October- Utah's Best Month of the Year to Fish

The best fishing of the year is about to begin. You can locate the action by visiting websites that provide updated fishing reports.

One of the best sites is www.wildlife.utah.gov/hotspots.

Paul Birdsey, cold water sport fisheries coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources, says October is his favorite month to fish. "There's no better time to fish," Birdsey says, "and the beautiful fall scenery and the cooler temperatures aren't the only reasons why."

Birdsey says at the end of September or the start of October, lakes and reservoirs in Utah experience what he calls their "fall turnover."

"Basically," he says, "the water mixes. As the water on the surface cools, it sinks to the bottom of the reservoir. As the water sinks, it pushes the water on the bottom of the reservoir up to the top."

This swirling motion brings material from the deeper layers of the lake or reservoir into the upper layers. All of the sudden, algae starts to bloom. As the algae blooms, zooplankton feed on the algae. Then, the zooplankton bloom too.

Suddenly, abundant food is available for bait fish and sport fish throughout the lake or reservoir. "During this period of time," Birdsey says, "the fish go into a 'feeding frenzy.'"

During the frenzy, Birdsey says you can catch fish from the shore using simple equipment. "A rod and a reel, a bobber and some worms are about all you need," he says.

Because food is so abundant, fish will spread themselves across the entire body of water. They'll be in shallow water near shore and in deeper water in the middle of the lake or reservoir. "You can catch fish from the shore or from a boat," Birdsey says.

And lakes and reservoirs aren't the only places where fishing improves in October. Fishing in "tailrace" waters (rivers and streams that are below dams) improves as nutrients and cooler water are released into them. Having cooler water temperatures and the sun at a lower angle also improves fishing in all of the rivers and streams in the state, including those that aren't below dams.

Birdsey says the feeding frenzy usually lasts two to four weeks. "You can still catch fish in late fall," he says, "but fishing usually isn't as fast as it is in October."

Birdsey says the week before Utah's general rifle buck deer hunt starts is his favorite week of the year to fish. "You can usually have the water to yourself," he says, "and the fishing is as good as it gets."

During the week before the rifle deer hunt last fall, Birdsey says he and a friend caught and released 30 to 50 splake in a single day at Joes Valley Reservoir in southeastern Utah.

"We had a blast," he says.

This year's rifle buck deer hunt starts Oct. 27.

And even if you're going out on the big game hunts, you can still get in on the action. "Take your fishing equipment with you," Birdsey says. "When you're not hunting in the middle of the day, you'll have plenty of time to fish."

Stay updated

You can stay updated on where the best fall fishing is happening in Utah by checking several websites. The following are among the best:

● www.wildlife.utah.gov/hotspots

● www.utahwildlife.net

● www.bigfishtackle.com

You can also call the nearest Division of Wildlife Resources office or the DWR's Salt Lake City office at (801) 538-4700.

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Contact: Mark Hadley, DWR Relations with the Public Specialist (801) 538-4737





Plenty of Bull Elk in Utah

Rifle hunts starts Oct. 6; a few permits still left

If you're new to elk hunting, the big game coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources has some advice for you.

"As soon as the first shots are fired, the elk head away from the roads and into the thickest cover they can find," says Anis Aoude. "If you want to be a successful elk hunter, you need to get into that cover too."

Utah's 2012 general rifle bull elk hunt kicks off Oct. 6. And permits for the hunt are almost gone.

On Sept. 26, about 2,600 permits to hunt on any-bull units were still available. About 2,400 permits were also available to hunt on spike-only units.

You can buy an elk permit at www.wildlife.utah.gov. Permits are also available at DWR offices and from hunting license agents across Utah.

Elk are doing great

Aoude says most of the state's herds are doing great. Based on surveys this past winter, DWR biologists estimated the state's population at more than 72,000 elk.

Aoude says some of the largest elk herds are found on the Central Mountains (Manti) and Wasatch Mountains units in central Utah; the South Slope, Yellowstone unit in northeastern Utah; and the Plateau, Fish Lake/Thousand Lakes unit in south-central Utah.

He says plenty of elk are also found on the Morgan, South Rich unit in northern Utah. But this unit is almost entirely private land. You must obtain written permission from a landowner before hunting on it.

Finding the elk

Much of Utah's elk hunting takes place on units that are called spike-only units. Spike bulls are the only bulls you can take on these units. Plenty of spike bulls are available on these units. But once the hunt starts, the animals can be tough to find.

"The success rate on spike-only units averages about 15 percent," Aoude says. "Fortunately, you can do several things to increase the chance you take an elk."

Unless it gets cold and snowy before the hunt, Aoude says elk will be scattered at higher elevations when the season opens Oct. 6. He says the key to finding them is to get off the roads and into the backcountry.

Aoude says elk are wary animals that are sensitive to hunting pressure. "As soon as the pressure builds," he says, "they head into the thickest cover they can find. To find success, you have to head into the backcountry and find them."

The rut (breeding period), which occurs right before the general rifle hunt starts, can also make it challenging to find spike bulls.

During the rut, mature bulls gather groups of cow elk to breed. If one of these large bulls sees a spike bull, he'll chase the spike bull off.

Being chased into cover by the bigger bulls makes the spike bulls, which are already nervous, more apt to head back into the cover once the hunt starts.

"The larger bulls scare the spike bulls as much as the hunters do," Aoude says. "Unless you get into the backcountry areas where the spikes are hiding, you're probably not going to see many.

"The good news is, if you do get into the backcountry, there's a good chance you'll be among those who take a spike bull this year."

OHV maps -- don't leave home without one

If you're going to use an off-highway vehicle during the hunt, it's critical that you obtain an OHV riding map for the area you're going to hunt. These maps are available from the agency that manages the land you'll be hunting on. That agency is usually the U.S. Forest Service or the Bureau of Land Management.

Aoude says it's important that hunters keep their OHVs on designated roads and trails. Taking OHVs into areas where it isn't legal to take them damages the habitat the elk rely on, disturbs and scatters the animals, and ruins the hunting experience for others.

Aoude also encourages you to do some preseason scouting and to check the boundary descriptions for the areas you'll be hunting.

You can get maps and boundary descriptions for the general elk units at the following Web pages:

● Any-bull units: www.wildlife.utah.gov/HAM/public/gen_elk.php.

● Spike-only units: www.wildlife.utah.gov/HAM/public/spike_elk.php

For more information, call the nearest Division of Wildlife Resources office or the DWR's Salt Lake City office at (801) 538-4700.

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PHOTOS - six photos to accompany this story are available at http://huntdatabase.com/utah/newsphotos/index.php?gazpart=show&gazgal=286 .

Contact: Mark Hadley, DWR Relations with the Public Specialist (801) 538-4737

Fishing reports - available at http://wildlife.utah.gov/hotspots .