The Knolls 5-12-06

[Playas44]

Frozenover and I decided to try our hand at catfishing over on the Knolls side.
We hit the water about 3:00 pm in our float tubes. At first the water was fairly calm, but it didn't take long for the wind to come up and blow us around.
James caught a white bass on a chunk of minnow just as we started out. We were thinking then it was going to be a great evening.
Well, the wind started up and made it difficult to get around, so we stayed close to the truck. I ending up catching two white bass, one right after another. Both were caught on a shad crank bait.
I beat the brush to death after that without another hit.
The wind got to blowing so bad, about the only thing we could do was troll for cats. NO LUCK.
It was an exciting evening although. Somewhere around 7:00 pm, some idiots started shooting in the hills around the knolls. I was on shore when they first started shooting and the shots sounded kind of strange. When I looked back out on the lake, I could see two bullets hit the water and kick up a spray. From my vantage point it looked like the shot when right over the heads of two guys in a boat just off the shore. We all yelled for them to stop and we thought they had.
I went back out and started fishing again, when the shooting started again in ernest. Two bullets hit the water within five feet of the two guys in the boat. We all started yelling at them and one of the guys in the boat called 911.
I never did see the sheriff and the shooting didn't stop for a long time. We were all very leary of trying to make it up on the hill for fear of getting shot.
We loaded up and left about 8:00 pm. We never did see the shooters.
There were people camped all over out there. I was shocked that someone would be shooting out there with some many people around.
STUPID PEOPLE ruin it for everyone!!
I enjoy shooting my self. I have been known to blaze through numerous rounds of ammo. BUT, I am alway careful and know I have a solid backstop. These idiots are going to kill someone. And came very close to doing just that tonight.
I was sure wishing the Carp Punisher was along with us.

As for the cat fishing, I guess we need another lesson from the Tude Dude, we sure didn't do very well.
[signature]

[Coldfooter]

I've fished that area many many times over my many years and its a given there is a lot of idiots that hang out there that play with guns. A couple years back we had to high tail it to shore in our float tubes to avoid being hit by stray bullets. I hope the 911 call proved successful!

Sorry to hear you didnt hit a few channels drifting/trolling. Thats usually a great way to tap into them. Were you "long lining" back say 40'-50' under a bobber? I commonly use a 1/8-1/4 once jig (depending on the drift speed) with a dark colored grub under a bobber and set it up so the jig skips along just off the bottom, and I sweeten the deal with a strip of some type of cut bait when I drift/troll for kitties.. Commonly works great..
Good to hear the whities were willing to stretch your strings tho'..
[signature]

[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Sorry you guys had a typical Utah Lake afternoon (wind). Also sorry about the shooters. That is the downside of that area. It seems to attract folks that don't care about others. Lots of trash...mostly empty beer bottles and other shoreline party remnants.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]The shooting can be a concern too. Quite a few shooters just set up targets or bottles and blaze away, without any concern for where the shots go. I have never seen a DWR officer or sheriff down there. That is probably why the "other side" likes it so much. No hassle.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I went fishing at Lincoln Beach yesterday morning. Calm, clear and sunny. Fishing was decent until about 10 AM and then we could not buy another bite...anywhere...and we covered a lot of lake in the next two hours. It is like that sometimes.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]At the knolls, the cats are sometimes right close to shore and will hit lures being fished for whites or walleyes. At other times they will stay out in 5-6 feet of water, and deeper. As Coldfooter suggests, fishing for the cats is often best with a float, to keep your baits out of the rocks and snags. You have to watch your sonar and adjust the length of line under the float to keep the jig/bait just off the bottom. But, cats will come up a ways off the bottom to hit a good offering, so don't fish so deep that you get snagged.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]At least you know where that spot is now. There are others both better and worse. If you really want a grab bag and good fishing, we will have to PM and hook up for a couple of other spots.[/#0000ff]
[signature]

[Playas44]

Thanks Coldfooter and Tude Dude.
Towards the end, we had chunks of fish meat on one and hot dog on the other. We did have them under a bobber with about 6 foot of leader.
The two guys in the boat caught one cat and thought they had another one.
The flying lead gives a whole new meaning to chucking and ducking.
[signature]

[lunkerhunter2]

Fight crime! Shoot back! Next time carry a 300 Win. Mag and see who stops shooting! Works like a charm. LOL!
[signature]

[Playas44]

That would have been a good idea if we even knew where it was coming from.
I guess just putting lead in the air may have gotten their attention.
I guess another thing that was so scary was seeing how many families were out there trying to have a good weekend and here you have a bunch of clowns shooting the place up.
There were quite a few camps set up by the time we left.
It seemed like a recipe for disaster.
The middle of the week may be a much better time to go to that area.
[signature]