I went down to the dam at CJ this morning. Smaller bass were common catches and there were still lots of carp. I have been trying to catch them but they don't seem to want to bite at anything. I have tried nightcrawlers, a few home recipes, wheaties, and fresh white bread on the surface. Don't know what gives with these fish. Ideas would be great.
Strike Dam Road is open now! Begining at the hill by the dam is very nice now. It is paved with guard rails adn reflectors. It is paved for a few miles then turns into dirt road. All the gravel has been craped off the top and has been leveled. Less than a mile of paved road at the end. There are some new cattle gates and arround the middle of the road there are a few semi deep holes. They would be no trouble for a truck or suv. I hit one of them in a car it is wasn't too bad but figured i would warn you all.
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Were you bank fishing ?
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I'm
!! [crazy]
Is it paved from the Grandview road or from the dam towards the Grandview road? How many miles of dirt?
I don't want to take my bass boat over it if there is still a lot of miles of dirt. I don't like sitting in dust all day.[
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I'm headed up there probably Wed. My buddy is taking his boat so I guess I could let him be the guinea pig. lol[cool]
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Forgiven - I was bank fishing
Bassnbob- It is paved at both ends and dirt road in the middle. It is about 7ish miles total so from grandview road it is paved less than a mile then turns to dirt road. Then about 3 miles from the dam is paved again. Hope this helps
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That's better than nothing. I wonder if they plan on paving the whole thing, seems kinda silly to do both ends and not the middle.
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I'm just glad they fixed the hill going down to CJ. That was pretty unsafe and evern worse at night. Now it has guard rails and reflectors. Overall they did a good job. It is a way better drive now than it was before.
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According to the Idaho Power guys I talked to, it is a multi year project funded by IDP. They paved all they could till the money ran out this year. More will be paved next year, and the following year if needed. It will eventually be paved all the way.
Not sure a hike in my electrical bill is worth having that road all paved in one shot, but it might be. Maybe if everyone sends in an extra 5 bucks next month with a note telling them to apply that bonus to the Strike Dam road project...?
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I like that idea. I'd be willing to drop a fiver or two extra if they would guarantee it went to the road project.
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You should have seen it back in the 60's.[fishin]
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Ha, I was going to make this thread. I went to the dam last night and fished from around 8:30 PM to 4:30 AM. Fishing was sucky, but I did catch a lot of nice crawdads. It must have been a crawdad convention down there, because I'd put the trap down and bring it up 20 minutes later, and it would be full.
As far as the road goes, it is much nicer. The area that's still dirt has been evened out, and the larger holes filled with gravel.
Unfortunately, the first blind curve next to the cliff as you travel towards the dam is still unpaved with no reflectors or guard rails. There's just a low dirt berm on the shoulder before the drop. Be very cautious going towards the dam in the dark.
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Are the crawdads above or below the dam? And where is the best way to walk out above the dam to fish on it?
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I was on top of the dam. I've never tried below the dam, but I'd bet you could catch a bunch if you threw the trap out in the slower water below the spillway.
If you want to fish off the dam, there's a gravel parking lot near the north park. The entrance is not marked and is easy to miss. If you're coming down the dam road mentioned in this thread, keep going until you pass the park on the left and cross a shallow canal. The entrance to the parking lot is on the left just after the canal, before it starts going downhill towards the bridge. There's a porta potty in the parking lot. You walk up the side of the embankment and come out near the dam.
If you've never fished there before, you might want to get a drop net, or a net with a long handle. The water is about 8-10 feet down depending on how full the reservoir is. The dam has some really nice perch, though. I caught one on the trip before last that was almost 12".
Make sure you bring some long rope for your traps, because the bottom is about 35-40 feet down from the walkway. I tie mine to the fence. I just have one small trap (the kind with the funnel on both ends) but I'm thinking of buying some more since you can have up to five.
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Thanks, that will be a great help when we finally make it back there.
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StacyR you are lucky to need a drop net on the face of the dam. I have fished there many times an on a good day i catch a small perch. I mainly fish below the dam for panfish and bass. I have been trying to catch the carp but they don't want to take any bait i have thrown at them.
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I usually have much better luck on the dam at night. You can get some real nice trout up there. I lost one about 15" right at the surface when I was there last.
Where do you fish below the dam for panfish? I've fished off the bridge for trout, but I'm not real keen on getting down on those rocks at the campground after dark.
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Well that could be my problem right there, as i go to the top of the dam in the morning or in the evening. I will try at night and see if my luck changes.
I tend to go about the middle of the rocky area below the dam. there are alot of rocks to contend with to get down but there are better ways than others. I tend to look for good foot holds then once i am at the water level i move to where i want to go. If I fish there at night I bring a lamp with me and a flashlight. I leave the lamp on at my spot and keep the flashlist with me for moving arround on the rocks.
I thend to use meal worms on a small long shanked hook with a slip bobber. I use a micro light set up with 1lb dia. power pro. works pretty well. I will put my bait on the back side of the rocks closer to the bottom. So maybe 12-16' off the bank.
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I went to CJ this morning in my partner's boat but I didn't let him go down the new road.[laugh]
We fished from 6AM to noon and we caught a few bass. Nothing really big. My biggest was 15" but I can't believe how stout these bass are. No flabbyness just firm and real fighters. Even the 12"ers would weigh well over a pound.
The new road from the ramp up the hill looks beautiful. I'd say that was probably the hardest part so it should be smooth sailing next year for the rest. I'm going to take the wife to Grandview for breakfast just to check out the road this weekend.
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Went to Grandview for breakfast and then took a trip on the new road.
WOW!! It is nice. They did an excellent job. There is only 3.6 miles of dirt. They should be able to get that paved next year, I would think.
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