Reelfast, Wiperslayer and I fished this beautiful lake yesterday from 7am till 1pm. It the first trip to this lake for Ira and I and we thought with the high limits it would be easy catching for the kokes but it just wasn't meant to be. We ended up with 10 and lost just as many before we could net them. We also caught a couple of planter bows and this guy:
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I was thinking pike minnow or squaw fish, anyone know for sure? WH2
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It's a Squawfish, Anderson and The Snake River drainage have alot of them. I have caught them out of Anderson that have gone 7 to 8 lbs. while fishing for Smallmouth.[cool]
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WH2 I can also see from your picture that you were fishing too far down the lake. My cousin from Mt. Home has been tearing them up.
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I always thought those squaw fish were near the bottom but this one was hanging in the same depth as the kokes. We did not have much time to look around for a big group of kokes, so we stayed on the first ones we found. I'm not familiar with the lake, when you said we were fishing too far down the lake which direction should we have gone from the ramp? We were a mile or so from the ramp.
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There are several ramps starting at the dam and running up the lake so I'm not sure which one you off loaded at. I'm not sure of the names but I think they are Elk Creek, Fall Creek, Deer Creek and Curlew. There are some other camp sites along the gravel road that winds along the North side of the lake that have small launch areas as well. As far as Squaw fish being bottom feeders I have caught several on top water plugs at Anderson.
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I think the name of the ramp was fall creek. This was a nice concrete ramp but steep. We were coming from Mt Home and went by the dam first, then drove a while before we turned off the main road. I believe we were going North when we left Mt. Home, then turned West.
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Here's a quote from Idaho Fish and Game regarding the pictured Anderson Reservoir fish. "Northern Pike Minnow (previously known as northern squawfish)". One online quote mentioned the name was changed to Pike Minnow to be politically correct. Not sure how politics got into it? They've hit my trout lures while flatlining especially during the late summer at shallower depths. Make you think you've got a big rainbow. They do get big and one fellow mentioned he chops them up for an excellent garden fertilizer...
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Do you or anyone else know how they taste?
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Absolutely no idea what they taste like... Probably if prepared right they'd be decent. They are in fairly clean water other than a touch of mercury here in the Boise Basin system; not like fish in stagnant ponds. (I've ate a lot of perch, bass and cats from much slower and stiller water and they were terrific if prepared right)
Anyone else's thoughts?
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Lime Creek is a can't miss Kokanee spot at AR. Go left (down the lake) from the LC ramp and just look for the cluster of boats in the racetrack pattern over past Lime Creek outlet. Usually a good 10 to 20 boats there. Fall in with them and get your riggers down to the red arches...
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Thanks for the info, I guess I should have ask someone before we went up there about where a good place is to fish for the kokes. I just did not have any idea the lake was so big. How big do the kokes get up there? The ones we caught were no bigger than 12 inches.
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12" is typical. Last year we caught them from 11" to 15"; 15 being the exception. Used to be some bigger ones in AR but not the last few years from what I understand.
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IF you think Fall Creek is steep, you want to stay away from the one at Elk Creek (Next to Dam). It sounds like you may have put in at Curlew as Fall Creek is half way down the lake on the gravel road. Last summer that's about the size of most of them when we were there for the 4th. Two summers ago on the 4th we caught a quite a few that went from 16 to 17 inches. My cousin (Mt. Home) said he found better ones vertical jigging there this year that were going about 14 inches. We won't be making our annual trip up this year, I have two many pans in the fire with getting ready for the archery hunt and looking for a Moose to fill my tag. Lime Creek is a good area to catch them if the Water skiers don't get the best of you. The guys fishing there are usually pretty courtious but the pleasure boaters and skiers from Utah can't hold a candle to some of these people, they don't care much wether you are fishing or not. Last year they set a course up on top of one of my favorite runs.
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Dan was the only one of us that had been to AR before and he said the launch by the dam was too steep for him and he did not want to go down a gravel road, so I bet we were at the location you said. I know in Utah they have the 150ft rule of staying away from other boats while on plane but a lot of folks don't obey it or know about it. Does Idaho have the same law?
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I think Idaho does, that may be a rule set up by the Coast Guard, I know the states I have fished in the Mid West have that rule.
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