Fishing Help Needed January 25 at Yuba Reservoir

The DWR has selected the 25th of Jan. to try and collect the remaining 37 fish (perch or pike) from Yuba necessary to complete the disease certification process. After testing, if these fish prove to be disease free we will be allowed to collect Northern Pike eggs later this spring to aid in the statewide Tiger Muskie Program. As you can see below (fishing info from Jeff Rasmussen Yuba Park Manager) fishing may be a little difficult but I figure if we can get enough people on the ice, especially many of you who really know how to fish, we should be able to catch the fish we need.


We will plan on arriving at the Painted Rocks boat ramp (east side of Yuba south of Levan) at 8:30 am on Tuesday Jan. 25th. Please come and go as you would like. I will have a cooler there to collect any fish caught to meet our quota. I will provide drinks, hot choc. and snacks for anyone who comes to help. I recommend people bring whatever fishing equipment you feel is needed (primarily fishing for perch). We will have a power auger provide by the Strawberry biologists for anyone to use but again feel free to bring whatever you would like. We will plan on fishing until 2-3pm or until we collect enough fish whichever comes first but again feel free to come and stay as long as you would like.

Again, we would love to have as many participate as possible so please pass this email/information on to any of your contacts or people you think might have an interest in this fun outing, we would love the help! Please contact me if you have any questions and it would help me get an idea of how many people will be coming. Thanks in advance for you help with the DWR Tiger Muskie Program! Look forward to seeing you on the ice:)

The ice thickness currently sits at 5-7 inches. There have been very few people out fishing. I talked to a guy this morning at Painted Rocks who caught four good sized Perch in 4 hours. Another group yesterday caught 1 perch near Oasis Campground in about 4 hours. There have been a few who have been skunked. If you are going to do it I think the sooner the better. Its usually best the first few weeks we have ice.

Mike Slater
Regional Aquatic Program Manager
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
1115 N. Main
Springville, UT 84663
e-mail: michaelslater@utah.gov
801-491-5651

Catch Big Pike at Yuba

Nephi -- Want to know what it feels like to catch a fish that’s more than three feet long and weighs almost 20 pounds?
You might find out if you grab your fishing gear—including a foot or two of metal leader—and head to Yuba Reservoir in the next few months.

On April 14, Division of Wildlife Resources biologists were conducting gillnet surveys at this reservoir in central Utah. What they found when they pulled one of the nets out of the water took their breath away.

Inside was a huge northern pike. The fish was more than 43 inches long and weighed over 17 pounds.

That puts this pike close to the current Utah state record. The current record was caught at Yuba in 2002 by Henry Fenning. That pike weighed 25 pounds and was 43½ inches long.

The official Utah “catch-and-release” northern pike record is a 49¾-inch fish caught by Logan Hacking at Lake Powell in 1998.

Hacking’s fish was not weighed.


Not the only big pike!
The huge pike biologists caught and placed back in the reservoir on April 14 isn’t the only big pike biologists have caught at Yuba during gillnet surveys this spring. Other big and healthy pike—and big and healthy walleye—have been caught at the reservoir too.

Biologists conduct gillnet surveys by setting nets in the reservoir for an hour or two and then pulling the nets back to the surface. After measuring and weighing the fish, the fish are released back into the water.

Tips
May and June are usually the best months to catch northern pike and walleye at Yuba. To catch pike, DWR biologists suggest the following:

- Fish in water that’s five feet or less deep. Fishing from the shore works great!

- Use lures that imitate minnows. These lures include plugs (crank baits), jigs and spoons.

- Tie a foot or two of metal leader between your fishing line and your lure. Northern pike have sharp teeth. Using metal leader is a good way to keep the pike from biting through your line!

Getting there
Yuba Reservoir is just off I-15, about 30 miles south of Nephi in central Utah. For more information about fishing at the reservoir, call the DWR’s Central Region office at (801) 491-5678. Updated fishing reports for Yuba are available at www.wildlife.utah.gov/fishing/reports.php .