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Hook Points - Idaho's Fishing Newsletter

Hook Points - Idaho's Fishing Newsletter

News, Tips, Tackle and More

Ryan Chris
August 20, 2024

Fishing Reports

CJ Strike: Plenty of fish still being caught at CJ. Saw some good crappie this week that were caught pretty deep. Smaller ones are shallow. For the deeper fish, try a Keitech 3” Easy Shiner on a 1/8oz ball head. For those shallow schools, try a simple crappie jig or Big Bite Baits Minr. Bass have been caught all over the place…shallow, deep, suspended, in the tullies, by the rocks, on the sand…bottom line is, find some structure and get to work! I’d have a drop shot with a X-Zone Scented Stealth Minnow or a Hot Shot Minnow, a finesse jig (hopefully the shop jigs are back in stock in a week!), a tube jig and a topwater popper or frog (if you go looking for green ones).

Boise River: Great spot to fish right now, Keep it simple, get yourself a couple Dynamic Lures HD Trout baits…

Brownlee: Harmful Algae Bloom Warning In Effect. At 2054. See the attached image for ramps that are still accessible. Starting to hear reports about bigger smallmouth being caught. So far, reports have been that these fish are in 25 to 40’. Drop shots, Carolina rigs, deep diving cranks and tubes are all good options for these deep fish. Deep is not the only place to look however and I would still have a shallow option available for early and late in the day. Catfishing is excellent and a lot of water is accessible from the bank at these levels. Crappie are in 15-25’ of water and on the inside edges of most main lake points. Pick your favorite crappie bait - mine are Big Bite Baits Swimons and 2.8 Keitech Fat Swing Impacts - they just get bigger bites.

Snake River: Decent fishing still - some complaints about grass…but that’s the river for ya! Good bites on topwater poppers and a bait that we have been pushing quite a bit lately - for good reason - the Lunker City Salad Spoon! Store manager Brian is responsible for this serious fish catcher. Subsurface can be cranks in clear water, drop shots, jigs and a sleeper bait…the curly tail grub.

Wilson Springs: Probably wait to fish this one when it gets cooler and the water clears up…lots of green stuff. Yuck.

Lake Lowell: Still fishing really well! Water is low. As such, see the dam closure notice from the Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge below:

(8/2/24) Due to low water levels, the boat ramps at the west end of the Upper Dam and at Access 1 are closed as of today, August 2. Visitors can still launch boats at the Lower Dam Recreation Area off Riverside Drive, the east end of the Upper Dam, off Iowa Avenue, and Access 7 on the southwest side of the lake.

I’d definitely have a frog (try the Jackall Kaera - its smaller and getting bit really well right now), a pink fluke (trust me), a 3.8 Keitech on a belly weighted EWG hook and a swim jig.

Cascade Reservoir: Lots of good reports for perch and trout. Not so great reports for the bass - still not a place I’m targeting for those just yet. Agood trolling arsenal for Cascade would include Berkley Flicker Shads, Rapala Shad Raps and Salmo Hornets. Perch are easily found around rock piles (especially offshore piles) and trout are not too far off the banks according to one customer.

Horsethief Reservoir: Campsite is closed due to smoke according to an article on Idaho Fish and Game website. I have included it below.

Owyhee Reservoir: Good crappie and bass reports. Crappie have been in 15-30’ and the schools are moving. Some conversation last week with a customer struggling to find bigger ones…it’s not uncommon for schooling type fish (like crappie) to hang out with fish of similar size. If you are only catching dinks…keep looking - and not necessarily a long distance away. I have found many small schools of bigger fish, not far from a large school of little fish. Tongue twister! I see this at Brownlee quite a bit. For the bass, try a deep diving crank, a Big TRD on a Ned rig, a ½ or ¾ oz football jig and don’t neglect the shallow fish - throw them a walking style bait. We just received a few finness-y Evergreen Shower Blow 77.7’s…guarantee you they haven’t seen those yet.

Owyhee River: Fishing very well. Jointed Rapala’s, Lucky Craft Pointer 65’s, a Keitech (you read that right) will catch a big Brown right now. If lures aren’t your thing, try PMD parachute patterns but be prepared for BWO’s, midges and a caddis hatch.

Duck valley: No Report

Lucky Peak Reservoir: BEING DRAWN DOWN FOR RAMP REPAIRS. Take a look at this link for updates!

Lucky Peak Dam and Lake - WallaWallaUSACE | Boise ID

Lucky Peak Dam and Lake - WallaWallaUSACE, Boise, Idaho. 3,635 likes · 640 talking about this · 1,128 were here. Striving to deliver operational excellence in flood risk management, responsible...

www.facebook.com/LuckyPeakLake

RAMP LEVELS AT LUCKY PEAK!!

Arrowrock Reservoir: No Report this week.

Anderson Ranch Reservoir: No report this week.

Local Ponds: Looks like Fish and Game is going to start stocking the ponds again soo. Keep your eyes on the Stocking Report below to figure out where to go! Many of the local bass ponds are overgrown and mossy - but there are still bass in them and they will eat! Look for open water or throw Texas rigged baits to keep from hooking every piece of grass in the pond!

Shop News - Cast for Kids, ROD BUILDING COMING SOON!, New Baits and New Hats

Almost 50 in attendance at the PB Bass fishing class! Interesting to note that an attendee went out and won the John Jenkins Memorial Tourney that next weekend in his first tournament ever landing a 5.86 largie!! Congrats Kyle Witherspoon!! Was it the class?? LOL! We will never know…
I wanted to personally thank Idaho Bass Masters and all those that contributed to an INSANELY successful charity event that raised nearly $7000 for John’s family. The news would have you believe that we are surrounded by bad stuff all the time…just not true. I see random acts of kindness weekly. Someone buys a reel for a friend, a care package for a cancer patient, donates a rod for a kid in need…it’s all around us. Don’t be deceived - good is everywhere.
The Cast for Kids event at Black Canyon was this past Saturday and just an amazing event that this community gets behind like no other!! If you are unfamiliar with the event, it is a day of fishing, food and fun for kids with special powers and needs. These kids get to catch fish, take a boat ride, catch sticks, eat great food and all receive a plaque and tackle box full of tackle. It is without a doubt, one of my favorite days of the year. If you would like to attend next year, please come see me! Thank you to all the boaters that donated their boats and time to be captains to these wonderful kiddos and their families! Members from several local Bass Clubs, Western Whitewater and other organizations were in attendance and helping to make this a very special day. Again, fishy people are good people!
2 New Idaho Rod and Reel HATS ARE IN STOCK NOW!
Currently working on a winter Rod Building Class Idea! Love to hear your thoughts on this!! Would you attend?
Idaho Rod and Reel and Missile Baits will be joining forces to product a limited edition, exclusive Micro D Bomb color! It will perfectly match a BRAND NEW Tungsten Finesse Jig design. BOTH COMING SOON!
Daiwa KAGE Rods are back in stock!
In Stock Now: New Flicker Shads, Wacky Rig Tools, Daiwa/Yamamoto Neko Fat and Neko Crawlers, Evergreen Bone Topwater Popper, Evergreen SB77.7, Several new jig skirt colors for the DIYers!, Ultralight Heavyweights Jigs, Profishiency Rods and MORE!
TUESDAY!! We will have several Idaho Rod and Reel custom HAND TIED swim jigs and football jigs available. These are hand tied by Ryan on Gamakatsu hooks (the football jigs are using the NEW NANO hooks from gammy…) and SELL OUT QUICKLY! I don’t get to tie as much as I’d like so come and get ‘em while they last. See a few of the designs below!
Idaho Rod and Reel Tungsten Finesse Jigs are SOLD OUT! 3 New Designs and current designs Arriving in the NEXT 2 WEEKS!
CUSTOM COLOR SOFTBAITS ONLY AVAILABLE AT IDAHO ROD AND REEL FROM MAJOR MANUFACTURERS COMING SOON!
Jordan Rodriguez from Tight Lines 208 will be teaching his “Catfish are Jumping” class here at the Idaho Rod and Reel Learning Center on August 22, from 6-8pm. Sign up at tightlines208.com. PEOPLE ARE LOVING THESE CLASSES AND CATCHING MORE FISH BECAUSE OF THEM!!
CRAPPIE and TROUT fishers…custom rods built just for you coming SOOONN!!!.
Custom Rods…something very cool is coming 😉
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

Bucket list fish!

Technically Speaking...

How to read CHIRP sonar

Local and National Fishing News…and other “Stuff”

Some Catch and Release records…just for funsy 😄

Catch and Release Fish Records

idfg.idaho.gov/fish/record/catch-and-release

Closed!

Horsethief Campground closed as crews battle Snag Fire

At the request of fire operations personnel, Idaho Fish and Game has closed the Horsethief Reservoir campgrounds as firefighters work to protect the area from the Snag Fire. Camping and day use will remain closed until further notice.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/horsethief-campground-closed-crews-battle-snag-fire

For the fly guys…LEGEND!

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

One of my favorite baits for trolling!

Salmon Reports

A record sockeye return crosses Lower Granite Dam—but they're not all Idaho fish

Through Aug. 19, the sockeye return hit a record 2,835 fish counted at Lower Granite Dam about 30 miles downstream from Lewiston. That’s the highest sockeye return since fish counting started at the dam in 1975, topping the previous record of 2,786 fish in 2014. Unfortunately, many are sockeye that strayed from the Columbia River.

idfg.idaho.gov/article/record-sockeye-return-crosses-lower-granite-dam-theyre-not-all-idaho-fish