Lake Powell Offers Hot Spring Fishing

Fishing success is excellent at Lake Powell right now and the fast action should continue for the next several weeks.

Striped bass, smallmouth bass and largemouth bass are the most popular game fish in the big lake, and action is great for all of them right now. Walleye, crappie, bluegill and channel catfish are also commonly caught.

Striped bass are over-abundant in the lake and anglers are encouraged to harvest them to help keep the predator-prey balance healthy. They are easy to catch right now and people are filling up coolers in a hurry. 100-fish days are common.

The striped bass are concentrated near the dam, along sheer cliffs in the main channel, and in the backs of canyons. People are catching them all over the lake.

Smallmouth and largemouth are nesting in rocks spots coming into shallow water. Anglers often catch them working crank baits or jigs near shore.

Small shad are the primary forage fish in the lake. Cast a Rapala or other shad-imitating lure near rocks or brush in the back of a canyon and you may catch any of the game fish in the lake.

The spring air temperature at Powell is great right now - it will be pushing into the 80s (F) during the next weeks. The water temperature is still cool (55-65 deg F). People are starting to ski and play in the water, but most are wearing some kind of insulated suite. By June the water will be delightful.

We are updating our fishing report weekly, so watch it for timely info about fishing around Utah.

For specific info on Powell, this report has excellent information. That site also has this page with catch reports.