Well thanks for tuning into KSL Outdoors, I’m Adam Eakle, along with Ryan Mosley and the crew. We’ve brought my family, Lowell along and your son. What are we doing? First ice on Flaming Gorge we are going to try and catch some rainbows to start with and maybe try some burbot and lake trout later. (adam) the Burbot Bash and Burbot Classic, the Burbot Bash is next week, the Burbot Classic just a couple of weeks after that in February. Exciting time around here. (ryan) yeah we are making ice right now, so it’s good, they need a lot of ice to really get a lot of participants for those events so it will be good to hopefully draw a lot of people out, harvest some burbot and have fun.
(Adam) Now we’ve got a little bet going on between the kids. (Taylor Eakle, Eakle “Rug Rat”) heck yeah. (adam) what is it? (taylor) whoever catches the biggest fish gets to decide who cleans all the toilets in the house. (laughs) (adam) I’m not loosing this bet! (taylor) neither am I. Lets go.
(Adam) dude, what are you doing over here? (Koby Mosley, kickin’ butt) fishing. (adam) kicking our butts, we can’t even get our rods in the water, you’ve got two! (koby) I know. (adam) leave it Remington. Nice bow. (koby) Thick. (adam) heavy wasn’t it. (koby) yeah. (adam) show me what you’ve got here. Just a rainbow hookup. (adam) little jig huh? (koby) yup.
(koby Mosley) it’s all skill. (adam) you’re catching all the fish because it’s all skill? (koby) yeah. (adam) uh huh. (laughs)
Flaming Gorge is a great ice fishing destination if you’re looking to get away from the crowds. The upcoming burbot tournaments have been a huge hit for anglers looking to put a dent in the invasive burbot population.
Last fall, during their annual trend netting study on burbot, biologists placed internal pit tags into fifty burbot all over the upper reach of the lake. Catch one of those pit tags at the Burbot Bash or Burbot Classic and you could walk away with big bucks! Last year, one lucky angler at the Classic, did just that!
(Raynette Schell, burbotbash.com) The contestants that win a tagged fish could be in a pot to win ten thousand, twenty five hundred, or a thousand dollars or all three depending on if three pit tags are turned in. We also have a burbot bounty so every tagged fish that is caught is going to be entered into the burbot bounty.
(Raynette Schell, burbotbash.com) Plus we have the largest, the most, youth catagories. We have a burbot cleaning contest as well.
(Raynette Schell, burbotbash.com) We are all invested in the health of the reservoir and the burbot are an invasive species that are targeting our trophy fishery and we just want to keep it alive and well for years to come.
Organizers are hoping to get a good response from anglers all over the West and ice conditions are key to good burbot fishing. As of today, here is what we know. The ice is a good ten inches thick around the confluence area and uplake. Down lake ice extends past Buckboard into Big Bend, but the ice here is reported to be three to four inches thick. Burbot anglers are advised to fish in groups of two or more for safety.
(Ryan Mosley, UDWR Flaming Gorge Project Leader or UDWR Fisheries Biologist) if people do want to partake in burbot fishing in the evening and morning hours and then fish during the day, you know there’s lots of opportunity for rainbow fishing. Up shallow like we are right now. They go off in main channel depths to target pup lake trout. A lot of opportunities.
That’s a really nice rainbow. A good representation of the quality of rainbows that you have up here. On this end of the reservoir too. Even some of these fish that Koby caught, they are little bit shorter, but they are just really thick fish. A lot of fillet to them and great fighters.
(Ryan with fish on Taylors rod) that’s Taylors rod? (adam) yeah, don’t tell her because if she catches a fish she doesn’t have to clean toilets.
Well we won’t tell her. Because she’ll think she doesn’t have to clean the toilets but I hate to break it to her. She’s cleaning toilets regardless. (ryan) Does she know yet, oh there she is she’s looking at me.
Well the fishing wasn’t super fast, but to be honest we only had the family out here for a few hours. It is getting down right cold. The sun is going down now and it’s time for some burbot fishing.
Up next, Some tips and tricks from Ryan on where and how to target burbot for this years tournaments but first tonights Burt Brothers quiz question.
Add comment