The reservoirs around Summit County may be clogged with boats and fishing lines during the summer, but the local angler’s secret is to visit the lakes during the winter.

Phil Douglass, conservation outreach manager with the Utah Department of Wildlife Resources, and five other ice fishermen had already caught two large Rainbow trout by 9 a.m. on Monday morning on Rockport Reservoir. Fisherman were scattered all over the lake, which was no surprise to Douglas who said there are sometimes more than 200 fishermen on the reservoir each weekend.

Rockport is stocked with Rainbow trout and naturally reproducing Yellow perch. Fishing reports have been good so far this winter and the ice on Echo and Rockport reservoirs is consistently thick, according to Douglass.

“One of the biggest differences between winter fishing and summer fishing is that it is much more social in the winter,” Douglass said. “People will come over and fish near other groups to chat. Since you just drop your line, there is no trolling and you don’t need much space.”

Kamas resident Weston Pearce’s favorite aspect of winter fishing is the lack of necessary equipment.

“Some people have sonar screens to find the fish, other people spend less than $25 for a rod, line and bait and come out here and have just as much fun and usually just as much luck,” he said.

The lack of equipment required has turned ice fishing into one of the area’s fastest growing pasttimes, according to Pearce. Anglers can access the entire lake, even the very center, without a boat and enjoy the stillness that winter, and a lack of diesel engines, offers. While an auger can help a fisherman drill a hole through the ice, Douglass said most fishermen are willing to share and someone can find a hole drilled the previous day and re-break the ice.

“With the lack of snow we have had so far this winter, most people can’t go snowmobiling and the tourists get sick of skiing, so ice fishing is a great option for an outside activity,” Pearce said. “A visitor to Park City can ski one day and travel 30 minutes the next day to ice fish for less than $30.”

While some people may be hesitant to walk across a frozen lake, Douglass said as long as anglers are aware of their surroundings, it is a very safe sport.

“It is pretty clear when ice is too thin to be on,” Douglass said. “The best way to stay safe is to not go out alone and in the beginning, go out just a few feet and then drill a hole and make sure it is thicker than four inches.”

Currently, Rockport Reservoir has an average ice-thickness of 18 inches.

There is a solitude involved with ice fishing,” he said. “Equipment doesn’t limit you, you can have as much or as little of it as you want. I remember when I was four; my Dad and I went ice fishing and all we had was line, hook and an axe to chop a hole in the ice with.”

Douglass still fishes without a pole, holding his line in the water with his bare hands so he can feel the slight tug of a fish.

“Fish metabolism slows in the winter so they bite softer, you need to be easy with it and feel or look for the slightest tug,” he added. “But all you need to do is drop a line, hold it loosely and then enjoy the clear air and friends.”

He added that technology has brought more people to the sport of ice fishing, and this year, so has the DWR sponsored tagged-fish challenge on Rockport Reservoir.

Fishermen who catch a tagged Rainbow trout in the reservoir through March 1 could win prizes and up to $2,500 in cash.

To register for a fishing permit visit www.wildlife.utah.gov/dwr/license-permit.html. For more information on Rockport Reservoirs tagged-fish challenge visit www.stateparks.utah.gov/parks/rockport/rafterbfishchallenge.