07-19-2009, 03:56 AM
[font "Times New Roman"]I have been planning a trip to Milner Dam for catfish for some time. I contacted Tube Dude for his impute into the sanity of it all. I wanted to put in at the Burley Bridge. The problem was I could not find any public land to take out. The closest one on the map I could find was down east of the dam. This trip was going to be a 9-map mile trip in a float tube. After writing with TD and seeing that it was going to be over 100 degrees I decided to try harder at finding a public take out. Well I went on to google earth and found a spot that looked like a ramp behind a business. I decided to drive over and talk to them. Well when I got there I found it was a ramp sponsored by the local BASS club. This take out gave us about a 3-mile trip in our tubes now the trip was ON![/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] The crazy men that went with me on the trip were my son Jacob and our new Youth pastor from our church, Dan. We launched at 7:30 am. The outside temp was 55 and the water was 69. I think some of the guys at the ramp thought we were crazy because we were NEVER going to kick back to the ramp. That water speed in the current was 1.5 MPH to 2 MPH. We were not coming back! What they didn’t know was Dan also took his truck and we left it at the take out spot.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] As we rounded the first turn I could see a pod of carp on the surface of the water. We coasted into them and tried to hook up. No deal but they didn’t go far. We worked them a little more and lost them. I moved into a bay and saw a pair on the surface. I caste past them, and reeled the worm to them and let it sink, GAME ON! [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] The big carp was on my Ultra light. As soon as I set the hook he went buck wild. I chased him down and soon he just planted him self on the bottom. I thought he wrapped him self in the milfoil but I worked on him and he blasted out again. Soon I was wrastlin him on to the tube.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] I thought it would be cool to take a picture looking back into town so I took a picture and as my camera went off I had a strike on the ultra light. Soon I was landing the first little kitty. At this time all of us had split up and we were talking by radio. Jacob was nailing the bass and Dan was pounding them too. I got a couple of 11.5” bass just my luck all the bass I got were too small. I just didn’t have any luck with bass. I think I was trying too hard for bottom dwellers. Soon I was back in a tussle with my second kitty. By this time Jacob had a 14” bass and Dan had 4 over 12”.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] Man it was getting hot out side. I had to take off my life vest I was so hot, and stop to drink a HOT bottle of water because I forgot to put ice in the cooler. At this time it was about 2:00pm and the heat was bearing down on us. We were about 1 mile away from the take out at this point and I tossed a worm under a bush on the bank, BAM my third kitty. The heat had Jacob ready for the take out. He put on a chunk of trout and headed out into the fast water. He was cooking going with the current with a 5 mph wind blowing at his back. Soon I got a call he had hooked up with a monster. After what seemed like forever. I got another call, and it was a carp. He has wanted a carp BAD for the last 2 years. His idea to head for the truck sounded good so I decided to follow him to the truck. About half way I got a BIG hit. I had another carp. This one was smaller than the first. Jacob and his sister Katie have BOTH wanted me to cook a carp, and I don’t know why, but this one was going to be the one.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] We landed at the ramp about the same time. Jacob had been sidetracked by more Bass. I carried my tube past some guys that were resting in the shade of a tree. One of them said MAN I like your tube set up. Is that a fish finder? We talked about it for a little bit and I went to get my camera to take Jacobs picture with his “carp”. He lifted the fish and it was a sucker, a big one at that. I had never seen one that big at any time or anywhere. I was impressed. Any way it was 4:00 by the time we headed for home and it was 102 degrees outside. As we were driving Jacob looked at the fish records in the regulations. He said, “DAD the record Suckers were a Large scale sucker was 26” long, and the Utah sucker was 25.5” long”. He said, “ my fish was way over 24” long my scale on my apron only went to 22” long and this fish was hanging over by a lot”. We didn’t keep the fish but I don’t think that his fish went over 8 pounds but I could be wrong. He was excited that he got a fish that was so close to the record. Now I wish we had brought it home to find out. [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] This first trip to Milner was a success in my mind. We went with the idea that if we caught anything it would be a fun day. The float trip was the best part in all our minds.[/font]
I was hoping that I would find cats but was not sure where to start looking. I think more float trips a couple miles down stream might be even better. I don’t know if I will have the time this year or not. After we got home a storm started to brew and the heat was starting to back off. Ya it was a great day. Ron
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[font "Times New Roman"] The crazy men that went with me on the trip were my son Jacob and our new Youth pastor from our church, Dan. We launched at 7:30 am. The outside temp was 55 and the water was 69. I think some of the guys at the ramp thought we were crazy because we were NEVER going to kick back to the ramp. That water speed in the current was 1.5 MPH to 2 MPH. We were not coming back! What they didn’t know was Dan also took his truck and we left it at the take out spot.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] As we rounded the first turn I could see a pod of carp on the surface of the water. We coasted into them and tried to hook up. No deal but they didn’t go far. We worked them a little more and lost them. I moved into a bay and saw a pair on the surface. I caste past them, and reeled the worm to them and let it sink, GAME ON! [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] The big carp was on my Ultra light. As soon as I set the hook he went buck wild. I chased him down and soon he just planted him self on the bottom. I thought he wrapped him self in the milfoil but I worked on him and he blasted out again. Soon I was wrastlin him on to the tube.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] I thought it would be cool to take a picture looking back into town so I took a picture and as my camera went off I had a strike on the ultra light. Soon I was landing the first little kitty. At this time all of us had split up and we were talking by radio. Jacob was nailing the bass and Dan was pounding them too. I got a couple of 11.5” bass just my luck all the bass I got were too small. I just didn’t have any luck with bass. I think I was trying too hard for bottom dwellers. Soon I was back in a tussle with my second kitty. By this time Jacob had a 14” bass and Dan had 4 over 12”.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] Man it was getting hot out side. I had to take off my life vest I was so hot, and stop to drink a HOT bottle of water because I forgot to put ice in the cooler. At this time it was about 2:00pm and the heat was bearing down on us. We were about 1 mile away from the take out at this point and I tossed a worm under a bush on the bank, BAM my third kitty. The heat had Jacob ready for the take out. He put on a chunk of trout and headed out into the fast water. He was cooking going with the current with a 5 mph wind blowing at his back. Soon I got a call he had hooked up with a monster. After what seemed like forever. I got another call, and it was a carp. He has wanted a carp BAD for the last 2 years. His idea to head for the truck sounded good so I decided to follow him to the truck. About half way I got a BIG hit. I had another carp. This one was smaller than the first. Jacob and his sister Katie have BOTH wanted me to cook a carp, and I don’t know why, but this one was going to be the one.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] We landed at the ramp about the same time. Jacob had been sidetracked by more Bass. I carried my tube past some guys that were resting in the shade of a tree. One of them said MAN I like your tube set up. Is that a fish finder? We talked about it for a little bit and I went to get my camera to take Jacobs picture with his “carp”. He lifted the fish and it was a sucker, a big one at that. I had never seen one that big at any time or anywhere. I was impressed. Any way it was 4:00 by the time we headed for home and it was 102 degrees outside. As we were driving Jacob looked at the fish records in the regulations. He said, “DAD the record Suckers were a Large scale sucker was 26” long, and the Utah sucker was 25.5” long”. He said, “ my fish was way over 24” long my scale on my apron only went to 22” long and this fish was hanging over by a lot”. We didn’t keep the fish but I don’t think that his fish went over 8 pounds but I could be wrong. He was excited that he got a fish that was so close to the record. Now I wish we had brought it home to find out. [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] This first trip to Milner was a success in my mind. We went with the idea that if we caught anything it would be a fun day. The float trip was the best part in all our minds.[/font]
I was hoping that I would find cats but was not sure where to start looking. I think more float trips a couple miles down stream might be even better. I don’t know if I will have the time this year or not. After we got home a storm started to brew and the heat was starting to back off. Ya it was a great day. Ron
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