Thursday Sept 4
Parunuweap Canyon
Labor Day weekend brought a dramatic weather change, and that has helped fishing. Lake Powell's surface temperature dropped below 80 F, and will continue to cool slowly. Snow fell in the high country and early morning temperatures are now nippy at Strawberry.
Strawberry fishing is becoming consistently good - we heard multiple good reports this week. Same story at Scofield. Trout are feeding aggressively and are easy to find. These waters, plus Otter Creek, Fish Lake and many others, should offer very good action during the coming weeks.
Streams throughout Utah continue to fish well. Steve Schmidt gives these suggestions: "We are starting to enter that transition period when summer's aquatic hatches wind down to be overshadowed by late summer's prolific terrestrials: ants, beetles and hoppers. The next decent aquatic hatch will be falls Blue Wing Olives. O n some of our rivers the giant October Caddis will also begin to emerge. We ran across a decent hatch of BWO's this past weekend on the Weber, but with blue bird days back in the forecast I wouldn't expect to see them consistently on the water for several more weeks." Read his complete report.
Lake Powell should offer very good fishing during the next few weeks, for all species. Striped bass command attention this time of year. Wayne Gustaveson gives this advice: "Best fishing strategy for this week is to search for that big boil. If found, the rewards are tremendous with numerous strong, fat 2-3 pound stripers that can be caught as long as the fish feed on top - which may be over an hour. These huge boils occur during the first two hours of daylight and the last two hours of light at night." Read his complete report.
- Strawberry big cutts caught on tipped jigs
- Strawberry mishaps, but good fishing
- Smallmouth - what to use to catch them
- Twin Lakes Idaho yields largemouth bass
- East Canyon is good for trout
- Willard is muddy with spotty fishing
- Lost Creek Reservoir - it is overpopulated with chubs?
- Pineview offers tiger muskie and largemouth
- Electric Lake has fast fishing
- Scofield is hot for trout
- Jordanelle is very good for smallmouth
- Lake Powell was great last week
DWR
-- Bison return to the Book Cliffs
-- 30 years of work
-- See kokanee salmon
- Vernon Reservoir to be Drained; DWR Removes Trout Limit
Deseret Morning News
- Utah Windriders: Sailors go where wind takes them
- Visiting Inspiration Point may involve perspiration
- UDOT evaluating corridors for bicycles
- Losing it: It's uphill battle to catch that fitter self
- Alert system could help tribe, tourists in Grand Canyon
- South Fork Snake flows are highest in decades
- Crews winning battle against wildfires
- 5 groups join Alaska suit to halt polar bear protection
- Officials closer to final Idaho roadless plan
- Fire spreads in Dinosaur National Monument
- Timpanogos Cave trail is to shut for repairs
- Wildfires burning near Moab, Vernal
- BLM moves forward plans to develop oil shale in West
- Bear breaks up marijuana operation
Salt Lake Tribune
- Flaming Gorge: Beauty and variety
- Parker: Stream access ruling puts the public's safety at risk
- Wharton: Electric generators can ruin the peace
- Lake Havasu hopes to add second bridge
- Hike of the Week: Cherry Canyon Logging Trail
- Grand Canyon tourist spot to be closed for months
- Spend some time with several birding field guides
- Orem company offers to remove carp from Utah Lake for free
- Alder: A new set of negotiations need for The Colorado River Compact
KUTV
Other
Regional
- Idaho Fish and Game Donate to the Pocatello Zoo
- Gov. Otter marks super sockeye return with Idaho Fish and Game
- Deal reached to help Kootenai sturgeon spawn
- Get hooked on trout at workshop
- Big Wood River property protected
- Record-setting Washington angler shares his vast experience
- Zimo: Senior discounts available for the outdoors
- Low-water conditions lead to closure of Magic Reservoir Dam
- RUMORS OF NEW SALMON DISEASE SURFACE IN CHILE
- State makes a point on poaching with display
- Out and about: Fishing and Mountain Biking
- Fish rap: Horsethief has good fall trout fishing
- Expect fall fishing success to fluctuate as water conditions ...
- Biological Invasions Increasing Due To Freshwater Impoundments ...
- "Orvis, Old Mill team up for fly-fishing course"
- US troops cast lines for elusive Saddam bass
- The ups and downs of working in the great outdoors
- Fishing hot spot: Arkansas River
- Thousands of fish taken from Northern Calif. lake
- Competition tough at Lake Mead fishing tourney
- Marlette Lake worth the hike for anglers
I enjoyed a great hike last week, exploring Parunuweap Canyon on the east edge of Zion Park. Parunuweap is like The Narrows, only more so. More narrow. More beautiful. More rugged. Only there are no other people there because it is difficult to get into the canyon. We entered via a side canyon from Elephant Butte, on the south side. Just finding the trailhead as an adventure requiring 12 miles of serious four-wheeling through deep sand.
Elephant Butt is a good entrance if you want a multi-day backpack. It is hard to day hike in this area, because it is so rugged, but you can do it if you come in along the ridge above Misery Gulch. You can also reach Parunuweap by doing the strenuous, technical slot canyon hike through Misery.
- See photos from this trip
- See my older Misery Gulch video clip
Then we went to Powell to spend a few days relaxing and fishing. Wrong. Arrived late Saturday evening to strong wind. Camped at Lone Rock Beach and got sand blasted. Then it rained... and rained... and rained. The next morning we went out in the boat, braving both wind and rain. It was blowing so hard we couldn't play or fish. Then it got worse, with heavy rain and big waves. We headed back to the marina. We checked the forecast and decided to come home.
My goal was to fish Powell's San Juan Arm. That's the only part of the lake I haven't explored. Well, I guess I'll just have to go back down in a couple weeks...
Xanthe Webb has posted these:
- Maple Canyon to Strawberry Reservoir - Cross Country Backpacking
- Photos from her backpacking trip
Annual Walleye Fishing Classic, Sept 12-14, Starvation State Park, Duchesne. Teams from 5 states compete for thousands in prizes. BBQ and a lot of prizes for spectators too! Information: 435-722-4598
Cedar City SkyFest, Sept 12-14. Hot air balloons from four states all three days, Balloons launch at 7:00 a.m. Come early to see them inflate. Radio control airplane aerobatics and static displays all three days. Kite flying--bring your kite! Saturday, Lions Club breakfast 7 am, $5 per person, $20 per family of 6. Kids candy drop--Saturday noon--an rc plane drops candy from the sky! Saturday Night Glow--Live band--Two Much Fun Band 7:30 pm-8:30 pm followed by candlestick or balloon glow. Information: Mary Payne, 435-867-5890
Uintah Basin Back Country Horse Ride, Sep 13, Duchesne. Camping, barbeque, a horse ride for the whole family. Contact: Gale. Phone: 435-789-0822.
World of Speed racing event, Sept. 17-20, 2008, Bonneville Salt Flats.
Strawberry Wildlife Festival, Sept, 19, to be held at the US Forest Service Visitor Center at Strawberry Reservoir. See spawning kokanee salmon and learn about other wildlife. There will be displays, workshops, food and other activities. Contact the Division of Wildlife Resources for registration information.
Lake Powell Shad Rally North, Sept 19-20 at Stanton Creek (near Bullfrog). Meet other fishermen, share information and food. Socialize. But mostly just fish.
See our events calendar- Good Fishing, Dave Webb