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Best channel catfish lakes in Utah

12 Utah waters hold channel catfish, 1 mapped with real state-agency depth surveys. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. Scent-driven bottom feeder. Holes, channels and inflows — best after dark.

1. Lake Powell — 516 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Crappie
2. Flaming Gorge Reservoir — 436 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Channel Catfish, Rainbow Trout, Common Carp
3. Utah Lake — 10 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass, Northern Pike
4. Yuba Reservoir — 37 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike, Channel Catfish
5. Willard Bay Reservoir — 22 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Crappie
6. Echo Reservoir — 49 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Crappie, Channel Catfish
7. Piute Reservoir — 20 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Channel Catfish, Rainbow Trout, White Bass & Hybrids
8. Newton Reservoir — 74 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Bluegill, Channel Catfish
9. Huntington North Reservoir — 25 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Rainbow Trout
10. Newcastle Reservoir — 14 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Crappie, Channel Catfish, Rainbow Trout
11. Kens Lake — 69 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Rainbow Trout
12. Salem Pond — 23 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Rainbow Trout

When to fish channel catfish in Utah

• Spring 3–12 ft — Warm inflows and shallow mud flats after rain.
• Summer 8–25 ft — Deep holes by day; cats roam shallow flats to feed at night.
• Fall 10–30 ft — Fish concentrate in river/creek channels and deeper holes.
• Winter 20–40 ft — Stacked in the deepest holes; slow natural baits.

Also in Utah: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best walleye lakes · best crappie lakes · best bluegill lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best muskellunge lakes · best white bass & hybrids lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best common carp lakes · best lake trout lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best kokanee lakes · best arctic grayling lakes · best cutthroat trout lakes · best splake lakes

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