12-19-2007, 09:13 PM
12-19-2007, 10:13 PM
Nope sure can't...I have caught everything through the ice at Utah Lake except for Catfish...haha
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12-19-2007, 11:37 PM
If you know the lake, cats can be cought.. Cat tent to find the deepest hole to winter in.. The are not very active this time of year.. Normal cut bait works very well.. Be patiant.. Becareful not to take all the cats out.. They are all schooled up now and its easy to depleat the pop..
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12-20-2007, 12:00 AM
I caught the heck out of them just after ice on last year at Holmes Creek Res. near Layton, one cost me a little over 100 bucks. They ran from 12 inches up to 5 or 6 lbs. It is now one of those dam community ponds so take heed.
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12-20-2007, 02:37 AM
how did a cat fish cost ya a little over 100 buck's? if you dont mind me asking that is..
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12-20-2007, 04:12 AM
my guess: It took his pole through the ice! doh![crazy]
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12-20-2007, 04:47 AM
I talked to dan fox at the ice fishing seminar. He says he fishes threw the ice for cats at night on willard bay. He says he has luck in about 6' of water out from the beach at the north marina. That sounds awesome to me but dang cold without a ice shelter.
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12-20-2007, 02:02 PM
[cool][#0000ff]Like most species, channel cats feed all year, even under the ice. They are just not as active. As has been suggested, finding them is more difficult than catching them. They tend to gravitate toward the deeper holes and/or inflows or warmer water. If you can find an inlet or spring with water temps even 1 degree warmer than the surrounding lake water the cats will likely be schooled up there.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I haven't specifically targeted cats under the ice, but I have caught quite a few both at Willard and at Utah Lake. All were taken on baited jigs fished right off the bottom. They do not hit hard in cold water and there is no difference in their bite between them and any of the other available species. As Forrest Gump says..."like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get."[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Quite a few cats are caught by folks soaking whole crawlers or minnows for walleyes. A chunk of white bass or perch meat (where legal) works well too. If you fish this way, it is good to leave the bail open on your reel and to let the fish take some line before setting the hook. In shallower water there is no need for a sinker. Just let the bait settle slowly to the bottom and wait for the line to start streaming off the reel. You gotta watch it...or have some kind of indicator. If the wind is not blowing you can sit an empty drink can beside your rod and wrap a loop of line around it. When a fish starts pulling the line, it will tip the can over and pull free. If the can is sitting on a hard surface it will make a sound you can hear.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]At Holmes Creek Pond and other community fishing waters, there are often a few holdover stocked channel cats that can be taken through the ice. These are farm raised fish and often act differently than the naturally spawned fish of Willard and Utah Lake. They may even come way up off the bottom to hit jigs fished at mid depth for other species. They are foragers and they got no pride. But, they bite well, fight well and eat good so go head on if you find some.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I haven't specifically targeted cats under the ice, but I have caught quite a few both at Willard and at Utah Lake. All were taken on baited jigs fished right off the bottom. They do not hit hard in cold water and there is no difference in their bite between them and any of the other available species. As Forrest Gump says..."like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get."[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Quite a few cats are caught by folks soaking whole crawlers or minnows for walleyes. A chunk of white bass or perch meat (where legal) works well too. If you fish this way, it is good to leave the bail open on your reel and to let the fish take some line before setting the hook. In shallower water there is no need for a sinker. Just let the bait settle slowly to the bottom and wait for the line to start streaming off the reel. You gotta watch it...or have some kind of indicator. If the wind is not blowing you can sit an empty drink can beside your rod and wrap a loop of line around it. When a fish starts pulling the line, it will tip the can over and pull free. If the can is sitting on a hard surface it will make a sound you can hear.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]At Holmes Creek Pond and other community fishing waters, there are often a few holdover stocked channel cats that can be taken through the ice. These are farm raised fish and often act differently than the naturally spawned fish of Willard and Utah Lake. They may even come way up off the bottom to hit jigs fished at mid depth for other species. They are foragers and they got no pride. But, they bite well, fight well and eat good so go head on if you find some.[/#0000ff]
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12-20-2007, 02:05 PM
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how did a cat fish cost ya a little over 100 buck's? if you dont mind me asking that is.. [/reply]
He posted the story on here a year ago so I will answer for him. He fished it right after the new year and didn't realize that they had changed it to a Community Fishing Pond on 1/1/07. With the change the total limit for all species changed to 4 fish and he kept more that 4 (not all of the same species). Surprisingly, they didn't put up a single sign announcing the change (however, it was listed in the new proclamation).
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how did a cat fish cost ya a little over 100 buck's? if you dont mind me asking that is.. [/reply]
He posted the story on here a year ago so I will answer for him. He fished it right after the new year and didn't realize that they had changed it to a Community Fishing Pond on 1/1/07. With the change the total limit for all species changed to 4 fish and he kept more that 4 (not all of the same species). Surprisingly, they didn't put up a single sign announcing the change (however, it was listed in the new proclamation).
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12-20-2007, 02:36 PM
oh ok i get the bitter ring to the community pond thing now.. [crazy]
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12-20-2007, 04:03 PM
I used to do a little scuba diving in the mid west in the winter.
You would come onto flats that the cats were lined up like a marching band. One beside the other in rows.
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You would come onto flats that the cats were lined up like a marching band. One beside the other in rows.
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