Some of you have openly wondered why I haven’t written a lot about ice fishing this fall and winter.
The answer is simple: we didn’t have a lot of ice cream.
Yes, I could have written about some of the mountain lakes and reservoirs that were iced up in early December, but nearly 80 percent (unofficial reader poll) of ice anglers prefer Strawberry, Deer Creek, Hunger, Echo, Rockport, and Flaming Gorge rather than a long list of smaller bodies of water at higher altitudes.
Well, this week there’s at least some good news on some of my ice fishing shortlists that I’m really excited about.
Strawberry reservoir
Although I haven’t seen it with my own eyes, anglers report that Strawberry has between six and nine inches of good, safe ice over most of the massive reservoir. Strawberry Marina recently announced the start of a “shuttle service” for anglers who want to pay for a snow machine to take them almost anywhere.
This is a great idea and a great way to get mobile on the ice without spending the money on your own snow machines. Contact Strawberry Bay Marina for details on their services.
I’m sure that even without the help of the shuttle, you should be able to find safe ice almost anywhere you want to try. Hence, strawberry should be a good choice to start the season.
Echo and Rockport
Although these two reservoirs have the potential for safe ice, Echo is only between seven and nine inches with some weak spots near the river channel. Rockport is in worse shape and as of Jan 10th there were soft spots on much of the coast and only three to four inches of ice near the launch pad and other spots around the reservoir.
Although fishing was fine in both reservoirs, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources urges the angler to be extremely careful on the ice as conditions can change in a rush.
Hunger reservoir
This reservoir had very little safe ice from the first week of January. The northern part of the reservoir has the best ice, but boats can still be launched and much of the reservoir has open water. Be sure and don’t try your luck for the next week or two if you want to find safe ice on the big lake.
Flaming canyon
Since I started my boat at Lucerne Marina last Saturday and didn’t find ice until about a mile north of the pipeline on the Wyoming side of the reservoir, there really isn’t much safe ice until you pass Buckboard Marina and head towards the confluence of the Green and Black’s Fork rivers.
A friend of mine asked me to go fishing for burbot with him later this week so I could write more after we explored the far north of the reservoir.
Historically, the Flaming Gorge is a reservoir where more than a fraction of ice fishing accidents occur every year. The current in any of the various rivers and streams that flow into the reservoir causes ice conditions to change from one day to the next. Careless ice anglers could potentially fish under six inches of ice one day to see less than two inches in just 24 hours.
The annual Burbot Bash is slated for late January, so hopefully safe ice will spread south by then, but don’t hold your breath. I plan to have my boat out on the water three or four times this week.
Ice fishing is getting more popular every year, and I have to admit that once I’m in the mood and take off my gear, I hope for consistent cold weather.
So far, in my dreams, some of my best ice fishing spots are best seen at night.
Be patient, be prepared, and be safe out there!
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