[quote The_Red_Leaker]
Again, you pushing your opinion and view of what you think to be right for everyone. I would like to see a study completed in which the anglers that frequent Fishlake are asked what species they are there to hunt and what they expect to see or would like to see in the future.
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How many fisheries in Utah have perch?
How many fisheries in Utah have lake trout?
How many fisheries in Utah have splake?
my opinion is that we have more than enough perch fisheries for anglers to choose from. Numerous other lakes in Utah have the same "quality" (ie: stunted) population of perch.
So, asking anglers why they are fishing Fish Lake, and for what fish is pointless in my opinion.
One more question:
of those anglers who enjoy the perch in Fish Lake, how many of you have driven the additional 4 miles to Johnson Reservoir and fished for the perch?
If you prefer Fish Lake over Johnson -- WHY?
(I'd be willing to bet that the reason has something to do with the chance of catching a large lake trout....)
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if tigertrout, tigermusky, walleye and Pike are predators of perch why is Pineview not on the list of "good perch" or large perch fishery?
are the tigers not enough to controll the numbers? and what about Yuba? walleye and Pike are abundant there but the perch seen to be small as well.
it would be really cool to get one decent perch fishery (kinda like lake simcoe or lake of the woods)
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Move Lake Simcoe, or Lake of the Woods to Utah, and you might have something. Except they're at different elevations, and we're in a desert. Perch are native to that area. They evolved, or adapted to the conditions found there. They overproduce here.
Walleye were once abundant in Yuba. Haven't heard of many recently.
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Quote:Then maybe we should manage Fishlake to be a "single good perch fishery" so that anglers of this State have one..... but I realize that is not what you want and therefore cannot be discussed as an option.
How do you control perch numbers?
It's not a matter of opinion -- simply deciding that the lake should be managed as a perch fishery. It's a matter of controlling populations. As we've seen all across Utah, perch numbers are extremely difficult to control, and thus we have "boom and bust" perch fisheries. How do you correct that? By adding more predators (walleye, pike)? Without a good predator-prey relationship, you just compound the problem.
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[quote Fishrmn]Lousy trade. Millions of dinky perch vs. a once superb Splake, Mac, Rainbow fishery.[/quote]
What seems like a lousy trade in your eyes certainly isn't that way for everyone. I can promise you there are many who would rather catch 100 perch in a day, no matter how small, than one or two big lakers. Lots of those would include children, and those children's parents who want to get their short-attention-span kids interested in fishing...
Different strokes for different folks. There are other places to catch perch of course. There are also other places to catch trout. We're pretty lucky in Utah to have the diversity of fisheries that we do, even if it's not 100% roses for everyone.
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[quote AERO63]I can promise you there are many who would rather catch 100 perch in a day, no matter how small, than one or two big lakers. Lots of those would include children, and those children's parents who want to get their short-attention-span kids interested in fishing... [/quote]
what about 100 16"+ splake in a day? Wouldn't that also hold the attention of children? That's what got me hooked on Fish Lake...
Quote:
Different strokes for different folks. There are other places to catch perch of course. There are also other places to catch trout.
I think the discussion revolves primarily around splake and lake trout -- not "trout" in general. If it were simply "trout" (ie: rainbow trout), then I would agree with you.
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I've only caught one big laker. I wasn't even thinking about that. I'm talking about the days when I would use 3 dozen or more minnows and catch roughly 70 Splake that were 18 to 24 inches long. And Splake don't exhibit these disgusting characteristics:
[quote MrLipripper]Perch, the sharp dorsal finned, eye-bugging, float bladder gagging vermin.[/quote]
I used to make 3 or 4 trips to Fish Lake in the winter. Most of those were 2 or 3 days. Met up with a buddy from Southern Utah and we would fish Monday, Tuesday, and if I didn't have to get back to protect my job, Wednesday.
Lousy trade. If I wanted hundreds of perch I could go to nearly a dozen other places. Most of them closer to home.
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Definitely 100 fish a day, no matter the species, is going to be a win for everyone, including kids.
So what do we do? Tell our kids we wish we could go catch 100 splake a day like we used to in the 70's? Or go catch 100 perch in a day tomorrow?
I understand you guys saying that the perch in Fish Lake have hurt the trout fishery. That's a bummer for trout guys. But it's not for perch guys, no matter how badly some seem to want it to be.
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Aero -- have you ever fished Johnson Reservoir for perch? Why not?
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Again...it's a lousy trade for YOU. Which is fine, and unfortunate for you as someone who really enjoys catching trout.
It's not lousy in the least for folks who like to catch and/or eat numbers of perch.
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[quote PBH]Aero -- have you ever fished Johnson Reservoir for perch? Why not?[/quote]
No sir, never have. I don't have a reason why not really, just haven't hit it. Honestly I didn't really know it was a decent perch fishery! Pretty good?
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[quote wormandbobber]Regarding Pineview:
[quote wormandbobber]
Read this discussion:
[url "http://www.insideline.net/index.php/component/content/article/148-feature-twotier"]http://www.insideline.net/.../148-feature-twotier[/url]
It refers directly to your question in regards to Utah and perch.[/quote][/quote]
So because of our arid state and the reservoirs fluctuating in water level it messes with the Walleye and pike spawn?
how bad of an idea would it be to put walleye in Fish Lake?
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[quote AERO63]
No sir, never have. I don't have a reason why not really, just haven't hit it. Honestly I didn't really know it was a decent perch fishery! Pretty good?[/quote]
That's what bothers me. NOBODY fishes Johnson Reservoir for perch. Period.
Why?
Why do thousands of anglers flock to Fish Lake?
The lakes are a mere 4 miles apart. Both lakes have a large population of perch. Why do anglers fish one lake, and not the other??
(we all know the answer. Who's going to say it?)
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[quote PBH][quote AERO63]
No sir, never have. I don't have a reason why not really, just haven't hit it. Honestly I didn't really know it was a decent perch fishery! Pretty good?[/quote]
That's what bothers me. NOBODY fishes Johnson Reservoir for perch. Period.
Why?
Why do thousands of anglers flock to Fish Lake?
The lakes are a mere 4 miles apart. Both lakes have a large population of perch. Why do anglers fish one lake, and not the other??
(we all know the answer. Who's going to say it?)[/quote]
access in the winter is not possible?
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Johnson freezes sooner. It's shallower, so you might catch a perch that doesn't regurgitate its swim bladder. Lots of folks zoom over to Johnson Reservoir on their snowmobiles, and keep right on going. Plus, there's a better chance of hooking a Tiger Muskie.
But nobody bothers to fish it.
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[quote isda]
So because of our arid state and the reservoirs fluctuating in water level it messes with the Walleye and pike spawn?
how bad of an idea would it be to put walleye in Fish Lake?[/quote]
Many have already thought of this and I know the DWR has too...ultimately, they have not been stocked into Fish Lake for one reason: the belief that the growing season is too short to support a self-sustaining population. To spawn, walleye wait until water temps reach the mid 40's...because this doesn't happen at Fish Lake until the middle of June, the growing season is too short for walleye to survive the cold winter. To survive, walleye would have to reach about 6 inches in length.
So, to establish a viable walleye population, the DWR would have to stock them. Currently, that is not feasible because our hatchery system is already tapped out. And, stocking fish that would be large enough to make it through the winter would require hatcheries to hold them over winter...this is expensive and not cost effective.
Also, by way of comparison, Jordanelle have also been known to frequent at times resevoirs like Jordanelle without doing well at all. Why do they do well at Deer Creek and not Jordanelle? Personally, I believe the elevation is the key. Check out the elevation differences between the lakes in Minnesota and Canada that are great walleye fisheries and Fish Lake...
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I'll have to give Johnson a shot one of these times. Fish Lake is a pretty good haul for me, almost 3 hours, so I guess I've just stuck to what I know will produce when I'm after perch.
I know you want me or someone to say that they get after the perch at Fish Lake because they might hook into a mac...which for some is probably true! But if I'm after perch I'd really prefer not catching trout, those will buggers really tend to cause tangle city when you've got multiple lines down in a small area, at least for me! I also fish perch shallow in the weeds in Fish Lake, so I doubt there's much chance I'll ever hook a laker. I do usually catch a few rainbows and/or splake in spite of myself though it seems like, few with any size.
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BTW, is Johnson accesible in the winter w/o a snowmobile?
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