I am planning on taking my boat down to Utah lake this Saturday and am wondering where would be the closest place to launch coming from the north. I have heard of different boat harbors such as American Fork or Lindon, but have never been to either place. Are these both open to the public? Is there a fee to launch? I have only been to the Utah Lake State Park and ran out to bird island, so any help would be appreciated. Lincoln beach is just too far to go. Would there be too many power boats or PWC’s at these locations? If so, I would still go to the State park and make by annual run. I want to get some cats, or whites, or whatever, and with this warm weather, they should be pretty active. I’ve heard they get up into the reeds when it starts getting warm. I only make one trip a year to Utah Lake and this is it. With gas prices, I really want to shorten the drive as much as possible. Thanks.
Lindon is the closest, and has 2 good ramps. Here are directions.:
I-15 (north or south) to Lindon Exit 273 (600 So.). West to Geneva Rd. (Hwy 114). Right (north) under I-15 overpass to first light at 200 So. Turn left (west), go back over I-15, continue through industrial area to dead end at 2000 West. (at the garbage dump building). Turn left, go over railroad tracks and then follow the road (1600 N.) around to the right. After crossing the railroad tracks you will see the gate to Lindon Harbor straight ahead.
**Fees are $5 for vehicles and $2 for walk ins. **
Thanks for the info. Hopefully the kids will catch a few.
TubeBabe and I are planning a tubing trip to Lindon Thursday morning. I will post a report.
**After a couple of days of warm weather, things should be getting good down there again. There are a lot of folks that fish successfully right inside the harbor. But, if you have a boat, your best shot might be to go to the south and have the kids fish about 3 feet under a bobber, next to the reeds that grow all along the shoreline. Lots of white bass, bullheads (mudders) and some nice channel cats if you hit it right. **
Use crawlers, shrimp, minnows or carp meat.
If you want to try for walleyes, fish out around the buoys at the “bubble up” with plastics or with minnows. They will also take a whole crawler…if you can keep the mudders away long enough.
That sounds great. Thanks for the extra advice. As long as the kids catch some, it’s worth it. I wouldn’t mind getting into a few of the big boys myself, but the look on the kid’s faces when they hook something that wants to pull the pole out of their hands is priceless.
That’s what it’s all about. There is a magical transformation in kids when they catch those first fish. It is even greater when they suddenly realize that they are being abused by whatever is on the other end of the line.
I caught lots of wimpy trout when I was a kid in Idaho, but never anything that endangered me or my gear. However, when I moved to southern California, about age 12, I was introduced to big catfish and carp…and other species…that pulled back and broke tackle. Then it became a personal challenge…hand to fin combat. That puts it in a whole different league.
That is one of the neat things about several areas on Utah Lake. You can rig up with a simple hook and bobber…or no bobber…and fishing with the same bait in the same spot you can catch several species of several sizes. And, every year more than a few young tanglers hook into big cats that weigh over ten pounds and whup their young behinds. And they love it.