Still a few perch left in Mill Meadow

[TopH2O]

If I had to guess, I'd say there's about 30 to 40 Thousand!
A friend and I made it over to Mill Meadow this morning and arrived to find great weather, a few fishermen and very willing Yellow Perch. The lake has been constantly rising so there is some thin ice around the edges but we didn't have any problem getting onto the ice. We did take our 8 foot long 2x8 board with us just in case there was a problem coming back in later in the day. It wasn't really a problem coming in, you just had to pick the right spot near the concrete boat ramp where the ice was solid.
We fished near the boat ramp and a little way toward the culvert under the road where the creek flows into the reservoir. I noticed the water had come up at least 4 or 5 feet since my last visit about two weeks ago. We fished in water between 16 and 21 feet deep and did well in all the areas we tried. We were using small ice jigs tipped with perch belly meat suspended about 8 inches below a shiny attractor such as a Kastmaster or Stinger spoon. The action was very fast and practically non-stop all day with only a few short periods of slower action.
I would estimate the two of us caught around 125 perch and a couple of brown trout today. I think we ended up taking about 35 fish (perch, no trout) home. We fished from 0930 until 1600. The ice is at least 14 inches thick and very noisy due to the expansion caused by the rising water.
Mill Meadow was featured recently on "Roughin It Outdoors" which starred BFT's own Pikeman99. I heard several other fishermen today mention that they saw the show last weekend so it has apparently generated some interest. There were about a dozen people on the ice today which is a few more than I've seen on a weekday.
Mill Meadow is a great place to take the family and let the kids fish where they can catch a bunch of tasty perch in a short time.
I believe the work on the dam which was postponed this year will resume next summer and the lake will be drained and we may see the end to this great panfish water. So get down there while the gettin's good.

[url "http://s212.photobucket.com/albums/cc127/topwater52/?action=view&current=IMG_1756.jpg"][/url]

Most of the perch we kept were in the 8.5 to 10 inch range. Not jumbos like you may see elsewhere, but there's not many places where you can catch so many in a day. All in all a great day on a beautiful body of water away from the beaten path and the weather was fantastic!

Mike
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[Fish_N_Fnatic]

Thanks for the report. I'am going to have to head down there soon to catch those perch before they drain the lake.

[Springbuck]

10" perch aren't that bad, really....a pile of 10"ers would be fine with me..
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[JustJim]

Mike,

Glad you had a good trip (I knew you would!) The conditions you described were just as we found last weekend. Sounds like it's holding steady.

Jim
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[JustJim]

Springbuck,

10 inchers is at the top end of the scale for Mill. In my experience, we usually get one or two that size for about every 20-30 "keepers" (8 inchers). Still, that's a lot better than the Fish Lake variety and still a lot of great eating!
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Sounds like fun. Too bad it is such a long trip for the folks along the Wasatch Front. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Looks like the new Showdown stand worked okay.[/#0000ff]
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[wormandbobber]

[quote TopH2O]If
I believe the work on the dam which was postponed this year will resume next summer and the lake will be drained and we may see the end to this great panfish water. So get down there while the gettin's good.

[/quote]

Actually, draining the reservoir and starting over should only help the perch fishery. The perch in Mill Meadow have come downstream from Johnson Reservoir which is absolutely loaded with them. When Mill Meadow is drained and then refilled, perch from the Fremont will move into the reservoir immediately.

What could happen is that the perch might have a little more room to grow in the reservoir and you might see some larger sized fish...
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[TopH2O]

The Showdown stand was a very welcome addition to my pile of gear. I used 20 inch legs for the two front pieces and a 22 inch piece for the back leg. I have the angle greater on the back leg which makes for a very stable platform. I also added two eye screws on the sides of the hardboard and I can then secure the finder with a small bungee cord.
I really like having the unit at eye level and I can just reach over and change the settings when the need arises.

Thanks for the help.

Mike
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[Kevin_VanDam]

Just watched Roughin' It on my dvr yesterday and it had me wanting to go down to Mill Meadow real bad. Only problem is the long drive (about 4 hours from my house) but those perch and the chance to catch a splake or tiger at forsyth would make it worth it. I know that 50 perch is a lot of fish, but since it's in such a remote location, and that they're going to drain and posion it, couldn't the dwr temporarily change it to no limit? That way more of the perch will be harvested and used before they pull the plug and all those fat perch go down the drain.

[TopH2O]

I would imagine the Southern Region of the DWR will ask for an emergency rule change to remove the limits on Mill Meadow once they know the draining is definitely going to happen this summer. They did make the rule change last summer when the draining was started. If you would like to express your opinion on the matter I suggest you contact Aquatics Biologist Mike Hadley at the DWR Southern Region office located in Cedar City.
I'd bet the situation is on their radar screen.

Mike
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[CoyoteSpinner]

Ya got me thinnin' I HATE the way my Cabelas cam sits, or doesn't. And the battery - I'm just sure -left to it's own accord, it'll end up down a hole one of these days.

Been propping it on a bucket lid, but it wants to look forward or look up, and the side pockets just aren't geared for the battery - plus the leads want to pop off.

Wouldn't mind seeing those "shots" you got of the 'Showdown Stand'. Sounds like me and the PVC gots a date! Get that eye-level view - sounds like a plan.

[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Here's what mine looks like, with a supporting rail. No need for anything more than a basic platform and some bungee cords.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]You simply need to measure the width and length you need and then start cutting and fitting the pieces.[/#0000ff]
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[TopH2O]

I just sent this photo link to CoyoteSpinner but I think there may be others who would be interested.
This photo was taken before I decided to add the base made of 1/8" hardboard.

[url "http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc127/topwater52/Showdownfinderwithbluetext.jpg"]http://i212.photobucket.com/...nderwithbluetext.jpg[/url]
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[dubob]

[quote TopH2O]I would imagine the Southern Region of the DWR will ask for an emergency rule change to remove the limits on Mill Meadow once they know the draining is definitely going to happen this summer. They did make the rule change last summer when the draining was started. If you would like to express your opinion on the matter I suggest you contact Aquatics Biologist Mike Hadley at the DWR Southern Region office located in Cedar City.
I'd bet the situation is on their radar screen.

Mike[/quote][font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]I have never been to Mill Meadow, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night. No, wait a minute, that's another story. [][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]I did actually talk to the water master for Mill Meadow last September. He told me the repair to be done is a replacement of the gate valve on pipe going down into the reservoir on the dam itself. The draw down last year was completed as much as needed to expose that gate valve and did not completely drain the reservoir. The draw down this year will be the same as it was last summer. As I understood the water master, the reservoir was not last year, and will not this year, be completely drained. The perch seemed to have survived okay based on the ice fishing reports I’m seeing this season and I would think they will do so again this year. I really don’t expect that Mill Meadow will be completely drained this year based on what the water master told me last September.[/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]I have no knowledge of any changes being considered for Mill Meadow by the DWR, but that doesn't mean they are not considering changes.[/#800000][/font]
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[TopH2O]

I watched the "Roughin' It Outdoors" segment that was broadcast last Saturday which featured Pikeman99 fishing at Mill Meadow. You can view the show on the KUTV website by using the "Outdoors" link.

The two DWR biologists who were interviewed on the show stated that Mill Meadow will again be drawn down this fall and at that point the reservoir will be poisoned to remove all the remaining fish. The DWR intends to reestablish the trout fishery. DWR Aquatics Assistant Manager for the Southern Region, Richard Hepworth, said he expects yellow perch will naturally return to Mill Meadow by moving downstream from Johnson Reservoir. The downstream movement of the perch will take several years to have the numbers result in a viable perch fishery. Hepworth said he expected several years of very good trout fishing before the perch become abundant enough to once again dominate the reservoir.
Since the reservoir will be poisoned this fall, I encourage those interested to give Mill Meadow a try and take home some of the easy to catch perch.

Mike
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[ocean]

I am hoping to make a trip down there next weekend weather permitting or if i can borrow an auger. Its a 2 hour drive for me so its not as bad as yours. Be a shame to have those perchies go to waste.Pikeman does make catching perch look easy dont he.[:p]
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