Anglers report lots of slush on top of the water at Strawberry, making it hard to operate snowmobiles and 4-Wheelers. The ice is still solid under the slush and many anglers report very good fishing. Wear water-proof boots.

DWR reports excellent perch fishing at Pineview: "Anglers report great fishing for perch. Families have been having fun experiences with youngsters catching plenty of perch. If you are lucky enough to catch a tiger muskie through the ice, remember to take some quick photos and release it as soon as possible."

Echo Reservoir also has good perch fishing.

DWR reports that Smith-Morehouse is good for rainbows and access is possible via snowmobile and 4-Wheeler.

I've been hearing reports of a monster tiger trout caught through the ice at Scofield Reservoir. And it now appears the fish is a new Utah record.

Brett Prettyman tracked down details and published them in this blog. Here are a couple quotes:

The monster trout, officially weighed and measured today by a DWR fisheries biologist at the Springville office, shattered the record set last year, tipping the scales at 18 pounds and four ounces. The tiger, a hybrid between a brook and a brown trout, was 32 3/4 inches long and caught by Chris Nilson of Benjamin.

"That's a heck of fish and not that far from the world record," (DWR's Justin) Hart said of the 18-pounder. "I'd be curious to know if that was one of the first fish we stocked in 2005. If it is, imagine what we might see if those fish live a couple more years?"

Read his complete report.

Utah's DWR reports very good fishing at Flaming Gorge Reservoir. There is stable ice on the north end of the lake, but open water or unstable ice on much of the Utah side.

DWR put this information on its Facebook page:

Ice remains on most of the reservoir north of the Pipeline. With the high winds experienced last week, some spots are opening up in the main body of the reservoir. This past weekend, there was a large expanse of open water north of Anvil Draw to Middle Marsh Creek. I also observed some wide pressure ridges with open water in the main lake areas. Be safe around these areas and recognize that winds can have a dramatic effect on the consistency and duration of ice. 

Ryan Mosley, DWR's Flaming Gorge project leader, has this update:

"Where we fished the ice was thick (12 inches of clear ice) and the fishing was still really good. Even with the recent success reports for lake trout pups in the main channel near Buckboard, we decided to fish for shallow rainbows further south. Rainbow fishing was very good in 15–25 feet of water and also provided the occasional lake trout. We selected shallow points towards the backs of bays and augered a lot of holes until we found fish. Many of the fish came through suspended, making it advantageous to have a fish finder so the presentation could be placed at the depth of the fish. 

We caught rainbows up to 20 inches and about 2 pounds. The quality of the rainbows caught this year is impressive, and even the smaller size class (14 inches) are fun to catch and exhibit thick red fillets. Fish hit a variety of lures, but I had much of my success using small 1/4 oz jigging spoons, including Swedish Pimples (whites and pinks) and Kastmasters (rainbow), and also 1/16 oz PowerBait Atomic Teasers (white with orange trout worm). 

Tip the lures with Gulp maggots, mealworms or wax worms. Upon cleaning the fish, many of the rainbows were foraging on chironomids, but some were also utilizing zooplankton. Chironomids tend to be more abundant on shallow sand/mud habitat, and this time of year zooplankton can be more abundant in the backs of bays or along southern exposed rocky shoreline where water is slightly warmer."

Jan 25: Uah's DWR gives these reports:

Ice update: The cisco are running at Bear Lake, and the ice is three to six inches thick. Come up tomorrow for the Cisco Disco!

Ice update: The ice is five to six inches thick at Pineview Reservoir, and the perch are biting.

Want to catch some fish? There are three fun winter-fishing events scheduled for tomorrow in northern Utah. | http://go.usa.gov/4kkF 

Ice update: At East Canyon Reservoir, the ice is about six inches thick, and anglers are catching 16- to 18-inch rainbows.

VisitUtah.com reports: The 2013 Burbot Bash is Feb 1-3 at Flaming Gorge. Get a team together for fun catching the ugliest fish in the West. http://bit.ly/Y4aaxq 

Jan 18 Report

DWR's Scott Tolentino reports that ice is starting to form on Bear Lake. No ice fishing yet but could come soon. Cisco should start to spawn any time now.

Jan 11 Report:

DWR Ice Update: Some anglers have been seen on the ice at Jordanelle. Please use caution — the ice is still considered unsafe.

DWR Ice update: Anglers say that Deer Creek Reservoir has open water in some areas and 6 inches of ice in others. Be very careful.

DWR Ice update: Wide Hollow Reservoir has 8 inches of ice and fishing is good for rainbows. Look for fish in 10 feet of water.

DWR Ice update: There's a little ice on the south end of Piute Reservoir. Fishing is slow.

DWR Ice update: Ice is 10–12 inches thick at Panguitch. Fish are generally biting very lightly, so pay close attention to the rod tip.

DWR Ice update: The ice at Otter Creek Reservoir is 8–10 inches thick. Fishing is good with popular ice techniques in shallow water.

DWR Ice update: Minersville Reservoir is capped with 6 inches of ice, but there are a few thin spots, so use caution. Fishing is fair.

DWR Ice update: There are over 6 inches of ice at Koosharem Reservoir. Catch large fish using minnows or cut bait.

Jan 10 Report:

DWR Ice Update: Most of Fish Lake has 8 inches of ice, and fishing is good for perch, rainbow trout, splake and lake trout.

Jan 8 Reports:

Don Allphin offers tips on ice fishing.

Brett Prettyman Blog: Flaming Gorge Fishing Report - Add rainbows to the "hot" category and look for plenty of ice for the Burbot Bash

DWR Ice update: There is a fair amount of floating ice at Bear Lake, but the lake should freeze soon. Cutthroat fishing is excellent!

DWR Ice update: Anglers have been on the ice at Holmes Creek. Use extreme caution when checking the ice thickness.

DWR Ice update: The ice at Echo appears to be safe. Use caution. Fishing is good using jigs tipped with nightcrawlers or mealworms.

DWR Ice update: East Canyon Reservoir has about 5 inches of ice. Anglers are catching fish 15–20 feet down from the ice surface.

DWR Ice update: The ice at Hyrum is 6–8 inches thick and many are catching their limit of trout using nightcrawlers and mealworms.

DWR Ice update: Temps at Little Creek are consistently below zero, so the ice should be thick!

DWR Ice update: There is a large section of open water in the middle of Lost Creek. Ice near the dam and the edge is 4–6 inches thick.

DWR Ice update: Fishing is good at Mantua. Most fish are found in 13–19 feet of water. Be extremely careful on the ice.

DWR Ice update: Newton Reservoir has moderately safe ice, but anglers aren't catching many fish. Use caution.

Jan 4: DWR reports:

Ice update: Visiting Strawberry Reservoir this weekend? There are at least 6 inches of ice on many parts of the reservoir.

Ice update: The ice at Yuba State Park is not safe! The park ranger said that the reservoir just barely became capped with ice.

Ice update: Deer Creek is still in transition and the ice is not safe. Wait to ice fish until the conditions improve.

Jan 3: DWR reports:

Ice update: Headed to Starvation? The ice is about 4–6 inches thick. Fishing is good for rainbows and perch and fair for walleye.

Ice update: At Steinaker Reservoir, the ice is about six inches thick, and the rainbows are biting.

Ice update: There's now fishable ice at Big Sandwash, Browne, Cottonwood, Moose Pond and Pelican Lake.

Dec 26, from Utah DWR:

Ice update: There are reports that ice is forming at Pineview, but it is not stable. Use extreme caution.

Ice update: On December 21, Echo Reservoir was completely iced over. Use extreme caution out on the ice.

Dec 23:

Strawberry has ice! There is new ice over the entire visible reservoir. Bays are solid and should support fishing. There may be spots of week ice over the main lake and so use extreme caution as you venture out. Fishing should be very good.

Utah DWR 12-20:

Ice update: The ice at Birch Creek is reported to be 3 to 5 inches thick. Fishing is fair for rainbows during the morning hours.

Ice update: Mantua Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Cutler Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Newton Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Little Creek Reservoir is entirely covered with ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Utah DWR Reports 12-17:

Ice update: Scofield is frozen. Ice thickness in the dam area is 4-8 inches. Anglers report catching a lot of smaller fish.

Ice update: Anglers are fishing through the ice at Huntington (Mammoth) Reservoir. Try using small jigs tipped with mealworms.

Utah State Parks Trifishalon! will be December 29 at Scofield,January 19 at Rockport and February 9 at Starvation. Join the fun and show off your ice fishing skills. Prizes will be awarded. Details.

At last, some of Utah's better ice fishing waters are starting to get a hard deck.

Utah's DWR provided these updates on 12-11-12.

Scofield Reservoir contains soft, unsafe ice with patches of open water. We recommend waiting 1-2 weeks for safer ice.

The north corner of Electric Lake has 1.5-3 inches of snowy ice. The rest is open water. Use caution if fishing.

The majority of Huntington Reservoir is topped with 1-1.5 inches of unstable ice. There are patches of open water.

Reports from 12-10-12

Matt Warner had about an inch of ice on Friday. We expect the ice to be fishable soon, maybe by this weekend.

East Park Reservoir is completely covered in an estimated four inches of ice. Good fishing success is likely.

There are reports that the ice is 2-4 inches thick at Hoop Lake. Anglers are catching rainbows in 8-15 feet of water.

Some Uinta lakes have up to six inches of ice. The cold forecast for next week should bring ice to others.

Anglers report 2 inches of ice at Cleveland Reservoir. The catch rate has been about two fat rainbow trout per hour.

The ice is about 9 inches thick at Boulger Reservoir. Fishing is good for 8 to 12-inch rainbow trout.

Anglers enjoyed catching fish through the ice at Scofield Saturday, during the first leg of a new Utah State Parks three-reservoir tournament. Brett Prettyman of the Salt Lake Tribune described the fun in this article. Below are excerpts:

Greg Young, of West Valley City, won the 2012 Scofield Ice Fishing tournament with a 16 3/4-inch rainbow. The other fish ranged down to 14 3/8 inches for fifth place. Those numbers are comparable to last year’s results.

While this was the seventh year for the Scofield ice fishing tournament, Saturday marked a new event on two other dates at two other state parks. The other two legs of theTrifishalon will be held Jan. 19 at Rockport State Park and Feb. 9 at Starvation State Park.

The winner at Scofield was presented with a $300 gift

Utah's DWR has published a series of good articles providing information about ice fishing. The final article came out today; you can see the full thing here. We give excerpts below.

Here is info about the previous articles: Read part one: Cold ice means hot fishing. Read part two: Basic equipment equals fun ice fishing. Read part three: Catch fish by finding the right depth.

Today's article: Dozens of waters in Utah provide good ice fishing action

"Utah provides a wider variety of quality fish to catch than any place I know of," he (Drew Cushing) says. "And many of these opportunities are probably close to your home."

Some of Utah's best

Cushing says the following waters are producing great fishing for the following fish:

Yellow perch

Larger perch:

• Fish Lake
• Hyrum Reservoir
• Rockport Reservoir

Smaller, but more abundant perch:

• Pineview Reservoir
• Mantua Reservoir
• Starvation Reservoir

"Catching perch at Pineview can be fairly easy," Cushing says. "Just locate the spot on the bottom where the perch are, and then put your bait in front of the fish."

Bluegill

Larger bluegill:

• Pelican Lake
• Steinaker Reservoir

Smaller, but more abundant bluegill:

• Mantua Reservoir

Largemouth bass

• Pelican Lake
• Mantua Reservoir

Rainbow, cutthroat, brown or tiger trout

• Deer Creek Reservoir
• Steinaker Reservoir
• Starvation Reservoir
• East Canyon Reservoir
• Strawberry Reservoir ("Strawberry provides fantastic fishing for big trout, and lots of them," Cushing says.)
• Birch Creek Reservoir
• Scofield Reservoir
• "Both of these waters provide good fishing for big tiger trout," Cushing says.

Lake trout

• Flaming Gorge Reservoir
• Fish Lake

"You have a good chance to catch some big fish at these waters," he says.

Burbot

• Flaming Gorge Reservoir

Crappie

• Pineview Reservoir

Cushing says crappie can be tricky to catch. "They suspend at various depths," he says, "so they can be tough to find.

"But if you catch a crappie at a certain depth, keep fishing that depth," he says, "and you should do well. Pineview has a good population of crappie."

Kokanee salmon

• Causey Reservoir, and Porcupine Reservoir

Cushing says the best ice fishing for kokanee salmon happens at the two waters at the start of the ice fishing season. "When ice first forms on these waters," he says, "salmon fishing can be fantastic for about two to three weeks."

White bass

• Utah Lake

Dec 26, from Utah DWR:

Ice update: There are reports that ice is forming at Pineview, but it is not stable. Use extreme caution.

Ice update: On December 21, Echo Reservoir was completely iced over. Use extreme caution out on the ice.

Dec 23:

Strawberry has ice! There is new ice over the entire visible reservoir. Bays are solid and should support fishing. There may be spots of week ice over the main lake and so use extreme caution as you venture out. Fishing should be very good.

Utah DWR 12-20:

Ice update: The ice at Birch Creek is reported to be 3 to 5 inches thick. Fishing is fair for rainbows during the morning hours.

Ice update: Mantua Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Cutler Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Newton Reservoir is entirely covered with a thin layer of new ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Ice update: Little Creek Reservoir is entirely covered with ice. Use extreme caution when checking the ice.

Utah DWR Reports 12-17:

Ice update: Scofield is frozen. Ice thickness in the dam area is 4-8 inches. Anglers report catching a lot of smaller fish.

Ice update: Anglers are fishing through the ice at Huntington (Mammoth) Reservoir. Try using small jigs tipped with mealworms.

Utah State Parks Trifishalon! will be December 29 at Scofield,January 19 at Rockport and February 9 at Starvation. Join the fun and show off your ice fishing skills. Prizes will be awarded. Details.

At last, some of Utah's better ice fishing waters are starting to get a hard deck.

Utah's DWR provided these updates on 12-11-12.

Scofield Reservoir contains soft, unsafe ice with patches of open water. We recommend waiting 1-2 weeks for safer ice.

The north corner of Electric Lake has 1.5-3 inches of snowy ice. The rest is open water. Use caution if fishing.

The majority of Huntington Reservoir is topped with 1-1.5 inches of unstable ice. There are patches of open water.

Reports from 12-10-12

Matt Warner had about an inch of ice on Friday. We expect the ice to be fishable soon, maybe by this weekend.

East Park Reservoir is completely covered in an estimated four inches of ice. Good fishing success is likely.

There are reports that the ice is 2-4 inches thick at Hoop Lake. Anglers are catching rainbows in 8-15 feet of water.

Some Uinta lakes have up to six inches of ice. The cold forecast for next week should bring ice to others.

Anglers report 2 inches of ice at Cleveland Reservoir. The catch rate has been about two fat rainbow trout per hour.

The ice is about 9 inches thick at Boulger Reservoir. Fishing is good for 8 to 12-inch rainbow trout.

Utah's DWR provided this news report:

Fish smashes previous state record

Scofield -- It looks like a new state record tiger trout has been caught in Utah.

Last week -- after a day of fishing at Scofield Reservoir in central Utah -- an excited Trent Peery dropped by the Division of Wildlife Resources’ office in Springville.

A resident of Santaquin, Peery stopped by the office to ask fisheries biologists to measure a gigantic tiger trout he caught earlier that day.

Peery was hoping the trout would break the existing Utah state record.
That record was held by Michael David Moon.  In 2007, Moon caught a tiger trout that measured 29 1/2 inches and weighed 10 pounds, 12 ounces.  Moon’s fish had a girth measurement of 17 1/8 inches.

Moon caught the tiger in Palisades Reservoir just south of Manti.

After Regional Aquatic Manager Mike Slater measured Peery’s fish, Peery’s hope came true -- his tiger trout not only beat the old state record, its weight smashed it!

Peery’s fish measured 32 1/4 inches long and weighed 15 pounds, 16 ounces.  The fish had a girth measurement of 20 inches.  

The paperwork that will make Peery’s catch official has been sent to the DWR’s Salt Lake City office to be finalized.

“It’s worth noting that Trent also caught another tiger trout the same day that measured approximately 25 inches,” says Brent Stettler, regional conservation outreach manager for the DWR.  “There appears to be more large fish under the ice right now.

“The ice fishing season isn't over at Scofield,” Stettler says.
“There may yet be another state record out there.”

Current conditions

DWR Conservation Officer Devin Christensen says fishing at Scofield ranges from fair to good.  The ice is 25 to 30 inches thick.

Christensen says the anglers who are catching the biggest fish are using spoons or lures such as Kastmasters, tipped with chunks of chub meat.

To stay updated on ice fishing at Scofield and other waters in Utah, visit the DWR’s weekly fishing report.

In late winter, trout can become finicky under the ice. Don Allphin offers some great tips in this article published in the Provo Harald. His tips include:

• Using sonar to get bait to the exact depth of the fish
• Using the smallest bait possible
• Use sent to mask human odors
• Fishing during hours recommended using solunar predictions

I've never put much stock in solunar predictions. How about you? I'd love to get your comments about solunar tables - do they make much difference?