When I was younger, my father, stepmother and I went on a winter day drive. We were living in Utah Valley at the time and we decided to start our day by heading up Provo Canyon. Our aimless driving eventually brought us to Strawberry Reservoir, a beautiful high mountain reservoir south of Heber, UT.
It was a gorgeous day, the sun was shining, the snow was sparkling and the wind had blown all the snow off the lake. As you could probably guess there were quite a few Ice-fisherman out, sitting around in their tents or on their lawn chairs, patiently waiting for a bite.  We decided to go out on the lake just to check things out. Since the wind had blown all the snow off the lake you could see through the ice and down into the water. It was a very eerie feeling, the ice was cracking, and making creaking noises( I found out later that if you can hear the ice creaking it means it is very safe).
My stepmother was not an outdoors person and had married into a family of fisherman and hunters. She was always asking question about the new things that she was experiencing and she had no idea that people could fish on the ice.
She asked my father, “Is ice fishing different then regular fishing?”
My father replied, “Yes, it is very different, you drill a hole in the ice…grab a stick…then sit around and wait for the fish to come up for air”. He waited a moment then continued “When they come up for air…you hit them on the head as hard and as fast as you can”.
She was very excited to try this technique,
click for more info !
My father and I went to look for an abandoned fishing hole, while my stepmother went and found us some sticks. We found an abandoned hole, dug out the thin skim of ice on top and grabbed the sticks that she brought and settled down. She silently stared at the hole very intensely for the next half an hour.
Waiting for a Bite at Otter Creek
She finally broke the silence by saying, “Boy these fish can hold their breath for an awful long time”.
The ice-fishing down at Otter Creek Reservoir is really hot right now. We have had quite a few guests tell us how much fun they are having.
Come on down and do some fishing this winter. We have very affordable winter rates here at the Rockin’ R and we are only 5 minutes away from the reservoir. Come on down, I promise the fish won’t hold their breath forever!
Brandon Hanks
Rockin’ R Manager
