Brook trout [Salvelinus fontinalis] are found in most of the lakes, beaver ponds and streams on Boulder Mountain. They are not native to Utah and have been stocked in cold water fisheries throughout much of the state. Brook trout were first introduced to Utah and most of the western United States in the early part of the twentieth century. The Utah Division Of Wildlife Resources [UDWR] then known as the Utah Fish & Game began stocking brook trout on Boulder Mountain as early as 1945. Only a few lakes in the area were accessible by vehicle in those days. So, most stocking was done the old fashioned way. Dedicated wildlife officers would load milk cans containing fingerling brook trout as well as cutthroat trout onto pack saddles. Burlap sacks were tied over the open tops of the cans to enable the precious cargo to breathe without being sloshed out on the rough trails. This arduous task of loading pack saddles with milk cans and climbing the rugged slopes of Boulder Mountain was carried out many times over the years until all of the lakes and ponds able to sustain trout were stocked. This continued to be the preferred method up to 1956, when the UDWR discovered a new and more efficient way of stocking trout.
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In 1956 the UDWR began using airplanes to stock trout throughout the state. This method proved to be especially handy in reaching the remote lakes on southern Utah's Boulder Mountain and the Aquarius Plateau. Stocking fish in high mountain lakes from aircraft is the preferred method today. However, it was the efforts of those hardy individuals back in the days of pack mules and milk cans that paid dividends for anglers in the 50's. From those first plantings of brook trout grew the legendary monster brookies of Boulder Mountain.
The little fingerlings grew rapidly in the fertile ecosystem of the sub-alpine lakes and beaver ponds. When you consider the life expectancy of brook trout, which is generally accepted as 3 - 5 years, the decade following those initial plantings produced only a few generations of naturally reproduced fish. The first decade of their existence here had not caused much of a problem with overcrowding. Many fantastic brook trout fisheries were developed on Boulder Mountain in the first and even the second decade after the first milk cans full of fingerlings were carried to the lakes. Hopefully those who worked so diligently were able to go back into those places and enjoy the fruits of their labor.
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The brook trout fishery as a whole on Boulder Mountain is not what it was several decades ago. This is due in part to a decline in the number of beaver ponds and also the decline in the number of enhanced ponds, lakes and reservoirs. Several reservoirs that were once prime fisheries have been breached and rendered useless. Many if not most of the beaver dams that created the potential for stocking with brook trout and the subsequent fisheries that resulted from stocking have been destroyed. For those natural lakes, ponds and reservoirs that remain, and that number is debatable, the future remains uncertain. There are still many lakes and a few hidden beaver ponds that hold very fine, trophy quality brookies. The fact that these waters are little known or hidden from most anglers is not the only reason they continue to flourish. The main reasons for their success as brook trout fisheries is the fact that they still hold sufficient water, which by the way is a crucial ingredient for brook trout survival in the first place. Any small lake or beaver pond where brook trout have shown a tendancy to propagate easily and overcrowd their environ should be managed carefully. Some of these jewels of Boulder Mountain are being managed very well by local anglers.
Managing smaller brook trout fisheries on Boulder Mountain can be as simple as visiting anglers keeping a limit of fish on a fairly regular basis. This practice is completely opposite that of brook trout management strategies in the eastern states. Where brook trout propagate so readily such as the waters on Boulder Mountain, they can and will get out of control quickly. Too many fish in the pond or lake results in stunting. No question about it! Taking limits of trout in order to keep numbers down is better than releasing all that you catch and waiting for the enevitable. Large populations of stunted brook trout due to overcrowding always results in the UDWR using drastic measures to correct the problem. Chemical treatment [rotenone] to eradicate stunted brook trout from a small lake or beaver pond is a drastic measure! If you have ever witnessed this process you would have to agree. The process usually consists of first minimizing the total volume of water in the pond or lake....meaning put a few sticks of dynamite in the beaver dam. The use of dynamite is a sure bet. The resulting explosion pretty much drains the pond to a more manageable level in about 10 seconds! Now it's just a matter of dispersing a fine spray of slurry of rotenone over what water remains in the pond or lake.
Hybrid trout have been stocked into some lakes on Boulder Mountain after rotenone treatment to offer anglers some diversity and enhance the quality of fishing there. Where brook trout have shown a tendancy to overpopulate a lake, they are being removed and replaced with native cutthroat such as the Colorado River Cutthroat [Oncorhynchus clarki pleuriticus] or the Bonneville Cutthroat Trout [Oncorhynchus clarki utah] or hybrid trout such as the Tiger Trout [Salmo trutta X Salvelinus fontinalis] pictured above.
The Tigers pictured above and below have been stocked in one of the high lakes on Boulder Mountain. After just three seasons these trout have reached an impressive size and will put up quite a fight on a flyrod!
Another hybrid trout found on Boulder Mountain is the Splake pictured above. The Splake is a cross between the brook trout and the lake trout or Makinaw.
Waiting for beaver to rebuild a dynamited dam so that it can fill up with water, making it once again suitable as a candidate for the re-stocking of brook trout could be a long wait. If the beaver, the Forest Service, UDWR and private interests such as downstream water users are not on the same page, with a suitable working agreement, it will be a very long wait. Oh, the re-stocking will go quickly considering the newest inhabitants of the pond will be delivered air-mail. Early one July morning a plane will fly in low, the door will slide open and hundreds of silvery brook trout fingerlings will splash down on the surface of the beautiful beaver pond. However, if the beaver are long dead, and therefore have neglected their duties in rebuilding their dam...then it will be many July's before anyone catches trout of any size from this beaver pond! There were once untold numbers of small beaver dams and the ponds backed up behind them existing on the Boulder Mountain. Most were hidden deep within the great aspen forests on the slopes that surround this huge plateau. And many of these were in their prime during the early days of trout stocking here. Most were stocked with brook trout and Yellowstone cutthroat trout.
Quality brook trout fishing still exists today on this forest. But now more than ever you really have to know where to look. What was good a few years ago may not even hold trout today. A lake that you visited a couple of seasons back and caught some real quality trout from might look the same when you see it again, but with entirely different results this time. This phenomenon has bewildered many anglers who could not understand how they could do so well one season and come back and fair so poorly the next. Natural lakes and reservoirs present a different situation to those who would use rotenone there. Since the use of dynamite is not plausible to reduce the volume of water in a natural lake, the answer is a simple one. Just use more rotenone. In the case of reservoirs, just breach the dam.... with a track hoe, if necessary! This has happened to many reservoirs on this mountain. The proof is irrefutable. These breached dams stand to this day as a monument to poor management. The theory that these reservoirs will be rebuilt at a later date holds about as much water as that of the beavers rebuilding their dams! Are these reasonable management strategies?
For those beaver ponds, natural lakes and reservoirs that remain here, the future is uncertain. Recent satellite imagery is undeniable proof as to how many of these waters remain today on Boulder Mountain and the Aquarius Plateau. Old legends die hard. The old stories of hundreds or even thousands of lakes on the Boulder are just that.....old stories. When we are talking about viable fisheries, meaning sustainable fisheries, that will overwinter trout consistantly...there are only a fraction of that. The UDWR only recognizes around 65 - 70 bodies of water on the Boulder Mountain and the Aquarius Plateau that meet this criteria. That means the entire mountain. Many will argue over this fact. However, when you take a close look at the fish stocking records for this area, you may be surprised to find out when your favorite beaver pond, lake or reservoir was stocked last. If you have not visited your favorite fishing spot in a few years, you may want to go and check it out. If you have a secret hole, that is still doing just fine...keep a close eye on it and count your blessings!
The 2008 fishing season begins in April, and there are still many quality brook trout fisheries on this mountain, for those who know where to look!
© 2008 Steve Stoner All Rights Reserved
