02-04-2014, 04:13 PM
Tuesday, February 04, 2014
Bear Lake Fishing Report:
I did a recon of Bear Lake this morning in order to update the access/conditions. There is a lot of ice on the lake, but there is still quite a bit of open water interspersed here and there. Anglers have been ice fishing in the area of the pump house in the southwest corner of the lake, but ice conditions are extremely variable due to the stacked ice. In some areas it is 5-6” and others it is 1”. Use extreme caution if you are venturing out on the ice. There is ice shelved up around the shoreline just about everywhere at this time and it is stacked at least 5’ high in the mouth of the Utah State Park marina. The majority of the open water is in the southeast corner of the lake. The “rockpile” are is completely frozen, but the ice is still very thin. It could improve if the cold weather continues the rest of the week. The Bonneville cisco run is over. Remember, in order to keep a cutthroat trout from Bear Lake it must have a healed fin clip (usually the adipose fin). Cutthroat trout with all fins intact have to be released, including fish that are tagged with all of their fins. Consider releasing large lake trout in order to maintain the fishery. Lake trout can easily live to over 35 years old in Bear Lake.
Garden City Community Fishery Pond
The pond level is about 3’ below full and the ice is about 15” thick. Anglers are doing well for rainbow trout and a few larger cutthroat trout. Last weekend two of us landed about 25 rainbows and 4 cutthroat in just over 2 hrs of fishing. The rainbow averaged about 10-11" and the cutthroat about 14-16". The best luck was on small green plastic jigs or ice flies tipped with meal worms. Wax worms and night crawlers have also been working. There are two air bubblers in the pond as well as the spring inflow which either keep the water open or the ice is very thin in these areas. Do not get close the bubbler or spring inflow! Garden City Pond is a community fishery and the daily limit is two fish total.
Laketown Reservoir
Pond level is full, and the reservoir is frozen. Anglers are catching rainbow trout through the ice with ice flies or small jigs tipped with meal worms, wax worms, and night crawlers. Due to low snow levels you can still drive up to the reservoir with a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Laketown Reservoir is not a community fishery, therefore, the daily limit is four trout.
[signature]
Bear Lake Fishing Report:
I did a recon of Bear Lake this morning in order to update the access/conditions. There is a lot of ice on the lake, but there is still quite a bit of open water interspersed here and there. Anglers have been ice fishing in the area of the pump house in the southwest corner of the lake, but ice conditions are extremely variable due to the stacked ice. In some areas it is 5-6” and others it is 1”. Use extreme caution if you are venturing out on the ice. There is ice shelved up around the shoreline just about everywhere at this time and it is stacked at least 5’ high in the mouth of the Utah State Park marina. The majority of the open water is in the southeast corner of the lake. The “rockpile” are is completely frozen, but the ice is still very thin. It could improve if the cold weather continues the rest of the week. The Bonneville cisco run is over. Remember, in order to keep a cutthroat trout from Bear Lake it must have a healed fin clip (usually the adipose fin). Cutthroat trout with all fins intact have to be released, including fish that are tagged with all of their fins. Consider releasing large lake trout in order to maintain the fishery. Lake trout can easily live to over 35 years old in Bear Lake.
Garden City Community Fishery Pond
The pond level is about 3’ below full and the ice is about 15” thick. Anglers are doing well for rainbow trout and a few larger cutthroat trout. Last weekend two of us landed about 25 rainbows and 4 cutthroat in just over 2 hrs of fishing. The rainbow averaged about 10-11" and the cutthroat about 14-16". The best luck was on small green plastic jigs or ice flies tipped with meal worms. Wax worms and night crawlers have also been working. There are two air bubblers in the pond as well as the spring inflow which either keep the water open or the ice is very thin in these areas. Do not get close the bubbler or spring inflow! Garden City Pond is a community fishery and the daily limit is two fish total.
Laketown Reservoir
Pond level is full, and the reservoir is frozen. Anglers are catching rainbow trout through the ice with ice flies or small jigs tipped with meal worms, wax worms, and night crawlers. Due to low snow levels you can still drive up to the reservoir with a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Laketown Reservoir is not a community fishery, therefore, the daily limit is four trout.
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