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+--- Thread: Some general questions about Deer Creek (/showthread.php?tid=964285)
Some general questions about Deer Creek - happybob91 - 01-31-2016
This isn't actually an ice fishing question, but more of a basic info question. I have never fished Deer Creek, but am interested in giving it a try a few times this year. There seems to be quite the variety of fish. I was wondering when the best time of the year is to fish Deer Creek. Also I will be using both fly and spinning tackle, and was curious what patterns/lures/bait are good to use. Any info would be great!
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Re: [happybob91] Some general questions about Deer Creek - a_bow_nut - 01-31-2016
What type fish are you going to be after?
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Re: [a_bow_nut] Some general questions about Deer Creek - happybob91 - 01-31-2016
This year I want to focus on non trout species so walleye, panfish and bass
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Re: [happybob91] Some general questions about Deer Creek - Jedidiah - 01-31-2016
Perch are tough to catch from shore except during the spawn in spring and they can be caught with wet flies at that time but perch are always on the bottom so you need enough weight to get down fast. The best way of course is a drop shot rig, I'll usually tie a leader to a swivel and tie two #8 or #10 baitholder hooks to the leader with palomar knots, one 4 inches from the bottom and the other 4 inches above that. You then put 3-4 split shot on the end and cast into 15-20 FOW around inlets, like Wallsburg. I usually use a worm threader and thread about a third of a night crawler onto the hooks and leave the worm end off the hook to wiggle as the drop shot bounces back in. Perch have small mouths so don't use really big worms. Also perch shut off at night.
Walleye spawn at pretty much the same time as perch, but they do start earlier. Walleye are closely related to perch and taste pretty similar. The key difference is that walleye are highly predatory with great night vision, so they hunt deep or they hunt at night, and other than during the spring spawn you catch most of them either trolling deep or by casting chatterbaits or noisy topwaters at night. You can catch walleyes at night along the points and weedy shallows especially in the fall.
Bass spawn in the spring and late spring seems to work the best for me. I catch most of my smallmouth bass up in the flooded areas of the Middle Provo as it comes into Deer Creek using Rapalas or weedless soft plastics on 30 lb. braid so I can rip my lures out of snags. Red trebles on the front of Rapalas work really well for me for warm water species especially. Bass can be caught on topwaters pretty well there all the time but they seem to work really good in the fall, and I have caught a good deal of bass in the summer open water using a drop shot rig.
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Re: [Jedidiah] Some general questions about Deer Creek - happybob91 - 02-01-2016
That's a lot of good information thanks! I will be in a float tube so that may help get to some of those fish. I am hoping to go when the Walleye are spawning. I'm also hoping to hook into some crappies.
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Re: [happybob91] Some general questions about Deer Creek - TubeDude - 02-01-2016
[#0000FF]A few random notes...from a fellow float tuber who loves Deer Creek.
1. Don't forget. Deer Creek is now listed as an "infested" lake (Quagga mussels)...so you have to have your float tube decontaminated...along with waders, fins, net and anything else that gets wet.
2. You can catch trout anytime after iceout...on all the standard trout flies, lures and baits. Flies and spinners near the top are especially good until the water begins warming in late spring. Actually, trout can be taken all year, but during the summer they usually hang out in deeper water...especially during the day. You need downriggers or something else to get your offerings down to the fish.
3. Perch are not very plentiful these days, but they start hitting best after about mid June...when they move in toward shore for the summer. Lots of different jigs...tipped with crawler...or just plain crawler.
4. Smallmouth bass move into the rocky shorelines to spawn when the water warms above about 60. They usually stay shallow until late fall, when the temps cool down again. Almost any plastic, spinner or crankbait will catch them. They feed mostly on crawdads and the fry of perch and crappies so use patterns that represent them. Also, there is some great topwater action next to rocky shorelines in late summer.
5. Crappies are showing up more often these days. Some of the better spots are back in Walsburg Bay, around the outside point of the island and along the rocky shoreline below the Heber Creeper tracks.
6. Walleyes? The spawn is actually not the best time to find and catch active biters. That is when the locals snag the fish running up into the Provo River. But sometimes you can find some along rocky shorelines where they might spawn at night if the wind is blowing to aerate their eggs. The bite gets much better post-spawn...from around the first of May through late June. That's when you can catch them both around rocky shorelines...on plastics and crankbaits...and over the flats between the island and Charleston...using standard bottom bouncing crawler gear. And don't overlook night fishing during the summer. Some big ones are taken at night during the "full moon in June"...and in July and August too. During the fall the wallies move back into shallower water along the shores and are often caught early and late in the day by anglers working the rocks for smallies.
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