Fishing report for southeastern Utah

By Sun Advocate

•Abajo and Blue Mountains. Division of Wildlife Resources conservation officer Randall Scheetz reports that fishing for rainbow trout is slow at Recapture Reservoir.
Some northern pike continue to be caught from shore with spinners and jigs. Scheetz indicates that fishing at Blanding number three continues to be good with PowerBait, spinners, and marshmallows. Foy Reservoir is thawing with more than 60 feet of open water along the shoreline.
•Cleveland Reservoir. Please avoid this reservoir until ice-off. The ice is dangerous and unpredictable.
•Duck Fork Reservoir. This body of water is fishless, but will be stocked with small tiger trout and Colorado River cutthroat in summer. The tiger trout are expected to be large enough to catch in 2004.
•Electric Lake. The ice is a composite of multiple layers of slush and ice. Be careful! There is a risk of falling through one or more layers of ice and slush.
The limit on fish at Electric Lake is four trout.
At Electric Lake, there are no restrictions on the type of tackle which may be used, but the trout limit is the same as the statewide trout limit.
Tributaries will be closed until July 12. When tributaries open, the limit will be two trout; and artificial flies and lures must be used.
•Ferron Reservoir. The trout limit is four. However, anglers may take a bonus limit of four brook trout in addition to the normal trout limit. All tributaries are closed until July 12.
•Gigliotti Pond. Anglers should wait until May, when the reservoir is filled and restocking occurs.
In 2003, the trout limit is four fish. All largemouth bass and bluegill must be immediately released.
•Gooseberry Reservoir. All tributaries are closed until July 12.
•Grassy Trail Reservoir. The reservoir is closed to fishing in 2003.
•Green River Golf Course Ponds. The limit is four fish in the aggregate for all species.
•Huntington Creek. Fly fisherman, Tom Ogden had good luck with a number 10 Montana or with a number 14 clear glass beadhead prince nymph.
Flows are low, approx. six cubic feet per second.
On the right fork (from Flood and Engineer’s Canyon upstream to Electric Lake) only artificial flies may be used. The trout limit is two.
On the left fork, only artificial flies and lures may be used. The harvest of brown trout is encouraged.
A portion of Crandall Creek above the Genwal Mine is closed to fishing for 2003 to protect Colorado River cutthroat trout.
•Huntington Game Farm Pond. The pond will be restocked in May. In 2003, the limit is four fish in the aggregate for all species.
•Huntington North Reservoir. Fishing has been slow this past week.
In 2003, the bass limit is two; all largemouth bass over 12 inches must be immediately released.
•Huntington Reservoir (near the top of Huntington Canyon). This reservoir is extremely dangerous, due to the potential for buckling and subsidence of the ice pack. Please stay off!
Anglers are urged to wait until ice-off, before resuming fishing. Tributaries are closed until July 12.
The reservoir is closed to the possession of cutthroat trout or trout with cutthroat markings.
•Joes Valley Reservoir. The ice pack is considered dangerous and further ice fishing is discouraged.
In 2003, the trout limit is two. No more than one trout may be over 22 inches. All trout 15 to 22 inches must be immediately released.
•Ken’s Lake. Ken’s Lake is receiving a lot of fishing pressure on warm days. DWR conservation officer Ed Meyers reports that success for rainbow trout has been fair to good. Meyers says shoreline anglers using rainbow PowerBait and boaters trolling with Rapalas are having the best luck.
Fly fishermen should use a red and green sparkle leech pattern.
The best time to fish is early and late in the day. Mid-day success is poor.
The lake has been recently stocked. In 2003, fishing is prohibited from a boat with a gas engine.
•Millsite Reservoir. There have been a number of good fishing reports coming from Millsite.
One angler reported good luck with salmon eggs on the bottom. Others have had good luck with a fly and bubble or with PowerBait.
A fly fisherman reported good success with red or purple leech patterns. Another potentially good pattern is a green leech with a gold rib.
•Price River and Lower Fish Creek. Very little water is being released from Scofield Reservoir. Flows are extremely low.
From the railroad bridge approximately one mile below the Scofield Reservoir dam downstream to the confluence with the White River only artificial flies and lures may be used. A number 16 prince nymph is recommended.
•Scofield Reservoir. DWR conservation officer Stacey Taggart reports open water on the south end of the reservoir.
The water level has been rising, creating a margin of open water along the entire shoreline.
Getting on and off the ice pack is risky. Slush and water cover the ice sheet by noon. Ice off is expected to occur around the second or third week of April, although that’s impossible to accurately predict.