fourchette fortpeck

[save a walleye eat a wolf]

just was wondering how the road is getting into fourchette. and the ice conditions . heading up there this weekend March second

[hntrboy]

I was there last week from fri.-wed.....road in was great;road out was great.........lost 1.5 inches of ice on sat. it was 55 degrees. ice refroze and was fine when i left. watch the pressure ridges off the points!

[njoy]

and the fishing was? thanks!

[hntrboy]

Pike were on fire.........walleyes;slow.......good luck!

[save a walleye eat a wolf]

how thick was the ice .

[bndhunter]

Heading up that way myself on Friday, was there 2 weeks ago and had one of if not the best ice fishing trip ever. Hopeing for a repeat and that the ice is still solid.

[J_Edwards]

I'm thinking it will be fine for this weekend, but it's going to be a slushy, sloppy mess! See you there!

[bndhunter]

About what I am thinking too. When we were there 2 weeks ago it ended up doing the same thing.

[Lindy Rig]

Was there Friday-Monday.  Road was as good as it gets. Still 55 miles long.....

Ice should be good for another week, but the sun is starting to have an impact.  The area around the ramp is getting greasy. Saw a little open water in the handful of pressure ridges.  Nice mixed bag of fish. Throw a few of the fat female walleyes back.....good luck.

[J_Edwards]

Thanks!  Will be putting the females back too.

[bndhunter]

I'm thinking it will be fine for this weekend, but it's going to be a slushy, sloppy mess! See you there!

Do you like to fish the main lake on in Fourchette bay? This will only be my 2nd trip to Fourchette so I ma still learning the area.

[J_Edwards]

some of both, i'll send you a PM

[Lindy Rig]

FYI---heard that the CMR police were writing tickets yesterday for guys driving ATVs along shore.  Not sure if that was by the campground or guys going on shore to bypass pressure ridges.

[J_Edwards]

I just cleared the main body, I'd strongly recommend staying away.  Lots of water on the ice makes the shady stuff hard to reAd.

[Wenger]

FYI---heard that the CMR police were writing tickets yesterday for guys driving ATVs along shore.  Not sure if that was by the campground or guys going on shore to bypass pressure ridges.

If they are writing tickets for bypassing pressure ridges they need their badge number reported.

[Bullelk34]

FYI---heard that the CMR police were writing tickets yesterday for guys driving ATVs along shore.  Not sure if that was by the campground or guys going on shore to bypass pressure ridges.

They do every year- it is never OK to drive offroad on the CMR. They don't care if you can't reach safe ice or are avoiding unsafe ice, they care about protecting the CMR and if you drive offroad you will be cited.

[Wenger]

Driving on a beach to avoid unsafe ice is common sense, and should not be considered driving "off road" in my mind. What damage could be caused to a shale and gumbo beach that will either be under water or wave lashed within a couple months?

If going ashore is the only safe way to travel around a PR I will, and I know damned well if these public servants were required to travel on the ice for official business they would as well.

[J_Edwards]

I think it's pathetic.  You aren't hurting anything and they aren't protecting anything.

[beerhunter]

Amen brother!
God bless the CMR and respect it. It is invaluable. But under some situations things need to be ok to do.

[Bullelk34]

If I'm not mistaken, they were ticketing people for driving to the water at Crooked Creek when the ramp was high and dry. I agree you're not causing any damage driving on the beach, but they don't agree!

[J_Edwards]

They sure were.  I think it's ridiculous, I'm all for protecting the area, but those shores aren't being damaged.



Ps, nice sig

[Bullelk34]

Thanks

[Firetrap]

Bunch of crap

[sbschindler]

best thing to do is to get in touch with Testor and Baucus and tell them about it,, maybe they can apply some pressure,, this really is a no brainer its possible we could get some seasonal allowances,, the more letters or phone calls they get the better, lets get their numbers up and posted so we can start the ball rolling:: Here we go

Great falls office  testor 452-9585, Baucus 671-1574

Billings Office Testor 252-0550 Baucus  657  6790

Helena Office   Testor  449-5401  Baucus 449-5480

Bozeman  Testor 856-4450  Baucus  586-6104

[b wojo]

Apparently they dont take into consideration the high water mark... Either way its bs and shows those guys must be bored.     They cant show any compelling evidence of any long(or short)term damage even with multiple atvs driving over the same spot.  As soon as the water comes up or it rains any sign of travel like that is long gone...  I have had my share of contact with a couple of these guys at Slippery Ann a couple years ago while Paddle Fishing.  They came into our camp to check for licenses...   OK.... then in the course of asking me questions  "So, what do you do for work?" found out that I and most of our group were LEO's   Then the question became, "I suppose you are carrying a gun."   I said "always" because its required by my Office to either be carrying or have a weapon immediately available, and added that the others who were LEO's in my group were all carrying as well.  The, after I showed him my Office ID he asks "where is your gun"  which I told him was in my pocket.  He then asks "which pocket?"  I kooked at him with that look and just said REALLY??   I informed him that I could carry a weapon anywhere in any State (obviously with a few (very few) exceptions) in the United States and DC by law and this was not one of those exceptions, and was done.  He got that butt hurt look and he and his partner finally left.  I would think that they would have looked at us as allies to them as we have a duty to act if we observe criminal activity....They apparently saw us as potential threats.... They (some of them not all) really need to understand what exactly thier role is and how they fit into the system. 

[Wenger]

Exactly.

[Wenger]

best thing to do is to get in touch with Testor and Baucus and tell them about it,, maybe they can apply some pressure,, this really is a no brainer its possible we could get some seasonal allowances,, the more letters or phone calls they get the better, lets get their numbers up and posted so we can start the ball rolling:: Here we go

Great falls office  testor 452-9585, Baucus 671-1574

Billings Office Testor 252-0550 Baucus  657  6790

Helena Office   Testor  449-5401  Baucus 449-5480

Bozeman  Testor 856-4450  Baucus  586-6104

I learned that calling is the way to go because once these offices get a hold of your email it is nonstop campaign spam disguised as "keeping you informed".

[icefich]

Well, well said wojo! Thank you for putting into words how most of us feel. I might add, also, that it is comforting to hear this coming from a law enforcement officer as well!
Ron

[TJet Apprentice45]

Here's an article from the gazette earlier this winter... seems to contradict a CMR warden writting a ticket to some one for using common sense to avoid a pressure ridge.  According to the Corps. of engineers Quote "  Driving along the shoreline between the frozen lake and the high water mark is not allowed, except to navigate around an ice pressure ridge or open water by the shortest and most direct route, not to exceed one-eighth of a mile."
CMR Wardens are a joke IMO, never have had a pleasant run in with any of them.. even when they come into camp to check things out they're a bunch of pricks.

Read more: http://billingsgazette.com/lifestyles/recreation/winter-tips-offered-for-safe-travel-on-fort-peck/article_ec8e4740-165b-5c56-a2a2-71fed6df799f.html#ixzz2MXOuCcSU

http://billingsgazette.com/lifestyles/recreation/winter-tips-offered-for-safe-travel-on-fort-peck/article_ec8e4740-165b-5c56-a2a2-71fed6df799f.html

[Firetrap]

Hope I never run into them. I can be not so friendly sometimes when people are being dicks. No reason for an LEO to act that way right off the bat.