utah lake ice? and whitebass ?s

[WBestF]

How Dee
I used to go by Giovanni on The fishing general . But this is the new me.
I would love to have any information on any ice forming on Utah Lake, and If any white bass are being caught.
I am going to try Echo tomorrow morning. and will let ya know how it went. Good fishing with tight lines. WBestF


I have been Drawing a cartoon of the WBestF for the last 8 years. he loves fishing, and teaching the love of fishing to children or any one else. Its interesting ,( But he is my brain trust and I am prejudice) . I am going to try and get something every one can see, soon I hope. From the time he became TWestF to now.

Have a Safe and grate New Years.
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[Therapist]

The problem is not ice, the lake is capped, but there is no water !! You have to walk several miles to get into 3-4 ft of water. Most of us expect a major winterkill at Utah lake this winter.

We have speculated all summer that the water users, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the June sucker guys withheld water this summer so the the level would drop super low, so that there would be a winter kill of carp, although everything else would die off also. Who knows. You have to wonder.

Go find another pond to fish this winter and hope that we get enough water to fill it up again !!!

[FishingLunatic]

Well if that's what their plan is then I doubt that's gonna work. I remember learning from Tube Dude's history that Utah Lake has actually been even lower than it is right now averaging like foot deep. During that time frame pretty much all species of native fish were wiped out including bonneville cutthroats and such but a few june suckers, utah suckers and lots of carp obviously made it through that winter so I highly doubt that plan will work.
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[kblack1844]

We were down to Lincoln beach Monday afternoon and watched a large group of people (20+) fishing on 2" of ice out in front of the first spring. Not enough ice for us, but every one there was catching white bass. Watched one person go through the ice, hit bottom at waist deep and climb out. Tonight we went back and ice was 4". Still the same crowd there but much safer ice aside from the 2 places we could see people had gone through days prior. We ventured out and began catching white bass right away, was a fun hour of fishing before dark and everyone there was still cathing lots of white bass, a few crappie, and several carp landed.
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[WBestF]

Thanks for the reports. If I'm going to get any whites I need to get to lincon beach before there all caught.
sounds like the ones in charge of this lake need to redistribute some of the water they held back from the lake. Also get a panel of fisher people who fish it day in and day out to get there imput before they try there Some times hair brained ideas. I grew up on that lake and it allways had fish to catch besides carp. What Happened??
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[TubeDude]

[quote WBestF]Thanks for the reports. If I'm going to get any whites I need to get to lincon beach before there all caught.
sounds like the ones in charge of this lake need to redistribute some of the water they held back from the lake. Also get a panel of fisher people who fish it day in and day out to get there imput before they try there Some times hair brained ideas. I grew up on that lake and it allways had fish to catch besides carp. What Happened??[/quote]

[#0000FF]Not only is the lake at a near-record low level (since the installation of the control boards at the pump house) but the white bass population is way down as well. There was a big winter kill of white bass and bullheads in some of the shallow areas of Utah Lake about 3 winters ago...during a longer than normal freeze over. Then there has been poor spawning success the last three years. Finally, there was the big toxic algae bloom this year when the surviving baby white bass were vulnerable. The result was that where there were customarily gazillions of baby white bass during the summer there were NONE this year.

The happy harvesters did the same thing last year. They raped the congregating surviving white bass near the springs at Lincoln Beach right after ice up. There is virtually no other place on Utah Lake right now where you will be able to catch whities. The water inside the harbors and other customary congregating spots is too shallow. So all the survivors gravitate to Lincoln Beach.

That spot will continue to produce some fish for a couple of weeks yet but then it will shut down as the fish are caught out or driven elsewhere. And in May...when white bass are usually massing up all around the lake during the spawn...everybody will be asking "Where are the white bass".

There likely will be winter kill in some of the shallower areas around the lake...especially if the ice cap remains past February. Carp and cats can survive lower oxygen conditions than most other Utah Lake denizens and are not as likely to suffer. But bass, crappies, and walleyes and some other species might drop in numbers.

The building snowpack gives hope that there will be enough water to go around this year...and to add significantly to Utah Lake. But every year there are more people and businesses that add to the demands on the available water supply. Unfortunately, there are too many place for that water to go...and Utah Lake is not at the top of the list.
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[WBestF]

It looks like white bass are off the menu this winter. Hopefully we will get some snow pack before winter ends to bring the lake levels higher and the white bass that are left (if any) will get some size to them , and that it will stay high during the spawn
As a wee lad I remember catching some huge white bass But that was century's ago. It would be so nice to get bass, that are as big as in the you tube videos I watch from back east . Two to four pound white bass make my mouth water.
I will have to eat blackened crappie sandwiches' And deep fried perch.
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[TubeDude]

[#0000ff]I have fished Utah Lake since the 1960s. I too have seen and caught some nice big white bass at times. And there have been years with few fish...or only small fish. Like many species, white bass populations rise and fall. And like most species they tend to get bigger when the numbers are down and the food supply is abundant for the survivors.

Biggest whities I have caught from Utah Lake might approach 2 pounds. But in Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and California I have caught them almost twice that size...about the size of a good wiper from Willard. They always fight hard and they really are good eating.

But, having to "settle" for crappie, perch or bluegill fillets should not be a punishment. They are plenty good too.

Here is a pic of a couple of "average" white bass from Lake Pleasant, near Phoenix, AZ.

[inline "PLEASANT WHITES.JPG"]
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[WBestF]

thanks for the reply. Echo res should be getting the place to get big and plenty perch in the next couple of years if the water stays decent. . Tight lines and big fish to ya.
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[TubeDude]

[#0000ff]Echo has proven that it can kick out some decent perch in the past...IF water levels remain high enough for successful spawning and recruitment. But IF is the biggest two letter word in any language...in our desert state.

Mantua has also shown some potential for porky perch, but the bigguns are both scarce and finicky. Once in a while you can find a group of active feeders and score some good fillets.

Starvation seems to be coming back a bit, but it has been a long time since I got into numbers of toad perch...13 to 14 inches. There should be some footlongs this year.

Also sounds like Big Sand Wash has a growing population of perch that will be getting decent sized in the next couple of years. Problem is...like Starvy it is a long drive from the Wasatch Front.
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