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First time fishing the beautiful Bear Lake
#1
[center][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2][Image: winner.gif][/size][/font][/center][center][#ff0000][size 2]Week Ending 11-30-02: [/size][/#ff0000][/center] [center][#ff0000][size 2][#008000]This Tip is a good one for any one wanting to learn to fish, wether it be on salt or fresh water and yet reminds us that the fish dont bite every day but when they do...[/#008000][#004000] [/#004000]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Yesterday, BearLakeMak was kind enough to introduce me to fishing at Bear Lake for the first time. This was a trip that we have been planning for about nine months and finally pulled it off yesterday. It turned out to be a day of fishing that I won't soon forget ... if ever! For BLM, it was another great day of fishing on one of his favorite fishing ponds. For me it was a day filled with many "firsts".[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]As we came up over Logan canyon and crested the hill giving us a view of the lake, all we could see was thick dense fog covering the lake. BLM, thinking it was going to be a repeat of last week, said oh my he!! and busted out laughing. As we arrived at the bottom of the hill in Garden city, we realized that the what we were seeing was just low cloud cover and were going to be able to navigate the lake after all.[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]We launched at the marina at about 7:15 in surprisingly warm 30 degree temperature. The fish finder said that the water was about 43 degrees. As we left the marina, BLM pointed out the areas that were frozen over last week ... no ice today.[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]As we left the marina, we seen one guy on the bank fishing with a fly rod for white fish. BLM explained that the white fish were spawning on the banks this time of year. He pulled the boat over and anchored it. BLM said "let's try for some whites for a minute here". We threw out some small white curly tail jigs tipped with worms and bounced them along the bottom. I was now fishing Bear Lake for my [#0000ff]first[/#0000ff][/size][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2] time. Within a few minutes I had caught my [#0000ff]first[/#0000ff][/size][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2] white fish, then another, and another. After I had landed three whites, (and BLM none ... ha ha) BLM said "Well, we didn't come to catch little whites" and we headed for deeper water.[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]As we cruised out about a mile or so, BLM pointed out how the clouds that we seen covering the lake when we arrived were now above us and we could see all the way to the east side of the lake. The water was calm and it was a very good day to be fishing the Bear away from the supermarket crowds. We anchored down and BLM began to teach me the art of vertical jigging for Lake Trout. It was the [#0000ff]first[/#0000ff][/size][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2] time I had ever jigged and found it to be interesting change from trolling. We sat it that one spot for about an hour without any hits. BLM decided to move out close to an area he called Guss's Point. Guss's point must be a fairly popular place cause there were about six other boats there. We found good vacant spot, anchored down, and spent the next seven hours in that one spot. I was using a brown speckled pumpkin seed colored tube jig and BLM used a blue and white one and sometimes a rainbow one. Two or three hours later, and no fish, it looked like it was going to be pretty s.l.o.w.w.w. We started to put crawfish or anchovy oil on our jigs to add some smell and around 2:00 I caught my [#0000ff]first[/#0000ff][/size][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2] Mack ... small (1-2 lbs) but fun. Then BLM landed a couple small ones. Then the other boats slowly started to leave. I guess the fish gods were pleased with our persistence for staying longer and decided to let the flood gates open for us. We started catching more macks and they were getting increasingly larger. With BLM's sharp eye on the sonar and his many hours of experience, he would tell me exactly how high or low to put my bait and very often, I would get a strike. I missed many a mack strike until BLM convinced me to quickly get my lure back down to the strike zone immediately after a missed strike. I was amazed at how many times a mack would strike a second or third time until I could hook him. After a while, I caught my [#0000ff]first[/#0000ff][/size][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2] Bear Lake cutthroat too ... about three pounds. The biggest fish all came in the boat in the late afternoon. BLM brought in an 11 lb mack with a back that looked like it had been bent or broken earlier in it's life. My biggest fish was 8-9 lbs. Around 4:00 we decided to leave for the marina. BLM said "I'll just fish for another 5 minutes" ... bam ... another 9 pounder! By the time we left for the marina, we had each caught a half dozen or more good sized macks. I was psyched! It had been one awesome day. Cold but awesome. Upon reaching the marina, there were about 6 guys fishing the bank for whites, including that same fly fisherman. We decided to stop and try for a few more whites our selves. I caught two more large whites and then we pulled back into the dock at about 5:30 to end the day on the lake.[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]All-in-all, I found it to be an extremely good day fishing; many firsts and the biggest fish I have ever caught!!! I know that most of you have all caught many bigger fish than what I did but I doubt that you could have enjoyed it much more. But most of all, I want to thank BLM for his taking me and teaching me so many tricks and tips to vertical jigging for Bear Lake Macks.[/size][/font]
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#2
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#3
Old_Coot,
It is a great thing to see a member of BFT put the boards to use. You have done just that! You registered, Posted, Replyed, provided information, Recieved information, Met some great members of BFT and Spent quality time with them on the water.
If you keep up the process, you will have to get a bigger book to hold your friends contact info in. Your current book will run out of room soon if it has not already.
You are doing it all! Great report and a pleasure to read!
BLM : Great pic's of the day at Bear Lake. Thanks for shareing them with us all at BFT message boards![Smile]
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#4
Congratulations Old Coot, and I'm jealous. It sure increases the odds when you are able to fish with someone who knows what they are doing.

Kent
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#5
Hey Congrats there Old Coot nothing like pulling in a few of anything when your on the water. Glad you enjoyed yourself I know I enjoyed the post. BLM great pics of you two. Are you guys sure it was only 30 degrees LOL
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#6
Hey Coot, looks like you two had a great time on Bear Lake. The pix are fantastic,I'm so jealous maybe one day we will have to get out there and drop a line.Thanks for the great post also.
AFDan52
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#7
dito on the congratulations. i have never caught a mack and im quite jealous. great pics guys
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#8
[size 4][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Hey guys, BLM wrote up 3-4 great posts last summer detailing the art of jigging Bear Lake for those big lake trout mackinaws. I went back and read them in great detail. The information in those posts were EXACTLY what he showed me on Friday. If any of you wanted to know exactly when, where, and how to have a successful trip jigging for macks on the Bear, just re-read and head his words ... word-for-word. There are probably other ways for similar success but these are the ones I now hold near and dear. If you want to read his advice, go back to the following posts: [/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Jigging Bear Lake ... July 17- 18, 2002 (Three separate articles)[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Re: Mr. Bear Lake Mack ... June 5, 2002[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Bear Lake is the same way! ... July 14, 2002[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Believe every word he writes and pay especially close attention to anything he puts in CAPITAL LETTERS.[/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]The only thing I could add is to bring your camera![/size][/font][/size]
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#9
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]Believe me, no truer BS has ever been spoken. If you can't find them I have extra copies that will be on sale for $10 a piece. All proceeds will go to my favorite charity - ME![/size][/font][Tongue][Tongue][Tongue][Tongue]
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#10
Here it is Friday night 6:00-6:30pm good and dark out and the doorbell rings I get the door, Well come on in what a suprise its Old Coot. We sit down and I get the excitying details about Coot and BLM"s day on the lake. "How sweet it is," I wish you all could have been siting around my table hearing the "Way Cool" details of Old Coot"s day, then he ask me if I want to see one? Yes with excyment I say, so out
to the truck we go. "Holly c***" I say as he lifts one out,
Its huge,Coot Smiles and says this is the smallist one I caught; Congrats Old Coot on a day at Bear Lake.
I"ve got to try my hand on the lake now, I need to wet my line:::
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#11
Nice post . You sound like you had a blast . I need to learn how to fish Bear lake . Never have yet . tight lines
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#12
I tell you what Old Coot. You definitely went with someone who knows there stuff if you got into that many Macs your first day out on Bear Lake. Bear Lake Mac we will have to chat some day. I was out fly fishing from the marina for about 4 hours that day. Not sure if you were talking about me or the guy on the north end. Can't wait to see it freeze this year.

tightline
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#13
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Yes-R-eee Tightline,[/size][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2][font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]

I certainly was out with a pro ... BLM does knows his stuff. I know he's not one to admit it but he is damn good. And one thing I didn't mention was about his boat. No question, he has the nicest 14 ft. aluminum I have ever seen! VERY well designed and arranged ... with much of it built by himself. He has redefined the meaning of "14 foot".

I wonder if you were the fly fisherman we seen. We seen him at about 7:30 - 8:00 that morning just on the north side of the marina inlet. But I think he was still there 9 or 10 hours later when we came back in.[/size][/font][/size][/font]
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#14
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]We saw the older gentleman in waders to the north. The guy was having a blast! Almost made me wish I knew how to use a fly rod....almost. I really doubt the guy was out all day, Old Coot. He probably fished the morning, holed up for the afternoon at his cabin or condo and came back out for the evening bite. Between you and him, I couldn't get a rod on those whites![/size][/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]We were fortunate to get into some fish last Friday. The first half of that day had S-L-O-W written all over it. Everybody around us left because it was so slow. We just waited it out and got lucky. As any experienced fisherman knows, there is absolutely no substitute for time on the water. You can't catch fish if your line isn't in the water. If Bear Lake has taught me anything it has taught me the patience of Job. You never know when a good fish is going to hit so all you can do is wait. Some times you wait a good long time. There have been MANY days I've sat on that lake and not got one bite all day. So many times, guys are ready to pack it up when the going gets slow. Tell me what else you got to do? Go home and sit in the easy chair or some honey-do? I'll stay on the water, thank you. So you never know; even knowing every "secret" in the book, it comes down to all you can do is put in your time and hope for the best.[/size][/font]
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#15
Old Coot & BLM

I think you two were seeing a different person I was on the south dike of the marina and showed up at about 9:00 a.m. and there was already a guy on the north end. I'll tell you what BLM. You take me out a day in the boat at ice off and I will trade you a trip catching double digit Lakers on a fly rod any time. I have the equipment and guarantee at least a couple hook ups. You would be surprised at how effective it is. Now whether they are landed or not on a fly rod is another story that is the hard part.

tightline
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#16
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]That's more then I will guarantee! I won't even gaurantee the boat will start even though I'm fairly certain it will. When ice off comes, if it freezes over, we'll try and hook up together. I'm certainly ready to fish for macks any time.[/size][/font]
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