Hook Points
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Hook Points

Hook Points

Idaho's Fishing Newsletter

Ryan Chris
June 16, 2025

Fishing Reports

CJ Strike: Still fishing well for the most part but we are starting to see some of the summer slow down for most species. Still plenty of fish being caught! But you might experience parts of the day that make you wonder where all the darn fish went. Crappie can be found in a few feet up against the banks - especially banks close to deeper water - and you can find them all day in 15-25’ as well. Sounds like those shallow fish aren’t there - or at least biting all day so be prepared to move deeper with jigging raps, Northland Mimic Minnows and 2 and 3” Keitech Easy Shiners. Bass can be in a foot of water or 30’ as they are starting to move deep as the weather and water warms. I think you’ll see plenty of smallies moving out to deeper water and hanging out in 15’-20’ before they make a push for the 30+’ stuff. I’d have a drop shot (check out the new Keeper Custom worms…unbelievable drop shot baits!!), a green pumpkin tube with 3/16 and 1/4oz Bite Me heads, a Lucky Craft Sammy 115 or other walking bait and a Ned rig. A 3.3 Keitech goes without saying for me. For largies, I’d have a UV Speed Craw rigged up for flipping, a weightless Senko and a topwater frog or Buzzbait. They like the shallow stuff close to shade and/or deeper water.

Boise River: Water has been up and down a bit but I have heard from a few anglers that fish are biting. Crankbaits like Rapala Shad Raps and small Jerkbaits like the Lucky Craft Pointer 65 are great options. New Pointer 65’s are in stock right now - if you haven’t fished them, you aren’t catching as many as you could be - phenomenal baits that I have a ton of confidence sending customers to the water with!!

Boise River at Glenwood Bridge NR Boise ID

Monitoring location 13206000 is associated with a Stream in Ada County, Idaho. Current conditions of Discharge and Gage height are available. Water data back to 1938 are available online.

waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/13206000/#dataTypeId=continuous-00065-0&period=P7D&showMedian=false

Brownlee: Water levels are up 3’ this week to 2074 - that’s 3’ from full. Fishing well for bass, a bit tougher for crappie and excellent for catfish. For the bass, love fishing the transitions this time of year. That’s big rock to chunk rock, chunk rock to gravel, gravel to sand, deep to shallow - you get the picture! Fish are spread out and will hit a variety of baits - junk fishing at its finest. I’d have a walking bait like a Lucky Craft Sammy or Gunfish, Spro Rk Crawler Crank in the 10-15’ diving range, drop shot (KEEPERS!! You need to see these), Ned rig and a Carolina rig with a 5” Fluke or Zoom UV Speed Craw - bass will demolish a Reaction Innovations Man Bear Pig on a C-Rig as well. For the crappie, I like to start exploring the bluff walls next to sandy/gravelly transitions. In these areas you’ll often find them suspended but right up against the wall. Throw a Keitech 2.8 up against the wall and let it tumble down and back to ya! Catfishing has been amazing. Channel cats are everywhere…cut baits, nightcrawlers and chicken livers. There are shallow fish!

Snake River: With the water rising from last week - lots of grass in the water is making the fishing a little frustrating! To fish it, let’s throw a neko rig on a hook with a wire guard and a Keitech with a belly weighted EWG hook. I might have a Texas rigged tube with a pegged weight.

Wilson Springs: No report.

Lake Lowell: Lots of mixed reports from Lake Lowell but overall, I would say its fishing well. It can be a moody one and sometimes a bad morning is followed by a great evening. Flipping a beaver or creature bait is probably the go to right now but don’t forget about 6 and 7” senkos fished weightless and an underspin on a Keitech can be awesome! Use the Idaho Rod and Reel Belly Weighted EWG hooks for a weedless presentation! Water has started to drop…some fish follow the drop, others overcorrect and out run it. What I mean by that is you can catch some of them with chatterbaits out on the weed edges. The frog bite is hit or miss - but worth the try.

Cascade Reservoir: Perch fishing has been excellent for those willing to move around and hut for them. There are schools both shallow and deep so you need to be prepared for both. This is where the drop shot rig comes in so handy - a 1/8 or 3/16oz weight, 2-3 small hooks and a bit of nightcrawler. Bass fishing has been steady overall and tough at moments. Senkos, tubes, neds and a topwater walking bait would be in my arsenal for smallies. For largemouth, spend some time around docks with a Senko.

Horsethief Reservoir: No report.

Owyhee Reservoir: Very steady right now. Good reports for SMALL crappie - but you’ll catch a bunch of them! There are good ones to be found! Look a bit deeper and play around more bluff walls - and throw a bigger bait! Like a 3.3 Keitech…Bass are moving around. You’ll find smallies in shallow and mid depths…I’d have a topwater, drop shot, neko rig and a Cipher Ball Head with a Mooch Minnow or Hog Farmer Scope Shad. For Largies, I’d be looking shallow first, and then searching in the next drop off in areas that I was catching them a week or so ago. To do that, I am going to have a frog, mid depth diving crankbaits, a neko rig and a drop shot.

Owyhee River: Good place to fish right now. Try a Lucky Craft Pointer 65!

Duck valley: LOTS OF WEEDS!! From the Reservation Website:

May 23, 2025 – All reservoirs have been recently stocked May 14, and May 16 of 2025. Water temperatures for the week right around 55° C. Anglers have been dropping floaters, and boats at all reservoirs looking for some rod and reel action with reports of moderate to high fishing activity, where black and green leeches are pulling a lot of trout activity from the waters of Sheep Creek this week. Bait casters continuing to get good responses from a variety of swimbait lures, and shore casters landing fish with PowerBait, and night crawlers, and marshmallows.

Lucky Peak Reservoir: Some decent reports for Kokanee and better reports for trout. Looking for kokes down around 20’ with oranges, pinks and blues.

Arrowrock Reservoir: Lots of trout being caught - still not many kokes unfortunately. Trout will eat just about anything you are willing to troll with. Smallies are plentiful here and while most are small - there are some decent ones mixed in! Poppers, ned rigs and a Keitech will catch you all you can handle! Great place to take new anglers!!

Anderson Ranch Reservoir: Kokes are still just popping off like crazy. Braxton - our new employee from Middleton High School spent the weekend Kokanee hunting and had success in 20’ with orange colored baits. Lots of 12-13” he said with a couple touching 14”. Lots of bass to catch here as well! Topwater poppers and walking baits, Crush City Mooch Minnows on Cipher Ball Heads, Carolina rigged flukes and a ned rig!!

Payette Lake: Good fishing right now! Quite a few lakers being caught as well at 30-40’. This won’t last long…a few more degrees of water temp and they will head back down to 50+. Silver dodgers, pinks and oranges are still catching with one customer having a great day with Green and Silver.

QUICK THANK YOU TO ALAN WITH KOKABOW TACKLE FOR THE KOKANEE REPORTS TODAY!! THIS GUY JUST CONTINUES TO WORK SO HARD TO HELP THE COMMUNITY CATCH THESE FISH!

If you would like to book a trip with Alan, he is guiding through Fish and Fur Outfitters. Cost is $250 per seat - 2 person minimum and I can tell from first hand experience - if you want to learn how to get in the game - its worth every penny! He guides on Anderson and Payette Lake!

Local Ponds: For pond bass, weightless senkos on weedless wacky hooks, Texas rigged creature baits flipped into the weedy/bushy areas and I’d have a frog as well.

Bajio, Idaho Bass Nation State Championship, Fathers Day Winners Announced on Tuesday, Keepers Baits!!, New Sun Shirts, Kayak Tourney, Eli and Grady

Come and take a look at the new Bajio Sunglass display! Any Bajio sunglass purchase includes a Cody Meyer autographed hat!
The Idaho Bass Nation State Championship is THIS WEEKEND! They need competitors which means you have a better chance of qualifying for nationals! See the pic below for details!!
Help us as we try to raise money to send Eli and Grady to High Schools Nationals to represent Idaho!! Idaho Rod and Reel has donated a Link Casting Rod and a Daiwa Tatula SV to help the boys raise money! Tickets to win the rod and reel are $5ea and ALL PROCEEDS GO TO THE BOYS!! This is an expensive trip! They’re amazing young men!! Please help if you can.
YOU HAVE TO CHECK OUT THE KEEPERS CUSTOM BAITS!!! Amazing drop shot baits. Only available at Idaho Rod and Reel and online at idahotackelbox.com.
Thank you to all that attended our Fathers Day breakfast!! We just wanted to say thank you to our customers and show our gratitude for all of the awesome dads that support our shop.
WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE THE NEW IDAHO ROD AND REEL SUNSHIRTS!! They ship THIS WEEK! Hopefully we have them next week. Made from one of the coolest fabrics around - designed to feel cool to the touch and 50spf. I think you are going to love them. LIMITED QUANTITIES and SIZES!!
2 Idaho Rod and Reel Imperium Spinning Rods LEFT!!
Next shipment of Idaho Rod and Reel Link and Imperium Rods are still over a month out.
The NEW HATS HAVE ARRIVED and they are selling quickly! There are 3 models - camo with a leather patch, gray with a blue logo and back by popular demand, the all black hat with leather round logo.
Can’t wait for you to see the new Cipher Fishing product that will be out soon!! Available at Tackle Warehouse and Idaho Rod and Reel first!
Check out an upcoming Kayak Tourney - want to get involved? Contact us!! Pics below…
SOMETHING BIG is coming…the next evolution…
New and In-Stock this week: Bajio Sunglasses, Keeper Custom Baits, Shad Raps, Daiwa Rods and Reels, Z Man Baits, Damiki TOT Spinnerbaits, Rapala Crush City
Bait and equipment reviews coming…along with some How To’s….
Is there something you’d like to see in the shop? Email me at [email protected]…one random suggestion just might end up winning you a prize.

Worth Watching

This is AWESOME!

Technically Speaking...

Great FG Knot Video! What are you scared of??!! 😆

Local and National Fishing News…and other “Stuff”

Walleye in Lowell! An update…

Catch, kill, keep: With walleye biting and no bag or possession limits on the species at Lake Lowell, Fish and Game asks anglers to take advantage

Fisheries biologists in Southwest Idaho have been getting flooded with calls from anglers about walleye they caught in Lake Lowell in recent weeks, who are following the guidance provided on signs around the fishery. While biologists appreciate anglers’ eagerness to report walleye catches or observations, there’s a new, simple message for walleye caught in Lake Lowell: Catch, kill, and keep.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/catch-kill-keep-walleye-biting-and-no-bag-or-possession-limits-species-lake-lowell-fish-and

Salmon Update!

F&G Commission approves 2025 summer Chinook seasons

The Idaho Fish and Game Commission met via conference call and approved the proposed summer Chinook salmon seasons for the South Fork Salmon and Upper Salmon rivers as well as the Lochsa River.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/fg-commission-approves-2025-summer-chinook-seasons

2025 South Fork Salmon Fishery Starts June 19

idfg.idaho.gov/article/2025-south-fork-salmon-fishery-starts-june-19

Upper Salmon River Chinook update - 6/12/2025

idfg.idaho.gov/article/upper-salmon-river-chinook-update-6122025

Local Fish Stocking Reports

Fish Stocking Forecasts

td {width: 33%; max-width: 33%; } This report highlights the monthly fish stocking schedule. Unless noted, fish listed below are all 10 to 12 inch rainbow trout. Stocking of all waters is tentative and dependent on river/lake/pond conditions; dates may change due to weather or staffing constraints. The table below shows schedules for all known forecasted stocking and up to the last month's recent stocking schedules. It may take two weeks for stocking data to appear as Historical stocking information. Your patience is appreciated.

idfg.idaho.gov/d7/fish/stocking/forecasts?rid=3

Steelhead Dam Counts

Steelhead Dam Counts

idfg.idaho.gov/fish/steelhead/dam-counts

Idaho Bass Nation!!