Ester Reservoir

[pike_fisherman]

I have never fished here during the ice season, and think that it would be good opportunity for my kids to at least get into a bunch of small pike.  I know Nelson is only a little farther to drive from Billings, but want to make sure that they all get their first pike. 

Just wondering what others think.  Thanks in advance.

[mt.redneck]

I wouldn't know, I've never heard of it I think haha

[missoulafish]

Me either. You should add it to the reports page.

[SpitzoMT]

Edit: @ pike_fisherman - I posted this info in the "Want Us To Add A Lake" thread.

Never heard of it either. Searched it & found this.

Ester Lake, Northcentral Montana
Ester Lake (Phillips) Dam is on Big Warm Spring Creek in Phillips County, Montana and is used for irrigation purposes. Construction was completed in 1954. It has a normal surface area of 137 acres. It is owned by the State Of Montana, D.F.W.P.

Ester Lake (phillips) is of earthen construction. Its height is 8 feet with a length of 600 feet. Its capacity is 758 acre feet. Normal storage is 390 acre feet.

Size:  139 acres
Elevation:  2647 ft
Mtn Range:  Not in a Mtn Range
Wilderness Area:  Not in Wilderness Area
Directions:  Fifteen miles E of Lodgepole.
Township:  27N   Range:  27E   Section:  16
FWP Region:  Region 6
Fishing District:  Eastern Fishing District

Species Present

Game Fish Opportunities:Black Crappie, Northern Pike, Walleye, Yellow Perch All Species Present:Black Crappie, Common Carp, Fathead Minnow, Iowa Darter, Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Walleye, White Sucker, Yellow Perch

[pike_fisherman]

Was going to have it added last night but didn't know how to go about it.  Thanks for helping me out

[cauda1 pedunc1e]

Ester is neat. Fished it last ice season and caught a few 3lb pike and some nice perch. It is very clear and only has max depth of maybe 20 feet. For better numbers of small pike try nearby PR 161. Good luck!

[SpitzoMT]

Was going to have it added last night but didn't know how to go about it.  Thanks for helping me out

No problem p_f. Give us a report if you decide to try your luck there. Take care & good luck to ya !!

[pike_fisherman]

CP--I have friends that said they have caught some really nice crappie out of there as well but that was in early 2000-ish, so was just curious as the only time I have fished it was in June and we only caught some little snot rockets.

Spizo--I will post how it goes if we make it there.

Thanks again for all the help!

[wyogator]

I haven't fished it in  8 years.  I used to catch a lot of pike and carp.  I never did fish it through the ice.  It seems like it was always on hot summer days.

[wingnutty]

I fished it a few times both open water and hardwater.  Always caught lots of smallish pike.  I am sure there are bigger ones in there, but i never had the patience to keep at it.  Caught them both on a flyrod and in the winter on tipups.  Flags were constant, but they were all small.  Did fish it a little, looking for crappie, but never found um.  Have heard that there is some decent walleye fishing in there too, but never messed with it and I think it would be hard to target them under the ice cause you would be constantly having hammer handles trip your flags.  It is a big, mud-bottomed lake/pond, no real structure to speak of so kinda hard to find the walleye. 

[pike_fisherman]

Wingnutty--Thanks for the input.  My kids (10, 8, 8, and 3) have never caught pike so if figured this lake would be a good place for lots of action because of the snot rockets.

[wingnutty]

Oh yes, I don't think you'll suffer from lack of action.  My buddy and I left after a few hours cause we were sick of dealing with snot rockets that were using all our minnows. 

[pike_fisherman]

So what you are saying is I had better bring a couple buckets full of minnows!

[esoxchaser]

Oh yes, I don't think you'll suffer from lack of action.  My buddy and I left after a few hours cause we were sick of dealing with snot rockets that were using all our minnows.

Any ideas on how you would target the bigger northerns in these types of lakes?  Is it even possible?  I know with flies you can throw some monster flies to catch the bigger ones but even then you might catch more than enough snot rockets...

pike_fisherman - good luck up there, interested to see how it goes.  I fished Ester last spring while passing through the area.  Barely got my line wet, ended up napping in the truck while the wind howled.

[pike_fisherman]

Esoxchaser--I am going run some of my tip-ups with larger minnows (6-8 inches) and also plan on taking a spear house with me so that I can "select" for the bigger fish.

[SpitzoMT]

F.Y.I - Bean added this body of water to the Reports & Conditions page.

[pike_fisherman]

Thanks SpitzoMT for your help with this.  I do apologize for how I went about this post in the very beginning as I know some people get bent about it pretty easily!

[eyehunger]

If you want to target pike and you don't mind driving an hour further, head up to Medicine Lake. There is great Pike fishing. I would say anything from 4 to 9 pounds is common. People have caught a lot bigger fish than that though. Bring smelt. That works best on tipups.