As spring apparently is approaching, folks like me start to think that maybe it will be warm enough to go out fishing on the lake. The miserable weather of the past two months has made it easy to spend time by the fire. I always think about what to use but that creates problems. In the past 50 years, I have seen fishing methods change over time that were successful in catching fish in Bear Lake.
When I was in high school, fishing Bear Lake was simple. If you were on shore between the fall and the spring, you threw spoons, Spin-a-Lures or Mepps. There were lots of nice rainbow in the lake then and could be caught readily with a hammered brass and fluorescent stripe (my favorite) slowly retrieved along the east side. You could also use a spoon that the treble hook replaced with a snelled hook and worm. If you were lucky enough to have a small boat you invariably trolled with lead core line and a U-20 chrome flatfish, eight to ten colors out. That was the way it was for years.
Then the Rapala entered the game. This balsa wood lure from Finland that had many patterns, shallow or deep running, and it was what caught fish. Shortly after fish finders were introduced by Lowrance. It was a boon to fish biologists who had to listen to fishermen who said there were no fish, now could see them. No excuses. But the bass lure market was slowly invading the West.
Suddenly, there was a mind boggling array of lures advertised in Cabela’s and Bass Pro. Wild looking lures of all shapes, colors and names. They promised to catch warm water fish but would they catch trout? Surprising many did. They included but were not limited to hard baits, soft baits, swim baits, jigs and every other conceivable modification and color pattern imaginable. This array was successful in catching countless fishermen who saw them and thought they might catch a fish.
The next significant accomplishment was the introduction of the downrigger. No longer did you need lead core or lead weights to get down deep. Hook the line next to the downrigger weight and take it to whatever depth you wanted. The fish finders continued to also evolve and now come equipped with GPS so you know where you are, where you caught fish and what track you were on so you can duplicate it. There are units that will even steer to boat for you and set your downrigger ball at a specific depth.
On Bear Lake, which has been a traditional trolling fishery, changes have occurred in the last year. For years, fishermen have used the “Mack attack” which is a lead headed jig with a tube body on it through the ice-tipped with a piece of meat. Now it is being used all the time successfully. Perhaps they are targeting individual fish or just specific areas, but trolling seems to less common.
So, as a fisheries biologist, this all intrigues me. The fish have not changed any of the natural characteristics. Scientifically they should not change what they eat or bite. I am convinced it is the fishermen. Part of being successful is the mindset. If you think you can catch fish, you do or have a good reason why not. If you think you don’t know what you are doing, times will be tough.
I don’t know why this is the case. All I can do is quote W.C. Fields when he said “to catch a fish, one must drink like a one”. Sage advice.
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