by Kate Belcher
KPerkins@cherryroad.com

The DWR and the Wyoming Game and Fish are asking anglers to keep any lake trout 25 inches or smaller. Currently, Flaming Gorge in northeastern Utah, known for producing some of the largest lake trout in the U.S., has too many small lake trout.

Reducing that volume will help to improve the health of the fishery, according to a DWR news release. If the fish has an orange reward tag, the fisherman could receive up to $50.

The lake trout daily limit is 12 lake trout, with only one of the fish exceeding 28 inches on Flaming Gorge in both Utah and Wyoming. Anglers may also have a two-day possession limit of lake trout less than 28 inches.

Pelican Lake – Carp

After a sharp increase of carp in the early 2000s, the DWR has been hard at work trying to restore Pelican Lake as a bluegill and bass fishery. Pelican Lake has always had a few carp in it but the adult carp have reproduced so fast the predators in the lake couldn’t eat them fast enough.

Enter the DWR reward tags. DWR has begun offering rewards to anglers who turn in carp with reward tags. “The carp reward tags in Pelican Lake are currently worth $100.” according to DWR Fisheries biologist Natalie Boren. “The lake is currently still very frozen so opportunity for ice fishing still exists. However, the best time to target them via bow-fishing is in April and May as the water warms up and they begin to congregate and spawn in shallow waters.”

Not all tagged fish are winners. To determine if your fish is, go to the website listed on the tag, input the information to see if the carp is a money fish.

Utah Lake – Northern pike

Though not in our area, anglers have been known to travel outside of their locale. If fishing at Utah Lake, DWR would like to remind people that as part of an ongoing study launched in 2020, the DWR is still asking anglers to report and release any tagged northern pike they catch. Any pike that don’t have a tag must be killed because the invasive fish were placed in Utah Lake illegally.

• DWR does ask that anyone catching a tagged fish in Utah to call DWR native fish biologist Keith Lawrence at 801-960-5220

• Report the date and exact location where you caught the fish

• Report the tag number

• Release the fish unharmed