More than likely this has been brought up before.
While going to high school in Lehi, people made Utah Lake sound like it was the cesspool of a nasty third world country that had been nuked and was extremely radioactive. I now realize that description is not true. Is there any problem eating the fish out of Utah lake?
Utah Lake is a biohazard and the fish are radioactive. Never go there for any reason- and tell everyone you know to stay away at all costs. It’s especially toxic to waterskiers and people that leave trash everywhere they go. [angelic]
The lake is fine now. They do say theat the PCB levels in larger fish (carp, catfish) can be elevated and to not eat “normal” parts of the fish …brains and fatty areas. You will be fine to eat the fish you catch although I would only keep the catfish sized “cookies” as they are the best eating as well and the larger ones take a pic and let em swim again.
Shawn
Utah Lake is actually cleaner than many of our more “pristine” lakes. True, there are elevated levels of PCBs in the fatty tissues and innards of older carp and catfish. But all of the other species have tested as below any government standards for “safe” consumtion. In short, you are safer eating white bass, walleyes and small catfish from Utah Lake than eating brown trout and smallmouth from Jordanelle (mercury levels).
Here is a chapter from the “work in progress” on Utah Lake. It contains pictures and info derived from the Utah Lake Legacy put out by the June Sucker Recovery Program.
You have gotten a lot of good information here already. I’ll still add my two cents.
Utah Lake is a lot cleaner than some others. PCBs are mostly in the guts, dark line fat, and belly fat tissues. Good idea to always trim your fish well.
Mercury is not a problem in Utah Lake however it is in most other Utah and Idaho waters. Mercury is throughout all of the flesh. Problem fish are the large predators - Large Bass, Large Brown Trout, Large Cutthroats, Large Catfish and Large Suckers and Carp. For your own health --PUT THE BIG FISH BACK or mount it – eat the smaller ones. Eat the planter rainbows, the little brookies, the cookie cutter cats, and all of the great panfish.
Don’t get me wrong I eat a lot of fish and if it is legal you can keep them, but be careful of how many of the larger fish you eat. Follow the advisory guidelines. Mercury is residual and cumulative. The mad hatter of Alice in Wonderland was mad because mercury was used in the hat trade. It is not nice stuff.
therrs nuttin rong wit da fish i ben eetin em all my life
The water in Utah Lake looks visibly cleaner than most of the Texas ponds and lakes I fished as a kid. Not only did I fish quite a bit, I also swam in these lakes. The water was green, full of hydrilla, and fish. The cookie cats, white bass, and all other panfish I’ve taken out of Utah Lake have tasted awesome…well, awesome if you like fried candy bars. I am frequently mocked by neighbors who find out I fish and eat fish from Utah Lake. I let them say what they want. It keeps them off the lake. [angelic]
Eating fish out of Utah Lake is OK.
I also think having a third eyeball would rock and come in handy.
therrs nuttin rong wit da fish i ben eetin em all my life
Ha.
Tubedude - what is the largest cats you’ll keep from UL?
Like I told you I caught a mess of them last summer but threw them all back. Plan on keeping a few this year. What is your cut off point?
I really don’t have any hard and fast rules. But, if I am fishing for the table, I prefer kitties under 20". I WILL keep, fillet and eat them larger. If I am fishing for the smoker I like the 2 footers…4 to 5 pounds. But, again, the small ones smoke up good too.
Anything larger than about 25" usually goes back in the water. They are still plenty good to eat but you have to cut the fillets into finger strips before frying to get them to cook properly. Catfish have heavy flesh and need more cooking to get completely done.
I especially do not keep the large headed dark male cats. They usually are not as meaty for their length as the females. Some are downright skinny after a prolonged spawning session. Not worth the effort to kill and fillet them. Plus, there seems to be a lower percentage of males to females so I like to keep the gene pool balanced with daddy cats. The very biggest cats are usually males but there are some big mamas too.
The flesh from big cats is still very good eating and not noticeably different in flavor or texture. However, they usually have a thicker layer of the strong tasting (oily) reddish flesh along the sides. That should be removed before cooking.
As has been mentioned, larger and older cats also tend to accumulate more PCBs in their innards and their oils. Another good reason for releasing the bigguns and harvesting the smaller ones.
Thanks for the info. I guess I’ll be enjoying some good fish this summer.
I can vouch for TD’s assessment of eating fish from Utah Lake !! You just have to ignore the third eye that has developed on his forehead and that strange tail that he uses as a rudder in his tube, other than that, no problems.
Seriously, enjoy the fish, there is no problem.
**Hey Matt, evidently it has been awhile since you last saw me. I have evolved/morphed a bit. That middle eye kinda absorbed the other two and now I just have one big eye. I can spot a trout rise a mile away…but the depth perception suffers a bit. **
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Then there is that little problem with the skin condition and the pointy thing that is growing out the top of my head. Ruined my new Cabelas hat but it is great for performing complimentary gillectomies on carp.
About that “strange tail” I use for a rudder. Well, modesty forbids me to be braggin’ on that.
Utah Lake is still a whole lot better than many fishin’ holes I have visited around the country. Tried dry flies on the Love Canal…but they would burst into flame as soon as they settled onto the surface. And on many waters around the country the night fishing is best…because the fish all glow in the dark.
But, I am sure you still “fondly” remember the fine taste of 30 weight in all the fish caught behind Geneva. Good riddance.
I ain’t eatin’ nuthin’ outta that mudhole! Even if it’s safe as far as pollution goes, the fish out of there taste like slough mud. Yes, even the walleye!
You can always tell an opinionated person. You just can’t tell them much.
I have eaten every species of fish in the US…from a whole lot of different waters. I am a published author on fish recipes and have been preparing and eating fish longer than you have been alive.
My personal opinion…and it is just that…is that the fish from Utah Lake compare favorably with any fish from anywhere else in the country for table quality.
If the fish you have tried do not taste good to you, then so be it. Not everybody enjoys fish of any kind. But if you are saying that Utah Lake fish are inferior to the same species from other waters I think you will have a whole lot of Utahns who take issue with you. You need to learn to cook better, or quit eating mud as a basis of comparison.
Agreed. Everything in Utah Lake tastes like mud and if you touch a fish out of Utah Lake, your children will be born naked. Simply touching the water can make you sterile.
DON’T GO THERE!!!
Hey TD, do PCBs cause people to have a strange love and affinity for PVC??? This could explain a lot! 
. . .if you touch a fish out of Utah Lake, your children will be born naked. DON’T GO THERE!!!
Hmmm, so dat 'splains it. . . [:/][:p]
Hey TD, do PCBs cause people to have a strange love and affinity for PVC??? This could explain a lot!
Or simply raise more questions.
As Andy Rooney might say…“Didja ever notice how much our society relies on acronyms (letter abbreviations) in conversation?”
Example: I snorted a couple of lines of PCB…or was that LSD? Not LDS. And PDQ I was having visions of PVC dancing through my head. You could actually watch them on MRI.
LOL
TD gets more attractive with every catfish he eats.. But I admit the horn would be useful for the gut and release required on all carp kind caught. Figured there would be whiskers growin from somewhere too.Now about that modesty part I recall a couple of clearly marked ice holes at deer creek…well that was another post.
But a walleye from Utah Lake tastes as good as a walleye from deer creek , starvation or anyplace else you catch em. And I have eaten enough white bass to turn kinda silvery and attack jigs moving slowly through the water.