So this spring and in the fall I read in the paper of these walleyes of all sizes that F&G has been gill netting at Ririe reservoir. Some they say up the 26 inches long. That's huge, they have been in there for a while, and with the food supply obviously will continue to grow. So I get a wild hair and decide to call F&G to see if they will give me some direction on how to catch them, after all there is no limit on them, F&G says they didn't put them in there, so they want them out of there right? Can you here that? That's the sound of crickets chirping, that's the response I felt I got. Wouldn't say where the gill nets were set, could we reach them on our limited area we can fish ice fishing? If they were so concerned with getting these predator fish out of there don't you think they would be more accomadating? Wondering where all your Kokanee are going? Only thing the officer would say was that they were glutted with them. Has anybody gotten these wally's through the ice at Ririe before? How about a online lesson on how to catch them?
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I was trolling the Spring of 2010 in the narrows and got checked by F&G so I asked him if Walleye were present and he said yes and that they had been netting quite a few.
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This is one that I hope to cross of the ice fishing bucket list, and I can only offer up what I've researched. Hope to put it to use sometime soon maybe at Oakley or SFCR. I've fished for them in Canada, and during the day our guide took us to deep holes and we'd catch them cruising there, usually at the bottom of drop off points. Never been to Ririe, but I know they are hard to find most anyplace. If it were me, I'd also fish in the evening. Pre-drill some holes in a gentle bay, or along a gradual sloping shoreline. Somewhere in the 3' - 6' depth. Fish the deep channels during the day and move into shore as evening approaches. That's when they'll be sweeping the shoreline for prey. Deadstick with jigging rap, and keep the noise to a minimum. One guy drilling and another one with a flasher during the day would be a huge time saver.
You'll probably have to put in some miles and do a boatload of drilling. But man if you get in on them, how cool would that be? Good luck.
This is a little older information, but may still be helpful. It is from the 2011 Upper Snake River Region Newsletter.
Upper Snake Region 2011 Newsletter
IDFG implanted 41 illegally introduced walleye with radio transmitters in Ririe Reservoir in 2009 and 2010 to learn about their movements over the course of the seasons. Our intent is to educate anglers about where walleye can be caught in the hopes harvest can keep the population to a low level. Some general movement patterns emerged
Shortly after ice off (around April), walleye moved into the Willow Creek arm of the reservoir and the lower end of Wil-low Creek, presuma-bly to spawn. Tagged wall-eye remained in Willow Creek until mid-May, and then returned to the reser-voir. After spawning, tagged fish spread through-out the reservoir, but gen-erally used the upper (south) half of the reservoir. As summer turned to fall, tagged walleye moved to-
wards the dam, congregat-ing near where the power lines cross the reservoir. This general movement pattern was consistent be-tween both years we tracked walleye. We were unable to track during the winter, so are unsure what additional movements they might make, but we have yet to hear any reports of ice anglers catching wall-eye.
There is no bag limit on walleye in Ririe Reservoir and their poten-tial impacts to the existing fishery are a concern.
Therefore, anglers are encour-aged to harvest all walleye they catch. For anglers targeting wall-eye, we suggest trying the Willow Creek arm of the reservoir as soon as ice out occurs. Concen-trate on the submerged Willow Creek channel, as it appears mi-grating walleye are using the channel as opposed to the shoreline. Walleye appear to be spawning in riffles just upstream from the mouth, before these areas are inun-dated as the reservoir fills. Recent changes to the fish-ing regulations have opened Willow Creek year-round to fishing (see current regula-tions for complete details). Although there is no limit on walleye during this new sea-son, trout fishing is strictly catch and release until Memorial Day Weekend.
Through late spring and summer, walleye may be tougher to find. Focus on the southern half of the reservoir. Tagged walleye generally occupied depths between 20 and 40 feet during summer and anglers should look for submerged rock points and shelves within this
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I've been trying to figure this one out for the last few years. I have yet to talk to someone that has claimed to actually have caught one themselves. It's always "my brothers room mate caught one last week" or "I saw one caught in another boat last year" (probably the most likely). The kid at the shack on the Blacktail side 2 years ago even said he was shown one a guy caught and that it was 27 inches! However I have yet to see a picture of a walleye with background that looks like it could even possibly be Ririe, including from F&G. I did see an article similar to the one cpierce posted but it also included where the main fish numbers were hanging throughout the year. I would love to get up in the willow creek arm and give it a shot this spring if I had a boat to motor in there reliably. A drift boat just doesn't cut it. So come April if anyone wants to target Ririe Walleye and needs company sent me a PM and I'd be thrilled to help.
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