Cisco Fishing

The first time I went cisco fishing was in 1963.  I will never forget coming over the hill as it was breaking light seeing the beach covered with people standing out in the water with nets attached to bamboo poles.  There was thick, black smoke billowing up from numerous tire fires on the shoreline.  There were campers, trailers and tents scattered along the beach and the Fish and Game had a check station set up on the road.  As we went down a scruffy bunch of fishermen in hip boots who had drank too much booze were swiping at fish.  Some fell in but they were all soaked to the bone.  There was no camo or Gortex to be seen.  In those days Bear Lake was one of the few waters open to fishing during the winter, there was not Super Bowl or video games to play.  The local businesses profited. They caught tens of thousands of ciscos and people worried that they would deplete the population.  The limit was 50 and "By God" they stayed until they got their limit.   No Parks and Recreation then so no fees or regulations.  Everyone ate what the caught because it was illegal to use cisco as bait on Bear Lake.  The "Rockpile" had not been discovered so there was no one there.  We all believed that cisco were only seen in January and went to the depths of the lake for the rest of the year.  The TV stations had a "cisco run" report on the news each night.  It was a huge event that was unique in the U.S.

How things have changed today...........

  

Where have the deer gone?

Last year during this time there was thousands of deer along the lake on the east shore.  No one could understand where they all came from.  There wasn't even any snow to push them down.  My personal opinion was that they could sense the record winter that was on the way.  A lot of other wildlife acted strangely also.  Well, I was at North Eden last week and this is what was there.  A pencil buck with a few does and fawns.  Maybe this winter won't be so bad or they all winter killed last year.

The wife is gone

You know it is interesting.  As an independent individual who rarely lets anyone know what he is doing or where he is going I have realized that I like to have Doreen keeping track of me.  When I slip out, do something maybe I shouldn't do or just be me it is not near as fun when no one is keeping track of me. I have all of these illusions of what I can do but when it comes to doing iut I lose interest.   I hate to admit it but I must be domesticated,  The only one that is truly happy is Maggie who gets to lay in the living room when I am around.  She still sleeps outside at night.  I miss you Doreen,

Left in the cold

I am sort of depressed today.  I thought that I would have plenty of time to take the mower off the tractor and put the snow blower on.  Well that did not happen.  Saturady came with snow and wind.  Mike and I had a great weekend planned with hunting and fishing that all went up in smake with the weather.  We still had a great weekend.  My place is a 1000 feet above Bear Lake we we got the 18 inches of snow and the lake got a skiff,  The blower is finally on and the deck is clear.  What a bummer.  I have lived here long enough to know that this snow is here for the duration.  La Nina is positioned in the Pacific so batten down the hatches, a long winter is coming.  It would be a little easier if Doreen was here to be depressed with me but she and Audrey and Ashley are in Aruba soaking up the sun.  Good for them, bad for me.

What Has Happened to It?

It is an erie morning for me.  The weather is perfect and the air is still.  Not a sound, no traffic.  I never thought I would see this day come.  Ever since I can remember I have waited, anxiously for this day each year.  I read about what I should do, prepared myself and my equipment for the event and visualized success.  During my years as a warden, it meant a weekend of work, hundreds of  miles on rough roads in the hills, talking to lots of armed people.  I enjoyed the excitement of it all.  But around here it seems to be over.  No sounds of shots in the surrounding mountains, no people in red fluorescent clothing, no antlers exposed in the back if pickup trucks.  It is the opening of the 2011 deer hunt.  To see a deer is rare, a buck even rarer.  If you do see any, they will be in a subdivision.  The biologists don't know where they went.  The old excuses like winter range destruction, predators, weather, chronic wasting disease or anything else don't answer the question.  The kids are probably playing with their phones as the old man desperately scans the hills.  At least the family could get together and ride OHV's and drink beer.  That will end next year when the DWR breaks up the state into micro units.  Then, even if you own private ground with some deer, you can't hunt it unless you draw out on it.  But for the hunters with big money, there will always be a place for you to buy a deer if you have enough $$.  Apparently, commercialization of wildlife is legal if the State does it.  It is over.  Thanks Utah Wildlife Resources.  

Age and Birthdays

Today, since it is my birthday, I am going to talk about myself.  I was born after WWII to an Australian bride and Navy man who went back to Australia, married her an brought her to farm in Utah.  I vaguely remember birthdays as a child, don't remember my 21st birthday and since that time they have come yearly and uneventfully but in my mind I didn't age.  I remained in my early twenties acting the part for years and years.  People around me said I should grow up and I said "look how old I am now".  I thought I could do anything and was on the edge more times than not.  I never purposely exercised for exercise sake but have always be active since I can't stand to sit still.  At the time, the years seemed to pass slowly until I watched my kids grow up.  The passage of time accelerated then and I realized everything was changing but my perception of myself,  What seemed to be a couple of years ago turned into twenty year ago.  All of my old friends started to look old, but not me, or so I thought.  I could still work hard but I don't get as much accomplished as I thought I should have.  I now read obituaries and wonder why do so many people die my age.  Then I look at the "rockers" who abused their bodies beyond belief are still going .  I have been lucky.  I have peered at deathmany times but have never been in a hospital.  I guess it is because I still think I am 22 in my mind even though my carcass is 63 today.  I hope to die old in years but young at heart.

"Fish On!"

Typically August is a slow month for fishing at Bear Lake.  There will be a few guys out dragging downrigger balls around the lake seeing fish but not catching them.  This year has been different.  I started hearing reports about of couple of the Laketown boys catching some nice Mack off the east side.  Then some of the boats out of the marina started doing the same thing but with a mix of cutthroat.  Talk is one thing but seeing is reality and I have seen some great catches of fish along with stories that are almost unbelievable.  So what is happening?  Since I have not seen any of the fisheries data (I have asked) collected by DWR I don't know what they are seeing.  I suspect that the high water and productive inflow have something to do with it.  Maybe the zooplankton have bounced up or the record warm temperatures of the lake have speeded things up but one thing is for sure.  If you want to catch big fish trolling now is the time to do it.