True, he couldn't do anything with respect to the striped bass. They had been planted, believing at the time that they wouldn't spawn in the lake and that their numbers could be controlled through stocking. That was in 1974.

Gustaveson took over management of the lake in 1975 and soon after that learned that the striped bass could not only adapt from the salty waters of the ocean to the fresh waters of Lake Powell, but they could also learn to adapt to new spawning requirement. It wasn't long after the stripers had settled in that baby fish were appearing.

"So, I guess you could say I've grown up with the striped bass. Over the years I've learned a lot about these fish. It's been gratifying to learn how they've adapted and to learn how they've been able to evolved from inception to where they are now," he added.

"It's especially gratifying to see how we're using anglers, very successfully, as a management tool. The most rewarding part is being able to work directly with anglers, to be able to tell them how and where to catch fish."

One way he has done this is by producing a weekly report, called "Wayne's Words," that is sent to news outlets around the country. It is also accessible online and is available on paper at a number of locations around the lake, including stores in Page.

The report not only tells anglers where to go and for what species but makes suggestions on what to use in the way of baits and lures.

"People read what's in the report and follow it religiously. I've seen them read it and then stock up on what it is Wayne is recommending in the report. They'll come back later and buy more and tell me they caught fish," said one of the salespersons at the marina store.

Because of the ever-changing personality of the lake, Wayne's Words has proven invaluable.

Back in his early years, fishermen were catching upward of 100 largemouth bass in a day and filling buckets with crappie. All that started to change when the lake filled in the early 1980s. Favorite habitat of largemouth and crappie is trees and bush. When the lake filled, all of that habitat started to disappear, and numbers of largemouth and crappie started to fall. Gustaveson had to make recommendations to reduce limits. About this time the striped bass started to hit. This started a teeter-totter act between stripers and shad. That is, as striper numbers increased, and eating demands increased, shad numbers dropped. As the stripers started to die off, and eating habits lessened, shad numbers rose.