Chesterfield?

[wiperhunter2]

I heard some good reports from a guy that caught a few 20 inch bows earlier this year. I'm thinking the field might be coming back after the lake dried up a few years back. Anyone got any up to date info on how close the lake is from freezing? WH2
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[slimerslayer]

I truly missed fishin Chesterfield the last couple of years.Hard to match the size of those big bows.I'd love to hear a report also if anybody knows anything.Let's hear it Idaho!!!
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[windriver]

I do not have any report but I do love chesterfield and I miss fishing their. I am hoping it is back by this summer.

Windriver
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[BrianID]

Chesterfield had ice on about half of the reservoir around the 20th of November. I have heard a couple reports of Chesterfield being completely ice coved just after Thanksgiving. Taking into account the below zero temps we have had recently there should be safe ice on Chesterfield but I haven't heard of anyone fishing through the ice there this winter.

I hope I'm wrong but I think your friend is stretching the truth. There should be a good number of fish over 15" in Chesterfield but not very many that are much over the 17" mark. Anglers have been catching a few pushing 17 inches out of Chesterfield recently but I haven't heard of anything that measures 18" or larger. The F&G didn't plant Chesterfield in 2003 or 2004. There would be almost no natural reproduction because all of the rainbows the F&G planted in 2001 and 2002 were triploids. No fish were expected to carry over the last couple years. If someone is telling you that they are catching multiple fish around or larger than 20" this winter from Chesterfield then they are not measuring the fish or they are fishing somewhere else. I'm sure there are a few hawg rainbows that have squeezed through the bottleneck the last couple winters but there wouldn't be many. Like I said earlier I hope I'm wrong but I would certainly be skeptical.

It will take a couple more years before there are quality fish in Chesterfield. Lets just hope it doesn't get drained this next irrigation season.

Here's something from the F&G's website had posted about three months ago.

The best fishing news in the region is that the Portneuf-Marsh Valley Canal Company did anglers a big favor by leaving 28% of Chesterfield Reservoir's storage capacity when they ended their irrigation season on August 20. Frequent rains from March through June delayed the beginning of the 2005 irrigation season and helped with refill (although Chesterfield Reservoir only filled to 58% of capacity). Also, leaving water in the reservoir after watering grain and a second crop of hay is good insurance for next year's crop in case drought conditions return this winter. In June, The Fish and Game Department planted 25, 280 catchable-size and 11,540 fingerling rainbow trout in Chesterfield Reservoir. Anglers using a variety of fishing techniques have been doing well at Chesterfield Reservoir. During the recent drought years of 2001-2004, Chesterfield Reservoir was drained annually so there are no carry-over trout in Chesterfield Reservoir this fall. Trout that anglers were catching near the end of August were about 12 to 13 inches long. These fish will likely reach 14 to 15 inches by the beginning of the ice-fishing season. The creel limit at Chesterfield Reservoir is two trout. This rule is intended to increase the abundance and anglers' catch rate of large trout.

Here's a link to what I posted from the F&G's website.
[url "http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/fish/reports/southeast.cfm"]http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/fish/reports/southeast.cfm[/url]
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[wiperhunter2]

Thanks for the info Brian, I heard about the 20 inchers from a second hand source. I did not believe it but I thought it was worth checking out. I was hoping someone had some up to date info, so thanks again. Wiperslayer and I are thinking about making taking a trip up there next weekend, maybe we will just go some where closer. WH2
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[killperch]

next summer will tell us alot. Hope the water holds
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[BrianID]

Good to see that you registered. This time two years from know Chesterfield could have some very nice fish. It is still a little early but the snow pack is looking good.
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[wiperhunter2]

Thanks for the update Guest, after reading Brian's post we decided not to go to Chesterfield, we made a trip to Bear lake instead. From the sound of your report, we made the right choice. If you were using a fish finder did you mark many fish? WH2
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[BrianID]

Guest,

Thanks for the report. Catching just the one fish is always better than getting skunked. I hope you come back and post often. If you haven't registed a username yet here's a link.
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/community/community.cgi?do=user_signup"][/url][size 1] [/size]
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[PortneufFisher]

There's going to be an ice fishing contest on Chesterfield Jan 24. Only $20 entrance fee. Check out the link
[url "http://www.isu.edu/departments/strmecol/pdf_docs/IceDerbyRegistration.pdf"]http://www.isu.edu/departments/strmecol/pdf_docs/IceDerbyRegistration.pdf[/url]
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[maghunter]

Does anybody have a more recent update on the fishing at Chesterfield? If the fishing is as bad as the previous posts who's going to want to pay $20 bucks to fish there. Although last year we had a good time down there we didn't catch any big ones, but the ones we did catch sure tasted good.
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[fearnofish1996]

i talked to a guy that was fishing at devils creek and he had been to chesterfield the day before and he said they couldnt keep the fish off their line. i think the fishing will be really good but i dont know what size they will be.
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[maghunter]

Thanks I might have to head south Saturday and give it a try. Even though the limit is only two, They taste better than anything you can buy from a store or order from a restaurant. By far the best eating Rainbows I've ever had.
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[chrome_junky]

best eating trout out their? thats hard to say. chesterfield is good but i personally think rainbows from the blackfoot or wild fish from island park are as tasty as they get. also if you can get into a bunch of bows on the south fork those are good eating fish. i guess i just like fish.
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[wiperhunter2]

It is interesting to see a post brought up that is over three years old, I was wondering why I got a reply to a post that I had not made, then I noticed it was from 2005[crazy]. I guess this guy just wants to advertise his tournament.
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[packfish]

Last year thru the ice there was a guy at work that said he tossed his bows out of Chesterfield after cooking them because the tasted like a ball of moss.
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[wiperhunter2]

That has been my experience from fishing Chesterfield but that is limited. A lot of mossy tasting fish but it could be different depending on the season. If your fishing in a tournament, I guess it doesn't matter as much[]. WH2
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[OKIFIDO]

I will vouch for maghunter as far as the eating quality of the Chesterfield Bows. I was with him last winter when we got our first taste of Chesterfield trout. They were plump with bright red meat. I think they were almost as good as the trout from Henry's we got early last spring.
It might have been an unusual year, but they were sure nice eating fish. I want to get some more tomorrow. I hear it's the shrimp they eat that gives them the color, like a sockeye salmon.
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[wiperhunter2]

The late summer around Sept is when I have caught the mossy tasting fish, there is a lot of moss or alage in the water, so I'm sure that has something to do with it. Maybe it was just that year when the water was low but I never went back that time of the year again[unimpressed]. By the way welcome to the site OKIFIDO
WH2
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[chrome_junky]

it is fresh water shrimp same in the blackfoot river.
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