Fishing Forum

OK...maybe not . I'd like to be some competition for you vets though!

My name is Marcus and I've been around for a good clutch of years, but haven't really been fishing since I was 15 years old or so and wasn't very "good" at it then. Haven't ever been into the fly fishing thing, mostly bait and a hook and a little bit of weight...and no real strategy at that. Mostly wherever pops wanted to go.

At this point, I am pops, and boy oh boy do I have my work cut out for me if I want my kiddos to have a good time fishing with me. Who would've thunk it'd be so hard to keep your kids occupied while paying attention to your own rig?

Long story short, I'm getting back into it 10 years after I stopped to pursue stupid teenage BS, and catching or not I'm having a good time with it! I hope to glean a bit of experience from the folks lurking around here that have been hitting up waterways near Idaho Falls (within about 100 miles), and share some of the memories I'll be making with my chillens this spring/summer/fall.

That said, I caught one about a week ago and I was SO EXCITED...but it didn't look like any trout I'd seen before. Made me think for a minute before sticking him on the stringer and gutting him, was just hoping he wasn't on the restricted list, but he swallowed the hook and I couldn't get the bugger out. With the 10 year gap in my fishing, it completely skipped my mind that I could cut the line and that hook would dissolve, so I strung him up, gutted him and brought him home. It was only after I got home and studied the fish identification charts that I realized it was a damn Utah Chub. He's still in my freezer, but I'm not sure whether I want to cook him and choke him down myself or if the pets are going to get him...but it was a good time catching him.

If you have any chub recipes, throw them out there...LOL. Pic attached just to illustrate the excitement.
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Welcome to the boards!

My chub recipe is to cut him up and use him as bait!
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Welcome to the Forum!

This place has made me a much better fisherman. I did not fish much (or at all) during my teen years and now I cry myself to sleep if I miss a day on the river! I have learned more than my fair share on this site and I try to give back when I can but most of the people on here do a much better job than me!

I agree with cutting that chub up and using it as bait for something bigger...now is the time to get into a nice trophy trout and then you will never want to get off the rivers and lakes!
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Way to go on wanting to take the kids out. With kids it is easier if you just plan on focusing on them and only watch your own pole once in a while. [laugh][laugh]

When the weather clears up - warms up- or even just stops blowing at 50 mph, a good place to take your kids is Birch Creek out west of Id Falls. (on other side of the desert) Lots of trout to keep it interesting.

Good luck and keep us up on how you are doing. Ask lots of questions, we've all started at sometime, and this is a very helpful forum.[cool]
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It looks like a whitefish to me, which a lot of people like to smoke. I hear they're really tasty if not a little bony.
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Welcome to BFT. From the picture it appears to be a whitefish but it is hard to tell. Whitefish can be good, but like others have said, a bit boney.

The #1 tip for fishing with kids is don't try to fish while your fishing with kids. Just concentrate on them. This is an inbetween time for kid fishing. Ice fishing is mostly over and the rivers are starting to run high.

As someone else pointed out birch creek can be great. Check the traditional stocking reports and try to time your trip. The rexburg nature pond is also a great place to take kids after it is stocked. The Mctucker ponds can be good. The Crystal Springs pond, warm river, the North Fork Near the Ashton Bridge... There are many great kids places just need to keep investigating and find out how they all work.

Start by checking the family fishing waters in the proclamation.

Windriver
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I was thinking whitefish too, but he's pretty dark which made me think chub minus the chub.

I definitely have to agree on the kid thing. Water just doesn't seem too kid friendly right now. I've been up to Salmon a few times for work and know where Birch Creek is - any suggestions on spots there?

Went to Roberts Gravel Pond weekend before last, but it was mostly iced over and just too cold for my 7 year old to keep fishing there. I remember fishing there as a kid a bunch. Went on a crazy grown up trip there Saturday night (for all of you in the area on Saturday, laugh it up) in an attempt to fish, and the pond doesn't have ice on it anymore...but it's foolhardy to try and catch anything when the wind is blowing that hard, lol. I don't think I've ever seen white caps on that pond before.

I used to go to the Idaho Falls kid's pond when I was under 14, and I think after they open that up to fishing on June 15th I'll take the kids there once every week or two. I never went there and didn't bag my limit in an hour or two. The hatchery trout in that pond go nuts for powerbait.

Definitely planning on hitting up Warm River this summer...hands down my favorite pay camp site when the skunks aren't terrorizing my wife (story for another day). Saw some kids fishing it last year and they were pulling a hybrid rainbow out every half hour or so. At least I hope they were hybrid rainbows and not cutthroats - I think they ate every one they caught and according my handy dandy Idaho Fish and Game rules booklet that's a no-no.

We have camped Heise a lot in previous years, though that may change since our coolers were stolen last year. I take blame for it, forgetting to put them in the truck and lock them up...but it definitely turned me off to camping up there. I do want to fish the South Fork a bit though, especially if there's catching going on. The limits are appealing, but my river reading skills sure can use some work.

I'm always looking for new camping spots, and don't really make it out of the "head north or north-east 20 to 60 miles" mold very often. So Henry's, Island Park, and anything to the west is pretty foreign to me. I'm glad I've seen suggestions that way - gives me an excuse to get out of my rut a bit.

BTW - Anyone know of a guide for how much weight to put on a line (basic bait on a hook) based on river conditions / depth? Maybe a better method than simply putting weight and a worm on and waiting?
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hey welcome to the site these gents on here have allot of good info!! when the warm sumer months come around try the reservoirs in the Preston area.. most of them produce lots of perch blue gill and trout.. as well as bass n such..[fishon][fishon]
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On any rig, for myself, prefer less weight than more. The less weight the more likely you are to feel the bite, less likely to get snagged, and less likely for a fish to feel the line tension when biting. That being said, you want to be in the zone so, which may well be on the bottom so depending on the type of fishing you are doing, you need enough weight to get it there. When fishing in rivers, I usually compensate for using less weight by casting upstream a bit. This can be snag city if you are using too much weight though, so it takes a bit of trial and error.

The real trick is to know when you are feeling the end of your line, and the bottom. If you can feel what is going on (which is usually lightly bumping the bottom every now and then) then you will be much less likely to have fish swallow the hook too. I rarely ever have fish swallow the hook when I use bait in rivers, simply because I know when the fish is biting and can set the hook quickly.

Don't know if any of this is helpful, but thought I'd throw a couple thoughts out there.
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I have found the clear slip floats work well for fishing lakes and rivers. Put one on your line, the big end of the pin pointed down away from the rod. Tie on a swivel and then tie some leader onto the swivel. The swivel will keep the float from hitting your hook and also keep the pin pushed back into the float. Fill the float with water and you are ready to go. I don't seem to get hung up as much in a river this way than I do with lead. A great way to fish a fly with a spinning rod also. They sell them in 3-4 sizes and I find I use the smaller ones most but it all depends. Sometimes lead is a better option but this works well for me in lots of conditions.
I agree with Jeremy and the Preston area. You can camp at Lava or other hot spring resort areas which are great for the family. Alexander in Soda has lots of good access from shore and some perch, trout, catfish, smallmouth, and BIG carp. The kids will get way excited about seeing schools of 50 or so BIG carp and try and catch them. They are a blast to catch for sure. Do a search for past threads here about Alexander to learn more.
The Fish and Game website has an area in the fishing section showing stocking history and dates along with the family friendly waters which are way easy to fish with kids. Easy limits and lots of fish. Alexander is one of those family friendly areas.
Have fun. One day you will look around and your kids aren't kids anymore. Happen before you know it. Help them out and have fun with them as much as you can. It is a fun time for you now.
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Right on mbowman, sounds like you have a great attitude.

The only thing I might add is to study the regs thoroughly on the water you intend to fish before each outing,Just about every piece of water has different regs.
In fact I can think of several rivers that have different regs on different stretches of the same river, like some stretches are single barbless artificial only catch and release, cross a bridge and it suddenly turns to Fly fish only C&R, then the next bridge you can fish with worms or whatever and keep a few..
It is your responsibility to know the regs, it WILL save you and your children alot of embarrassment and grief to learm em.
Good luck and have fun..
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oh yes Alexander has allot of carp and they are no doubt fun to catch my oldest son hooked into one last summer and it broke his line but he was still way excited to have a fish on the line that could have been as big as him.. they get very large in there.. also the portneuf river above lava in the warm months is fun for kids as well usually just small planter rainbows but occasionally you will hook into a large brown or a nice cutt.
there are also sculpin up there above lava which are way cool to show little kids the kids think they look way cool.. any way good fishing to you!!
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I might just have to give the float thing a try. I've done the bobber thing in a lake, never really thought about it for the river mainly because of casting out...but if I could put some water in a float to get some casting distance that may just work. I'll give that a shot and let you know how it goes.

I'm using pretty minimal weight right now, I think 1/8th oz slip and a split shot to keep it about 2.5 - 3 ft up from the hook. I got started this year with a rod that I borrowed from my dad that was a little more stiff than what I bought last week at Sportsmans, and there's some getting used to to be done with the new rod I have. I was used to keeping a finger on the line as a kid to feel the bites using the same slightly larger, stiff rods, and with the new rod I bought I can feel everything I'm hitting in the river come right down the rod. It's faked me out a good number of times already.

Looks like I'll be doing some southerly camping this year []. I can't say I've ever caught anything other than trout, trash fish and itty bitty cats (sculpin I think). Will be interesting to get in some water with bass, bluegill and carp.

On regs - I'm being really careful there, or at least trying to be. Some of them (warm river for example) are interesting to decipher. Last thing I need is trouble with the fish cops, I know the regs are on the books for a reason. Pops conveyed general bag limits to me and such as a kid, but never really elaborated on where they applied and which waters were special. That's one thing I'm going to make sure the kids understand, or at least know about.

You all impress the hell out of me. I didn't know how active the community on these boards are. I've got a guy I chat up at work on fishing holes and general practices, and he's had some good info. It's just hard to find a group of local folks that know the waters and have varied styles, which is exactly what I was looking for. Dad is a sinker and a hook man, maybe a big spoon every now and then, and he's caught a fair amount of fish in this area...but his roots are in Ohio and the Pacific, and cold water trout fishing irritates him something fierce because he's used to a completely different style. But in any case, asking him for fishing tips comes back to enough weight to get to the bottom and possibly an air injection into the worm without much explanation as to why, lol. Hopefully this year I can expand my technique a bit and show him a thing or two that'll work better for him.

Thank you guys. I'm excited to get out there...wish this weather / wind would clear up a bit.
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I think you will like all the different ways you can use it. It is a clear slip float. Not a bobber so to say. You can sure use it as a floating bobber without filling it up with water but you would need a bobber stop and also it is hard to see as it is clear. They are really cheap too.
Fill it full with water to sink all the way, half full, just a bit from full, etc.
Have fun out there no matter how or where you go fishing.
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I'm obviously going to need some hands on experience with the float thing to fully understand it, lol. I think I get it, and I'm definitely going to check it out.
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you know what works very well for me!!! A green tube jigwith silver and gold flakes and white tube jigs with silver flakes in them!!! They work very well for me with brown trout!! Bass!!! Walleye!! And rainbows the rainbows take alot of inticing with them but bass eyes and browns take them up quick!!! Also Clio's work well for trout!! Green/silver White/gold patterns!!! Also by maniac plastic baits!! The cutt'r bugs orange/glow and black leech work good as a bottom bouncer!!! By maniac the maniac minnow white in color performs very well for about everything!!!... Hope this gives you some ideas on what to try!! There is a huge selection of lurs n baits to try got to start some where!!! [fishon][fishon][fishon]
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So I've been doing some thinking on where to fish without too much travel that gets me off the snake in its uber high state. I'm in IF, and hit Beaver Dick a few times this last week...but from what I understand it's going to be flooded here pretty soon and I can't really rely on that being an option. Haven't been catching much there anyway.

More interested in seeing the kids get bites honestly. I like catching them and all, but I hate to see the kids sit there bored, I remember how that was. On the latest trip to Beaver Dick I got to thinking about the Rexburg Ponds - I've never been there. If I take the chillens up that way, what is the best way to get something on the line for them?
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Fishing with worms or mealys is always best with the planter fish. At least in my experience I like to throw a worm on with some colored mallows or an egg or something to attract them. The rexburg ponds are a great place to ice fish as well. I just started this last winter and we would always catch at least 50 fish a day out there. Nothing too big (around 12-16") but constant action with just a small jig head and mealy worm.

Another fun place to fish with kids is Ririe Reservoir. I like to fish from the banks with a worm and a split shot about 12" above and just drag it through the rocks. The smallmouths in there are fun little fighters and always bring a when they start jumping. Just make sure the water warms up a bit before heading out.
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[quote mbowman] I got to thinking about the Rexburg Ponds - I've never been there. If I take the chillens up that way, what is the best way to get something on the line for them? [/quote]

squish a small piece of bread on to your hook and you'll catch a bunch of goldfish. [] My kids used to think that was fun when we lived there.
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If I were you I would make the little extra drive to Birch Creek. Yes it is a little further, for me though it has the things that are key for kids.

Water that is safe being the first. Most spots up there if your kid is over 5 he can touch the bottom regardless of where they are at.

Not too many bushes for them to get snagged up on.

Lots and lots of eager fish. Also if you are interested in learning to fly fish this is my go to place to take beginners.

If you decide to head that way send me a pm and Ill give you direction and what to fish with fly wise.
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