Jarbidge River - Murphy Hot Springs

[timbondy]

Anyone ever fish the Jarbidge River near Murphy Hot Springs, Idaho? Can you give me any idea what the hike is like getting into the river canyon? Would it be worth fishing in the next few weeks or is there even enough water in the river to support fish at this foothills location?
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[idahopanfish]

I have not fished the river but it has a 2 trout limit and the bulltrout is protected there. I believe the river access is right off the road so should have many access points.
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[riverdog]

I've only fished it further upstream several years ago. I was hoping to catch a bull trout. Lots of small trout but no bull trout. Let us know what you catch if you go.
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[timbondy]

Riverdog...I was wondering about access to the Jarbidge "further upstream". How far upstream did you go and is "private property" a problem as far as getting to possible fishing/wading spots?
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[riverdog]

I fished the main Jarbidge in the Humbolt Nat. Forest 5 - 10 miles south of the Idaho Nevada line. Plenty of good access. Is Murphy Hot Springs on the East Fork? If so I'm not to sure about access upstream of that.
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[riverdog]

I looked at the map Murphy hot springs is by the East Fork of the Jarbidge. I recall driving over and trying to find access to the East Fork one morning when camping on the Jarbidge. Didn't look too long but I couldn't find any. Did fish just along the state border that day as well. I think all the fish I caught were cutthroat if I recall correctly.
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[timbondy]

Riverdog: Thanks for the interest and post. I looked at the Jarbidge Rivers from "Google Earth". The East Fork certainly does look rather inaccessible from Murphy Hot Spring and upstream (southeastward) as the road is well above the canyon floor.

The main branch of the Jarbidge River appears to follow the road and looks more inviting. That is, the road looks to be inside the canyon for most of the way to the Idaho/NV border.

I'll be looking at BLM maps of the area to determine if the land is private along that 5 mile stretch...ID/NV border to the confluence of the Jarbidge and East Fork. This sounds like a good spring trip for me.

Thanks riverdog, you got me thinking the right way about planning this trip.
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