Cat Canyon Reservoir

Cat Canyon Reservoir is a reservoir in Millard County, Utah and covers about 2.2 acres, reaches about 12.5 feet at its deepest point and holds roughly 11.9 acre-feet.

The small size of Cat Canyon Reservoir makes quiet casts and short moves more useful than carrying a pile of tackle.

Fish and Baits

Fish listed for Cat Canyon Reservoir include Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Common Carp, and Largemouth Bass.

When bluegill are the target on Cat Canyon Reservoir, use a small jig, worm, or tiny plastic around green weeds and protected pockets.

For largemouth bass on Cat Canyon Reservoir, work a soft plastic, jig, or spinnerbait around weeds and protected cover.

The first channel catfish pass on Cat Canyon Reservoir should fish cut bait or a nightcrawler on the bottom along a channel edge or warm flat.

While looking for common carp on Cat Canyon Reservoir, place corn or a dough bait on the bottom along a shallow flat.

How to Read the Water

Start where two things meet: weeds and open water, rock and mud, a point and a drop, or clear water and dirty water; fish that edge at more than one depth before leaving it; follow a short creek arm, then separate open water from cover.

Season by Season

In spring, start with warming banks, creek mouths, and shallow cover; summer usually pushes the better bite toward the outside weed edge or a nearby drop; fall can bring bait back to windblown points, while winter calls for smaller moves and a slower pace; use water color to choose the first lure, then keep one slow bait ready.

A Simple Tackle Plan

A medium spinning rod, 8-pound line, a small box of jigs, a few crankbaits, and a simple bottom rig cover most situations; change depth or speed before changing every piece of tackle; follow any bait found near the surface, then repeat the depth that gives the first bite.

Record the wind, water color, productive depth, and cover after a bite; those four notes are more useful on the next trip than a long list of spots that did not produce; look for a clean edge beside cover, then write down the productive depth.