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[#0000ff]Chris Penne...Northern Region Aquatics Manager for DWR...has been a big help to BFT and all Willardites. He has always been quick to respond to questions about Willard...and other waters and species. So when he indicated an interest in my fligs I invited him to join me for a flig-fest on Willard.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We met up at the south marina this morning...first ones through the gate. Got him supplied with a flig starter kit and some LHBE minnows...and conducted a brief rigging tutorial. Chris is a savvy angler and picked right up on it.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Air temp 70 at launch...with lots of smoke from California fires. Water temp 79. Calm and clear...except for the smoke.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Chris got prepped and launched first. I was right behind him but as I motored close to him I could see that something was wrong with his rod. It had a big bend in it. His first flig kitty...right in the channel...gave him a nice tussle.
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[#0000ff]Actually, we both hooked several fish in the channel before we got out into the open lake. No skunks today. And as soon as we got out into the lake we started getting more bites. I had given Chris one bag of minnows and I had two for myself. But he was almost through his bag within the first hour. So, nice guy that I am, I put together a second supply out of my stash.
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[#0000ff]No wipers or walleyes today, but our primary target was to get Chris some hard fighting kitties on those fligs. Mission accomplished. He had caught about a dozen before he had to leave early for some other duties.
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[#0000ff]I stayed for about another hour and finished off my remaining minnows...and then pitched some plastics. No love on plastics...except for some little rattle rattle love taps...probably small cats or wipers.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Out of bait and 8 cats in the basket by a little after 10. Off the lake in time to miss the worst of the heat. But that haze was ugly. I was wondering if those fires in California might be burning up some of the "cash crops" in those hills. First clue was the seagulls flying upside down and the terns making U-turns.
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Awesome trip for sure. The purple worked great. Did your lungs have any problem handling to smoky air?
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[#0000FF]No problem...as long as I didn't inhale.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]The reality was that the air was hazy but there was no real smoky smell.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Anyway, breathing is overrated.
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Nice job on the cats. The smoke sure did make the moon look red this morning.
Maybe one of these days you should pass Willard and try flinging some fligs on the Bear River. I always see your posts on Willard when you're using them and how good they work for cats. I bet they would work great on the river!
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Thanks for a great report and pictures. It seems like it is hard not to catch kitties at Willard right now. I hope it stays that way for the folks up there. I'm glad you guys had a fliggin good time.
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[#0000FF]I'm sure the fligs WOULD work well on the Bear. I make some "Gorilla Fligs" (see pic) with big 5/0 hooks that are 3X strong for Utah Lake. As BLK and others will confirm, big cats love them when decorated with a big chunk of meat.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]I used to fish the Bear in years past, but there are just too many other places that call to my tube these days. That, and I don't do night fishing any more. Had some "fun" trips there though...with the skeeters and the skunks (real ones).
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[#0000FF]I have been trying to plan a trip or two on Utah Lake, but the weather reports keep changing so much I have been spending more time up north. That will change soon. And I have some new flig colors I think will work well on the big brown pond.
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You have been doing well on the Willard kitties great report as always.
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[#0000FF]Thanks. I suspect the UL kitties would be friendly too. But the weather and water conditions...for we of the float tube persuasion...not so much. I shall return.
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True, can't catch walleyes or wipers but the cats are still playing at Willard. This is the bigger of 2 caught Friday while trolling cranks at 3mph. It hit before I could get the planer attached to the line. Incidentally, TubeDude and Chris were directly behind me in this pic my wife took.
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[#0000FF]Hey, you shoulda waved. I would have waved back...even using all the fingers on my waving hand.
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[#0000FF]It pays to be an "equal opportunity" angler...on Willard or anywhere. If your "targeted" species is not willing to play, then be happy with whatever else shows up to provide some tugs. If you're not with the fish you love, love the fish you're with.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Chris and I commented several times that those cats put up a dandy fight...and that there was no mistaking them for Strawberry cuts...or walleyes.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]If'n 'twern't for those everlovin' cats at Willard there would be a lot more skunk days for a lot more anglers. And those who keep a few for the table or the smoker usually admit there aren't many (if any) fish any better for eating. Their firm white flesh (when cooked) has earned my calling them "Willard Bay sole".
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You catch enough of them that they could be your sole food...
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[#0000FF]Groan....[/#0000FF]
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I would have waved had I know it was you at the time. I'd sooner give wide berth to tooners and I'm sure you appreciate that.
I have to add that I think the channel cats in Willard taste better than UL cats, especially as the water warms.
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We did pretty good on the Willard cats several times this year but I would prefer catching the walleye, I'm afraid we may never see good walleye fishing in Willard again.
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[#0000FF]Water quality and diet are large factors in the taste of the fish too. Willard is deeper, cleaner and has a more widely varied diet for cats...including more crawdads.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Since the advent of wipers in Willard the cats do not get as big but there are always good numbers and they are just the right size for taking home.
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What kind of minnows are you using with your fligs? Is there a place I could buy some (or something similar enough to catch cats) in Cache Valley? You have been doing awesome on cats at Willard and I still haven’t figured out how to catch them reliably.
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[#0000FF]I like to use small chub minnows...when I can get them. I catch all my own but my spots are hammered with the drought conditions. However, you can also use small pieces of carp meat, perch meat (where legal), crawlers, etc. If you have larger chubs, pieces will work as well or better than small chub minnows. I have tried red-side shiners but they do not work as well...at least in Willard.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]If you can get some baby carp they work well too. This is a good time of year to get them if you can find them.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Difficult to find small chub minnows at bait shops. But you can sometimes find larger ones and cut them into pieces.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]I am attaching the section on Catfish from my CD/book on Willard Bay. Hopefully it will provide some ideas on spots and tactics to help you improve your success ratio.
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Thank you! That’s some great information. I’ll give it a try.
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