Deer Creek Fall Finale 10-9-23

[TubeDude]

Met up with the jjannie team at the Island ramp about 7ish...launching by 7:30 am.  Air temp a crisp 36...warming to about 65 by noon departure.  Water temp 59...where it remained all the time we were there.  Flat calm conditions all morning.  Was pleased to see how high the water has remained...with only a short walk down the ramp.  A lot worse last year.


Game plan was to focus on walleye and perch.  Unfortunately, they were both a no-show species.  Did get one small smallmouth but the rest of the day was almost non-stop action on recently planted rainbows...AKA hatchery pets, bitty bows or finless Freddies.  I got 3 before I even got around the end of the island to head for the flats.  Also got my only smallie there.
 

For the next 4 hours we worked a bunch of different areas...at depths from 12 to 35 feet...looking for the targeted species.  Saw a few individual marks that looked perchy or larger but they all had their little mouths closed and their middle fins upraised.

Got quite a few rattle rattle bites that could have been small perch.  But I suspect they were the aforementioned finless Freddies.  'Cause that's all I could catch.  And I caught a grundle...on the worm sweetened whirly fligs I usually use for catching perch and walleyes.  And when I put on a silver with red spots I really got molested/


After a lot of fruitless searching for non-trout species I went with the flow and started dragging my offerings at mid-depth...hoping for one of the suspended walleyes or perch I caught on my last trip but hoping for maybe a bigger trout.  I was still catching a lot of bitty bows, but I did land one chunky 16 incher and lost another at the tube.  And on my way back to the ramp I hooked up on a super-sized bow...probably around 20 inches from the quick view I got just before he politely returned my lure.


Jeff and Jill didn't do as well.  I'll let Jill chime in if they wanna give their report.  But it was a purtiful day on the water and we all enjoyed that.


I was surprised at the number of boats launching along with us early on a Monday morning.  Some were "quacker whackers"...with guns instead of fishing rods.  But there were also a few other anglers.  Although most of those I observed seemed to be happily harvesting the bumper crop of dinkster bows. 

Deer Creek evidently doesn't like me.  On my last trip my sonar wasn't working and I fished blind all day...but still caught fish.  On this trip there were two "glitches".  First, after airing up my float tube and getting ready to launch I noticed that the air chamber on the right side had lost a lot of air.  Then I remembered hearing a hiss as I capped the valve after filling.  It hadn't seated properly.  So I dug out my air pump and refilled it...making sure to seat the valve properly.  It held air and I launched...belatedly.

The second glitch was my original battery in my GoPro camera gave up the ghost and died.  I had just topped it off the night before but it only worked for a couple of segments before "powering off" for the last time.  Lucky I had a spare in my fishing vest.  I replaced it and it worked. What next????

[doitall5000]

Wow sometimes you get lucky and it goes as you hoped-for, but you had better be ready for something or someone to throw a pie in your face. That's fishing.
You were thinking just as I was, I wanted to go Friday thinking it would be great . But now all those planted bows will dominate for a while.
Crazy to think you got no perch.
Willard is not yet, maybe Rockport will do.

[TubeDude]

Wow sometimes you get lucky and it goes as you hoped-for,  but you had better be ready for something or someone to throw a pie in your face. That's fishing.
You were thinking just as I was, I wanted to go Friday  thinking it would be great . But now all those planted bows will dominate for a while.
Crazy to think you got no perch.
Willard is not yet, maybe Rockport will do.

Once DWR dumps in their annual load of "catchable" rainbows the whole ecology of Deer Creek changes.  However, I have done well in the past for both perch and walleyes during October.  I suppose a lot of the current conditions can be attributed to the much higher water levels this year.  The fish have more water and their food supplies can be in different areas so that's where the predators will be.  However, as most of us have experienced this year, there just have not been the catches of larger walleyes at all this year.  And the perch populations have been way down for several years.

If I were to plan a trip to any water besides Willard...for perch...I would probably do Rockport.  Last year the perch did what they are seemingly doing this year...suspending at middepth over deeper water.  So if you can find a suspended school and drop down to them you might catch a few.  I was catching them just offshore in 20-30 FOW last year at this time so I suspect that if you look hard enough you can find them on the bottom in some areas.  One area that held a lot later in the year last year was right off the dam...in the NE corner.  But every year is a new year and the fish don't always follow a pattern.

I think I am going to gear up and concentrate on the Willard perchies for a while.  Did well on them late in the year last year.  And I have some new trinkets to introduce to them.  Surprise!

[Redrebel]

Met up with the jjannie team at the Island ramp about 7ish...launching by 7:30 am.  Air temp a crisp 36...warming to about 65 by noon departure.  Water temp 59...where it remained all the time we were there.  Flat calm conditions all morning.  Was pleased to see how high the water has remained...with only a short walk down the ramp.  A lot worse last year.


Game plan was to focus on walleye and perch.  Unfortunately, they were both a no-show species.  Did get one small smallmouth but the rest of the day was almost non-stop action on recently planted rainbows...AKA hatchery pets, bitty bows or finless Freddies.  I got 3 before I even got around the end of the island to head for the flats.  Also got my only smallie there.
 

For the next 4 hours we worked a bunch of different areas...at depths from 12 to 35 feet...looking for the targeted species.  Saw a few individual marks that looked perchy or larger but they all had their little mouths closed and their middle fins upraised.

Got quite a few rattle rattle bites that could have been small perch.  But I suspect they were the aforementioned finless Freddies.  'Cause that's all I could catch.  And I caught a grundle...on the worm sweetened whirly fligs I usually use for catching perch and walleyes.  And when I put on a silver with red spots I really got molested/


After a lot of fruitless searching for non-trout species I went with the flow and started dragging my offerings at mid-depth...hoping for one of the suspended walleyes or perch I caught on my last trip but hoping for maybe a bigger trout.  I was still catching a lot of bitty bows, but I did land one chunky 16 incher and lost another at the tube.  And on my way back to the ramp I hooked up on a super-sized bow...probably around 20 inches from the quick view I got just before he politely returned my lure.


Jeff and Jill didn't do as well.  I'll let Jill chime in if they wanna give their report.  But it was a purtiful day on the water and we all enjoyed that.


I was surprised at the number of boats launching along with us early on a Monday morning.  Some were "quacker whackers"...with guns instead of fishing rods.  But there were also a few other anglers.  Although most of those I observed seemed to be happily harvesting the bumper crop of dinkster bows. 

Deer Creek evidently doesn't like me.  On my last trip my sonar wasn't working and I fished blind all day...but still caught fish.  On this trip there were two "glitches".  First, after airing up my float tube and getting ready to launch I noticed that the air chamber on the right side had lost a lot of air.  Then I remembered hearing a hiss as I capped the valve after filling.  It hadn't seated properly.  So I dug out my air pump and refilled it...making sure to seat the valve properly.  It held air and I launched...belatedly.

The second glitch was my original battery in my GoPro camera gave up the ghost and died.  I had just topped it off the night before but it only worked for a couple of segments before "powering off" for the last time.  Lucky I had a spare in my fishing vest.  I replaced it and it worked. What next????

Thanks for the report, my last two trips there I had about the same success. Water clarity was an issue, and when I did find some Clearwater, I only found smallmouth. The first of the two trips I got my first skunk of the year, and the second was only a single perch and a few smallmouth. My best educated guess is there is just too much food in the water. They just take a pass on my bait. As I was leaving on my last trip I saw the DWR truck dropping off all those fish you caught.

[wiperhunter2]

Well that's bummer, nothing but Freddies at DC but they are better than a skunk and bows always give a good tug. It was a nice day yesterday and we also noticed a fair amount of people out on a Monday.

[TubeDude]

Well that's bummer, nothing but Freddies at DC but they are better than a skunk and bows always give a good tug. It was a nice day yesterday and we also noticed a fair amount of people out on a Monday.

I think that if someone wanted to target the larger bows they could be successful...by using the right gear at the right depth.  But as plentiful and aggressive as the Freddies are they would still catch some.  I caught several yesterday on a 3" rainbow trout colored crankbait.  And the large bows from Deer Creek are probably some of the best eating trout in Utah...with their rich plankton diet.  Their flesh is usually as red as kokanee...and hard to tell the difference if you cook it right.

[jjannie]

Of course not much more to report from our outing, LOL It just was not our day. It was surprising how many were out on the water as chilly as it was, but it was busy for a Monday, maybe some had it off from work. Once the hunting started up guess they wanted to fish as they waited for the sun to rise then it was bang, bang, bang time. 

Thanks again for the invite to join with you, Pat.

[TubeDude]

Of course not much more to report from our outing, LOL It just was not our day. It was surprising how many were out on the water as chilly as it was, but it was busy for a Monday, maybe some had it off from work. Once the hunting started up guess they wanted to fish as they waited for the sun to rise then it was bang, bang, bang time. 

Thanks again for the invite to join with you, Pat.

Glad you could join me.  Sorry the fish didn't treat you nicely.  Deer Creek is one of those lakes that can be nasty to newbies.  But once you get to know it better you can almost always count on getting something besides a skunk.

Thanks for the ride back up to my car.  My old legs ain't what they used to was.  And since they made all of the former parking area for "Deer Creek Customers Only"...around the restaurant...I gotta park a quarter mile away from where I launch my tube.  That's why I like to launch from Charleston when the water level is high enough.

[PACMEN]

Couple years ago we had a real productive trips to DC catching good size bows. Three days after a previous trip almost all we could catch were Freddies.
Tried everything that had worked prior trips and still Freddies.  Couldn't figure out how to get back to consistently larger fish.  You guys have again enlightened me.  Never even thought about a large planting.  I'd bet that's what happened.

[TubeDude]

Thanks for the report, my last two trips there I had about the same success. Water clarity was an issue, and when I did find some Clearwater, I only found smallmouth. The first of the two trips I got my first skunk of the year, and the second was only a single perch and a few smallmouth. My best educated guess is there is just too much food in the water. They just take a pass on my bait. As I was leaving on my last trip I saw the DWR truck dropping off all those fish you caught.

I have been at Deer Creek in September a couple of times when DWR was downloading their annual allotment of planter bows. 


What amazes me is all of the goobers that show up to fish for the new plants...while they are still hanging around the ramp...some even just snagging them.  Even funnier...to me...are the number of "anglers" who show up in boats with their pop gear to fish for the little tykes.  Some of them in big pontoons...and since the biggest boat has the right of way they sometimes cross right over the lines trailing out behind my float tube...with no apologies.


I chortle and guffaw when I see them blissfully cranking in those poor inexperienced troutkins...and then drag them around on a chain stringer all day to show them off to other Freddie  chasers.

Oh well.  Everyone to their own tastes said the old maid as she kissed the cow.

[jjannie]

Of course not much more to report from our outing, LOL It just was not our day. It was surprising how many were out on the water as chilly as it was, but it was busy for a Monday, maybe some had it off from work. Once the hunting started up guess they wanted to fish as they waited for the sun to rise then it was bang, bang, bang time. 

Thanks again for the invite to join with you, Pat.

Glad you could join me.  Sorry the fish didn't treat you nicely.  Deer Creek is one of those lakes that can be nasty to newbies.  But once you get to know it better you can almost always count on getting something besides a skunk.

Thanks for the ride back up to my car.  My old legs ain't what they used to was.  And since they made all of the former parking area for "Deer Creek Customers Only"...around the restaurant...I gotta park a quarter mile away from where I launch my tube.  That's why I like to launch from Charleston when the water level is high enough.

 Sure thing, glad we could be of service. We still we thought it was a nice day to be out there, once the sun came up. 

It was crazy, we saw that happening, when folks don't think about where we may have lines out like they do. It gets crazy sometimes.