12-10-2005, 03:18 AM
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]
[signature]
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]
[signature]