Weekend Bass

This post is not titled correctly.

Sunday is technically not the weekend but is the beginning of the week. It is a day of worship and devotion to God and is also a day of rest.

After two weeks away I was ready for some meditation and rest near some water.

Saturday was supposed to be a little warmer and dryer than the week had been and I headed over to Evans Lake for a couple of hours in the evening to check on the condition of the bass.

"Green Trout"


Future of the Lake


The BGW Strikes Again!


Bass in the Grass

I caught a few fish on the BGW using 20lb test Fireline on a new addition to the toolbox- a Shimano Sonora 4000 mounted on my 7ft TTF medium-light spinning rod.

I bought this reel for my next redfish battle as it holds almost twice the line as the 1500 series reel I have been using and has a more substantial drag. It is a forged aluminum reel with 2 ball bearings but is a real bargain at just under $40. With proper care this reel should last a long while and will surely be more reliable than the inexpensive spinning reels I've been using.

I did miss a couple of fish and lost a couple of rigs to poor knot strength. I'm still trying to find the best way to attach a 6ft mono or fluorocarbon leader to the superline. So far I've tried the double uni-knot and the improved albright knot but I'm not completely satisfied with either.

Pewter Skies

Today (Sunday) was promising as well with heavy fog but clear skies above and a prediction of temps in the 70's.

We left the house about 8AM for Bible class & worship and ate lunch at Chili's after services so by the time I was ready to fish it was after 1PM. There was still some lingering fog that had not yet burned off and the temp had only come up to the mid 50s.

I decided at the last minute to switch back to the smaller reel and to fish three baits this afternoon - the BGW (of course), the BWG on a 1/4 oz lead head jig, and in expectation of some white bass action in the near future, a chartreuse curly tail grub on a 1/8 oz lead head jig.

The chartreuse took center stage with this first chunky bass.

I switched to the BWG and picked up a few smaller fish then it was on to the the tried and true Big Green Worm.

This guy had an old injury that was healed up on his side but was otherwise healthy and full of pep.

Mr. Mark Evans joined me shortly after I caught that fish which had been the biggest one of the day until I got hooked into this big girl.

Big Mama


Pre-Spawn Bass


Smile for the Birdie


Peaceful Waters

Thanks Mark for becoming the on-the-spot photographer and for videoing the release:

Utah Road Trip

Well you've seen the fishing report from our day off in Utah last Friday. After checking out from the Homestead resort Tracy and I spent the rest of the day exploring northern Utah.

We saw quite a few critters in Midway including a local herd of mule deer took up winter residence at the resort.

On the drive out we saw several turkeys that were hunched up against the cold. We weren't able to stop for a picture but they were as cold as any frozen Butterball!

We also saw a moose in the canyon between Park City and Salt Lake City.

As we drove out through Brown's Canyon north of Midway, we came upon an exotic animal farm and got these pictures:

Frosty Bison


Fallow Deer

After a Subway lunch in Morgan and a visit to a yarn shop in Ogden, it was on to Antelope Island State Park in the Great Salt Lake.

We stopped along the causeway on the way out and took some pictures.

Causeway

Just as we were continuing on a big hawk flew up from his kill just a few yards away from where we had been standing. I couldn't believe he had sat there for the whole time we were stopped and we had totally missed him. He was eating a duck and must have remained still as a stone.

Ducks in the Open Water


Shoveler In Flight

After crossing the causeway, something caught my eye and I bailed out to see what it was.

Rabbit!


Photographer

We spotted a small herd of bison near the visitor center and got our eyes on a coyote lurking nearby. I tried some long range pictures but wasn't happy with them.

Wild Bison

The coyote was moving in the direction of the small rocky hill where we had seen the rabbit so as we passed by I jumped out again to try to get down wind of him for a better picture.

To my surprise a covey of chuckar quail had moved in and I got these pictures.

On the Lookout


Hidden in the Snow


Trio


Chuckar in Flight

Mr. coyote must have seen or heard me and headed off in another direction missing a chance at a lunch of rabbit and quail. As we continued on he reappeared and Tracy was able to get these shots out the window of the H3.

Winter Coat


Perfect Pose


Sneaky Pete

We had been advised to watch for porcupines eating the bark off the Russian Olive trees and sure enough we saw several along the road on the eastern side of the island.

Got Bark?

There were several hawks, harriers, and falcons and supposedly some eagles to be seen. We saw some of the former but none of the latter that we could distinguish.

Searching for a Meal

This coyote was taking a trip across the frozen lake.

At the end of the island is a historic ranch where we stopped for a stretch and some pictures.

Ranch Scene


Horse Stalls


My Dream Ride


Get the Stove Going!


Winter Beauty

After leaving the ranch we headed back for the causeway but I wasn't through looking yet. We hadn't seen any antelope (pronghorn) or bighorn sheep and there was still some daylight left. We veered off to another road which took us to the trail head for buffalo point. We hiked up a ways but not quite to the summit.

Buffalo Point Trail


Great Salt Lake


Explorers


Skylands


Mountain Girl


Evening Sun on The Great Salt Lake

The ride back across the causeway brought us near the raft of ducks feeding on brine shrimp in the fading light.

Feeding Ducks

We got to enjoy the sunset before heading back to civilization.

All in all it was a great day. We may need to return in the spring!

"Brownsville"

Winter meetings in Utah usually mean long days in a stuffy room while dreaming about cold clear streams and feisty trout.

Tracy and I arrived in the Heber Valley on Monday after it was too dark to fish. The Tuesday meeting went until 5PM and we were all supposed to be ready for dinner at the Blue Boar at 6:15. I convinced Tracy to "go for a ride" to see what Snake Creek looked like. She acted surprised when I bailed out at the parking spot and grabbed the telescopic ultralight and a white Rooster Tail.

"It's too cold!" she pointed out. "You're not dressed for it."

Am I to believe that 17 degrees and windy conditions constitutes "too cold"? And by the way, what's wrong with street clothes - its only 300 yards or so to the fishing hole where many fish have been caught.

A few snow drifts shouldn't stop me, should they?

Snake Creek Brown

It was too cold and even though it was only a few hundred yards through the drifts I probably won't ever try that stunt again.

Now Friday was another story.

We had planned on taking a day of vacation and seeing the sights, so while Tracy had breakfast and took her time getting packed up, I headed back to Snake Creek for the first two hours of daylight to see if I could find some hungry fish.

This time I bundled up in anticipation of the single digit temperatures. We had seen as low as 6 below and the high for the past few days had been well below 20 degrees.

When I tried to put on my waders, the neoprene sock foot stuffed with two pairs of heavy socks proved to be too much for my frozen wading boots. Try as I might there was no way I was going to force them in. I decided to ditch the waders and keep the socks.

I started out at the big swirly hole that has yielded so many willing browns. The white RT has proved to be deadly in the past and today was no exception. I caught several nice fish between 17"-19" but had a feeling that the best was yet to come.

Nice way to start the day.


"Tell me where your friends are and I'll let you go."


Fat 'n Sassy


Winter Brown


Handful of Fish

I worked my way down stream but was unable to locate any more fish until I reached "Rainbow Run" down below the trestle.

I was hoping to hook up with one of the pink-sided silver acrobats but cast after cast yielded nothing but iced up guides and weed-fouled treble hooks.

I finally got a strike as the RT swung past a clump of submerged grass and the fight was on! I was using 4lb mono and the little telescopic fairy wand was bent over double as the drag sang it's sweet song.

After a short but powerful run Mr. Brown headed straight for my side of the creek and a shelf of ice that lined the shore. I was well back from the water and as he made for the shelter of the ice, I was able to pop him up onto the shelf.

Just as I was feeling froggy about my superb landing skills, my quarry still full of fight spit the hook! There he was flopping on that thin sheet of ice just inches from freedom and me with no waders!

I wasn't about to let him get away without a picture so I belly-flopped down the bank and scooped him up into the knee deep snow. Where's the photographer when you need her?

Here are my shots for your enjoyment.

Catch of the Day


20"+


The scene of the crime.


Brownsicle

After the photo shoot my new best friend was released back to the comfort and safety of the creek to fatten up for my next visit.

The fish were not as heavy as they are in the summer but they were just as beautiful and full of fight.

God's blessings are evident in His creation.