Sand Hallow – Tilt Fishing

I was able to take a few days off work and take the family down south in search of some largemouth bass fishing. Sand Hollow was our first stop. Sand Hollow Reservoir is well known as being one of the premier bass fisheries in Utah and is a must visit for some great fishing. We were able to catch 45+ fish on a few trips to the lake and I was even able to get my sisters and nieces to land their first bass. Here are some of the logistics of where we went, what we used, and how we caught fish at Sand Hollow. Sand Hollow Fishing Conditions We couldn’t have asked for better weather conditions for the most part. We faced some sunny skies with warm temperatures, minimal wind and some clear water. This combination made for a great day to be outside and enjoy the lake. Here are some of the specific weather details and fishing conditions: Weather Sunny, little to no clouds with a high of 88 degrees Wind Mild wind Water Level 100% full Water Clarity Clear Water, visibility was about 10–12 feet deep. Water Temperature 66-68 degrees Time of Day Day 1: 11:30- 2:00Day 2: 7:30- 11:30 Sand Hollow Reservoir Fishing Report Spring is an excellent time to go bass fishing at Sand Hollow. The original plan was to bring my bass boat, but some unexpected problems eliminated that as a possibility. So we did the next best thing and took some kayaks down. They weren’t fishing kayaks by any means, but it gave us the ability to move around and cover different areas, which was a big help. Here are some of the details of how we did on each day fishing at Sand Hollow Reservoir. Day 1 We started our fishing trip off by fishing around the island. We were able to pick up a few with a drop shot and got a few bites on a senko, but it wasn’t producing like we were hoping it would. We thought this area would be a good kayaking fishing spot later in the day with the sun fully out. But after a couple of hours, we headed to the south west corner and fished the rocky shorelines and had some better success. We did manage to pick a few bass up on some reaction lures but we quickly realized it was going to be more of a finesse type bite. We switched over to the Ned Rig and targeted deeper grass areas later in the day and had some great success catching bass in the middle of the 3rd and 4th buoy from the shoreline. We fish around this area and ended up catching 20 + fish on the day and learned some good information that helped us on the next day. Fished from: 11:30 – 2:00 Areas Fished: Big Island, South West Corner Fish Total: 20+ Baits Used: Ned Rig, Senko, Drop Shot, Lipless Crankbaits, Crankbaits Day 2 We were limited on the amount of time we had before we had to head back home so we targeted the same spot that produced for us the day before, and this turned out to be a good decision. We ended up catching 25+ fish on the day in the same spot. We caught the majority of our fish fishing the Ned Rig in 10-25ft of water. The key was not to over work the bait. We let the subtle action of the Ned Rig do its thing and slowly worked it back in and the bass couldn’t resist. Fished from: 7:30 – 11:30 Areas Fished: South West Corner 3rd and 4th buoy Fish Total: 25+ Baits Used: Ned Rig, Senko, Drop Shot, Chatterbait, Crankbaits Our Sand Hollow Fishing Spots Island We launched our kayaks near the boat ramp and the first stop of the day was the big island. We hit the water later in the day so our thinking was the fish might be a little deeper. We fished all around the island and were able to pick up a few fish but nothing too great. This is usually a good spot with a lot of rocks and structure, but it does get a lot of reactional activity which can throw off the fishing especially later in the day. Rocky Shoreline by The Dam (South-West Corner) The rocky shoreline located on the south-west corner of the dam has always been a good spot for us and we hit it up a few times during our trip. We had some success fishing a drop shot and a deep diving crankbait. I was even able to help my niece land her first largemouth bass in this spot. This is a great area to fish especially if you are fishing from the shore. 3rd and 4th Buoy (South-West Corner) This has always been one of my favorite areas to fish and it came up in the clutch during this trip. I think what makes this spot so effective is the grass and vegetation that grows in this area as well as some vertical depth changes. My motto at Sand Hollow is 'find the grass find the bass' and this spot usually has a lot of it. We caught the majority of our fish on the trip fishing around this area. At one point we were dialed in and caught 10 fish in 5 minutes and they were all decent sized fish. The Ned Rig was the deal in this spot. We saw a lot more bites when we slowed down and let the bait do the work. Some of the biggest bass that we landed were caught dead sticking. Sand Hollow Reservoir Lures and Baits We started out fishing with reaction style lures such has squarebills, lipless cranks, and deep diving crankbaits. We were able to catch a few fish on some crankbaits, however it was more of a finesse bite. We had the most success on the Drop Shot and Ned Rig. Here are the details of each bait and lure we used and how we did with each one. Crankbaits – We tried a few different types and colors of crankbaits including lipless, squarebills and some deep divers. We caught a few fish throwing a River2Sea Ish Monroe Biggie Square Bill Crankbaits (Color: Cold Blooded). With the exception of a few decent fish we didn’t have much luck throwing reaction style lures. Best Crankbait: River2Sea Ish Monroe Biggie Square Bill Crankbaits (Color: Cold Blooded) Ned Rig – The Ned Rig was by far the most effective technique on the trip especially in grassy areas. The fish didn’t seem to be very aggressive on both of the days we fished, so finesse style techniques ended up being a big player for us. We caught over 25 fish using this ultra-finesse technique. Best Ned Rig: TRD Canada craw 2.75” and 4” Big TRD Drop Shot – We also had a lot of success fishing a Drop Shot. We used a few different colors of roboworm’s straight tail worm (Aaron’s Magic, Aaron Morning Dawn) and a KVD Dream Shot (Green Pumpkin Purple) as our drop shot baits. Best Drop Shot Bait: Straight Tail Roboworm (Aaron’s Magic and Morning Dawn) Senko (Waky Rig) – We had some luck fishing a Yum senko in watermelon/red flake senko rigged weightless. We caught a few on the rocky shoreline as well by the big island. Best Senko: Yum Watermelon/Red flake 4” Jig – We threw a few different Jigs but didn’t have any luck. Chatterbait – We tried fishing a green pumpkin Chatterbait in the grass when the wind picked up, but we weren’t able to land any on this setup. Sand Hollow Fishing Tips Move Around – Sand Hollow is a small reservoir and has plenty of good fishing spots both from a boat as well as fishing from the shore. If you are not catching fish in one spot, don’t be afraid to move around. Use Finesses Style Techniques – If the fishing is tough or you are fishing with some beginner’s finesse style baits such as a Ned Rig or drop shot is excellent way to catch a lot of fish. These techniques work well at any time of the year and in any condition. Use Natural Colors – Sand Hollow Reservoir is a clear reservoir that receives a lot of fishing pressure. This combo can make it tough at times to catch fish. For this reason, I like to stick to more natural colors. This will help get you more bites if you aren’t having any luck. Additional Sand Hollow Fishing Resources https://www.krakenbass.com/sand-hollow-bass-fishing/https://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/sand-hollow/https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=343&v=iKUwMdY3Aus Final Thoughts We had a great time fishing at Sand Hollow Reservoir during our stay in Hurricane. We caught a lot of fish and were able to get some new anglers on their first largemouth bass. Sand Hollow is one of my favorite places to catch bass in Utah. I’m already looking forward for the next trip down south. For other great Utah bass fishing spots go checkout our post: The 12 Best Bass Fishing Spots in Utah. Tight Lines!