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Hook Points

Hook Points

Idaho's Fishing Newsletter

Ryan Chris
November 18, 2024

Fishing Reports

CJ Strike: Fished a bit tough last week and I do expect that to continue as we deal with the first really cold days…there was snow on Sunday so starting to feel wintery. Trolling is effective right now for a number of species. Grab a flicker shad, Salmo Hornet, Shad Rap and/or even just an old school wedding ring and head into the narrows! Crappie are schooled up but have been a bit tricky to catch. When it gets hard to catch em, I go with 2 baits…1/4oz blade bait or a jigging rap - WITH CRAPPIE NIBBLES! For the bass, I’d be throwing a Damiki Vault 1/2oz blade bait, a 3.3 Keitech Fat Swing Impact on a 1/4oz head and a tungsten finesse jig with a Zoom UV Speed Craw trailer.

Boise River: Keep it simple on the river right now…split shot and nightcrawler, shrimp on a jig head, small minnow baits on a light drop shot and a Dynamic Lures HD Trout.

Brownlee: Harmful Algae Bloom Warning In Effect. Water is up 1’ from last week - 2055. I personally like fishing Brownlee in the cold…keep it simple, blade baits, 3.3 Keitechs, a Tungsten Finesse Jig and a jerkbait. Slow down your retrieves and try to follow these fish as they will start to move to deeper wintering holes. As those water temps drop below 44 degrees, really slow that retrieve down. There are schools of crappie everywhere but like CJ, they can be a little moody with the dropping temps. Again - for me that means blade baits and jigging raps with crappie nibbles.

Snake River: The river is fishing well but it’s spotty. Going to need to cover a little water and if it were me, I wouldn’t be in a hurry to get out there. Grab breakfast and then head out. I was at the river last week and the bait of the day by a mile was the Idaho Rod and Reel Tungsten Finesse Jig - shocker! 😂 From the bank, gotta find deeper water in back eddies or behind some kind of large current break. Bridge pilings work!

Wilson Springs: Was recently stocked and the cooler weather has killed off some of the moss and grass. Just need a nightcrawler and/or powerbait here right now. Really good fishing reported.

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: Fish are still biting! Keep your eyes on the weather and try to fish on the warmest day of the week. Trolling is king right now and a Flicker Shad or Ghost Salmo Hornet will get bit. For the bass - you need a blade bait, jerkbait and a Keitech! Fish them slowly!

Horsethief Reservoir: No report.

Owyhee Reservoir: Bass fishing has been good with deep diving crankbaits, jigs and drop shots in 15-25’ of water. I expect this week to be a little tricky though as cooler temps and rain/snow are forecasted here. I’d probably stick to the blade bait, jerkbait, jig and maybe even a ned rig. No report on crappie this week.

Owyhee River: Water is low but fish are biting later in the day. Look for deeper pools at the ends of tailouts. Shrimp on a jig head under a float…

Duck valley: No report.

Lucky Peak Reservoir: Water is on the rise but as of mid week - no ramps open yet.

Arrowrock Reservoir: One report this week from an angler that launched a small boat from the beach - caught several rainbows and one kokanee trolling Kokabow Dodgers in Pink and Orange in the top 10’ of the water column.

Anderson Ranch Reservoir: Kokanee are biting. Pay attention to the weather as we start getting into the snowy stuff. With freezing temperatures likely, let that boat and trailer drip a bit at the bottom of the ramp to keep water off the rest of the ramp that can freeze and make it difficult to drive up the ramp. Kokanee have been biting on top and I have heard both early morning and around noon have been good bite windows. Main dodger color seems to be Pink.

Local Ponds: Decent reports for stocked trout in several ponds. Take a look at the stocking report below and target the ponds that have been stocked most recently. Nightcrawlers and powerbait!

Shop News - Food Drive, Black Friday, Christmas Tackle Boxes, Tackle Talk Tuesday!, Boise River Steelies and More

I am excited to announce that we have begun our annual food drive! Bring in a non-perishable food item and we will trade you an Idaho Rod and Reel hat! One of the tenets of the Idaho Rod and Reel Mission Statement is to “Serve the community that supports our shop.” Please help us as we fulfill this mission!! Let’s do something awesome together and make a positive impact!
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 are selling out of certain models of Link rods! It’s the perfect time of the year to get your hands on one - with Christmas around the corner, a new Link or Imperium rod comes with 10% off any reel and line for free. A present any angler in your life will love!
We will start taking orders for our Christmas 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!
Limited run HOODIES, T’s and BEANIES coming soon!
IMPERIUM! The Imperium Series of rods are meant to be the ultimate in finesse fishing for bass, trout and crappie. Frustrated with the quality of major brand “Finesse” rods, I set out to put the same 40-44 ton blanks we developed for our Link rods, into a series of rods specific for light line fishing. We destroyed 33 blanks during the process of developing these rods!! Totally worth it!
Idaho Rod and Reel will OPEN at 8am on Black Friday with some insane door buster deals! More to follow on this!
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!
Boise River Steelhead Stocking: November 22 - this FRIDAY! Glenwood Bridge, Americana Bridge, Below the Broadway Avenue Bridge behind BSU, West Parkcenter Bridge, Barber Park
2 Daiwa Kage Dry Bags Left!! Purchase a Daiwa Kage Rod and or reel and receive a free Kage Dry Bag!
The FIRST EPISODE OF TACKLE TALK TUESDAY will launch this week!!
IN STOCK NOW: Smithwick Rogue Jerkbaits, Aero Jigs Steelhead Jigs, Z Man Graph Shadz,
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

Have had several customers fish here…looks fun!

Technically Speaking...

Interesting!

Local and National Fishing News…and other “Stuff”

Cool!

F&G Commission approves discounted fishing licenses for foster families

The Idaho Fish and Game Commission recently approved a program that will give youth in foster care and one foster parent within each household free fishing licenses in 2025.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/fg-commission-approves-discounted-fishing-licenses-foster-families

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

Boise River Steelies