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Hook Points

Idaho's Fishing Newsletter

Ryan Chris
December 16, 2024

Fishing Reports

CJ Strike: Not great reports for bass but decent reports for crappie, perch and trout. Sounds like there is some ice on the edges in the mornings around Cottonwood that is gone by the afternoon. If you do plan to go bass hunting, SLOW DOWN! Fish will likely be deep, grouped up and not crazy excited to move as much as they were a week or so ago. Pick the warmest day of the week (couple warm ones coming up) to go if you can and let’s fish Carolina rigs, Keitechs, blade baits and Texas rigs on the bottom - slowly! For the perch and crappie, most of the fishing right now is vertical. For me that’s jigging raps all day long. I would definitely have crappie nibbles or nightcrawler tipped on all of my baits. Trout fishing has been a trolling game/ Flicker Shads, Shad Raps, old school Wedding Rings and Salmo Hornets are a must in any trolling tackle box.

Boise River: Good fishing for rainbows and browns right now! Especially if you can catch a warm-ish sunny day. Soft beads, jig heads with a bit of cooked shrimp and try a Berkley Power Worm on a drop shot! Hearing about fewer and fewer Steelhead catches but they are still in there…Steelhead stocking Locations:

Glenwood Bridge, Americana Bridge, Below the Broadway Avenue Bridge behind BSU, West Parkcenter Bridge, Barber Park

Brownlee: Water is up 1’ from last week - 2066 right now. Reports that the fishing was tough has been the most consistent with a couple of guys reporting ok days. For bass, going to need to get in 20-30’ most likely and fish slow with bottom dragging baits. Carolina rigs, blade baits and a keitech are not bad options. A really great option to try would be a Reaction Innovations Smallie Beaver on an Idaho Rod and Reel Tungsten Finesse Football Jig Head. Its the same head we use on our Finesse Jigs but without the skirt. No report on crappie or catfish. I like up by Woodhead this time of the year. There’s an almost 50 degree day coming up…just saying!

Snake River: An ok performer last week for smallies but starting to slow down. Look for large back eddies with a mix of sand, gravel and boulders. Fish are likely to be out in 8-12’ - maybe deeper so don’t hesitate to experiment out in the deeper troughs. I’m going to have a Senko, blade bait, Ned rig and a Keitech! If you’re pretty sneaky with a jerkbait - I’d have one of those as well but definitely not a time of the year you are going to accidentally catch one on the jerkbait.

Wilson Springs: No report this week.

Lake Lowell: No report.

Motorized and Non-motorized boating are allowed April 15 to September 30. Human-powered boats are allowed 200 yards in front of the Upper and Lower Dams between October 1 and April 14. The rest of the lake is set aside for migrating and wintering wildlife.

Cascade Reservoir: We have ice and good reports! For most current report call Tackle Toms 208-382-4367. There are a couple of really warm days coming up. Curious to see how that plays out up on the ice in Cascade.

Horsethief Reservoir: No report but sounds like we have ice here as well!

Owyhee Reservoir: No report this week.

Owyhee River: If you’re a fly fisherman, it’s midge time. Some shallower sections can have ice depending on the daytime highs. For bank anglers - try a jig head and cooked shrimp under a float. It is a good time of the year to fish the deeper slower sections.

Duck valley: From the Reservation Website - GREAT ICE FISHING DESTINATION!!

December 11, 2024 –Mountain View and Sheep Creek waters have both capped off, completely iced over; however, the icecap is struggling to remain as: warmer water temps, shallow reservoir depths, and above-freezing daily highs, remain a challenge to any further ice development, as the clear, cracking, ice is floating, shifting, and slowly melting, demonstrating all varied stages of a suspended thaw.

Off-shore ice measurements from both Sheep Creek and Mountain View taken December 10, 2024. Varied ice depths 10 yards from shorelines are reading less than 1.5 inches in the shallows, and up to 2.5 inches over deeper water. Ice quickly regresses to less than 2 inches at 15 yards. Reservoir water temperature has fluctuated at midday from 35.6 through 41-degrees Fahrenheit.

Lucky Peak Reservoir: Couple reports from LP this week from an angler that caught several trout on a Salmo Hornet in the Ghost pattern. Good reports for Kokes on top with silver, orange and pink dodgers with Pink Kokabow spinners. They are a bit smaller but a Kokes a Koke!!

Arrowrock Reservoir: Still fishing well for trout but very few decent Kokanee reports. Fish are on top! Great time to fish for them without special trolling equipment - decently flexible rod, 80’ of line behind the boat with a dodger and hoochie and set the speed to 1.3 MPH! Trolling a Salmo Hornet or Flicker Shad is another great option when it’s mostly trout on the bite.

Anderson Ranch Reservoir: Alan with Kokabow Tackle is reporting that Anderson is still fishing well and that the ramp behind the dam (Elk Creek) was still accessible as of last week. Fish are on top!! Pinks and oranges are still catching!

Local Ponds: Stocked trout are the main targets - powerbait, small spoons and flies behind a water bobber!

Shop News - Hand Tied Christmas Boxes, Cool Things Coming in 2025, Christmas Hours, Cool Gift Idea from Fish and Fur Outfitters, More!

SEE PICS BELOW! The following boxes will be on sale starting on TUESDAY - they are first come, first served. Message me through our social media sites or replying to the email that the newsletter was sent to if you’d like to reserve one. The boxes include hand tied hair jigs, chatterbaits, swim jigs, Uoze Swim Jigs, buzzbaits and more. Watch our social media for updates! VERY UNIQUE GIFT IDEA as each bait is unique and not available commercially. We use premium components including tungsten jig heads, Gamakatsu hooks, Living Rubber Skirts and premium feathers and furs.
Holiday Hours: OPEN CHRISTMAS EVE until 6pm. Closed on the 25th and 26th.
I cannot wait to share with you a project I have been working on for 2 YEARS! Follow @cipherfishing on Instagram and stay tuned!
Fish and Fur Outfitters are offering 15% Off Gift Cards thru Christmas! What a cool gift! Create memories with friends and loved ones and learn new fishing techniques! Contact Kathryn Sandy at 208-880-3282 to claim yours!
We’re trying hard to provide some cool opportunities through the shop and this is one of the coolest! For every $100 you spend in the shop from now until Christmas, you will receive a raffle ticket for a chance to spend a DAY ON THE WATER WITH CODY MEYER! Cody has qualified for the Bassmaster Elite Series and has fished the MLF tour with more than 30 top tens and has earned more than 1 Million Dollars on pro tours.
Our annual food drive is still going and will up until Christmas. Bring in a canned food item and I will trade you a hat! We work with a few local food banks and churches that provide meals for folks during these cold months of the year.
NEW LINK AND IMPERIUM ROD MODELS! ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER. All pre-order rods will include 2 tickets for the Cody Meyer raffle. We expect delivery to be just a few days AFTER Christmas now. NEW LINK MODELS INCLUDE: 7’5” Heavy/Fast Casting (Cork and Graphite Handle), 7’6” Medium Light/X Fast Casting (Cork and Graphite Handle) - Keitech Rod!, Medium Light/X Fast Spinning (Cork and Graphite Handle). NEW IMPERIUM MODELS INCLUDE: 7’ Light/X Fast Spinning (Cork Handle) and a 6’6” Ultra Light/Fast Spinning (Graphite Handle). These rods are without a doubt, one of the best values in fishing - proprietary high modulus blanks (have to spend over $300 to get a similar G Loomis blank!!) and ALL FUJI components.
WE ARE SOLD OUT of Cork Handle Link Medium/Fast Spinning Rods. LOW INVENTORY of the best selling rod in the shop right now, the Imperium Spinning Rod.
Please help! Idaho Rod and Reel will take a portion of our profits generated during the Thanksgiving/Christmas season to help families in our valley that fins themselves in a tough spot this year. If you happen to find yourself in a tough spot, or know someone that is, we’d love to talk to you about helping put a few packages under a tree or a nice meal on a table.
We have Stocking Bags now as well!! $50ea and come full with great stuff perfect for stockings!
Christmas Mystery Tackle Boxes will be PACKAGED in DAIWA CINCH BAGS THIS YEAR! If you’re significant other never knows what to get you for Christmas - or the angler in your life is tough to shop for…We will start taking orders for our Christmas Mystery Tackle Boxes! These are hand curated boxes meant to make Christmas shopping for that tackle junky in your life simple and fun! There are $50, $100 and $150 available but we will build to whatever dollar amount fits your budget. Each box comes with a FREE RAFFLE TICKET for an Idaho Rod and Reel Link or Imperium Rod that will be raffled off a few days after Christmas!
NEW T SHIRTS ARE IN STOCK! Super soft cotton and only $12.99!
HOODIES are IN STOCK and ALMOST SOLD OUT! Great gift idea at just $39.99.
Limited run BEANIES coming soon!
A fun collab with the Tower Grill in Nampa!! Purchase any Idaho Rod and Reel Link or Imperium Rod and you will receive 2 Cody Meyer raffle tickets.
If you are interested in ordering Tungsten products in bulk and saving some money, contact us and we will get you the order form! The more we have that participate, the lower the price we can get!
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

A bait for every fish and every angler

Technically Speaking...

Good to know!

Local and National Fishing News…and other “Stuff”

Love this for our Trout Anglers!

Idaho Fish and Game partnering with City of McCall to improve access on the North Fork Payette River in McCall

Idaho Fish and Game and the City of McCall are planning to submit a funding proposal for a project to improve conditions at an existing access area on the North Fork Payette River in McCall.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/idaho-fish-and-game-partnering-city-mccall-improve-access-north-fork-payette-river-mccall

I love catching these!

Anglers: Take advantage of this overlooked ‘mountain’ fishing opportunity as winter picks up

Hunkered down along the cobbles of nearly every Idaho river or stream is a plentiful opportunity with a misguided reputation. As winter picks up, take advantage of this “mountain” fishing opportunity and set your sights on the mountain whitefish.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/anglers-take-advantage-overlooked-mountain-fishing-opportunity-winter-picks

Current Trout Stocking

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

Steelhead Reports

Upper Salmon River Fall 2024 Steelhead Fishing Update (12-03-2024)

idfg.idaho.gov/article/upper-salmon-river-fall-2024-steelhead-fishing-update-12-03-2024