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[#0000ff]Several of us cataholics have been trying to get a trip together for the Knolls. It has always treated me well and a few others too. But Fatbiker was a Knolls newbie. Besides myself and FB there was Pa and BLK with his boat crewman CatCarsen. Catchinon joined us briefly but the water was high and the shoreline growth was higher. Not friendly for bank tanglin'. But according to his report he found some love at Lincoln Beach.
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[#0000ff]Beautiful morning. Air temp mid fifties. Water temp just under 68 to start...and pretty good water clarity for Utah Lake. It has been a while since the lake has been this high. During the low water period the phrags and the tamarisk have grown in solid along the shoreline. But we found a decent launch spot for the tubes. BLK launched his boat at Lincoln Beach and made the flat water run over to the Knolls to join us.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The kitties were cooperative. We all got rid of the skunk within a short time after launching. And it just got better from there. Everybody caught a grundle of cats. Most were in the 2-footer range, but BLK and Catcarsen scored some 10 pounders.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Just as I was loading up my gear a DNR truck drove up. The lady driving chatted for a few minutes and said she was there to explore potential site location for a proposed gravel launch area for the Knolls. Well, there goes the neighborhood for we who have known and loved the rustic charm of that spot.
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All in all it sounds like a great morning. It was nice of you to let BLK and CatCarson get the big ones today! was there a water depth that seemed most productive or were they "everywhere?" You didn't mention whites, were they MIA today?
Thanks for the report and great pictures as always!
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Another great day on the water. It was good to get to meet and fish with TD. Pa, and FatBiker. The fishing was about as good as it gets for us today. Me and Carsen hauled in some real hogs. We caught several in the 10 to 11 pound range... big football sized bellies but not the length we were looking for. We caught at least 30 cats today and all of them were ready for a fight. White bass and carplettes seemed to work best for us.
It was entertaining to watch the tubers spin incircles as they tried to keep up with a big cat. We laughed at TD spinning around and were pretty sure he would be dizzy, but then he always looks dizzy.
No white bass today. Last week when I was there a midge hatch was on and the wb were surface slurping everywhere. I dropped a RCK in them and caught 10 whites on 12 casts... losing two at the boat on two of the casts. Was hoping to see a similar hatch today but not so. All of the whites were small six inchers, perfect for bait.
Fun day, good company, beautiful weather, and lots of cats.
BLK
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[#0000FF]The whiskery ones seemed to be all over. We caught them from 4' to over 8' deep. And some of them seemed like they had probably completed spawning and were now on the prowl. BLK and crew caught most of their larger fish out in the deeper spots. Pa and I agreed that we had the most action in 5-7 feet of water.
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[#0000FF]I did not even try for white bass today. But BLK found some slurping up midge larvae there last week. Usually possible to catch a few white bass all along the shoreline but it is so overgrown with brush it would probably take a toll on tackle.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Most of the shots I took of others were while they were positioned against the sun...or at least there was some glare. So a few of them are silhouettes at best. Darned if I am going to reel in and move just to position myself to make someone else's fish look good.
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Sounds like a great outing, glad you guys all did so well... Thanks for the report for those of us that can't get out on the pond, it's nice to live vicariously... Later J
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[#0000FF]Good luck.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Always enjoy your thorough epistles, even if I do dis on ya a bit. You do good.
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Thanks, I assumed it was a good natured dis.
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Agreed Jim, your reports are some of the best on the forum. They never lack for detail.
Looking forward to your next.
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Pat, thanks for the invite. Fishing was better than good. Lee, it's always good to see you. BLK, I've always enjoyed your reports. Nice to put a face to them.
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[#0000FF]I might say "Shirley, you jest"...except I know your name ain't Shirley.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Let's line up our dance cards and see when would be a good time for me to climb in the boat with you.[/#0000FF]
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