pa's Shakedown Cruise

[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Fellow tuber/tooner "pa" wanted to check out the new PVC setup on his toon...and had never fished Lindon. So, we done did it this morning.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Launched about 7 am in 62 degree water and 55 degree air. Clear and light breezes. Perfect storm.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Fished a couple of spots in the harbor on the way out but only got a couple of taps. Ditto at the rock dike points. Moved south toward the bubbleup and started dragging a minnow after passing the end of the west dike. Pa started doing the same in a bit shallower water.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Water levels are down about 3 feet from the high water mark so the areas I usually fish are shallower than usual. I moved out until I found some 4-5 feet water and the fun began. Had 3 cookies in the basket within a few minutes. Called pa out to deeper water and he too went bendo a couple of times. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We kept moving and catching fish until we reached the bubbleup. 8 new buoys replaced those that were trashed by last year's ice. I exchanged a bait rod for a tandem tube jig setup and began to get badly abused by a hungry mob of white bass. Got several doubles. Changed to a single 3" plastic...chartreuse with an orange head. Munch city. Bigger whities though. Switched around through several different plastics and even threw some of my fire tiger crank baits. Whities loved them. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Took a break from the whitie fest and dragged some baits to the south of the bubbleup. Good move. Out in 5.6 feet of water the kitties were waiting. In addition to several more cookies I got a two footer, a 21 incher and a BIG MAMA. A 28 inch mama kitty whupped my behind for several minutes before she agreed to climb up on my tube and pose for a couple of pictures. Thanked her kindly and sent her back down to make more kitties. Only wanted a half dozen cookies for the smoker.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Pa also beat up on the whities pretty good. The water was boiling up good from the sixth through the eighth buoys and the whities were ganged up from top to bottom. Often we would barely hit the water with a cast before our sticks bent. But, he wanted to try inside the harbor for some crappies before we left so he rowed back to the harbor. Seems his battery or his motor died. Bummer.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I had my downer too. Got a loop of line under the spool of one of my catfish rigs. Started unscrewing the spool and a kitty took off and popped off both the spool and the tightening screw. One of my favorite kitty reels too. And didn't get a hook into the fish. Bummer for me.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]Shortly after pa rounded the bend of the marina and went inside the kitties turned on again. Pow, zing, splash splash. Brought in several more in quick succession. One hard hit and fast line burnoff turned out to be a match for the early biggun...only this was a big daddy cat...about the same size as the mama kitty. Pulled hard and stayed way out away from my tube for a long time. I was surprised it was not bigger than it actually was. Felt good. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]By that time I had overfunned. Lee was not doing any good inside and neither of us wanted or needed any more fish...or any more abuse. So I fired up my electric trolling motor and ran all the way to the ramp where the water temp has risen to 67. Should be a good weekend and a great week next week.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Anybody who wants to get their kids into some fast fishing should anchor out to the south between the sixth and seventh buoys at the bubbleup. Jigs, spinners or a bubble and worm will get you all the action you can stand...and all the whities you want to fillet.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Good to fish with Lee again. His new setup seemed to work well for him and he had a when we left.[/#0000ff]
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[albinotrout]

Now I almost regret putting the toon away.[frown] Although the weather hasn't cooperated with my days off. And I have other things I gotta get done before it gets too cold. It IS train season after all.[laugh] Great job on those whities!!!! Nice kitties too!
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[wagdog]

I thought I smelled a couple o' tuber/tooners as I drove by the lake this morning. I have to look at the water even when I don't get to go fishing.
Those are some nice pics and great fish.

Pa, if you are interested in fishing from Lindon (or inside the harbor) more often, let me know. I will try to check there as often as I can for crappie and bluegill. They should move in around the dock structures as the temps drop. I bet they are in deeper water (like the channel in front of the pumphouse) or hanging out at the warm springs.

Well, since I didn't get to break out my tube this morning, I hit the harbor for 30 minutes after work. Bank tangling is weird but better than work. I caught a 28 inch male with a TubeDude "redhook 'n green bead" special. I didn't weigh him but I bet Pat could give us an idea. Would have stayed longer but I think I smell like sugary bacon to the skeeters. I lost a few pints of blood before I got back in my car.

Glad to see yall thinnin out the whities too. Do you think we'll see any 14+ inch whities this year Pat?
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[peter805]

Those are some HUGE cats ! Nice going guys.[]

Peter
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[TubeDude]

"Glad to see yall thinnin out the whities too. Do you think we'll see any 14+ inch whities this year Pat?"

[cool][#0000ff]There are always some larger white bass in the lake...some up to about 16" this year. But they are the remnants of a year class that did not have great "recruitment" from their spawn, were heavily harvested over the past couple of years or have been decimated by natural predation and other factors. [/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]The current dominant year class seems to be running about 10" to 12". There is hope that with good food and water conditions they might reach the 14" mark by next year. But by then there will be much fewer of them than the upcoming smaller year classes.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]It has been my experience that white bass in Utah Lake are much like other species in other lakes. The smaller fish tend to stay in larger schools...for protection...but the bigger fish are more likely to forage individually or in smaller groups. Catching one larger fish is no guarantee there will be more.[/#0000ff]

[#0000ff]I am no snob. I enjoy catching the heck out of them no matter what size. But I fondly remember the "olden days" when BIG whities (up to 18") were common and the average was well over 12 inches. Utah Lake is subject to a whole lot of ecological changes in any given year. Between water level fluctuations, good or bad spawn conditions, good or bad food resources, etc. we never know what to expect from any of the fish species. We just have to enjoy the good times and cry a lot when times are tough.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]By the way, a 28" kitty will weigh between 8.5 to 10 pounds if a healthy female. A male the same size will usually be about 7-8 pounds.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Pa might be a day or two before he chimes in. He had some "help" from a daughter who crashed his computer and he is getting it fixed. I am sure he will appreciate some on-the-water guidance in fishing the inside of the harbor. He has already admitted to liking the outside area and the bubbleup. [/#0000ff]
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[wagdog]

I measured a lot of the white bass I caught last ice season. The average was a solid 12 inches. There was the occasional 13 incher but that was rare in the area of the lake I was fishing. I had caught a few last September/early October that were an honest 13 inches. Fishing the spawn this year verifies exactly what you are saying about the dominant class being 10-12 inches. I would say 98% of the fish that I caught during the spawn fell into that size. I can't complain though. I'm an ultra-lite tackle convert. A tandem rig that has two of those 10-12 inchers on 4 lb test and an UL rod is an almost illegal amount of fun.
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