnow in their gut. One piggy had three (see pic). The minnows were partially digested but they do look like young carp of the year. Hope my skinny walleye from last week gets directions to the dinner table.[/#0000ff]
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I'd imagine those whities will be fattening up nicely with the little carplets running around. I can't think of any better place for them! That's too bad you guys had such a slow morning.
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I was going to start a thread about the different types of channel cats in the lake, because I too ran into a gentleman a couple weeks ago out there who told me there are blue and yellow catfish out in the water too. He seemed very honest and knowledgable about the waters. I watched him clean a catfish out there and after he caught it was impressed the way he pulled all the skin off at once and only had one big piece of meat left. He then finishes the filleting at home.

He's fished this lake for the past 50 years and outfished me in huge numbers with a special dough he was using. And he swore by his homemade recipe that it would only catch channel catfish. And while I was there with him a couple hours along shore he brought in 3 channels, and nothing else.

He claims the female and male channels look the same. And cats with a bigger head and darker body, whom many believe are the male channels are actually blues.

I being an amateur, want to make sure next year, when the channels are spawning, that I don't take any females home accidently.
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[#505000]I was going to get on here and say I've done worse fishing, and I guess I actually have, but not much worse. It's a little more fun when you have someone to complain to. [] I did get a few bumps, and had one runner, but I wasn't able to get anything to climb onto a hook. [crazy][/#505000]
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[#505000][cool] Now onto Cletus, his buddies in the two boats, and Parasite's weekend fishing buddy...... Although to see the blue catfish and the flathead introduced into Utah waters would be a dream come true for me It always amazes me how uninformed a few "skillful" fishermen can be. In my experience these fishermen usually give me the impression they just fell off the turnip truck and after a long day of fishing they are a fix'n to go home to their wife/cousin to clean their catch. A few of them can fool you for awhile but the longer they talk the bumpkin starts to shine on through.[/#505000]
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[#505000]I always itch to ask what the limit is on "blues". I figure if someone is going to fish for them they the would have done the work to check their proclamation to see what the limits may be (of course they ain't NEVER cracked a proclamation and if they had likely couldn't fig'r out how to read it. [] I never do ask what the limit is because I figure pointing out that their ignorance is showing wouldn't come to any good end.[/#505000]
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[#505000]If they did manage to cypher out what that thar laws thingy said they would quickly learn the ONLY catfish speices in Utah are Channel Cats and Bullhead Catfish (AKA Mudcats).[/#505000]
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[#505000]Now onto sexing a channel cat. Channel cats like some bird species are dimorphic, meaning each sex has distinct characteristics. The males in my experience seem to be slimmer. The males have a very large flat head (almost out of porportion with the body) and tend to be darker and have almost a dark blue tinge to them. The female channel cats tend to be fatter have heads more in porportion to their body and are more of a yellow or light brownish color to them. Every Bullhead I have seen is small has a rounded tail and distinctly yellow belly.[/#505000]
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[#505000]I'm no expert on the matter and I may have gotten some of it wrong. If so I expect I will be corrected. If I am wrong that's ok, a cuz' I'm a fix'n to go for Provo River flatheads and pike this weekend with my cuzin/wife!! I done met her at the family reunion. [] [/#505000]
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[#505000]I think as a group of "fishing buddies" on BFT we should make it a point, that every time we run across one of these bumpkins we ask them about the "slot limit" on Blues. After all the proclamation says you can't keep any Blue Cats under 36 inches and only 1 over!!! [][/#505000]
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[#505000]Now what was that slot limit on channel cats??? Yes yes I know. I've been told a time or two that I am evil........ [angelic][/#505000]


[#505000]Oh, and Pat I think if that gentlemen in the boat who nearly ran you over could have spoken english and heard the kind way you reminded him of the 150 foot law, and been able to see your actual size, I think he would have washed us ashore with his rooster tail while trying get 150 feet away!! [][/#505000]
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Hey Pat. Sometimes a good kittie catch is written in the stars, so ta speak.. Better luck next time but its good to see you caught a few whites trying hard to increase their volume.
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[cool][#0000ff]Hey Parasite, welcome to the playroom. You cain't really count yerself an ofishal Utah Lake tangler lessin' ya run into at least one GOB (Good Ol' Boy) that knows ever thang 'bout ever thang when it comes to catfishin'. But, as CP suggested, if you have any doubt as to the species present in Utah, or any specific water, check the DWR publications.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I kin pretty much gay ron tee ya that there ain't no REAL "blue catfish" (Ictalurus furcatus). They could probably live here, but the bucket biologists ain't yet been able to carry their buckets across the desert from California (closest populations) or across the plains from some of the midwest states that have them. Same for flatheads (also known as yellow cats).[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Maybe when your bankside biologist said "yellows", he was referring to the bullheads. I have also heard them referred to as yellow cats, for the yellowish tinge they sometimes exhibit. Truth is, they are "black bullheads". There is a species known as yellow bullheads, but they have not OFFICIALLY been introduced into Utah waters.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Here is a pic I have posted before, showing a male channel cat (bluish color, with wider head) amongst several female (tan color, with narrower heads) channels. [/#0000ff]

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[#0000ff]Here is a pic of a single large male cat, with a very distinct wider head.[/#0000ff]

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[#0000ff]Here are two female channels, with the characteristic fatter bodies and narrower heads.[/#0000ff]

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[#0000ff]You will sometimes take females that are darker in color, but the above visual identifiers usually hold true. In Salem pond, all of the cats are a dark grey color, with very white bellies. These fish are planted from a hatchery and I suspect that the environment and food of that hatchery affects the coloration.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Don't worry about keeping a few females during the spawn. Utah Lake does not have a population problem when it comes to catfish. The loss of a few spawning females is probably more of a blessing than a curse. There is limited spawning habitat for them anyway. I suspect that many of them are forced to spawn in open areas where carp and other species destroy the eggs or fry before they have a chance. My personal opinion is that a female is better eating than the often leaner males. But, the biggest fish are typically males.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]By the way, I too have fished Utah Lake for almost 50 years. My rantings are the result of a lot of personal observations (and CSI autopsies), together with real science. I have done volunteer work with DWR biologists and I have spent much time in both credited scientific fisheries writings and in online resources. I know how to read and I am more than computer literate. I doubt that many of the GOBS can make either of those claims.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Again, welcome to the board and feel free to start any ol' dang thread you want. We don't believe in personal attacks or flaming here. All are welcome.[/#0000ff]
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[cool][#0000ff]Can ya be more specific? What are your REAL feelings? (Remember, this is a family forum.)[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]As I stated, while we were leaving the scene of the bobber invasion, you can always tell an opinionated person, but you cain't tell 'em much. There is usually little point in trying to use logic to refute inbred iggerance.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]HEY COLDFOOTER: Could have used your immoral support down there.[/#0000ff]
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Yes I see that..[]
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I hit lincoln on the way back from salt lake sunday and it was slow! The water was murky green and smelled.We caught 1 WB on a minnow and that was it![pirate] Guess i am gonna stay away from lincoln for a while .
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