Fishing with moose and coots.

Yesterday, my son-in-law, Jesse, and I went fishing on Henrys Lake.  We had a wonderful time and the full report can be found on http://billschiessfishing.blgspot.com/.  We got some spawning brook trout and saw some amazing wildlife.  Here is a male spawning brooktrout over five pounds that Jesse caught.

Canada geese flew over us several times.

Coots were working the shore and we saw seven moose along the shoreline.  Here is a young bull that was feeding in the willows as we were fishing.

Just another great day in the wilds of Idaho.

Memorial Weekend means fishing.

Last Friday I fished for the first time since March and it was the first fly fishing of the season for me.  It was rainy and cold or should I say it was rainy-snow and cold.  I had most of Island Park Reservoir to myself and a few fish were hitting.  The surprise of the day was an 18 inch brook trout that hit my Beadhead Electric Leech.

Getting soaked three times in two hours was not that much fun, but the seven fish caught was a great way to spend another wild day in Idaho.

First ice fishing trip of the season

Yesterday evening I went to Henrys Lake for my first ice fishing trip of the year.  Several people had done well on Sunday and Monday on ice only about 2 inches thick.  With the cold weather I decided to try it.  It was abou 40 degrees and it looked like some of the ice was getting in bad shape around Staley Springs.  Here a group of fishermen are on the ice just yards from open water.  Some of them had trouble getting off the ice because the edge melted.

So I drove to the County Boat dock where the ice was from three to four inches thick.  The Fish and Game reported that the fishing and the ice was better in that area.  I met a neighbor with a large four pound brook

trout.

By the time I got to fishing, it had slowed down, but I did manage to catch three before it got dark.  It was an enjoyable evening and a great way to start the ice fishing season.  Henrys Lake will close to fishing on Nov. 30, so I will have to make a couple more trips up there.

At four inches the ice is safe for even little kids to get on the ice.

Just another wild day in Idaho

Skywatch #2 - Island Park - Henrys Lake

This morning I got up at 4:45 to go to Henrys Lake fishing.  It was partly cloudy and I figured the colors would be fantastic with the sunrise.  I got to the Buffalo River just as the east started to color up.  The deep blue sky with the sun reflecting off the thin clouds was a sight to behold.

Bob, Harry and Ed was already on the water and Bob in the far boat is landing a nice trout.  But the beautiful sunrise beckened me to take a few more pictures.

Here the sun is about to peek over the eastern mountains as verga (rain that does not hit the ground) forms a ray of light shooting up into the cloud.

Sawtelle Mountain stands black on the south side of the lake against the colored sky.

Even without being the first boat on the lake, the fishing was great with brook trout, hybrids and cutthroats coming regularly to my flies.  The best fly was the Light Olive Crystal with the Mity Mouse a close second.  This male 18 inch brook trout has already dawned his spawning colors.  The belly was as orange as the early morning sky.

On the way home I had to stop at Swan Lake near Last Chance to look for the Trumpeter swans, but they had gone elsewhere.

Another beautiful wild day in Idaho.

Fishing Henrys Lake

Yesterday I guided Jim and Jeff from California on Henrys Lake. It was the best fishing day we have had this year. Both are expert fly fishermen and can cast full sinking lines.

We were fishing Targhee Creek mouth and caught a lot of nice brook trout up to 21 inches. But the fish of the day was Jim's 24 inch hybrid and Jeff's 28 inch hybrid.

We caught fish on the Mity Mouse, Hot Chocolate, RC and Light Olive CBs. We had a great time.

Fishing Henrys Lake, again

Last Wednesday I ran up to Henrys Lake to try to see if the fishing had picked up. I started fishing at 5:30 and caught seven by 7. Then I spent the next four hours catching only two. This is typical after the weather warms up and we have afternoon thunderstorms roll through mixing things up.

Seven of the nine fish were brook trout with several in the 18 inch range.

I watched the guru of the lake, Harry Tupper, catch three fish while I did not catch any. He is a master of small flies and light tippets.

I spent some time taking pictures of birds on the way home. The experience of the day was watching a male osprey feeding the female while she sat on the nest. The young should soon hatch and then both parent will be very busy feeding the hungry, growing young birds. I will be exciting to watch that action.

Bringing in the food and then feeding the nest-sitter.