# Porcupine, Hyrum, and Lakers?? Oh my!



## Ton_Def (Dec 23, 2008)

My brother and I "plowed" into Cache Valley for a little fishing. Porcupine was first, and it was tough going. The valley got close to 2ft of snow! The road is actually really clean, UNTIL, you head up to the dam. Definitely need 4 wheel drive. I tried to drive to the back, but slowed down enough to get buried, right near the first ramp. So we just headed out from there. The edges were soooooft. We had snowshoes on and the sloppy slush was still unbearable. We didn't stay long, not much action to stick around for. Onto Hyrum..
Got on the ice at Hyrum around 4p.m. I should have taken waders... it's a swimming pool underneath a decieving layer of snow. We caught a few perch, but my brother hooked something we haven't seen come out of there before! So maybe some of you can help with the argument..

















So is it a Splake, or a Laker? Natural (yeah right) or planted? Any surefire way to tell the difference between Laker and Splake?


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## Wells (Jan 6, 2008)

Wow that is an interteresting catch...I'm going to have to go with Splake. I caught a Brook Trout believe it or not in the LBR below Hyrum Dam a few years back. I wonder when they are stoking the tiger trout a few other species get mixed in? Either way, Great catch!


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## Ton_Def (Dec 23, 2008)

Yeah. I'm going with Splake. But they're sterile... and this didn't look planted. But is there a way to really tell? Clipped fins? Coloration of flesh?


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## ktrout (Jun 19, 2008)

I would guess splake. Lake trout have a more forked tail. But not sure how to take your statement of it doesn't look planted. All splake are planted. That fish doesn't look like most of the trout in there, if that's what you mean and it also doesn't look like a fin rubbed stocked rainbow. Flesh color tends to be the diet and the stocked trout don't have clipped fins, that's more of a steelhead thing. There was a website that stated the only way to tell a lake trout from a splake was the following (but who would really do that):

The only way to positively distinguish splake is to count the pyloric caeca (finger-like projections of the intestine): splake (65 to 85); brook trout (23 to 55); lake trout (93 or more)


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## Wells (Jan 6, 2008)

I've read a few different things saying that there are splake in Porcupine. I've never caught one or herd of one being caught. Maybe it just swam down stream?


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## manysteps (Sep 28, 2009)

Thanks for reporting about the slush. I've been thinking about hitting Hyrum lately, but not if I'm gonna need waders.


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## whiteknuckler (Apr 1, 2009)

I'm confident that it is a Splake.


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## brookieguy1 (Oct 14, 2008)

Splake. Not enough fork in the tail and even round spots.


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## Grandpa D (Sep 7, 2007)

It looks like either a Splake or a Brook trout to me.
Brook Trout were stocked in Porcupine in 2010.


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## Greenguy88 (Sep 7, 2007)

brookieguy1 said:


> Splake. Not enough fork in the tail and even round spots.


+1


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## roper (Sep 27, 2010)

Looks like a splake to me also. Some years ago they planted splake in Porcupine to try and control the kokane population (if I remember right), however they should have been a lot larger than your "speciman" by now. Don't know if they are still planting for the same purpose or not.


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## 12many (Apr 14, 2008)

Vote Splake, I know that Causey has a bunch of them they are great eating also.


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