12-14-2016, 10:43 PM
[#0000FF]Several of us Wasatch Front tanglers had made plans to hit Bear Lake today. But Mama Nature heard about it too early and had time to prepare some snowy roads for us on the way. I know several who changed plans rather than try to become statistics.
I was one of them. Ditto for FatBiker. We opted for taking a (possibly) last tubing shot at Willard...to try to catch some more of the big perch that have shown up near the north marina.
I launched alone about 8. Air temp 30 and water temp 35. As evidenced by the half frozen marina and the cold water temps it shouldn't take long before we will need an auger to launch. But I have decided to hang up ice fishing. You wouldn't guess that from today. Constant snow falling all morning. And a chilly wind that cut through all my layers. And that cold water really tested my Heat-Holder socks.
Saw a couple of dead baby shad laying on the bottom just off the ramp. And saw some terns picking a few more off the surface as they floated up during the morning. The shadlets were only about 1 1/2" long...remnants of a late spawn that could not get big enough to switch their diet before the cold water dropped the zooplankton numbers.
Watched the sonar as I worked around the edges of the ice inside the harbor...and then back and forth across the open water. About the only evidence of life I saw was a cluster of something back in the northeast corner...in about 8 feet of water. I am guessing "moon-mouth" crappies...closed mouths because of the full moon...or whatever excuse might be applicable.
Nary a nibble inside the harbor. Electric motored out to the mouth and started dragging a minnow on one rod while pitching a series of plastics with the other. Nothing on sonar and nothing on either of my rods. But then...a twitch on the minnow rod. No chomp and run...like a kitty. Just a line twitch. I picked up the rod, reeled down a bit and felt faint signs of life. Set the hook into my first fish...a nice 13" porky perch. Looked like the day might turn out okay after all. Looks can be deceiving.
FatBiker came kicking out in his tube about 9:30. He didn't look any warmer than I was feeling. I decided maybe his temporary name might be CoolBiker. Unfortunately, the fishing turned out to be as cold for him as the weather. Skunksville.
I moved around to some of my fave humps and bumps...looking for more perch...or anything else that might get me warmer with some exercise. Saw stray fishy marks here and there...and groups in a few places. But they also had "moon-mouth". I did get a few more whisper bites...almost like ice fishing. And I did stick one more footlong perch. But it was a lot slimmer than the first.
By 11 AM the snow was picking up and the temperature seemed to be going down. The cold apparently had an affect on my sonar battery and it was reading "low voltage". Hmmmph. Wasn't from displaying a lot of fish.
Larry had already gone inside the harbor to try to find some more of the fish he had located while in his boat a couple of days ago. He didn't. I headed in also and just went straight to the ramp. I had overfunned. Crazy golfers, indeed.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]
I was one of them. Ditto for FatBiker. We opted for taking a (possibly) last tubing shot at Willard...to try to catch some more of the big perch that have shown up near the north marina.
I launched alone about 8. Air temp 30 and water temp 35. As evidenced by the half frozen marina and the cold water temps it shouldn't take long before we will need an auger to launch. But I have decided to hang up ice fishing. You wouldn't guess that from today. Constant snow falling all morning. And a chilly wind that cut through all my layers. And that cold water really tested my Heat-Holder socks.
Saw a couple of dead baby shad laying on the bottom just off the ramp. And saw some terns picking a few more off the surface as they floated up during the morning. The shadlets were only about 1 1/2" long...remnants of a late spawn that could not get big enough to switch their diet before the cold water dropped the zooplankton numbers.
Watched the sonar as I worked around the edges of the ice inside the harbor...and then back and forth across the open water. About the only evidence of life I saw was a cluster of something back in the northeast corner...in about 8 feet of water. I am guessing "moon-mouth" crappies...closed mouths because of the full moon...or whatever excuse might be applicable.
Nary a nibble inside the harbor. Electric motored out to the mouth and started dragging a minnow on one rod while pitching a series of plastics with the other. Nothing on sonar and nothing on either of my rods. But then...a twitch on the minnow rod. No chomp and run...like a kitty. Just a line twitch. I picked up the rod, reeled down a bit and felt faint signs of life. Set the hook into my first fish...a nice 13" porky perch. Looked like the day might turn out okay after all. Looks can be deceiving.
FatBiker came kicking out in his tube about 9:30. He didn't look any warmer than I was feeling. I decided maybe his temporary name might be CoolBiker. Unfortunately, the fishing turned out to be as cold for him as the weather. Skunksville.
I moved around to some of my fave humps and bumps...looking for more perch...or anything else that might get me warmer with some exercise. Saw stray fishy marks here and there...and groups in a few places. But they also had "moon-mouth". I did get a few more whisper bites...almost like ice fishing. And I did stick one more footlong perch. But it was a lot slimmer than the first.
By 11 AM the snow was picking up and the temperature seemed to be going down. The cold apparently had an affect on my sonar battery and it was reading "low voltage". Hmmmph. Wasn't from displaying a lot of fish.
Larry had already gone inside the harbor to try to find some more of the fish he had located while in his boat a couple of days ago. He didn't. I headed in also and just went straight to the ramp. I had overfunned. Crazy golfers, indeed.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]