This year, Utah is a centennial state and Otter Creek is, if there were such a distinction, the centennial reservoir. It was, records show, 100 years ago farmers dammed a river and began taking water for crops.
And, as they say in this arid land, the desert blossomed. Interestingly, so did the fish.Even today there's something about this southern reservoir that puts length and girth on fish. Plenty of snails, leaches and fresh-water shrimp certainly help. But these are in other water, too.
Whatever the reason, fish put here in the fall as catchables are fat and healthy meals the following spring and summer. Big fish, up to eight pounds, are fairly common. Last week a 12-pound rainbow was landed.
What is especially appealing to anglers is this 61/2-mile long, 1/2-mile wide reservoir isn't difficult to fish.
Because of its long life, says Pat White, owner of the Otter Creek RV and Marina, the bottom of the reservoir is flat and uncluttered and fairly shallow (its deepest point is around 45 feet) . . . "Which means there are not a lot of things to hang up on."
In the spring, bait fishing from shore is good. In the summer, trolling is the preferred method . . . "It's not uncommon for someone trolling to catch 20 to 30 fish per fisherman per day," says White.
Most of the fish caught are, understandably, rainbow. "About 95 percent," he adds. Considering this is a planted water and the biggest share of the plants are rainbow, it stands to reason most of the catches are rainbow. About one percent are browns and the rest are Bear Lake cutthroats.
In the waters flowing from the reservoir, the opposite is true. About 90 percent of the catches are browns and 10 percent are rainbow.
Last fall, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources planted 208,610 rainbow, 53,000 brown and a blend of hatchery leftovers. The planting takes place in late fall to avoid feeding hungry pelicans and seagulls.
One problem with this reservoir is the Utah chub. It, too, does well in this water. The last treatment was in 1990 and already there's talk of another cleansing. White says it likely won't happen anytime soon, "maybe five years."
"You can expect to catch some chubs every now and then. They haven't been a real problem, though. You may catch a few but then they'll move on and you can go back to what it is you were fishing for," he says.
They certainly haven't kept many from fishing here. Three years ago White left ranching and cattle in Texas for a more quiet, settled life in Antimony. That year he sold $11,000 in fishing licenses. Last year he sold $19,000, "and this year, already, I've sold around $17,000. That's tells me more and more people are coming here to fish," he adds.
Along with the RV park and marina, there is a state park on the shores of the reservoir. It is, among the state's parks, one of the true gems. Among other things, it has some of the only trees and shade along the shoreline. It also has patches of grass, hot showers and beach-front property.
As far as the arsenal of lures and baits, White says needle fish, triple teasers and the more traditional pop gear and a worm work well for trollers. Most of the fish seem to be out in the center of the reservoir during the day and closer to shore in the mornings and evenings.
Worms and Power Bait are working for those who like to fish with baits. Most all of the larger catches, however, are going after minnows. From shore, worms, garlic marshmallows and Power Bait are working. And for float tubers throwing flies the Woolly Buggers, mosquito, may flies and glow bugs are working.
As noted, however, for the really big fish minnows are the secret. They're not hitting all the time, but enough to put Otter Creek on the preferred list among many fishermen.