Fishing Forum

Hey guys, I just registered here, so if there is a post, which answers these questions, please let me know.

My dad just bought a little fishing boat. We've fly fished for 20 years, but haven't ever really fished from a boat. I've been excited to be able to go out with him after work since Utah lake is so close, but we're really not sure how to fish the lake, so we've pretty much been skunked both times we've gone out.

yesterday we went just east of American fork harbor, and were using chicken liver a few feet from the shore, about 18 inches from a heavy split shot. I got one good bite, but must not have set the hook correctly as it got away.

Can you give us any pointers on how to fish Utah Lake for cat fish? Should we be trolling? Should we be close to the shore? Is the time of day important? The easiest time for us is after about 6:00.

Should we be focusing on something other than Cat Fish? We're up for trying for anything.
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A boat is great to have on UL. It is shallow and attracts a lot of people to common areas with fishable shoreline/harbors, so a small boat to navigate away from crowds is the way to go. The catfish will be shallow as the water warms and after all of my experimentation I have found that a simple bobber, a #2or so hook and shrimp/White bass or worms about a foot off the bottom in 3-4' of water is the trick. Simple is best. Cast up into reed pockets and let them run for a second before setting the hook.

Should we be trolling?
For White bass you can troll small spinners or 2"-1.5" grubs in pink or chartreuse. Slow speeds close to reeds will produce as the water warms. During the spawn rocky shorelines hold a ton of fish.

Should we be close to the shore?
Because of UL's sparce structure in the main lake most fish are near reed lines and or rocks/Inlets.

Is the time of day important?
UL is usually more about locating fish than time of day or baits. During spawn and warm water you should not have any trouble finding fish int eh above areas that are willing to bite with your evening schedule.

Should we be focusing on something other than Cat Fish?
UL has a good # of White bass and Catfish (2 types) that can be caught fairly easily, but there are also panfish, walleye and perch to name a few more fish that live in UL that can be caught either by accident or by targeting certain areas at certain times of year. I have also become more interested in bowfishing carp...don't know if that interests you, but it is a ton of fun when other fish may not be cooperating.
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I like to fish with two poles while at Utah Lake. I will have one pole set up for catfish while I cast with another pole loking for white bass. Most of the time as soon as I catch a white bass I will cut it up for bait on the catfish pole.

As the weather warms and fishing picks up you should be able to pick them up pretty easy. If the bites stop for more that fifteen or twenty minutes try moving a little until you find some more active fish.
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Thank you both for the advice. It looks like next week is the earliest we will get out there again, but I'll get a second pole license in the mean time (my dad has one already).

So for the white bass, the best to use is a spinner, right? Like this one? Is a certain size better than others? Would small be best?


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#2's work well, but size does not matter a ton with White bass. Usually 1/8 or 1/4 oz work well tho. Colors...silver, gold, or anything with pink green or white in it will do the trick. I like bluefoxes.
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I like the roostertail spinner in gold blade, green body, and yellow fur for white bass. Size 1/8th for white bass and largemouth bass. For green sunfish I like the 1/16th size.

Tipping it with a nightcrawler is crucial.
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I don't want to be a buzz kill, but when you say little boat please keep in mind that Utah Lake can be very dangerous if there is a wind. Have a great time and catch lots of fish, but keep an eye on the weather.
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[quote picespursuer]Utah Lake can be very dangerous if there is a wind. Have a great time and catch lots of fish, but keep an eye on the weather.[/quote]

Yeah that is one of the reasons we haven't gone out more often. Both nights we've gone the weather has been incredible, because we are probably too cautious.


Thanks for the lure advice guys! I'll let you know how it goes next time.
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Much good advise here bobber and bait for the cats and watch the weather its all been said...

One time I was out there on my boat and I ran to bird Island my impeller came apart and I had to come back on my bow motor it was a long ride back weather was changing for the worse and batteries were running low...
It was crazy how you could hear people but barely able to see them no one saw us or heard us due to them running there big motors and music...
It got a little hairy at the end but lucky for us a wake boarding boat saw us and came to the rescue yes a wake boarding boat sheesh..


After that I keep a cell handy,, Loud whistle and a flare gun and a orange flag..
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Buy TubeDudes book on CD "Fishing Utah Lake". Tons of great info.
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[quote TyeDyeTwins]

Tipping it with a nightcrawler is crucial.

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When white bass are active there is no need to tip with bait.
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[quote kentofnsl]
When white bass are active there is no need to tip with bait.[/quote]

+1 on this advice.

My experience is that if it's early in the season and the fish less active, it helps to tip with bait when you fish with a slow presentation. But, when the bass get active it's more about finding the tight groups. When you do, you can cast into an area and catch like crazy, but cast a few yards away and you'd think the lake was empty.

I've found that figuring out what is the most visible to be an important thing when prospecting. And using something that rattles or spins is good form (and you may even catch a walleye by mistake). []

When they are in tight groups they are in competitive mode it's all about sight. Chomp first and ask questions later. Upon locating a group on a trip last summer I tried bare lead head jigs, that worked. Then I tried bare hooks. That worked also. Really. The only thing that I could not get the fish to bite on was to get them to jump out of the water to take a bare hook. No foolin! When it comes to active white bass - it's all about finding 'em.

Now cats, they can be more of a challenge. In 2010, I had few problems with successful hook sets. But in 2011 it was a different story for me. In shallow water, we found a lot of mudders and less channel cats. And I've heard that mudders tend to play with their food and a strong hook set just pulls it out of their mouth. So to let the fish run or when to set the hook can be more of an art than a science. [sly]
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[quote Roghet]
When it comes to active white bass - it's all about finding 'em.
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I am afraid we didn't find them when we went out Friday afternoon. We got there a little late (6:30) and it was a tad windy, so we stuck close to American Fork Harbor. not a bite for two hours. One rod we had weighted with a hook and worm, and the other two were rooster tail and blue fox tipped with a worm.

We tried the circled locations on the attached map, though to be fair we only stayed at #1 for about 5 minutes due to the wind.

I'm taking it as a personal challenge at this point. We will be back, and we will catch White Bass. I'm just not sure if it will be this week. We'll probably head up to strawberry on Thursday to troll for some trout.
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I appreciate hearing you taking it on as a challenge. Reminds me of myself. [] A few on these boards know that I wasn't successful at ALL for several years at getting in to the bass. And I'm grateful they were willing to help me out.

It's funny how sometimes there can be groups of fish in reliable spots - outside of reeds and structures or in protected areas like in the marinas - but other times they can be "in the middle of nowhere" and the fish shift around! [crazy] Sometimes the fish just seem to know where we are and go elsewhere! [:p]

I'm not to proud to say that while my family caught prob'ly 1200 whities last summer, we caught ZERO on a trip to UL recently. And we moved around a LOT looking... So, I'm being patient and intend to make up for it - after the wind quits blowing! []

In 2010 I did great for cats, but sucked at bass, in 2011 we crushed the bass and sucked at finding cats... Who knows what 2012 will bring. I'm hoping for the forecast of "gangbusters for all species" - personally. [sly]
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Wind can be a real killer on that lake.

I was down there last year I was down just north of the Lindon harbor when the wind from a thunder storm whipped up and the fishing shut off. since I fish from a float tube I hid in the phrag till it calmed back down and about an hour later the bite started picking back up.
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The white bass love the White/Red Combination. I have caught a few hundred this year using different types of spinners and that seems to be the ticket. I still hold to the Mini King Bleeding Spinner. You can drag them through the weeds and really cause a commotion with minimal snags. I've got pretty good sized Largemouth on them and even some 5lb cats this year. (biggest mud cat i have ever caught this year was on this spinner must have been hungry **do not target cats with spinners it was just a fluke**

Highly Highlt recommend the spinnerbait over the inlines. becuase they dont snag as much, generally have more sound due to having two blades, and theyre much easier on the fish due to having a single hook rather then a treble.
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