Wyoming Anglers Fishing Report 4/30/2009

Here is what I have been hearing from other Wyoming anglers:

Bull Lake - Lake trout are biting. Use white powertubes and jigging spoons tipped with sucker.


Boysen Reservoir - Rainbow trout are hitting flies, powerbait and small spoons near Brannon.


Flaming Gorge - Rainbow, lake and brown trout are being caught trolling.


Bass Lake - Perch are hitting small jigs.


Ocean Lake - Walleye are being caught off of long point.


Glendo Reservoir - Walleye are being caught in airport bay with crankbaits and jigs.





Thats all I have for now. If you have any fishing reports for Wyoming anglers, please email them to me at pedwards96@gmail.com.

GULP! + Jig = Fish

I must tell you, I have never been great at math but this formula works for me. I have seen this system work on a ton of species. My cousin Danny and I have used this combination with great success on brown trout especially. When we fish the Wind River we make sure we have a good stock of jigs and a package of 3" GULP! minnows. Throughout this article are just a few of the fish caught on this system.

I don't know exactly what it is that Berkley uses to make their GULP! products so irresistible to fish but I also don't care because it works! My only knock on GULP! is that it tends to be on the pricey end of the fishing spectrum. I like to have products that work well and that don't break my bank account. If you have not tried this bait, then you are missing out. Most of the fish I have caught this year have been on this system. All it takes is using the system and putting the bait in front of the fish.

Recently I used this system with my cousin Danny Kurttila to catch splake and cutthroat trout out of Sunshine Reservoir in Meeteetse Wyoming. In fact, it was the only system that produced fish consistently and we tried a lot of other lures/baits. The key is to cast the jig out, count it down to a given depth where the fish are holding, and slowly work it back with a jigging motion. This gives the lure the look of a swimming bait fish and is killer with the GULP! scent. Honestly, I think it is the best soft bait to hit the market. This stuff flat out catches fish. If you are a serious angler, you need this system to help you put more fish in the net.

Most people are going to read this and say, "who paid this guy to say all these good things." The truth is that I have not been paid to give this review. I just have used the stuff enough to see it work. My dad used it with great success last summer on Glendo Reservoir for walleye and my cousin Danny has been catching tons of browns like the one pictured above on the system. All kidding aside, I would not endorse it if I didn't know first hand that it helps anglers catch more fish.

I guess if you don't believe me, go out and try it for yourself. I bet you will become a believer in a hurry! Be safe out there and good fishing everyone!

Here is some video proof of the system in action.

May 2009 Outlook

April is almost over and it is time to look towards the month of May. May is a great time to catch spawning rainbow trout, pre-spawn large mouth bass and pre-spawn bluegills. Luckily I have access to all these fishing opportunities within an hour of my home. If you live in the rocky mountain region, chances are you will have a lot of the same opportunities somewhere close by.

Boysen reservoir offers a wide variety of fish for Wyoming anglers. Right now is prime time to fish the northern part of the reservoir near the dam for spawning rainbow trout. The fish will run the shoreline in large schools and are often fairly easy to catch. My recommendation is to use bead headed flies or powerbait. The key is to put either one of the presentations in front of the roaming fish.

If you have a reservoir with large mouth bass, you should have an opportunity to sight fish them while they are preparing their spawning beds. The females will be extremely territorial and will attack your bait if it comes too close to the bed. I would recommend using tube jigs to catch these fish. Just cast the bait out and work it slowly through their bed and you will most likely get a strike.

Bluegills are similar to the large mouth bass. They will be defending their nests and will strike at just about anything. My good friend Seth and I caught a bunch of spawning bluegills at Renner Reservoir near Ten Sleep Wyoming. It was late May and we had great success using bead headed flies and small tube jigs. I think Seth caught around 100 fish with his fly rod that day. The key is to put the bait right in front of them and they will attack it to defend their nest.

Those are just a few of the opportunities that will present themselves to you in the month of May. If you haven't taken you boat out on the water make sure that you have all the safety equipment before you do take it out. The Game and Fish department will be out there checking and it is never safe to leave the dock without your life vests, fire extinguisher and other safety gear.

Be safe out there and good fishing.

Walleye Fishing

Here are my walleye pictures from last fall. I am expecting the fishing on Boysen to be great for these big brutes again. Last year I had never caught a 27" or better walleye. In a two week period I was able to land 4 that surpassed that mark. All four of the fish are listed in this article.

So, you may be wondering how in the world I was able to catch these brutes? Well, the answer is simple, I learned from someone who knew the pattern and then I adjusted to select for bigger fish. One of the keys to fishing is to pay attention to what people share with you and then refine it. I don't want this to sound like you shouldn't experiment on your own, because you should. But you would be missing a lot of key information if you don't pay attention to what experienced anglers tell you.


Walleye are like any other fish, they need food. If you can find the food, you will find the walleye. In my case, I was able to learn where the emerald shiners go to spawn in the fall on my home body of water. By learning that I was able to select what type of lure to use. I used both #8 X-Raps and Suspending Rattlin Rogues. I found that the Rogues produced the largest of the fish but I am sure that a #10 or #12 X-Rap would do just as well. I will be testing and refining more this fall.



I catch my biggest fish at night. Lots of people wonder why I would go at night or why it would make any difference. I don't know how many long days I have put on the water burning my flesh in the UV rays without much fishing success. The fish like it just about as well as I do, not very much. So, the only alternative is to fish at night or in low light conditions. I know that this year I am going to take advantage of the night bite. Night fishing provides the advantage of stealth. Big fish often come into the shallows at night to stalk minnows, perch and other small fish. When they do this, they put themselves in easy reach of fisherman that throw crankbaits and other minnow style presentations. The key is to know where the bait fish will be and cast similar imitating baits until you put it in front of a big fish.

So, if you are going to target walleyes make sure you take the smart approach. Don't burn yourself up in the sun and catch a bunch of small fish. Instead, head out at night and catch the big ones. But remember, release those big fish. If you don't, you will hurt the fishery forever. All four of my big fish are still in the reservoir and hopefully had a good spawn this year.


Be safe out there and good fishing.