04-17-2023, 07:39 PM
(04-17-2023, 07:30 PM)wormandbobber Wrote: Otter Creek was gill netted last week and results were very encouraging...nets averaged 23 fish per net and included lots of big fish (20 is considered good results for Otter Creek). Poor fishing is almost certainly a result of major influx of water. Otter Creek was drawn down very low last fall (around 10% if memory serves correctly) and now is up to about 50% capacity. What that means is we have lots of nutrients (food) entering the reservoir and turbid water dominates. I would expect fishing to be pretty tough until runoff is over and the water starts to clear up and warm.
I would expect all of the rainbow trout fisheries in the southern region to have tougher than normal fishing this year just because of the excess runoff we will see this year. Remember, poor fishing isn't always a result of few fish but also tough conditions.
Unfortunately early ice-off results this year for M-ville and the OC (before run off) have been dismal, as well as last years...so it's definitely a fish population issue there. Now adding recent run off into the water will just make catching the few fish available even harder, true. We anticipate an excellent year for our higher southern UT mountain lakes with water levels back into vital habitat that support a healthy fishery. Can't wait!