Schiess: A great catch at Henrys Lake

All indicators are pointing toward a great summer season on the famed Henrys Lake as the gill netting and spawning programs show larger, healthier cutthroats and some huge brook trout and hybrids mixed in.

The fishing season on Henrys will open on May 28 this year; and if the weather is good, hundreds of boats will dot the famed lake. Last year was a disappointment for many fishermen as the hot weather in June drove the water temperatures up, causing the fish to quit feeding and drove them into the major weeds beds around the lake. Even the ice fishermen found it tough going with the ice conditions less than desirable.

“Unlike last year, we should have good tributary inflow which congregates trout during the warm summer months and usually provides good catch rates,” said Damon Keen, manager of the Henrys Lake Hatchery. “Good inflow, along with normal water temperatures can really improve fishing. As a couple of examples, 1999 and 2006 were years when our fish per net was similar to this year and our catch rates were very good.”

With ice leaving Henrys Lake about a month ago, most of the fish should have moved away from the shores where they were spawning and with the water still cold, they should be scattered around the lake. Bank fishing should be best from the Cliffs with trolling and drifting at the areas where the water is from 10 to 15 feet deep the most productive on opening weekend.

“A real positive we saw this year is relative weight or how ‘fat’ the fish are,” said Keen. “After several years of low relative weights, we’re seeing improvement. We recorded really nice fish in the nets this year.”

After the ice broke on the lake, Keen, with the help of volunteers and students from BYU-Idaho’s fisheries program – under the direction of Eric Billman – began setting out gill nets in the evenings and picking them up early the next morning. The goal was to collect fish for study and to check the health of the fishery.

Six nets, three floaters and three sinkers were used around the lake to gather the fish. The goal of 11 trout per net-night fell short as eight fish was the average this spring. The lower than desired numbers could have been due to the weather as heavy winds plagued the program, tangling some of the nets some nights leaving them inoperable.

“We had 52 net-nights that gave us what we needed,” said Keen. “That was below our objective, but is still plenty of fish to provide good catch rates this coming season given good lake conditions.”

After the fish are netted, the tedious work of removing them from the nets and processing them occurs at the Hatchery.

Trout are weighed, measured for length, classified by specie and ear-bones are removed for aging. The Utah chub population appears to be down, but last year two species of hybrids (cut-bows) were added to the lake: 50,000 of the Gerrard strain and 116,000 Hayspur crosses.

“It should be a good year for folks to catch that once in a lifetime fish at Henrys,” said a smiling Keen.