Southeastern Utah Fishing Report

By Sun Advocate

BENCHES POND: (December 18) This pond is capped with ice. There are very few anglers fishing the pond.
BOULGER RESERVOIR: (December 18) The pond has iced over, but it’s difficult to access. Very few anglers are fishing at the reservoir.
CARBON COUNTY COMMUNITY FISHING POND: (December 18) This pond will be closed until the spring thaw.
CLEVELAND RESERVOIR: (December 18) On Dec. 13, there was a very small patch of open water. Since then, the cold weather has likely sealed off the ice cap.
DUCK FORK RESERVOIR: (December 18) You can only access the reservoir by snow machine. There are no recent fishing reports.
ELECTRIC LAKE: (December 18) On Dec. 13, Kathy Jo Martinez reported that ice had formed on the north end, but not on the south side by the dam. The cold weather has likely expanded the ice cap’s surface area.
FAIRVIEW LAKES: (December 18) Both of the lakes have iced over, but access will be difficult – even by snow machine. There are no recent fishing reports.
FERRON RESERVOIR: (December 18) You can only access the reservoir by snow machine. There are no recent fishing reports.
GIGLIOTTI POND: (December 05) The pond is frozen, but we don’t have any reports on ice thickness. Please use extreme caution on and around the ice.
GRASSY LAKE: (December 18) You can only access the lake by snow machine. There are no recent fishing reports.
HUNTINGTON CREEK: (December 18) The creek was ice-free on Dec. 13. You will only find trout in the fly-only zone above the point where flash floods have scoured the creek bottom after the Seeley Fire.
HUNTINGTON NORTH RESERVOIR: (December 18) On Dec. 15, park manager Jonathan Hunt reported that the reservoir was ice free, except for a small zone of ice along the edges. The cold weather since then has probably caused a partial ice over.
HUNTINGTON RESERVOIR: (December 18) There is a thick sheet of ice, but there aren’t many anglers fishing. Anglers report 8 to 12 inches of ice under a foot of snow. Fishing has been very good according to multiple anglers on BigFishTackle.com. One angler recommended a 1/16-ounce white glow jig head with a one-inch gulp minnow. That angler reported that his average catch was 15 to 18 inches, with the biggest one measuring more than 20 inches. Another angler fished on Dec. 14 and reported catching a number of eight- to 12-inch fish. A third angler reported an average catch size of 13 to 16 inches. He did best with a small white and yellow sparkled tube jig on a 1/32-ounce head, tipped with a piece of nightcrawler. Huntington Reservoir is also known as Mammoth.
JOES VALLEY RESERVOIR: (December 12) Calvin Black fished on Dec. 9 for 1.5 hours. In that time, several cutthroats chased the curly tail jig on his line, but nothing took the hook.
LOWER FISH CREEK: (December 05) You’ll have a difficult time accessing the creek unless you’re in a snow machine. We haven’t received any recent fishing reports.
MILLER FLAT RESERVOIR: (December 18) You can only access the reservoir by snow machine. There are no recent fishing reports.
MILLSITE RESERVOIR & STATE PARK: (December 18) On Dec. 15, Park Manager Jonathan Hunt reported that Millsite was ice free. The cold temperatures since this report has probably changed the ice conditions. We don’t have any new reports, but fishing has been good in recent weeks for shoreline anglers using traditional baits.
PETES HOLE: (December 18) You can only access Petes Hole by snow machine. There are no recent fishing reports.
SCOFIELD RESERVOIR: (December 18) Multiple anglers report good fishing for both rainbow and cutthroat trout in the 11- to 13-inch range. On Dec. 15, Joe Christensen fished near Madsen Bay and reported more than eight inches of ice under a layer of snow. He didn’t see any open water. Joe reported catching a large number of trout in shallow water. His biggest catch was am 18-inch cutthroat. His most effective method was a tube jig tipped with chub meat. Joe caught the chubs he needed in deeper water using ice flies and mealworms. Several anglers on BigFishTackle.com reported good to excellent fishing. One anglers reported that the ice in the dam arm was 10 inches thick. He fished using small white and green tube jigs tipped with a piece of chub meat. The consensus among all of the anglers in the Madsen Bay area was that fishing for cutthroats was seven feet deep or shallower. Chubs were more likely found in 10 or more feet of water.
On Dec. 27, Utah State Parks is sponsoring an ice fishing tournament at Scofield Reservoir on Dec. 27. The five anglers with the largest rainbow trout will receive valuable gift certificates from Cabelas. A number of door prizes will also be raffled off. Registration will start at 6 a.m. at the Madsen Bay boat ramp. Park manager Jonathan Hunt expects safe ice conditions for the tournament. See more information about the ice fishing tournament.
SOUP BOWL: (December 18) You can only access the Soup Bowl by snow machine.
WILLOW LAKE: (December 18) The lake is frozen and safe for ice anglers. Anglers report good fishing with jigs or tube jigs with bait. There is a large snow drift blocking the road, so you should prepare for a short hike if you want to fish the lake.
WRIGLEY SPRINGS RESERVOIR: (December 18) Fishing has been fair to good in recent weeks using traditional baits.