I have fished the bear river once and that was the bird refuge area but that was in early fall. I thought about going to the wide part of the river where the bridge is in Corinne but when is a good time go for those big cats?
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It's not too good until the water warms up. Most people use liver, but I use crawfish. I normally fish by the bird refuge, but the river should be good throughout.
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You can catch the smaller cats now but I would agree, it will be a while before the big ones want to play. You could also ask Utcatman he fishes it often enough to know when they turn on.
WH2
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I caught a toad of a catfish out at Cutler Saturday (25" and 8 1.2 lbs). Water was around 55 degrees, and it was so freaking windy. I managed a few others from 14- 16 inches. I was actually surprised I caught the big one.. I also lost one that was just as big. I do want to try the Bear around here in Cache Valley too.
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Great pic, Bama. I agree that you can catch those big ones at any time, but they're more likely to play when that water temp warms up a few more degrees.
There are some nice ones in Cutler. I'd be interested to find out exactly how big those Channels get in there.
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Wow nice cat what a pig to weigh that much and only be 25 inches long!
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No kidding. I really thought I had a carp on the end of the line. I put her back in there so she can add to the kitty population.
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I am not too familiar with the Bear River - especially out there by the refuge, but I do want to go try it out this year. I do agree that the bigger ones will be easier to find once that water warms up just a little more. I can't wait for that. Good luck!
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Wow, nice cat Ben. Sounds like the water at Cutler is a little warmer than the water in the Bear river this time of the year. 55* is a good temp for all warm water fish catching to improve. Were you fishing in fairly shallow water, less than 12' or so? How is that motor running for you?
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The motor is running just great! I enjoy it. I was fishing in only about 2 feet of water. The weather this week kind of stinks. I was hoping it would be a little warmer, but oh well
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There's not a lot of places in Cutler that you get to water that's over 10 ft deep. Mostly around the bridges. Lots of it is 4 ft or less. I guess there is a channel from the "old river". Just don't know how folks with bigger boats manage to cruise around out there.
Along the river there are some deeper pools, mostly at bridges and bends in the river. It's a pretty wind-y-sort of meandering flow.
Caught my fist channel of the season on Friday when I joined up with Ben and co. Not quite the chunk that he found the next day, but better than another mudder! (pestery little mudcats!)
Glad to hear it is running well. That shallow water really warms up fast, if you could find the main channel, I bet the temps would be 5* or more cooler. That is why those cats move into the shallows this time of the year. Yea it doesn't sound too warm this coming weekend but I heard it was suppose to be around 70* or so by wens or thur. You might have to play hooky this week to get any warm weather fishing time[
]. Sounds like you found a good spot at least, might be worth a return trip.
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Quote:Sounds like you found a good spot at least, might be worth a return trip.
It was a return trip from last year. [
] The nicest day here is Wednesday - the worst day for me. I am at school from 8:30 am - 7 pm. I have a test in the middle of the day too. And a project due at 5 pm. Who knows, maybe I will bag my 4:30 class.
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Nice job Ben that's a great fish I'm amazed you got them to bite with all the wind. I used that excuse to keep me on the tractor instead of fishing. Looks like I was wrong so you probably won't want to take my advice of the fish will wait go to class Wednesday. Good luck either way. J
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Wow good on ya for helping out the population, thats dang cool!
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I don't keep big ones. I did keep the first big one I caught last year because it was my biggest, but she wasn't as big as this one. Plus, I enjoy catching fish mostly. Pictures are just as good in my book. I will keep a mess of bluegill and perch though. Don't get me wrong, I love catfish, but I would just rather throw fish back rather than eat them. I am too busy in the evenings with homework right now anyways.
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That's funny. The wind was pretty nasty at times, but bearable most of the time. I actually drove to Benson, got out and walked around, then decided not to fish. Then I drove down to Valley View Hwy to the launch there. The wind was much more calm. That made me decide to go back to Benson, hoping for better conditions when I got there. Well, the wind had died down enough for me to decide to launch. I am glad I did. It was a fun day.
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Thats cool. I have a hard time throwing a crappie back. I am good for one or two catfish frys a year. The 2-3 pounders are the best cats to eat anyway in my opinion, the ones over 5 lbs get a bit mushy. Did ya get a chance to try for a crappie or a bass, I am sure it was too windy for that, but just curious.
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I started out thinking of trying for crappie and bass, but the wind made me decide to go anchor somewhere that the water was calmer. I might go try for some on Wednesday. If not, I will be trying before too long.
And I agree on the size of the fish. 16-inchers are perfect for eating.
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Usually when the wind kicks up I give up fishing, it doesn't take much to make the water very dirty, and I believe the fish move out to deeper water when the wind kicks up. I will probly go out wednesday as well so maybe I will see you there.
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