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A fun and fishy spring and summer...so far

2K views 12 replies 9 participants last post by  duct tape 
#1 ·
Hello, all...

Early this spring I bought a boat. The kids and I have made wide and fun use of it.

In hopes that you might enjoy them, I thought I'd share a few pictures of the adventures my kids and I, and friends and I, have had so far this spring and summer.

To break in the new-to-us boat, one of our first memorable trips was to Lake Powell in late April. During our few days there, we experienced a run of bad weather. But we were able to experience one glorious day on the water.

Here is my son Bryce with his biggest-caught smallmouth. He was pitching a crankbait when the smallie hung on and gave him a good time:



My two youngest kids were able to experience a bit of the action as well:





Despite catching a number of fish on crayfish-colored crankbaits and jigs, the kids were getting restless being on the boat for a few hours. So we decided they needed to spend some time on land and explore a bit.

We beached our boat, and I did a bit of exploring myself. One interesting find was a small, flooded cove comprised of flooded sapling trees. The trees themselves and patches of drifting, windblown vegetation provided enough adequate shade for me to believe a fish or two might be found there.

I quickly ran back to the boat, tied on a Senko, ran back to the cove, and made a precise cast near a big, floating tumbleweed. That first cast produced a beauty of a largemouth. I had to wade out into the water to retrieve the fish, so that is where a photo was snapped:



Later, in early May, I took two trips to Pelican Lake. The first was a solo trip. I found the bass difficult to catch. But the bluegill, as ever, were more than willing.

Here are a couple pics of the more photogenic of the group I brought to the boat that day:





For a second attempt, I returned in May and just happened to time the spawn perfectly. This time, a long-time friend accompanied me.

From early morning to well into the afternoon, my friend and I caught many eager largemouth and 'gills. I was thrilled when I happened upon a truly hefty largemouth about an hour into the morning bite.

The hefty, beautiful bahama-mama, once I helped her aboard, taped out at 19.5" and was piggishly gerthy. Here are a couple of pics of the fashion model:





Throughout the rest of May and into June, Strawberry and Starvation Reservoirs and Utah Lake were kind to me and the kids. Starvation, in particular, has become a favored haunt.

The nice thing about Starvation, similar to Lake Powell, is that it provides several hiking, exploring, and swimming opportunities for antsy kids who feel they've been confined to the boat for too long or once the daytime temperatures have climbed high.

The following photos reveal some of our successes at Starvation. For unknown reasons, I didn't feel as inclined to snap pics of the trout we've caught at Strawberry nor the white bass and catfish we've wrangled at Utah Lake. I do believe the lovely pics from Starvation more than make up for the lack of photos elsewhere, however.

This first photo is of a solo trip I took to Starvy, during a cool spring day in early June. I caught a few small smallies, missed out on hooking even a single walleye (nor a married one, either), but caught a couple respectable rainbows. This hefty 'bow, measuring approximately 20", succumbed to a trolled silver and red krocodile:



Later in June, the kids and I returned to Starvy. More successful than my solo trip, we hooked up with a number of very nice 'bows using silly putty and a few fun smallies tossing crankbaits and jigs.

Still with no 'eyes to report, we do have some respectable pictures of Starvation's lovely trout to show (and by the way, they taste as good as they look):





For our last trip of the year (so far) to Starvation, I was joined with just one of my sons.

He loves to captain the boat:



During this trip in late June (or was it the early part of this month, July? I'm a bit foggy here), we caught some of our biggest rainbows of the year.

Here's Bryce with our biggest two:



As I mentioned earlier, we've also experienced some fun days on Strawberry and Utah Lake. We've hit UL multiple times, as we live very close to the Provo Boat Harbor.

On our last trip during scorching July heat, the kids jumped off the side of the boat and swam, and in between the splashing and fun, we did manage to boat several decent white bass and a couple hefty kitty fish using small curly tail jigs and soaked minnows. Sorry, no pics, but I'll make it a point to bring the camera on our next Utah Lake outing.

I hope you've enjoyed the report and pics.

Happy fishing, all...and tight lines.
 
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#4 ·
That looks like a boatful of fun Mr Prince! Have you had any luck with the tube jig? You know, I can cast the tube jig, I can retrieve the tube jig. Heck, I can even dance the tube jig, but for the life of me I cannot FISH the tube jig. Go figure. :-(
 
#9 ·
Hey, thanks, everyone. 8)

Nate, as you are aware, I have similar hesitations and issues with the tube jig. After experiencing nominal success with that bait, I have since moved on to its fairer cousin, the curly tail jig. Presently, the curly tail jig and I are developing a healthy relationship of mutual appreciation. I think she might be the one. ;) I'll introduce her to you if you'd like. I know you're happily married, but what I'd hope for you is a productive fishing connection, and that's all. I don't think Tiff would mind.

And Tye Dye...as to where is next on the agenda...there's always the short foray to the backyard pond, Utard Lake, with its milk-chocolatey waters. It's not my favorite, but I love the caucasian bass. Starvation calls to me, and contemplating chasing boiling stipers at LP is the stuff of dreams, but those trips take a bit of planning and the allocation of funds. We'll see what happens. o-||

Thanks again for the positive feedback. If I remember to stow away the camera on out next outings, I'll hopefully have a few more fishy pics to share soon.
 
#10 ·
MuleyPrince said:
And Tye Dye...as to where is next on the agenda...there's always the short foray to the backyard pond, Utard Lake, with its milk-chocolatey waters. It's not my favorite, but I love the caucasian bass. Starvation calls to me, and contemplating chasing boiling stipers at LP is the stuff of dreams, but those trips take a bit of planning and the allocation of funds. We'll see what happens. o-||
Utard Lake or as the windsurf community calls it "muddy maui". is a great place. Caucasian bass is the 2nd best name I have heard them called. My favorite I got from a fishing book "silver bass".

So is the srtiper boil time in the spring, summer, or fall? I really wanna go down there this year but I am boatless and my poor car started giving me trouble this year when I went to beaver, it started smoking and has been in the shop several times since. Now days I just have to be more local. Still I will eventually find someone to split gas funds and get myself down there before I move in 2 years.
 
#11 ·
tye dye twins said:
MuleyPrince said:
So is the srtiper boil time in the spring, summer, or fall? I really wanna go down there this year but I am boatless and my poor car started giving me trouble this year when I went to beaver, it started smoking and has been in the shop several times since. Now days I just have to be more local. Still I will eventually find someone to split gas funds and get myself down there before I move in 2 years.
You're probably aware of the site www.wayneswords.com. Wayne is the biologist that oversees the fishery that is Lake Powell. He posts fishing reports and so do other anglers. Again, I'll bet you've heard of this site.

Anyway, according to Wayne and other anglers I've spoken to who are familiar with fishing striper boils, they seem to happen most regularly in the late summer months of late July, August, and into September.

I've never fished them, but I hear they are incredible to experience. Basically, schooling shad are driven to the surface by predatory stripers, and once the schools of shad are trapped against the surface thusly, the stripers attack and the water seems to "boil." If anglers don't approach the boils in a manner to disrupt them (within casting distance) and place careful casts with big minnow-imitating spoons and crankbaits at the forefront of the advancing boil, I've heard it's a big fish every cast while the boil lasts.

I've thought about asking a few friends to pool resources and head down there, but I drew a limited entry buck tag after over a dozen years of applying. So I'm torn between how I should spend vacation days and resources for the next few months.

I'm still puzzled about what to do. :?: :roll: :?: :roll:
 
#12 ·
MuleyPrince said:
tye dye twins said:
MuleyPrince said:
So is the srtiper boil time in the spring, summer, or fall? I really wanna go down there this year but I am boatless and my poor car started giving me trouble this year when I went to beaver, it started smoking and has been in the shop several times since. Now days I just have to be more local. Still I will eventually find someone to split gas funds and get myself down there before I move in 2 years.
You're probably aware of the site http://www.wayneswords.com. Wayne is the biologist that oversees the fishery that is Lake Powell. He posts fishing reports and so do other anglers. Again, I'll bet you've heard of this site.

Anyway, according to Wayne and other anglers I've spoken to who are familiar with fishing striper boils, they seem to happen most regularly in the late summer months of late July, August, and into September.

I've never fished them, but I hear they are incredible to experience. Basically, schooling shad are driven to the surface by predatory stripers, and once the schools of shad are trapped against the surface thusly, the stripers attack and the water seems to "boil." If anglers don't approach the boils in a manner to disrupt them (within casting distance) and place careful casts with big minnow-imitating spoons and crankbaits at the forefront of the advancing boil, I've heard it's a big fish every cast while the boil lasts.

I've thought about asking a few friends to pool resources and head down there, but I drew a limited entry buck tag after over a dozen years of applying. So I'm torn between how I should spend vacation days and resources for the next few months.

I'm still puzzled about what to do. :?: :roll: :?: :roll:
Thanks for the info. I hadn't heard of Wayens world. Thanks for that too! If I could just get one Stiper I'd be one happy camper. I'd pool resources with anyone to get down there. Eventually there will be a chance.

I don't hunt (too expensive) but I think that limited tag might be more worth it. Looking foreward to your future posts!
 
#13 ·
Thanks for the report. I had no idea that the bows of starvation were so beautiful. I'm glad to see that your kids love the outdoors as well. It makes the whole adventure that much more enjoyable. Thanks for the report.
 
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