Ice-off "luring" anglers to Strawberry Reservoir

If you're a shore angler, right now is the perfect time to fish Strawberry

Anglers try their luck in the newly-opened water at Strawberry Reservoir. This photo was taken April 17 along the shoreline near US-40.

Photo courtesy of Steve Gray

STRAWBERRY RESERVOIR — The ice has started to melt along the shorelines at Strawberry Reservoir.

Anglers who know a little about great fishing are starting to take advantage of one of the best times of the year to fish Utah's most popular fishery.

Strawberry Reservoir was also honored by the American Fisheries Society recently as one of the best trout fishing waters in the nation.

"On April 17, many of the bays were free of ice, and much of the shoreline had enough open water to provide shoreline anglers with good places to fish," says Scott Root, regional conservation outreach manager with the Division of Wildlife Resources.

"The Soldier Creek side of the reservoir is mostly open water, and boats can actually be launched from the Soldier Creek boat ramp," Root says. "Unfortunately, there's still a lot of ice on the main body of Strawberry. Ice also surrounds the Strawberry Marina, so you can't launch a boat from the marina yet.

The ice is quickly melting along the shorelines at Strawberry Reservoir. The fishing is great. Complete ice-off could occur in next two weeks.

Photo courtesy of Steve Gray

"Complete ice-off usually occurs around the second week of May, but if conditions are right, it could happen within the next week or so."

DWR Conservation Officer Paul Davis says many anglers are finding great success by casting tube jigs, minnow-imitating lures or even traditional baits toward the edge of the ice. That's where hungry trout are often lurking.

"Depending on the direction of the wind, you can shorefish the entire reservoir," Davis says. "Although there's open water to the dam, some ice may blow through the area, so boaters need to be careful.

"Fishing is good, especially on the Soldier Creek side of the reservoir. I've already checked several big rainbows and at least one cutthroat that was over 22 inches long."

Many of the bays at Strawberry are now ice free. The Soldier Creek side of the reservoir is mostly open water, and boats can be launched.

Photo courtesy of Steve Gray

Anglers are reminded about some special regulations at Strawberry Reservoir:

• The limit is four trout or salmon in the aggregate.
• In your four-trout limit, you may not have more than two cutthroat trout under 15 inches, and no more than one cutthroat trout over 22 inches.
• All cutthroat trout from 15 to 22 inches long must be immediately released.

Strawberry Reservoir is about 25 miles southeast of Heber City. For more information about fishing at Strawberry, call the DWR's Central Region office at (801) 491-5678.