Clark Canyon Ice

[RugerRuby53]

Hey BigSky, Tanner and I crushed them last night, we are not far from where you are  talking, i found a spot where a fairly clear bottom meets up with a heavy boulder slide... We limited out in a few hours, but kept fishin catch and release.. We had action all night! The boy once again had the hot hole.. he had two on the shack's floor before i even got my rods down! LOL! I have fished where you are talking about in the 80 feet part last year, and there were a handful of shacks parked there. No body was doing too well, but one night some guys from Whitehall were out in the wind with no shack, and a big bonfire, and they landed three very respectable fish! I think Tanner and i got something figured out finally!:)

[Bigskyokie]

Super!  Wish I could be there with you.  I had to settle for float tubing this afternoon.  20 crappie, 3 drum, 1 sandy, and two very cold feet.  Good thing crappie fillets are almost as tasty as ling.

[grandTheft]

Hey BigSky, Tanner and I crushed them last night, we are not far from where you are  talking, i found a spot where a fairly clear bottom meets up with a heavy boulder slide... We limited out in a few hours, but kept fishin catch and release.. We had action all night! The boy once again had the hot hole.. he had two on the shack's floor before i even got my rods down! LOL! I have fished where you are talking about in the 80 feet part last year, and there were a handful of shacks parked there. No body was doing too well, but one night some guys from Whitehall were out in the wind with no shack, and a big bonfire, and they landed three very respectable fish! I think Tanner and i got something figured out finally!:)

Just a heads up. You can get a ticket if you keep catching fish when you have your limit. Even if you are doing catch and release. My uncle got a ticket a couple years ago for being over his limit doing the same thing.

[Bigskyokie]

Hey grandTheft,

Good heads up.  Some states will allow and others won't.  Some times it depends on the the species or the body of water.  We have many city water supply lakes here, and the rules are different at each.  My practice has been to not put the limit in the cooler, on the stringer, or livewell or whatever.  Get close to the limit and then start releasing.  When ready to leave, I keep the last fish or two and go home.  If culling is strictly forbidden, it's time to fish for another species.

[RugerRuby53]

Hey GrandTheft, thanks for the info, i have never heard of anyone getting into trouble for that around here, the fly fisherman do it all the time. But that is certainly worth looking into! Also Big sky, when i cleaned out those fish this weekend, i looked in their bellies, and boy did i find something interesting... I found carp scales in one! Big carp scales! and in another i found some corn, and little crawdads in another and some had the little greenish bug paste. 

[missoulafish]

limited on ling, kept fishing for trout.

[Bigskyokie]

Ruger,

We almost always found crawdads and the green bugs in the ling.  I'm pretty sure the bugs are chironomids.  This past summer, a biologist told me that they were the main food source for fish at CC.  We quite often found small trout, but never carp scales.  Of course, there were no carp in the lake in the 60's and 70's.
The ling really enjoyed it when the Fish and Wildlife used to plant small fry.  There were two times we were at the lake when they released the fry.  Both times, the ling and large trout boiled the water as they chowed down on the fry.  F&G switched to planting 8 inchers.  Wish they still planted the LaHontan-Pend'Oreilles (sp?).  They were much larger and more aggressive. 

[Bigskyokie]

Ruger,

Just a picture of the grandson with his big channel cat.  It was probably twice the size of the lake record and just over the state record, but his grandpa didn't think to have it certified.  He wants to come to Montana to icefish with me.  Someday.

[Wapiti406]

http://www.usbr.gov/gp-bin/arcweb_ccr.pl

Something to think about.  A few days ago they cut back the outflow of the reservoir in an effort to fill it before summer.  Lake elevation has risen a few feet since the beginning of February.  I imagine it will start rising a bit faster now.  Looks like the end is in sight for good ice.

[grandTheft]

Anyone know how the ice is? was thinking of going tomorrow.

Thanks

[RugerRuby53]

BigSky, that is one happy kid! (and one hell of a fish) I took the boy and one of his friends out fishin the other night, and it was a disaster.. I should have just stayed at work and kept laying tile... It was one thing after the next...We get to the lake, just before dark (we were running a little late) and there is 6" of sloppy now/slush on top of the ice... Then i get to my shack, and it is some how frozen down. so i use the 4-wheeler and knock it around and get it loose. I have a hell of   time moving it to a new spot to try. So i get all the holes drilled and go to fire up the lantern, only to find out that i had broken the globe and mantles when knocking the shack around with my 4-wheeler... So i had to jimmy rig the globe and run off of one mantle i found in the bottom of my tackle box... Well we finally got to fishing and got skunked.... What a night.... I am thinking about bringing the shack home this week for the year.... Especially after reading what McJigger posted.

[RugerRuby53]

GrandTheft, it was plenty thick where we were (about 20 inches), in some spots the shorelines were a little tricky to get on and off.. the snow on top if the ice has a thin crusty layer, and underneath is a wet slushy snow. Wear good boots if you plan on going.. You will get wet!

 

[Bigskyokie]

Ruger,

Sounds as if you had one of those trips that you need once in awhile.  When everything goes great every time, you can get complacent and not appreciate the good times.  Besides, this is the kind of story (disaster) that is more interesting than "We got some fish".  If we ever get to fish together, remind me to tell you about my buddy killing his car with one shot, or the night my high school buddies and I missed the Rainbow Formal because we were stuck on a mountain top, etc., etc.
Moving the shack might be a good idea.  There were two years (long ago) that they raised the lake level fairly rapidly.  We put a lot of 2x12s out there to get onto the ice.  The gap gradually widened until we couldn't get out.
Better luck next time!

[RugerRuby53]

BigSky, its official.... Today I pulled the shack off the lake for the year.. Im done. Its a bummer, since Tanner and i have so much fun, but we had a good year, and the way the weather has been lately plus work is picking up, i felt that it was for the best.. Better to be safe than sorry... I learned that lesson many years ago when i went to get the shack off the lake one early spring and it was floating in the hole it had melted through the ice!   Not far from now, i will be out on the lake in the pontoon boat bow fishing the carp! I am confident that we will fish together next time you get too dillon! I went down a few runs up at Maverick with your brother and his daughter Lisa and some of the kids last Sunday... Good times!

[Bigskyokie]

Hey Ruger,

Here is a post I made on another thread.  Thought you might get a kick out of it.  True story.


You never know what will result from helping someone to learn fishing.  My wife and I took a lot of kids out camping, fishing, and hunting when we were younger.  Many of them have become lifelong outdoors men and women.  This past summer, we took our youngest daughter's boyfriend to Dillon, Montana.  He had never fished before.  We practiced fly casting for about 15 minutes in the front yard, then hit the Beaverhead.  He did not learn to cast efficiently but did manage to get three browns, all about 18-19 inches.  We then took him float tubing at Reservoir Lake.  He got a nice mess of 12-15 inch brookies.

Result:   When they got back Oklahoma City, he got out his mother's engagement and wedding rings and proposed.  She insists that it wasn't because he figures he will get to do more fishing with me if he marries her. 

[RugerRuby53]

BigSky that is great! He is wiser beyond his years!

[squeeky 1]

Never fished Clark canyon any insight as to lures or bait.thank you