# All Over the Place



## LOAH (Sep 29, 2007)

I was originally planning on fishing Scofield with a couple of people, but had to cancel because I thought my wife was working and I would have to watch after the monkey (James).

Well after I'd canceled the plans with the other guys, she informed me that I had all day to fish. :roll:

Sorry guys.

With an open agenda, I went to try my luck at Strawberry and to hunt for evidence of open water.

The ladders was a zoo, so I skipped it. I thought I'd check on the road to SC instead. Right by HWY 40, there was a floatable amount of open water occupied by a couple of floaters. :? Serves me right for sleeping in.

Surprisingly, the road appeared to be open! I started along the route and got a couple of bends into it when I found the three foot wall of snow that I'd expected at the junction. 

No way to the dam yet, but it won't be long. The ice all across the lake is totally rotten and shouldn't take long to melt or blow off. For those of you who are free on weekdays, my guesstimate is that you'll be the first to reap the benefits of open water.

I couldn't make up my mind about floating (wind was picking up...nowhere to blow me away to, but still annoying) or to go and find more water, so I just drove all the way back to Strawberry Bay.

Along the way, I noticed that Chicken Creek West had a bunch of open water and where the river flows in had a lot, as well (long walk for that one).

Strawberry Bay was still iced except for a sliver of open water by the shore and that little bay next to the lodge with the dock cutting across it.

I fished that little bay for a couple of really slow hours. There was ice near me and I saw a large fish under it, but couldn't do anything about it.

Finally, I got some action and I was lucky enough to get a cutt that barely made it over the slot. Woohoo! It's about time. My favorite trout to eat (so far) is a Bear Lake Cutthroat from Strawberry and I haven't had one in my oven since spring, last year.

Red meat, red wine, and right now I'm feelin' fine. 8)

Here's the cuttie:

[attachment=3:20srsm0c]IMGP2006.jpg[/attachment:20srsm0c]

Another guy had shown up to exploit the open water and I warned him how slow it was. He was glad to see a cutt out of the slot though. I gave him a couple of minnows (he asked what I was using) and left him the bay.

I snapped a quick shot of the area to give a good idea of how rotten the ice is and to my surprise, saw a little shack out on the ice!!! I don't know for sure if it was occupied, but that's insane! I was punching through the ice with my hands from the dock, so I can't imagine the ice being strong enough to hold anyone that close to shore. Check it out:

[attachment=2:20srsm0c]IMGP2007.jpg[/attachment:20srsm0c]

I thought I'd fish some moving water since I already got what I came for. I stopped on the creek that runs down Daniels Canyon, but it was really gushing and I couldn't find anywhere accessible that had fishable holes.

I think the recent accident involving a truck load of oil spilling everywhere had something to do with me not getting any bites where I did try. No biggie. I just hope that the creek avoided most of the oil, but I fear the opposite sine the clean up crew was pressure washing the road and well, water flows where water flows. Just what we need: A bunch of oil flowing down into Deer Creek and then the Provo. :|

I got back into Heber Valley and thought I'd run up to explore some blue spots I'd seen on Google Earth. Just for fun and curiosity, I drove up Lake Creek Road and saw some very inviting water bodies...BEHIND "NO TRESPASSING" SIGNS!!! Grrr. I had a hunch, but that still bites me. Pretty country, but no touching or you'll have to explain your actions to a sheriff or worse: A snob.

Sorry. Pet peeve of mine. Mine, mine, MINE! Not yours, mine! OUR water, but MY land. Keep Out!

So that turned out to be a scenic detour and didn't really provide the intended relaxation, but it's still good to know what the world looks like over there.

Next, I decided to park at the Charleston Bridge and fish the Middle Provo and its backwaters in that area. I caught a little planter bow within a few minutes and let it go, but it swam right into the weeds against the bank and got stuck as soon as I released it. I walked over and gently lifted it up with my hands to place it back into the main current to fend for itself.

Here's the bow:

[attachment=1:20srsm0c]IMGP2009.jpg[/attachment:20srsm0c]

The ironic part was that I saw an Osprey right by me a couple of minutes later munching on a fresh planter. I wonder... :lol:

I ventured further upstream to a familiar spot for some nice browns and sure enough, several feet away from me, I saw a lunker brown parked motionless next to the bank under some brush. Sadly, I couldn't coerse a strike and ended up spooking it off. It was big too. Probably as big as the cutt. Another time, I suppose.

A little further up from the big brown, I tossed a size zero Blue Fox into a deep hole with a good current and jumped when I saw another large brown dart out quickly to examine my spinner before disappearing forever. It scared me when I saw it. It attacked so fast. If only it would've taken it! Yep, one of those. Maybe if I hadn't lost all of my #2's. :wink:

I waded back to my car and started toward home. I didn't make it far before talking myself into trying out Deer Creek. Not my favorite lake, but I was right next to it and I really need to shake my bad luck there. I've still never caught a trout there (bridge at high water doesn't count IMO) and can only manage dink bass and retarded perch.

Well there wasn't much different about this round with the terrible DC. I almost got skunked, but I got lucky and scored this bad boy off the bottom:

[attachment=0:20srsm0c]IMGP2010.jpg[/attachment:20srsm0c]

Other than that, a good old DC skunking. I don't care. I got my spoils for the day and I pretty much hate DC anyway. Maybe I'll do better on a boat someday, but DC from the shore is a bust for me every time.

Happy Fishing Humans.


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## UintaMan (Sep 16, 2007)

Awesome freaking post man! Sounds like you had a great day all in all. I knew there was a reason why I never fish the DC. Awesome looking cut you got there, I sure bet he tasted good, my mouth is watering just thinking about it. So there was not much open water by the Marina hu? Hopefully that will change within the week. I guess i'm going to have to take a drive up there this week sometime and try it out for myself. Thanks for all the information in your post it answered a lot of questions.


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## mjschijf (Oct 1, 2007)

Thanks for the report, LOAH. Glad you were able to catch your meal with that nice cutt. 

Sorry the bad luck at Deer Creek continues. Maybe you should get some bass plastics and give those a try next time you go there. I have heard there are some decent sized bass in there, although few and far between the dinks.


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## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

Ha ha...  

Good report LOAH...good report !!  

That DC monster is the best!! I've caught quite a few of those a Echo but never really thought of them as picture worthy.. :| 

I've always had fair luck at Rainbow Bay from the shore, in-line with the wakeless speed markers, if you can keep the boats out of your line... :?


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## Nibble Nuts (Sep 12, 2007)

We must have not been to far off from crossing paths. I went to the bridge yesterday afternoon only to be reminded that I have no clue what I'm doing on that river. I then went to DC only to get skunked and that was the same result for everyone I met there except for an Asian couple who caught a massive carp. I have never really fished the spring time much and I don't really know the patterns of the fish this time of year. Come mid summer through late fall, DC is always good to me. The only one's I heard of having success there yesterday were in boats or got there early in the morning. I was too impatient to wait for the bite at sunset.


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## LOAH (Sep 29, 2007)

Well, there wasn't a noticeable bite at sunset, so I left.

Just huck spinners and cranks in the river. Look for areas where the main current meets slower, deeper water. Trout love those spots. Worms do alright in those holes, as well.

Try not to walk too close to the bank and walk slowly and quietly when you do. Trout spook easily.


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## metal_fish (Mar 19, 2008)

I've done well with bait at deer creek from shore caught a 3lb rainbow last year on worms.
But i have never caught trout on hardware there? 
Awesome report i was salivating over that cutt nice job!


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## ScottyP (Sep 12, 2007)

LOAH said:


> I got back into Heber Valley and thought I'd run up to explore some blue spots I'd seen on Google Earth. Just for fun and curiosity, I drove up Lake Creek Road and saw some very inviting water bodies...BEHIND "NO TRESPASSING" SIGNS!!! Grrr. I had a hunch, but that still bites me. Pretty country, but no touching or you'll have to explain your actions to a sheriff or worse: A snob.


I've scoped those lakes on google too and wondered.... Thanks for saving me a trip.


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## orvis1 (Sep 7, 2007)

You did put some miles on the car this weekend then! Going solo can be nice at times as well, good job on that monster can from deer creek, it really had me drooling this morning.... Yummy rusted can.....


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## FROGGER (Oct 1, 2007)

Great post.. as usual.. i have a free weekend coming up and need to wet some line... Thanks for the update...


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