South East Idaho Still Water Fly Fishing

IMG_7037 Lakes are our saving grace when the weather starts to warm and the run off gets rolling making the rivers tough to fish. We have a ton of really productive lakes and reservoirs close by that can keep you fishing while the rivers are high. The crew down here at SRF has put together some flies and info that will jump start your still water game as soon as ice off hits in the coming month.

Access:

The best way to approach a lake is having some sort of craft. Pontoons, float tubes, drift/jet boats, or our favorites the Maxxon and water master rafts. Being able to access the entire body of water and get to were the fish are holding is key and sometimes the banks just don't offer that. We have a couple of Water master rentals available at the shop for $40 bucks a day that will help make your next lake trip super productive.

The Fish:

The fish in lakes get BIG! Most still waters give every angler the opportunity to hook into the fish of a lifetime. Large amounts of food and hatches, Big body of water allows for substantial growth, and no current means no exercise so they get fat. Most of or lakes have a pretty diverse selection of trout and warm water species. a lot of lakes will hold Rainbows, Browns, Cutthroats, and Hybrids.

The Flies:

The insect life in lakes is crazy. Tons of different foods sources are available to the fish that call them home which gives us as fisherman a lot of options. Midges, leeches, damsels, bait fish, scuds, and snails are what you can plan on finding the fish feeding on. Notable fly patterns:
  • Zebra Midge
  • Balanced leeches ( Blue Pill, Burnt toast, Bugger style)
  • Hot spot scuds
  • standard buggers ( Black, Brown, olive)

Places to fish:

If your looking for trout our top recommendations are Hawkins, Chesterfield, and Springfield reservoirs. If your looking for the warm water fish such as bass our top picks would be Twin Lakes, Mctucker Ponds, and Alexander reservoir. IMG_6416

We hope this gets you pointed in the right directions for your next lake trip and if you have any other questions give us a ring down at the shop. (208) 904-3900.

You can find all of our top still water pattern tutorials on our YouTube channel and the materials to tie them in our online shop.


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