East Bay, Flathead Lake

[coldcreekchris]

would imagine there is a solid foot of snow in the east bay....soft fluffy snow...but with the warmer temps...it could get a little sticky.....the ice in east bay will be solid for a long time......if you are are thinking of making a  vacation...make sure you fish lmr.....east bay can be hit and miss....sometimes you hike out a mile to the middle of the bay...with varying results.....and catch a hog or two in 2 ft of water on the way back....it is a beautiful place to fish.....but I don't know if I would recommend it as a destination.....it gets better if you have side fish outings to places like lmr...etc... and if you are in area when the bird refuges are open fishin... then yes....good destination spot.....I have caught 12 pound lake trout in 2 feet of water in east bay.. I have also spent 6 hrs catching nothing but 6 inch perch in the same area.....good luck!!!!!

[coldcreekchris]

They are swimming stomachs, you are over thinking it. I've never seen them not hit anything you put in fron of their faces in east bay. I can think of several times I have had a Mac come in and inhale a jig, I set the hook and since the water is so shallow they pop right up to the ice and come off. I've put the jig right back down the hole and they will hit once and sometimes a couple more time.
As far as ice....just keep an eye on the weather and the reports page. All the ice gained last week could be gone by next week.....
[I am really impressed how you catch those hogs in such shallow water.....your pics are amazizing...whenever I hook a fish over 5 lbs in less than four feet of water... I'm screwed...somehow you still seem to land em.....quite impressive m fish..maybe someday I will figure out how to get those hogs out in shallow water!!!!/quote]

[PJB_Montana]

Any ice updates on East bay or Polson bay? Thanks guys.

[pablodt]

Any ice updates on East bay or Polson bay? Thanks guys.

There were a few guys on East Bay yesterday. Polson Bay needs another cold snap so you can fish out in front of the Resort.

[PJB_Montana]

thank you very much!

[PJB_Montana]

Do you know what road to take to get access to East Bay? I was just going to head down tomorrow morning and hope it's posted. 

[The Rezerend]

ducharme lane on the south end of the bay off 35 not sure bout any others

[Hydro]

Do you know what road to take to get access to East Bay? I was just going to head down tomorrow morning and hope it's posted. 

Just look for the Ducharme Fishing Access Site sign, it is a mile or two east of Polson.  If you find yourself traveling north, you have gone too far.

[PJB_Montana]

Thanks a lot for the info. Fished it this past weekend. A few other peoples were out there but no one got into any lake trout on saturday. Ice was 12' thick though and a few atvs were out there. 

[Cold toes]

12"!! Holy cow. Most i've ever seen was 5"

[PJB_Montana]

It was my first time there...no one mentioned I had to hoof a mile out into the bay. Haha! My first hole I thought I struck oil. 

[MT204]

Been there done that.

[Hydro]

12"!! Holy cow. Most i've ever seen was 5"

I was out there on Sunday and the ice was about 7 inches thick, I drilled a lot of holes and the thickness was very consistent.  Lake trout fishing was very slooooow.

[Cold toes]

I'll have to give it a shot later this week. Hopefully better fishing.

[JRJ3348]

Headed to East Bay tomorrow...Zimmer said the ice is good & they've been catching more perch than in the past 2 years (but that's not saying much according to him), and seeing lots of macs, but fishing has been slow, macs pretty lethargic & not very cooperative.  Will update after.

[JRJ3348]

Well, we hit east bay today. Got a late start thanks to our guests being hungover:) Had a solid 7"-8", no water on top, which was a plus. Fishing was awesome, catching, not so much:) Fun day, at least.

[TooLucky406]

Also fish East Bay today. Have full report on the Fishing Report and Ice condition page, but as JR mention ice is solid 8", but bring your cleats. No snow on top except for few patches here and there.

[Cold toes]

Too Lucky, What kind of tip ups are you using/prefer? Looking to add a few more to my arsenal and most of the time my tip ups get used for lakers.

[TooLucky406]

Cold toes,

I use the Frabill Pro-Thermal Tip-up (Orange). Main reason I use them is that they keep your hole from freezing up and they're inexpensive. Fit nicely in a five gallon bucket. Been using them for six season now and so far no issue. Only complaint is that if you set the tip-up really far apart, the flags are hard to see (not long/high enough). They do make an extended flag version, but not sold locally around here. FYI... Works better in a 10" hole and I use 50-80lb braided line too.

[Cold toes]

That's why I've gone with the HT thermals because they have an extendable flag. I too like to spread my tip ups out. I would get more but no one in town sells them. The short flag on the Frabills worry me. Do you have many drop the bait? I had a few the other day run 10-15ft then drop it.

[oldschoolben]

It was my first time there...no one mentioned I had to hoof a mile out into the bay. Haha! My first hole I thought I struck oil. 

lol ya it can be a long walk thats for sure can be worth it tho

[TooLucky406]

As far as drops, I'll say not many.  Maybe 1 every 20 flags this year so far. I make my own quick strike rig with size 2 treble hooks. Seem to stay on, when I notice my flag! 

[Golden Trout]

Hello everybody.  I have never ice fished Flathead at east bay before.  If I do what should I except to catch, also how far out does the ice go? 

To my best guess you are all going for lake trout?  Please do correct me if I am wrong. 

[JayHelfrich]

That's why I've gone with the HT thermals because they have an extendable flag. I too like to spread my tip ups out. I would get more but no one in town sells them. The short flag on the Frabills worry me. Do you have many drop the bait? I had a few the other day run 10-15ft then drop it.

I hate the HT thermals as I have had 4 of them and all of them snapped off the extendable flag.

Jay

[Cold toes]

I hate the HT thermals as I have had 4 of them and all of them snapped off the extendable flag.

Jay

Huh, haven't had one snap yet. Where do they break at? What kind of tip ups do you like Jay?

[JayHelfrich]

Huh, haven't had one snap yet. Where do they break at? What kind of tip ups do you like Jay?

They have broken right on the last joint  then you've got no flag just a rod.  I rednecked a flag outta duct tape but I still don't like them.  My favorite are the pink HT ones.  Next would be the black Frabill thermal ones.

Jay