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I'm home for college break and I'm thinking about trying Scofield.
I have read a lot of reports this year from people ice-fishing already and mostly catching very large numbers of small cutts or chubs. My question, is has anyone tried targeting the trophy tigers? I have not seen anyone report of any yet.
I think I know why that is... If you are catching chubs and dozens and dozens of small cutts you are probably fishing way too small. I'd be fishing offerings a 14" cutt could not even get in his mouth.
Just wondering if anyone is fishing big baits for these fish? If people do not start taking advantage of the trophy aspect of this lake, then it will be managed differently in the future I'm certain.
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Having fished Scofield a bunch this year I can tell you for certain a good number of people are taking full advantage of the lake's Trophy quality.
The other reason you may not be seeing any reports of larger fish is because those who are catching them may not be talking.
I don't Ice Fish so I'm not sure which it is... for Ice Fishing.
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I will go with the not talking part on those catching the tigers.
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I no longer have an interest in tiger trout, but if I did, I would fish for them like brown trout.
First, shallow water, 4-12' deep.
Second, early morning and late evening, even under the ice.
Third, stealth. Drill several holes in succession in water from 4-12' deep. Leave.
Creep back quietly and start dropping larger tubes tipped with fishflesh down each of the holes, actively jigging. Only work each hole for a minute, max. Repeat this process in different areas and groups of holes. Walk quietly!
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dont know much about scofield but great advise brookieguy, thanks.
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[quote MasterDaad]Having fished Scofield a bunch this year I can tell you for certain a good number of people are taking full advantage of the lake's Trophy quality.
The other reason you may not be seeing any reports of larger fish is because those who are catching them may not be talking.
I don't Ice Fish so I'm not sure which it is... for Ice Fishing.[/quote]
Master Daad speaks the truth. The difference between those who catch big fish at Scofield and those who claim to catch big fish at Scofield is that the former tend to post pictures of their fish while the latter simply tell us how the big ones got away. Take five minutes to check out MasterDaads profile and you will come to see that there are trophy tigers in Scofield that can be caught on a consistent basis.
While I have not hooked into any trophy tigers, I do usually hook into some good fish at scofield by dead-sticking a large tube (5+ inches) tipped with a healthy amount of chub meat.
Best of luck to you. I am headed up tomorrow and I will let you know how we do...for all species.
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I understand that some people are secretive, but that is the case with all lakes. I see nice fish posted from all over Utah... I think the biggest reason you don't see more pictures of them at Scofield is that it is an extremely under-utilized resource.
I just can't understand why people would go to a lake like this and fish for stunted cutts and chubs...doesn't that get boring? The whole reason to manage the lake the way it is is to ignore those fish and try for something huge.
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People will start complaining that all they catch is chubs and small, stunted trout. Sad  story, when all they had to do was get rid of the worms and tiny ice jigs and fish a 5"-6" tube jig - they could catch the fish of their lifetime.
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I honestly wasn't trying to start a debate on Scofield and how it is managed that has happened half a dozen times here over the past few years. I just would like to go there and target some big tigers but I'm wondering if the drive down is worth it (from WY). All I see is reports of chubs and stunted trout makes me wonder if the big tigers are in there, but I know they are... you just won't catch many on 4lb test line and a wax worm[  ]
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I know of some people who have caught trophy tigers this month through the ice. And they have been keeping their catches on the down low. That may answer your question.
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Dang if they are catchin tigers that big, they blew it! they should have fished the tournament over the weekend!
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Except tigers didn't qualify in the tournament. Could've caught a world record tiger and not won any money in the thing.
[red]⫸[/red][orange]<{[/orange][yellow]{{[/yellow][green]{{[/green][size 4][blue]⦇[/blue][/size][blue]°[/blue][#8000FF]>[/#8000FF]
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Not to hijack the thread too bad. But my guess as to why they monitor the rainbows on the tournament is because they eat the same stuff as the chubs. A dramatic increase in size of rainbows would indicate the chubs are declining and the rainbows are taking advantage of ththe increased availability of small aquatic bugs. [ ]
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MAny people are taking advantage of the trophy tigers. Here are a few I have caught. 2 of them broke the catch and release state record without me knowing it. The other I took home and mounted it.
People like me, masterdad, my buddies, and others are tight lipped about techniques used because we don't want to see the bft lurkers out in full force. You can pull them through the ice just the same way. The lake is fine, yes there are a lot of chubs but in many areas there are trophy fish, not just Tigers either. There are a lot of great cutts and bows in there.
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Fishnhut! them are some dandies!!! good on ya!![ ]
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Nice fish. Thanks for sharing.
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Nice Fish!
Amazing how many big fish are pictured in the cold weather from up there.
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Masterdaad,
If you look through your pictures that you have posted, from the day you took your profile pic, I am fishing from the shore in one of your pictures. I think you and me were the only ones fishing the lake in that kind of weather.
One of the pictures that I posted was from that day in the wind and snow.
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[quote fishnhunt]MAny people are taking advantage of the trophy tigers. Here are a few I have caught. 2 of them broke the catch and release state record without me knowing it. The other I took home and mounted it.
People like me, masterdad, my buddies, and others are tight lipped about techniques used because we don't want to see the bft lurkers out in full force. You can pull them through the ice just the same way. The lake is fine, yes there are a lot of chubs but in many areas there are trophy fish, not just Tigers either. There are a lot of great cutts and bows in there.[/quote]
A few people are taking advantage of them, of course. You shouldn't be afraid of the "BFT lurkers" though... I catch and target big tigers in another neighboring state... and it is the same thing. People show up to the tiger lake and don't understand the fish. They throw small/tiny lures or soak worms on the bottom. Sure you will luck into a big tiger once in awhile doing that but it is no way to target them. And in my home state, we have the exact same problem I believe, the tigers are not getting enough attention. It is an under-utilized resource. A few guys like myself target them and over the years I realized it was very selfish and dumb to keep the tigers quiet.
Tigers take more $ and effort than other fish to stock and if state agencies don't feel a resource is being used, they often divert funding or change management strategies. There is already a lot of pressure from people who just want bigger rainbows in there and want things to go back how they were originally... If you like catching the big tigers and want to see them stay, share your pictures. You don't have to share how, where, etc.. but get people excited about a trophy fishery!!!
The majority of people aren't patient enough to fish all day for 1 bite, or no bite. They aren't used to fishing 6-8" tube jigs...heck, they don't even have the rods to fish huge baits under the ice. The tigers are not in danger of over harvest or over fishing... they are in danger due to not enough publicity!
I'll let this post die because we've pretty much covered it from end to end... If I make it down over the next week I'll post a report, big tigers or not.
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Thanks for sharing the pics. I don't blame ya for being tight lipped about your techniques.
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